Journal Entry – Week 10

Companions on your Journey

In chapter 4 of “A Field Guide for the Hero’s Journey,” Jeff Sandefer teaches about the importance of choosing the right companions for our journey. The first portion of chapter 4 ends by saying, “As you sow, so shall you reap.” This reminded me of an experience I had over 23 years ago. I was very pregnant with my third child, I was exhausted, very uncomfortable, and just didn’t feel very attractive. One Sunday, I walked into my Ward Council meeting early where a few men were setting up chairs prior to the start of the meeting. When I walked in the room, one of them said, “Well hello beautiful.” I got all teary-eyed and said, “We need to have these meetings more often…that was such a nice thing to say!” to which he responded, “Nice begets nice.” I have never forgotten that. It supports what my father always taught me about catching more bees with honey than with vinegar. If we are going to be successful and really enjoy this journey we are on, it behooves us to be kind and to surround ourselves with others who are kind.

I also appreciated the advice to surround ourselves with people whose strengths can make up for our weaknesses, and vice versa (Sandefer, J. 2012, p. 53) Last week, in our entrepreneurial interviews, the man I interviewed told me that he surrounds himself with people who are smarter than he is so that he can leave them to run his various businesses, giving him the freedom to explore new adventures. It is wise to allow others to shine where we might lack the needed skills or talents rather than trying to extinguish their light to make ourselves look better. We can accomplish so much more when we work together and learn from each other in an attitude of respect.

In a video titled “Think Big” by Taylor Richards he stresses the importance striving for greatness. He warns that we should not underestimate ourselves and that it is no harder to be great than it is to be good.

Marissa Mayer discussed the idea of devoting 20% of our time, and that of our employees, to creative projects. She says that when you combine really great people, really great tools, and the freedom to pursue something creative the result is innovation.

Jim Ritchie, in discussing Your Emotional Fingerprint, shared an old Cherokee parable that I have always loved about wolves. He said there is a battle in each of us between two wolves. One wolf is full of goodness, love, truth, and all things worthy. The other is full of lies, anger, pride and all things evil. Which one wins the battle? The one you feed!

In a talk given by Dallin H. Oaks titled, “The Challenge to Become,” he teaches that “it is not…enough for us to be convinced of the gospel; we must act and think so that we are converted by it.” He explains this further by sharing the difference between testimony and conversion. To have a testimony means to know and declare. To be converted is to do and become.

Lastly, in the article titled, “The Heart of Entrepreneurship,” by Howard H. Stevenson and David E. Gumpert, we learn about the Manager’s Opportunity Matrix.

		Desired future state characterized by growth or change
		Yes	No
Self-perceived power and ability to realize goals	Yes	Entrepreneur	Satisfied Manager
	No	Frustrated potential entrepreneur	Consummate bureaucratic functionary

I thought this visual was very helpful. It is interesting to analyze this and find what quadrant we find ourselves in. For many years I had entrepreneurial ideas, but no self-confidence. I did not feel that I had the power to realize my goals. Though I had many years of growth and change as a stay at home mother, it wasn’t until I started school with BYU-Idaho that I felt that I was growing in a way that would benefit me in my entrepreneurial goals. School has also helped me feel empowered and increased my self-confidence and I feel like I can succeed at whatever I put my mind to.

References

Sandefer, J. & Sirico, R. (2012). A field guide for the hero’s journey. Grand Rapids, MI: Acton Institute