Breakthrough

Newsletter

VOLUME XVII ISSUE NO.1 | JANUARY 2025

Breakthrough

"Productive insight; clear (often sudden) understanding of a complex situation." Free Dictionary

Pop the bubble of conditioned thinking and emerge into the creative realm of "no absolutes," continuous change, uncertainty and unlimited possibilities.

Then, there can be innovation, adaptation and optimal performance.

Performance and Open-minded Mindfulness

Open-minded: questioning everything, accepting diversity and uncertainty.

Mindful: consciously aware; concentrated.

Foundation for blending process, project, engagement and knowledge management into a cohesive approach to optimize performance.

Our Stories Save Us from Uncertainty

By George Pitagorsky

I saw a pink carnation on the ground in the heart of NYC and I thought, "Where is it from and where is it bound?" Then I remembered last month’s article and the way we use stories.

Stories

On the surface, it's simple: the flower comes from a seed and is bound for the trash. As for me, I am from the womb and bound for a tomb. I am going from errand one to errand two, and then home (unless something happens to change the plan).

We complicate it with stories - creation, culture, family, heaven, next lives, hell - to soothe the need for knowledge and certainty. With our stories, we seek answers to questions that have none. When uncertainty threatens, we adopt other people’s stories or create our own.

The stories become beliefs, values, and intentions. Some make us feel good, some make us feel angry, sad, or scared.

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Coaching – Wellness, Mindfulness, Self-Awareness, Performance

If you feel that you can be happier and more effective but something is in the way, consider coaching by George Pitagorsky.

Whether it is a session or two, or a longer or more structured program, George can help you break through the barriers and transform your life.

Schedule an appointment to explore whether a coaching relationship is right for you.

www.self-awareliving.com

Check out my book The Peaceful Warrior's Path: Optimal Wellness through Self-Aware Living

Ok With Uncertainty

If we are ok with uncertainty, there is no need for stories. We get to see what happens.

We can taste a moment of boundless, beginningless, endless, clear, and empty Absolute Awareness. All things arise and pass away. We accept uncertainty, change, not-knowing, and all the events, thoughts, and feelings that drive us.

Then, we can choose to take on skillful beliefs. We can develop faith in a process that cultivates ever-increasing moments of just being present, accepting things as they are, and letting go of the need to know the future. We can question and adjust to make sure we are heading in the right direction.

Open-mindedness

A soothing story feels good and may create just the right conditions for a peaceful life and death. It becomes a belief. Unquestioned belief in a story becomes a life raft.

However, blind faith may get in the way of living a happy and fulfilling life. Doubt creeps in. We are disappointed when we find out our unquestioned belief is fiction. Faith in unquestioned belief creates conflict among believers with different stories. It gets in the way of growth and improvement. With certainty, there is no room for questioning.

Open-minded faith invites "skillful doubt", the questioning that helps us differentiate between delusion and reality.

Beware

But beware, reality can be scary. Those who question beliefs are often labeled as dangerous heretics. They have, over the centuries, been shunned, tortured, burned at the stake, and imprisoned. Laws have been enacted to protect the favored "story".

And if you debunk the stories that help others cope, you may not be helping them. It is up to each person to choose unquestioned belief or open-mindedness.

If you choose open-mindedness, you face the consequences of letting go of your life raft. You must become comfortable with uncertainty.

Relief from Worry

For peace of mind stop worrying and trying to answer the unanswerable questions. Accept things as they are and let go of the need for certainty about how they got to be that way and where they are going.

The power of accepting and letting go, of course, is also a belief to be tested. If it feels right, continue and see what happens. It’s up to you and you alone to choose the story that will free you from the need for stories.

Not So Easy

That may sound easy. But it isn't. It requires persistent effort and the courage to give up your life raft and rely on your ability to swim, knowing you will be ok no matter what.

For a guide on how to accept and let go, check out The Peaceful Warrior's Path: Optimal Wellness through Self-Aware Living https://www.amazon.com/Peaceful-Warriors-Path-Wellness-Self-Aware/dp/1952943272.

Visit www.Self-AwareLiving.com.

The Peaceful Warriors Path: Optimal Wellness through Self-Aware Living

Overcome stress. Perform at your best. Live in optimal wellness.

The Peaceful Warrior's Path is a practical guide for people of all ages, regardless of physical condition. It provides concepts, tools, techniques, and exercises that you can use every day, no matter where you are or what you are doing, to promote a sense of ease rather than angst. It is a motivational program for living resiliently, ready for anything, with health, happiness, and success, passionately involved and at peace with things as they are-and doing it ethically with kindness and compassion.

When it comes to becoming happier and more effective, what matters is your intention, how open-minded you are, and your willingness to work on yourself to change your mind and open your heart. With the right mindset, intention, and effort you might just experience enlightenment.

The Peaceful Warrior's Path weaves together self-awareness, mindfulness, meditation, stress management, and relaxation techniques, and emotional, spiritual, and social intelligence to sustain optimal wellness and enhance performance in whatever you do.

The Peaceful Warrior’s Path: Optimal Wellness through Self-Aware Living

How to be Happy Even When You Are Sad, Mad or Scared:

How to be happy...How to be Happy Even When You Are Sad, Mad or Scared is available on Amazon.com. It is a book for children of all ages (including those in adult bodies). Buy it for the children in your life so they can be better able to “feel and deal” - feel and accept their emotions and deal with them in a way that avoids being driven by them. You can order the book at https://www.amazon.com/How-Happy-Even-When-Scared/dp/1072233363

Performance and Open-minded Mindfulness

Open-minded: questioning everything, accepting diversity and uncertainty.

Mindful: consciously aware; concentrated.

Foundation for blending process, project, engagement and knowledge management into a cohesive approach to optimize performance.

Managing Expectations: A Mindful Approach to Achieving Success

By George Pitagorsky

Success is measured in how well and how regularly you meet expectations. But what exactly \are expectations, and how do you effectively manage them when multiple priorities and personalities are involaved?

Using the case study of a Project Manager coordinating an organizational transition, this Managing Expectations book explores how to apply a mindful, compassionate, and practical approach to satisfying expectations in any situation.

George Pitagorsky describes how to make sure expectations are rational, mutually understood, and accepted by all those with a stake in the project. This process relies on blending a crisp analytical approach with the interpersonal skills needed to negotiate win-win understandings of what is supposed to be delivered, by when, for how much, by who, and under what conditions.

Managing Conflict in Projects

By George Pitagorsky

Managing Conflict in Projects: Applying Mindfulness and Analysis for Optimal Results by George Pitagorsky charts a course for identifying and dealing with conflict in a project context.

Pitagorsky states up front that conflict management is not a cookbook solution to disagreement-a set of prescribed actions to be applied in all situations. His overall approach seeks to balance two aspects of conflict management: analysis based on a codified process and people-centered behavioral skills.

The book differentiates conflict resolution and conflict management. Management goes beyond resolution to include relationship building that may serve to avoid conflict or facilitate resolution if it occurs.

The Zen Approach to Project Management

By George Pitagorsky

Projects are often more complex and stressful than they need to be. Far too many of them fail to meet expectations. There are far too many conflicts. There are too few moments of joy and too much anxiety. But there is hope. It is possible to remove the unnecessary stress and complexity. This book is about how to do just that. It links the essential principles and techniques of managing projects to a "wisdom" approach for working with complex, people-based activities.

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