Good morning, Leaders!  It’s Friday!

I recall as a kid growing up in North Dakota, we’d have blizzards that would create “giant” snow banks packed in by the wind that you could create snow forts/makeshift igloos and pretend that you’d eek out a living there. It was what I considered carving out my future, even if it was only 15 minutes ahead. Hey, when you’re a kid, thinking much more ahead than that was wasting your youth.

So I spoke with an advisor last week who quoted the phrase (regarding career opportunities), “it’s yours to carve, right?”…
It conjured up the snow fort memory and has been bouncing around in my head since then.

Mine to carve-as if the world of opportunity is made of different density materials and as we learned with the three little pigs fable, you can build your house out of whatever material you prefer but if you want to keep the wolf from the door, you’d best select the right building material…so if you are carving your career out of snow (or whipped cream, cheese or straw bails- considerably easier to carve than say – wood or granite) you might get there quickly or easily but what do you have when you’re done?

What tool are you using to carve your future? I’m a motor head so it stands to reason that my carving tool looks like a hand held concrete saw. Ironically, it’s designed to cut the really hard stuff and plugs up if you cut through the mushy things. The super hard grit on the blade functions well with friction.

Carving for a while now-who was it that said objects in motion tend to stay in motion? I simply say that I don’t idle well. This goes beyond busy-body stuff. I desire purpose and cannot accomplish that without being in motion.

Discretion applied-Ah yes, the hard part of cutting the hard stuff. An artisan, craftsman or professional gains mastery of their paint brush/tool belt/skill set by using them enough until practice makes permanent. Cutting stone with a handheld saw is a challenge but it’s not really driven by sharpness of the blade or horsepower of the motor but by the vision of the operator. You’re not cutting to demonstrate your skill, you’re cutting the stone to release the masterpiece within the stone.

What’s your masterpiece?
(Is your focus on your)
•career?
•bank account?
•Family?
•quantity or quality of relationships?

Let me challenge your horizon-
I believe Leaders should be focusing on carving an environment where all the areas of focus mentioned above … and more … are included in your masterpiece.

We live in a complex world where singular focus is not rewarded, it’s expected as an anchor so you don’t waver or drift. Your masterpiece should be multi-dimensional, sustainable, accommodating, inspirational and inviting.

Pictured is the bank lobby of the Guardian building-Detroit, MI

Let the carving commence!

Have a blessed weekend.