- Is it significant that I happened to start writing this post at 10:11 on 11 1 11? No.
- Does it matter that it'll get published at 11:11? No.
- Nor will it matter more this time in November when the numbers of the calendar click round to make it equally pretty for MM/DD/YY Americans as the rest of the Gregorian world.
We're a strange and superstitious lot: attracted to coincidences, freaked by strange weather phenomenon and things we can't explain, because we want to pretend we're in control.
Years ago I remember being challenged by reading Richard Foster's Money, Sex and Power and his assertion that most of us are captivated by one or more of these idols. Last year, for example, I met some charitable business people who seemed to have conquered Money and, so far as I could tell, had Sex appropriately under control! But that underlying issue of control was what seemed to drive them in a search for Power and influence. Indeed, Money and Sex are often used as ways to try to acquire, exercise or retain Power...
For me, integrity and ethics in business and life are rooted in an attitude of humility and generosity that I try to attain.
To give a concrete example, I'm always looking in a negotiation to find what they call a "win-win" outcome; to ensure that those I deal with gain in the short- and the long-term. Because when we balance needs and resources on both sides of the equation we're taming that lust for Power that can so easily corrupt and destroy wherever it takes hold.
