Think about it...

How you responded when her mother passed away...
How you inappropriately showed your emotions when faced with a difficult decision...
The time you graciously delivered encouragement when a reprimand may have been appropriate...
The time you chose not to filter your response before hitting "send"...
The extra few minutes you take to tell everyone "Good morning"...
The way you chose to ignore the problem employee...
The way you always have coffee ready in the break room before others arrive...
The time you chose to use profanity when confronting an employee...
Your willingness to do whatever it takes to get the job done - regardless of the task at hand...
The time you chose not to recognize someone for a job well done...
The day you sent flowers to the funeral of an employee's loved one...
The outburst you allowed when one of your supervisors was "disciplining" his direct report...
The pep talks over lunch to recognize your team's accomplishments...
Your response when someone asked for time to care for an elderly parent...
The way you handled the latest crisis in the office...
The easy way out you took, instead of pushing through to the best solution...
The time, or lack thereof, you spent on performance reviews with your direct reports...
The time you wrote the thank you card to your employee...
The time you made a scapegoat of someone who was defenseless...
The quality of instruction you gave and the patience shown with someone who needed additional help...
The way you sympathized with your employee's health issue....
Your response when one of your people called in to report her child was sick...
The way you complained about the cost of repairing equipment your employees need to do their jobs well...

Would You Follow You?

Fear.  We've all faced it.  We've all experienced its crippling power.  We've all insulated ourselves from the risk of what we fear - betting against our health, the chance occurrence of an automobile accident, disability and long term care needs all the while failing to invest in opportunities that may yield a return.  We throw potential opportunity out the window in order to secure the things we identify with, even when our identity is far less than its potential.  We are willing to pay premiums to hedge our fear of loss - "the inevitable", but are less willing to bet on the opportunity to win (invest in the market, ourselves, education, etc..).  Our culture has ingrained a sense of imminent loss rather than likely win, despite the fact that during the 20th century the stock market returned an average of 10.4% a year*, we understand the absolutely necessity of continued growth and change, and the degradation of stagnation.

So, it's understandable.  In light of our learned tendency to lean away from potential gain and toward hedging against "imminent loss", we have become a culture of second guessers, we find paralysis through analysis, and we allow ourselves to look back at retirement wondering what might have been.  We have allowed ourselves the mediocre life where "good enough" is just that.  We allow our contentedness to overwhelm our potential.

But, it's a choice.  And, so is the alternative.  Les Brown eloquently reminds us of this in the clip below.

Notes:

• Fear is the most subtle and destructive of all human diseases.
• Fear kills dreams, hopes, causes illness, ages you, and holds you back from something you KNOW you can do, if you'll only let yourself convince yourself of your capability.
• We must ask ourselves, "What is the benefit of allowing fear to control us and limit us?"
  
• You have to fight back. Sometimes the only positive things we hear about ourselves are the things we tell ourselves.
  
• Fear, limited vision, and lack of self-esteem keep most people from doing what they want to do.
• You must see yourself beyond your current situation and believe in yourself to improve your current situation.
• Bottom line: "Am I satisfied with what I've produced and am I content with my results?  Of, does life have more in store for me?"
  

*http://www.stockpickssystem.com/historical-rate-of-return/