Focus and Forgive: A good recipe in critical times

Focus and Forgive. A good recipe in critical times

I am writing from Panama after having spent a few days in the DoubleTree Resort by Hilton, a beautiful resort in Puntarenas, Costa Rica.
I gave the keynote speech for a Victus, a medical products and nutrition company operating in more than 30 countries.
The owners are two very hard working partners that in 17 years have built a business from scratch to a multi million dollar company.
Ten years ago I saw one of them in an airport somewhere in Central America and he said that some day they would hire me to do the keynote speech in their first global conference.
Well, their dream of having a large company with hundreds of employees and representatives and having a big conference, came true. It was a great conference, almost 7 days and they picked a very nice resort with plenty of food and great food.
It proves that persistence is definitely one of the most important factors of success.
Having a conversation with one of the partners, he asked a question that I consider very important for all of us, especially in difficult times.

He asked me: “People talk about success all the time. It means something different to everyone. What does it mean to you?”
That is a very profound question. To me success means achieving happiness. If you do not do what makes you happy, if you do not express your passion or find your mission in life, your happiness will be limited, and maybe I should say, wasted. I think that Abraham Maslow had it right when he said, “The deepest level of motivation is self-realization”. When you realize that you are making a difference and that what you are doing has meaning for yourself and for other people, you are well on your way to a happy and fulfilling life”.
Right now, living in difficult times, you must think about what success means to you and how you are going to go about reaching your goals.
Millions of people are stuck in a rut, working in a job they don’t like or don’t feel passion for. Millions more are being laid off all over the world.
The very important question you must ask yourself is:
At work, do you have the opportunity to do what you do best every day?
The Gallup organization asked that same question to over 1.7 million employees in 101 companies from 63 countries.
What percentage do you think said “yes”?
Twenty percent. Yes, only twenty percent. This is very sad.
If you do not love what you are doing and you don’t feel passion for it, you will not be able to differentiate yourself from the pack. You will then be fired sooner or later.
So, don’t let this happen to you.
The other very important principle I want to share with you is the need to look forward. To do this, you must forgive yourself. Forget the past and concentrate on what you have to do now to get ahead.
books.
Years ago I participated in a book titled Share your Mission. One of the authors wrote a story that really touched my heart. It was called “The story about Father O”Malley”.
Father O’ Malley was called on a very cold winter night, actually around 1.30am in the morning. He had just finished working on his sermon for the next day and the call sort of surprised him. It said “Father, we are sorry, but we have Tom here who is got a failing liver and he’s just about ready to die. He needs for you to come in and do the last rites”
So, Father O’Malley got dressed and got out in the bitter cold night. The half hour drive actually took him over two hours. When he went inside the hospital, the nurse grabbed him and told him that the man was very sick so he must hurry.
He went into the man’s room and talked to him. The man said, “I asked for the last rites father, now give them and get out”
Surprised, Father O’Malley told the man that if he wanted to confess anything or admit anything or say anything, now was the time to do it.
The man then said that what he had done was so awful, ugly and terrible that not even God could forgive him, let alone a priest.
So, Father O’Malley sits down and starts talking to the man for over an hour. The patient was getting weaker so he asked him again if he wanted to confess anything. Much to his surprise, the man responded: “Well, nobody can do anything to me now. I guess I can tell you. It happened 24 years, two months and two hours ago. That is how heavy it is in my heart. My whole life I have been a railroad switchman, and an alcoholic. The night was cold, muggy and I went out to switch the railroad track. I was drunk and I switched the wrong track. The train went right into a car and killed a whole family, mother, father, and two daughters. Like I said before, you can’t forgive me, and God can’t forgive me”.
Father O’Malley went pale. He looked Tom in his eyes and told him that 24 years ago his whole family, his Dad, Mom, and two sisters were killed in the railroad tracks and it was such a shock to him that he decided to become a priest. Obviously, Father O’Malley was sitting face to face with the murderer of his whole family. At that moment, Father O’Malley said that he would forgive him for what he did and so would God. “We all forgive you” he said.
So my friends, in today’s world you must have a clear focus on what you want to do with your life and commit to forgive yourself and forgive others. Clean the slate and concentrate on what you are going to do in a difficult economic environment. Don’t waste time and energy thinking about what really is not important.