ITISYOURATTITUDE: March 2018

MY NEW OLD BOOK

What a long strange trip it's been.....said the Grateful Dead

The idea entered my mind about 10 years ago.

Values are practical truths that when utilized create better outcomes. i.e. the value of honesty (it is the best policy) is the first step in creating trusting relationships and therefore allows us to interact, integrate and share ideas that ultimately solve big and small problems. Without honesty there can be no trusting relationships and therefore no collaboration.

There are tomes on values, principles, and commandments that span man's existence on this small planet. An example is the philosophy of Objectivism. Leonard Peikoff, the high priest of the philosophy of Ayn Rand, has helped sustain a following with many in the intellectual, business, and natural sciences as advocates. I also do not think there is much more to add by way of the underlying principles that shape a person's character and virtue (another objectivist principle).

The book by Carnegie: "How to Win Friends an Influence People", is a collection of stories and I learned that people like to read short stories as opposed to tomes on philosophy; therefore I took this as my model.

Thus was born the idea of collaborating with a host of individuals, accomplished in their respective fields, who would make a written contribution, by way of a story, on a value or principle that helped shape their life.

I will describe the experience as like "trying to herd cats". 100 or so were invited to contribute, all known to me throughout my career and various interests. Fifty percent responded to my invitation enthusiastically, with 30 contributing. There were 20 or so that wanted to do it, but life and priorities, in that moment, made it a lesser goal.

It did not help that along the way I transferred back to NC after 15 years on the road. I was now responsible for an area which required time, ideas and innovation so as to reach more people by which to expand our business. However, the idea would not perish; even as the flame at times weakened, I believed that the sharing of these short stories would help others. There has to be a benefit to someone for an idea to "get legs".

In the last year the compilation was complete, until I ran into a buzzsaw! Then I had to shed contributions and replace these from other individuals, none of which had been in my scope at the start.

Sometimes something may seem like a disaster, but it is really salvation in disguise. I had asked permission to include graphics that clearly spelled out the use of values/principles; which would have made for a wonderful appendix. I am reasonably sure the response, earlier in the project, would have been in the affirmative; but time had "changed things". Undeterred, over a weekend I made a list of replacement essayists. Viewed from a different time and place, the names came to me quickly, as did the agreements to contribute. New themes were breathed into the work given the diversity of the new contributions.

Finally, I have had to request a release form from every contributor; none refused but that also took a minute. So here I am, finished again.

I am very enthusiastic about the content of each contribution given the high ethics and behaviors of the authors. There are some national figures, but for the most part each is an accomplished individual that contributes above and beyond the requirements of their profession, and by doing so has changed reality for many. I am also proud of our friendships.

When I wrote "It IS Your Attitude", published in 2004, I had probably three years invested in the project. I am also convinced it is easier to write than to ask others to write. This new one has been a labor of love.

Luis G. Lobo