Three Minute Leadership: Passion… On Building Caves
To: The Great Leaders Who Have a Passion for Continuous Learning
It is sometimes valuable for great leaders to reflect on the passion of others, as a mirror to better see and appreciate the value of their own. A CBS Sunday Morning special, Cave-Digging Artist Finds Inspiration Underground, is the story about a man’s passion in life – doing what he loves, living his life’s purpose and giving something to others that will change their lives forever. It begins with the words: “In the high desert of northern New Mexico, if you listen carefully, you just might hear something more than the wind. It is the underground sound of a man obsessed. His name is Ra Paulette. Over the past 25 years with only his dog for company, he has been shaping and shaping New Mexico’s sandstone into man-made caves of art.”
The interviewer poses the question to Paulette: “Do you think that you are obsessed with cave-digging?” With a soft smile on his face, Paulette answers with his own question: “Would you call a child obsessed with play? You wouldn’t use that word ‘obsessed.’ When you are doing something that you love, and are drawn to it, you want to do it all the time.”
His response captures the joy, rapture and commitment to what he has chosen to do and be in his life. If his works take your breath away, that is just what he hoped it would do. Asked “If there were one simple thing that you wanted people to take away from being in one of your caves, what would it be?” His response: “At least a moment or length of time in which they had a deeper feeling and understanding of themselves and life.”
Great leaders are men and women of great passion. It is the tangible, living energy fed by their love, commitment and focus on their life’s purpose. Fill your life with what your passion. Be bodacious and excited. Let your passion be the caves in which others will find wonder, beauty and awe. As Nelson Mandela said: “There is no passion to be found playing small – in settling for a life that is less than the one you are capable of living.”
Have a beautiful day and a magnificent week!!!
Mike
