Temperament. Talent. Tenacity.

• "Too much attention and hoopla doesn't agree with my temperament." Neal Peart

Heard, Neal, heard. I love sketching and cartooning. It takes me away. As a kid, I imagined myself being a cartoonist. Upon my arrival in Vancouver in 1987, I took a cartooning course at the Vancouver Community College and proceeded to write to Charles M Schulz, and Lynn Johnston and Berkeley Breathed, and got answers back from all three! That said, life took me to different places and I have never had regrets. Never. Around the same time, my wonderful 14 years with Dale Carnegie & Associates began, alongside work in business development... and my path continued on further into education, and leadership training and development. That said, I knew cartooning would always be there for me... and it now continues to be a part of my joy and my work.... which are one in the same in many ways, lol.

I say this after taking some joyful time to "play with the Sharpies" last evening and craft a bit of a simple vision, if you will.

The Gorilla represents my spirit, that 900 pound Gorilla that may not change the world but will have the backs of those that do. The Panda represents both my little Panda #bestlittledogintheworld who I still and much miss...

... and a part of my own big loving spirit. The other beast is another story, a creation from childhood called a T'ra'at... or BEARfox; gentle, big and fierce ... and manifesting all virtues where and when necessary.

I offer this up because (a) it is important to recognize that we have "sides" to us and (b) those sides in unison forge our own uniqueness. My three "spirits" are not three separate identities. Combined in one form of synergy, they are my singular identity and merely different sides or faces or facets or forms. As a student and facilitator around temperament and character, I often suggest that we have aspects of 5 temperaments within us, in our own special and unique combination. In the vernacular I use, there may be temperaments such as Builder, Mover, Thinker, Connector and Dreamer ... but none of us are pure any of the five. We are blends in our own way.

SO WHAT?

If you visit my LinkedIn Profile, you will find, "Leadership Speaker, Mentor, Coach for Entrepreneurs, Educators and Emerging Leaders building a better world at school, work and community. Business and HR Educator @ CNA. Showrunner, TUGtv. Forward, together, stronger."

That in heart and mind, of late, I have shared on

• The Rules that Build Unity
• Rapid and Random
• and A PEACE of WORK... Volume 2 and Volume 1.

I say this because I write and share on what matters to me Soulfully. I write and share on what my temperament holds important. I write and share around that which I can best make contribution.

I suggest that it is about finding our "fit" as opposed to fitting in. The former is natural. The latter, contrived. And, as I have noted before, people cannot find us unless we are us. But who are we?

Diversity and Congruence

That play exercise with cartooning last evening represented aspects of my spirit and temperament and what matters most to me. Earth. Canada. My "twin homes" East and West. Epic Engage and my teaching. My concept of HOME and HEALTH and WEALTH and FAITH. In that sketching, it is a coming together. Diverse pieces, under one banner... in one visual. To that point, I write and share on Culture... and Character and Purpose and Unity... and the Global Goals. I believe in A Future for Us All. Atlas Falls speaks and sings to me. The myriad "sides" of my own being and doing converge and are congruent. The sketching brings it together for me. Our diversity within can have its own Congruence.

All of this is only to say that our diversity within... our "sides"... are but sides and they create a whole. And, our own strategic uniqueness.

I am an educator, speaker, teacher, facilitator, trainer. coach, mentor, cartoonist, singer, dancer, archer, boxer, and more. But I am not their titles. They are many hats, with one head. The synergy and sum of same make me, me. Your own diversity of knowledge, skills, abilities, capacities, talents, interests, heroes, temperaments, character, education, experience and Enthusiasm makes you, you.

Finding You

Finding Purpose is as much about finding YOU.... and that is mostly about Acceptance... whether you is as individual or team, or more.

Consider the 5 temperaments noted above. Consider the 118 virtues noted above. Consider your to-date knowledge, skills, abilities, capacities, talents, interests, heroes, temperaments, character, education, experience and Enthusiasm. Inventory it all. Take stock. Accept who and where and what you are, as your own new starting point. And practice Candor in doing so, and own it. This applies to you as individual or team at home, school, work, business and community. Our sum total of who we are (as sides) makes us who we are as sum.

Then, fully accepting all your strengths, go be tenacious. When we are who we are, when we are, where we are with Tenacity, we truly move forward. Moving forward together, stronger... it applies to us individually too. When we accept our diversity within, our synergy within... something powerful happens. We understand that we are not this nor that. We are the sum total of all our knowledge, skills, abilities, capacities, talents, interests, heroes, temperaments, character, education, experience and Enthusiasm. We are then, ever more resourceful.

Yup, an honest and courageous Acceptance of our Temperament, Talent and Tenacity.... see where that takes you. I intend to...

My name is Barry Lewis Green. Leadership Speaker, Mentor, Coach for Entrepreneurs, Educators and Emerging Leaders building a better world at school, work and community. Business and HR Educator @ CNA. Showrunner, TUGtv. I am an educator, speaker, teacher, facilitator, trainer. coach, mentor, cartoonist, singer, dancer, archer, boxer, and more. Star Trek Freak (love the vision). Love, Honor and Zeal are core to my being. I am Gorilla, Panda and T'ra'at. I love Earth, Canada and my twin homes. I love my teaching and enterprise, my HOME, HEALTH and FAITH. I am a 3 parts Dreamer, 2 parts Connector/Mover/Thinker, and 1 part Builder. I believe in Character and Purpose and Unity. I believe "Humans together, strong." Forward, together, stronger. I am all of that as one.

Closing Thoughts

Amelia Earhart once said...

• "The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity. The fears are paper tigers. You can do anything you decide to do. You can act to change and control your life; and the procedure, the process is its own reward."

Consider your Temperament and all the rest noted above; those pools of knowledge, skill, ability, capacity, talent, interests, and more. You are their sum total and that makes you unique at home, school, work, business, community and beyond. Check out On Purpose. Engage the work of Richard Nelson Bolles. Do a Keirsey test. Who are you? Engage your Temperament, Talent and Tenacity... and go from there.

Peace...

Barry Lewis Green, The Unity Guy with Epic Engage.

Me on LinkedIn

CHECK OUT

• The Character LENS to Lead
• Developing Leadership Character – Ivey Business Journal

• TUGtv
• The Global Goals
• The Virtues Project

Epic Engage

LEAD. INSPIRE. EDUCATE. UNITE.

• You are an Activant … an Educator, Entrepreneur or Emerging Leader who is looking to make constructive change happen, on the ground, real-world, real-time. You are world-embracing and noble-hearted. You seek to mobilize a strong, united and character-driven team to change the world or your corner of it. You want to lead, inspire, educate and unite in doing so. Let’s go build a better world!

I am an Activant too; an Educator and Entrepreneur by experience, education and Enthusiasm... with 40 years in leadership training and development, 27 years in business college education and 20 years certified and associated with The Virtues Project. Additionally certified for 16 years in Temperament Assessment and with a longstanding body of work around Character Leadership, I help advance conversation, consultation and capacity around Character, Purpose and Unity... and the global goals. My work in business and education is to help those building a better world at school, work, business and community; locally and globally. Humans together, strong.... that is my meaning... and the space I can stay forever. To that just cause, I commit.