In a world that is increasingly shallow and complex, there is another option.This week I had a pleasant and unexpected visit with a neighbor that I had not seen in quite a while. You actually might know him.It was Mr. Rogers.Of course it wasn't an actual visit, but my wife and I caught a fascinating documentary called "Mr. Rogers and Me" on Amazon Prime Video. It was the recollections of a forty-something year old guy who vacationed one summer on Nantucket and happened to stay next door to THE Fred Rogers.Like the film maker (and many of you), I grew up watching Mr. Rogers on PBS. Viewing this documentary as an adult brought back vivid memories of the valuable lessons he taught on fairness, equality, tolerance, empathy, creativity, individuality and just how to be a good "neighbor." It struck me that, although now a bit old fashioned in the manner in which they were presented, so many of these very straight forward messages still apply today -- and yet are so easily forgotten.During the film, the film maker recounts discussing personal details of his busy, complicated life with Mr. Rogers as he struggled to make sense of it all. It was then that he was given this pearl of wisdom from his cardigan wearing neighbor:"I feel so strongly that deep and simple is far more essential than shallow and complex."Deep and simple. Think about it. Think about how, whether in business or in our personal lives, we seldom choose this path. Look at your company's website, your weekend schedule, the material things we covet, what we want to accomplish from our careers, how we communicate and our interpersonal relationships. Are they deep and simple?As I sat on the couch watching the flickering images on the television, I realized that Mr. Rogers was once again providing a valuable lesson to me and to us all -- something much more meaningful now that the children to whom he once spoke were in the middle of their own complicated lives. Strive to make things deep and simple wherever possible. If you can do that, you should then be able to get all that is truly essential. And with that, it is on to this week's selections. I hope you like them. Enjoy the weekend. And best to all of the Moms on their day this Sunday. XOXODave
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Friends of Dave #72: Deep and Simple
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In a world that is increasingly shallow and complex, there is another option.This week I had a pleasant and unexpected visit with a neighbor that I had not seen in quite a while. You actually might know him.It was Mr. Rogers.Of course it wasn't an actual visit, but my wife and I caught a fascinating documentary called "Mr. Rogers and Me" on Amazon Prime Video. It was the recollections of a forty-something year old guy who vacationed one summer on Nantucket and happened to stay next door to THE Fred Rogers.Like the film maker (and many of you), I grew up watching Mr. Rogers on PBS. Viewing this documentary as an adult brought back vivid memories of the valuable lessons he taught on fairness, equality, tolerance, empathy, creativity, individuality and just how to be a good "neighbor." It struck me that, although now a bit old fashioned in the manner in which they were presented, so many of these very straight forward messages still apply today -- and yet are so easily forgotten.During the film, the film maker recounts discussing personal details of his busy, complicated life with Mr. Rogers as he struggled to make sense of it all. It was then that he was given this pearl of wisdom from his cardigan wearing neighbor:"I feel so strongly that deep and simple is far more essential than shallow and complex."Deep and simple. Think about it. Think about how, whether in business or in our personal lives, we seldom choose this path. Look at your company's website, your weekend schedule, the material things we covet, what we want to accomplish from our careers, how we communicate and our interpersonal relationships. Are they deep and simple?As I sat on the couch watching the flickering images on the television, I realized that Mr. Rogers was once again providing a valuable lesson to me and to us all -- something much more meaningful now that the children to whom he once spoke were in the middle of their own complicated lives. Strive to make things deep and simple wherever possible. If you can do that, you should then be able to get all that is truly essential. And with that, it is on to this week's selections. I hope you like them. Enjoy the weekend. And best to all of the Moms on their day this Sunday. XOXODave