Comments on: Harmony Requires Honesty http://www.michaelmcmillan.com/harmony-requires-honesty Fri, 02 Dec 2011 16:38:40 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3 By: Lynn Serafinn http://www.michaelmcmillan.com/harmony-requires-honesty#comment-134 Lynn Serafinn Wed, 23 Jun 2010 09:38:25 +0000 http://www.michaelmcmillan.com/?p=1128#comment-134 Having come from a musical background, I love the analogy in this story. It is a lesson that took me many years to learn. I was never more apparent when I was a new manager of a college department, and I was continually compensating for what I believed to be other people's shortcoming. The end result was that my own choice to compensate made me both exhausted and resentful, and it didn't do diddly squat to empower my staff or help them in any way. I thought I was helping by covering their proverbial backsides, but I was simply trying to make things "look good", when the truth was they weren't working. When we become truly honest in life, we can see just how frequently we do this in our lives, not only in work, but in our personal relationships. Transparency is the much-needed medicine that will bring us into harmony. And by the way... I fully understand how you can transition from Black Dog and Iron Man to Happy Together. The track has a deliciously haunting tune, and there's great irony in the contrast between its minor key and the "happy" lyrics. Probably why Robert Plant ripped it off in his track "Big Log." ;-) Having come from a musical background, I love the analogy in this story. It is a lesson that took me many years to learn. I was never more apparent when I was a new manager of a college department, and I was continually compensating for what I believed to be other people’s shortcoming. The end result was that my own choice to compensate made me both exhausted and resentful, and it didn’t do diddly squat to empower my staff or help them in any way. I thought I was helping by covering their proverbial backsides, but I was simply trying to make things “look good”, when the truth was they weren’t working. When we become truly honest in life, we can see just how frequently we do this in our lives, not only in work, but in our personal relationships. Transparency is the much-needed medicine that will bring us into harmony.

And by the way… I fully understand how you can transition from Black Dog and Iron Man to Happy Together. The track has a deliciously haunting tune, and there’s great irony in the contrast between its minor key and the “happy” lyrics. Probably why Robert Plant ripped it off in his track “Big Log.” ;-)

]]> By: NDR http://www.michaelmcmillan.com/harmony-requires-honesty#comment-125 NDR Thu, 10 Jun 2010 13:30:29 +0000 http://www.michaelmcmillan.com/?p=1128#comment-125 I have to agree with "It's hard to improve yourself when you don't know where you stand." I have to disagree with "most people prefer knowing the truth." (Especially in the southern region of the U.S.--they are masterminds at secrecy and untruths to keep a particular superficial image.) In business I have lost jobs and in life I have lost friends by telling the truth. But I have no regrets because I was true to myself. And when I am not true to myself, I am miserable. I have to agree with “It’s hard to improve yourself when you don’t know where you stand.”

I have to disagree with “most people prefer knowing the truth.” (Especially in the southern region of the U.S.–they are masterminds at secrecy and untruths to keep a particular superficial image.)

In business I have lost jobs and in life I have lost friends by telling the truth. But I have no regrets because I was true to myself. And when I am not true to myself, I am miserable.

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