On Virtue

[Michael Neill]

Here's an excerpt from today's Coaching tip:

Cultivating the Middle Way

When Aristotle said that "a virtue is the mean between two
vices", he meant that most of what we consider to be the virtues
in life are not so much fixed, isolated traits as they are a
mid-range of behaviors on a continuum.  To understand this more
easily, look at the examples below:

Apathy <---- Care -----> Worry

Tight-fisted <---- Generous ----> Profligate

Cowardly <---- Courageous ----> Foolhardy

Disinterested <---- Competitive ----> Ruthless


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Today's experiment:
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1. Make a list of those things you consider to be virtues -
kindness, strength, generosity, courage, etc.


2. For each item on your list, plug it into a continuum.  What
is the name for the complete absence of this virtue?  What is
the name for when this apparent virtue gets out of hand and
becomes excessive?

I'm curious to see what you come up with!

love,
michael

[pearldiver]

Here are some I came up with after reading the tip.  I think I am getting the idea.  The exercise seemed as though it was going to be easy, but actually really made me think.  A good antidote to perfectionism, and it's fun!

Cruel ----------------- Kind --------------Smothering
Weak-----------------Strong--------------Aggressive
Mean----------------Generous------------Wasteful
Cowardly------------Courageous---------Foolish
Procrastination------Efficiency----------Workaholism
Serious----------------Fun----------------Inappropriate
Highly strung---------Relaxed------------Horizontal
Rigid-----------------Flexible-------------Unfocused
Timid----------------Assertive------------Aggressive
Foolish----------------Wise----------------Learning nothing/ not expanding
Non-committal-----Persevering-------Flogging a dead horse
Obtuse---------------Sensitive----------Over-sensitive
Rude-----------------Chivalrous-----------Doormat

[Michael Neill]

Love 'em, Pearl Diver -

Particularly resonated with serious <----- fun -----> inappropriate, as it's a line I seem to have walked for much of my life! 

love,
michael

[bhouncy]

Pearl Diver you have certainly put a lot of thought into this. You have inspired me to do a lot of thinking in another area which I've been putting off for a while. Perciverence, determination and belief are part of me now.

Lack luster <------ Determined ------> obsessive
Despair <------ Believing ------> overconfident

[pearldiver]

Michael, glad you liked them.

Bhouncy, so glad you have been inspired.

I can definitely empathise with the examples you have given...I often have to remind myself not to obsess, and can easily find myself closer to the despair end of the belief continuum!

It occurred to me that the way to keep the 'middle way' may be to use our feelings as a guide.  I can just FEEL when I'm obsessing...it feels tight and uncomfortable and my mind is racing as I try to solve the problem.  Lack-luster feels lethargic and heavy and pessimistic.

These feelings I've realised are my biggest clues I need to shift my thinking a bit.  They often set in long before my mind realises what it's doing, so I guess my work would be to start noticing them a bit sooner!

Well those are just a few thoughts.  Good luck with persevering with your project.

[astro4u]

indecisive-------organized-----lazy
self-doubt----confident----
skeptic------curious----nosey

Am i doing this right? can anyone help me with the self doubt ending?

Holly

[Michael Neill]

indecisive-------organized-----lazy
self-doubt----confident----
skeptic------curious----nosey

Am i doing this right? can anyone help me with the self doubt ending?

Holly

I would probably go 'self-doubt-----confident--------arrogant'

Happy exploring,
michael