Ho‘ohana: Redefine the word “work” and make it yours.

Aloha my Ho‘ohana Community,

Our value for the month of September is one that is very dear to my heart. If I were asked to choose one and only one value that is representative of the entire Managing with Aloha mission it would be this one, second only to the value of Aloha itself. If there ever was a month I’m praying you stick with me all month through, reading every Tuesday Coaching Essay the day it is published, and working through our monthly journey together personally, no matter what the rest of your organization may be going through right now, it is this one.

Our value for the month of September is Ho‘ohana, the value of worthwhile work.

MY MANA‘O (what I believe to be true) ~ ~ ~ ALOHA is about you living with authenticity in a world populated with other people. We human beings were not meant to live alone, we thrive in each other’s company. Aloha celebrates everything that makes you YOU. HO‘OHANA is about you making your living in our world in the way that gives you daily direction and intention and leaves you with a feeling of personal fulfillment every day —not just when you have accomplished large goals.

Ho‘ohana is not about career, it is about best-possible livelihood.

When a person chooses to incorporate the values of Aloha and Ho‘ohana into their working lives, there is no more “going through the motions,” no more “paying my dues” or “earning my stripes,” and no more “biding my time.” There is only deliberate, intentional, purposeful work, where all your attentions are focused on that work, whatever it may be. All your attentions are somehow connected to your work —even if it is work which is currently temporary for you. You no longer call it work; you call it “my Ho‘ohana.”

Koho Wahi Ho‘ohana;
What is your chosen place in the Ho‘ohana Community?

I ask you to think about a few questions as you read my Day One Essay today.

First, what is the place you have chosen for yourself in the Ho‘ohana Community? (Wahi= place, Ho‘ohana= in this context, to work with the MWA Community, Koho= of your deliberate choosing). Did you subscribe intentionally, and with a plan of action, or have you been a fairly passive observer up to now?

My online coaching is free to you; are you taking advantage of it, or do you just skim my newsletters each month without following along to truly “value your month” and thus “value your life?”

If you have read this far, this is part of your chosen attentions; what is the personal connection for you? Do you just nalu it, (go with the flow) or do you respond, engage with me and question me, and engage with others in the community?

When was the last time you pulled Managing with Aloha off your bookshelf and opened it up? When was the last time you said to someone, “Hey, I’ve read Managing with Aloha; I’m in the Ho‘ohana Community with you too!” so you could speak our Value-aligned Language of Intention often and out loud as you talk story?

I spend a lot of time talking story with you, writing for you, visiting and coaching many of you as part of an organization; I refer to “workplace reconstruction” via the “sensibility of Managing with Aloha” often, with the objective of designing healthier workplace cultures. This month however, my online coaching is going to get personal. We will not study Ho‘ohana from the organizational standpoint, but from the personal one.

We are going to talk about your intentions, and I will share mine.

SIDEBAR ~ ~ ~ (You may want to come back to this later within your second reading of my Day One Essay, for I believe that this ATTENTION versus INTENTION distinction is directly related to the study of Ho‘ohana.) This year we have invested substantial time into a BREX learning initiative. BREX is our nickname for Brave Experiments [with] Digital Learning. Learning helps you explore and experiment, and ultimately I believe you can serve yourself well by asking yourself, is this both sequential and consequential for me? So in the exploring-while-learning process of arriving at an answer, we each have a two-fold decision to make about our personal use of the web: 1. ATTENTION. To who, what, where, and when do I give the most valuable gift I can give someone publishing online for me? 2. INTENTION. Why do I bother in the first place? What's in it for me? We will be discussing this in more detail with the rest of the Ho‘ohana Community at www.JoyfulJubilantLearning.com throughout the month of September.

Work is personal; so is this.

We will continue (we Ho‘omau) in the spirit of self-leadership we started last month, and go forward with the value of Ho‘ohana with this singular objective:

We will use September to redefine the word “work” and make it ours:
You will make it yours.

I’m going to do it too.

I tweak my Ho‘ohana statement on an on-going basis, however this month I am challenging myself with a major BHAG-quality (big hairy audacious goal) Ho‘ohana reinvention. To find out what it is you will have to stick with me at Managing with Aloha Coaching all month long (which amounts to today and five Tuesdays, starting tomorrow). Sweetest free deal on the web if you ask me (I am not going to be shy about this; it works).

You will end up with a Ho‘ohana statement of your own, one you are willing to stand up for and articulate exceptionally well, feeling you are prepared to both defend it and inspire with it.

(Did that sound familiar? Self-Leadership in 1 Sentence.)

Chances are you have to work; that’s life. If you became an instant millionaire tomorrow you might go play for a while, but I’d bet you would eventually look for work again, perhaps making that big break and bankrolling your own company, whether big or small, just so you wouldn’t be totally bored. (Yes, all play and no work “makes Jack a dull boy.” Jill too.) You might even give away your time, volunteering to work for a good cause.

Your Ho‘ohana is your future

Few of us become instant millionaires, however we still yearn for the dreamy result. I have come to believe that self-entrepreneurship of some kind one day down the pike (or to be more accurate, self-financing), is the new inevitability of our generation: In today’s economy, scores of people are finding they have been good working citizens and contributors to society their entire lives with very little to now show for it. The retirement dream never came true. They played the game of life following all the rules: What went wrong?

In short, what went wrong is that you were a follower of someone else’s Ho‘ohana instead of authoring your own, something you will eventually have to do (and just as the leaders among you authored your self-leadership growth plan in August.)

The good news is this: It is never too late. Really.

Start that process of authoring your own Ho‘ohana with me this month, with me and with the rest of the Ho‘ohana Community. Remember that life is not a solo proposition, and you need not do this alone. Be vocal, get involved. There are no magic pills here; you have to engage actively if you are to get any results, however it is so simple to keep your energies up! This is what you do:

1) Keep connected and in rhythm with my Tuesday Essays here on Managing with Aloha Coaching. Subscribe here for the easiest way: Delivered to your inbox.

2) Don’t be content with passive reading; commit to our objective. Redefine the word “work” as “my Ho‘ohana.”

3) Engage by commenting here! Don’t just think about what I might write, and passively agree with me: Question me, challenge me. I thrive on feedback too: Tell me when you think I am tracking a good course, and speak out when you think I took my eyes off the road.

4) Ask a work-connected partner to go through the month with you. To start, here is a PDF of my chapter on Ho‘ohana which you can share with them. Talk story with each other to keep our Language of Intention out loud, and as today’s working stuff. Run your Ho‘ohana statement drafts by each other, and hold each other accountable for action.

5) If you find you need more help, get in touch with me. It will be a free call if you do the first 4 listed here; be forewarned I will get you to enter a coaching program with me if you haven’t done them yet!

And by the way, don’t for a minute think this is all work and no play. Defining work for your own life may be one of the most enjoyable things you ever do.

If you are a parent, think of September here on MWA Coaching as going back to school in the fall with your children. Set up a special spot in your home for their nightly homework, and sit with them and do yours. On the weekends, use it for reading and quiet, and as a cool-down place after enjoying weekend play outdoors. Study together: Get into a family learning habit that will serve you well for a long time to come, as you set a great example for them on how school habits translate to real-world stuff; Ho‘ohana is as real as it gets.

This month, I am not saying I am “hoping to hear from you.” I am expecting it. Celebrate your Labor Day with the best decision you can make. Koho wahi Ho‘ohana; choose your place in our community.

Tomorrow: “What if I am perfectly fine with having a 9-5 J.O.B. and that’s it? What if I don’t want my job to be work meant to ‘bring meaning, fulfillment, and fun’ to the life I lead?”

I think that is quite valid. Even if that is how you feel, Ho‘ohana can still be a value that is very useful to you. (9/2 update: the article is now posted.)

We Ho‘ohana together, Kākou.

~Rosa

Postscript:
Here is another way to look at that powerful match-up of ATTENTION AND INTENTION: Our Day One Essay over at Joyful Jubilant Learning: Citizen Publishing on the Web ~ What have we learned?

Comments

[Bas]

Hi Rosa,

I love your blog... and I hear you :) I am in and joining you writing my Ho‘ohana this month.

Thanks for the inspiration.
Cheers
Bas

[Rosa Say]

Fabulous Bas, thank you for adding your voice here!

[Toni]

Aloha Rosa,

Mahalo for the rallying cry to participate instead of just watch. I am on board to start living, working and growing in the direction I choose! Can't wait till tomorrow's post.

Toni

[Rosa Say]

Mahalo Toni; I had to smile so broadly when I saw your name here, for you certainly are someone who knows how much fun the Ho‘ohana journey can be! It is wonderful that we shall take it together this month once again.

[Sharon - missing in Hawaii]

I love your acronym BHAG! Glad I found you and I'm looking forward to joining you.

[Rosa Say]

Aloha Sharon, welcome to the Ho‘ohana Community!

I must give credit where credit is due: BHAG was coined by Jim Collins and his co-author for Built to Last, Jerry Porras, in an article they had written back in 1996 about vision. You can find out more about it at JimCollins.com on this page: http://www.jimcollins.com/lab/buildingVision/p3.html

Big, hairy, audacious are great words to connect to goals - I loved it too!

[Roselia Conrad]

I'm working on my Ho'ohana today!!

[Rosa Say]

That's the spirit Roselia! It's fun and very empowering, isn't it?

[Dwayne Melancon]

I've been fairly unblogged lately and haven't stopped by here in a while. I now see that I've been missing some awesome resources - I am starting the process today, and really looking forward to it.

[Rosa Say]

Ah Dwayne, you are so naturally inquisitive, questioning yet open... I selfishly wish I could peek over your shoulder as you start to dig in!