James LaughlinHigh-performance leadership and executive coach. Covering all aspects of life and career.

Mo Gawdat: How to be a human BEING not a human DOING

19 Sept 2023 · 1 min

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0:49

A short excerpt from a YouTube talk (Mo Gawdat) contrasting the cultural emphasis on "doing"—activity, measurable actions, and skills—with the undervalued practice of "being"—presence, kindness, and awareness. The speaker argues that while doing improves skills and yields tangible results, being (cultivating awareness and kindness) has strong influence and is essential for personal growth and becoming a better version of oneself.

Chapters

In the corporate world, in the world of doing, you tend to believe that the only impact you can have is when you do. And the more you do, the better you become and the better your results. The more you do, the better your skills. Which is true, you can't deny that. But at the same time very, very ignored, I think, is that the more you be, the more you move from our hyper masculine view of the world, which is all about doing, to a feminine view of the world, which is all about being. You know, you can help someone by giving them a dollar that' act of doing. Or you can help someone by being kind. Being is a very, very strong impact and influence in the world. And you can only develop, believe it or not, and grow and become a better version of yourself. If you learn to be, if you learn to create that awareness within you.