Comments on: Your Life Metaphor Matters. Listen to 107 year-old Clara Font.

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Fri, 07 Sep 2007 22:38:52 +0000

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By: David J. Pollay

David J. Pollay — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 19:37:06 +0000

Thanks Preston and Alberto for your comments!

In a business setting, it’s interesting to think of how a team metaphor frames our thinking and action. It impacts how we care for our customers, partner with our suppliers, and work with each other.

Thank again for your posts.

Best to you both,

David

By: Alberto Casellas

Alberto Casellas — Tue, 10 Jul 2007 02:00:21 +0000

David
Thanks for your article on Clara. It triggers me to think about how these “metaphors” can affect one’s thinking, can affect our ability to act and take action every day. Your writing on Clara’s story will remind us what every day is all about!

Regards,

Alberto Casellas

By: Preston Kevin Lewis

Preston Kevin Lewis — Sun, 08 Jul 2007 22:04:46 +0000

What a great message Dave. It’s so critical that we keep putting good, positive mental food in our system. Thanks for being a conduit for this for us all. I am sharing this with my staff this week.

Best,
Preston

Preston Kevin Lewis
Managing Director
Warner Bros. Consumer Products - Australia & New Zealand

By: David J. Pollay

David J. Pollay — Fri, 06 Jul 2007 20:46:46 +0000

Thanks Chris for the post. It is fascinating to listen to our own metaphors, and the metaphors of others. There’s no doubt that Clara’s metaphor is still helping her get up every day. You should see her work with her physical trainer; her workout takes great effort. It is clear that she values life and is still working to make the most of it.

Best to you,

David

By: David J. Pollay

David J. Pollay — Fri, 06 Jul 2007 20:43:01 +0000

Hi Doug,

Thanks Doug for sharing your memories of Grandma Turner; what a great woman! I love the idea of her mowing her lawn into her nineties, and her motivational talks with her legs. Stories like Grandma Turner’s are very inspiring to me. I hope to be like your grandmother for my children and grandchildren.

Best to you Doug,

David

By: Doug Turner

Doug Turner — Fri, 06 Jul 2007 12:24:21 +0000

David: Clara reminded me of my grandmother, Elmeda Turner, who was born in 1885 and died at the age of 102. I loved to visit her because she had such a zest for life - like Clara. She insisted on mowing her own lawn (with a non-powered push mower) well into her 90’s. When her legs started to give her some problems she would slowly stand up, look at her legs, and talk to them saying, “I’m going into the kitchen, if you want to go too, then get moving!” - and off they went. I always got a kick out of that. We all have so much to learn from people like Clara and my grandma. Thanks for the reminder. Doug

By: Chris

Chris — Fri, 06 Jul 2007 11:55:04 +0000

David, what a wonderful story about Clara. She has certainly taken her life metaphor and used it well. When you write about imagining someone blowing out candles and shouting “Life Sucks!” I laughed out loud at how ridiculous it sounded. That however, is how many people think about life. They may not yell or think it when they blow out birthday candles, but many have that metaphor in the back of their minds as they walk through everyday life. I like Clara’s metaphor much better! Thanks again for a great post.