This is the first article in a three-part series: What It Means to Be GREAT. Most people confuse greatness with hustle, perfection, or fame. It’s not. Learn what it means and how to start living it today.
Mike you’re headed in the right direction here. Bravo on calling out the focus on one’s self, the operating system idea, and the wholistic view. (You’re welcome). In our ONELife Strategy app we use Identity - purpose, values and principles for self awareness. We use 8 life domains plus identity to see the wholistic view. I do see some domains missing and no talk of coherence - instead of results. Some of your advice is still more tactical and habits-based which without a life strategy is a recipe for disaster. But you’ll get there. I think the biggest issue is when you say be great at work and be great at life. I know, know, you and the world are still living the outdated and 120 yr old model of work life balance which has been brainwashed into culture and Institutionalized. Hard to break the mold. But didn’t Salesforce, Uber and AirBnB break the mold? Try it on Mike - you only have and were given one life. Looking forward to the next editions here.
Appreciate you taking the time to read and share your thoughts.
We're aligned on more than we're not — the whole-person view, identity as foundation, moving beyond surface-level tactics. That's the work.
On the "work and life" framing — I hear you. Language shapes thinking. And you're right that the old "balance" model is broken. I'm not advocating for that.
The way I see it: it's one whole life. Work, home, relationships, health — they're not separate buckets. They're all connected. When one's off, you feel it everywhere.
That's the core of what I'm building here.
Curious how you think about coherence in your model — what does that look like in practice for the people you work with?
Ah. Seems you might be building something competitive. Coherence is under IP and TM protection as are my other moats. Glad you see balance as broken. Keep preaching. You’re using many of my words and terms since we last spoke live. I’m honored. Again, keep preaching the gospel - don’t copy.
Not competitive at all, Mark. Different lanes, same mission — helping people thrive.
Appreciate you sharing what you're building. Plenty of room in this space for multiple voices.
For anyone following along who wants to dig deeper into the approach I'm taking, here's more context on ResultsOS and how self-sabotage patterns show up in the work.
Rooting for your continued success with ONELife. 👊
Love the etymology pull, Scott. "Rising above" — that's exactly it.
And your question is the one most people never ask themselves.
Are we chasing great because it matters to us? Or because we want others to see us as great?
Both can drive results. But only one actually feels like a great life when you get there.
I think the answer shifts over time too. Early career, external validation runs the show. Later, you start asking "wait… whose standard am I even chasing?"
Mike you’re headed in the right direction here. Bravo on calling out the focus on one’s self, the operating system idea, and the wholistic view. (You’re welcome). In our ONELife Strategy app we use Identity - purpose, values and principles for self awareness. We use 8 life domains plus identity to see the wholistic view. I do see some domains missing and no talk of coherence - instead of results. Some of your advice is still more tactical and habits-based which without a life strategy is a recipe for disaster. But you’ll get there. I think the biggest issue is when you say be great at work and be great at life. I know, know, you and the world are still living the outdated and 120 yr old model of work life balance which has been brainwashed into culture and Institutionalized. Hard to break the mold. But didn’t Salesforce, Uber and AirBnB break the mold? Try it on Mike - you only have and were given one life. Looking forward to the next editions here.
Appreciate you taking the time to read and share your thoughts.
We're aligned on more than we're not — the whole-person view, identity as foundation, moving beyond surface-level tactics. That's the work.
On the "work and life" framing — I hear you. Language shapes thinking. And you're right that the old "balance" model is broken. I'm not advocating for that.
The way I see it: it's one whole life. Work, home, relationships, health — they're not separate buckets. They're all connected. When one's off, you feel it everywhere.
That's the core of what I'm building here.
Curious how you think about coherence in your model — what does that look like in practice for the people you work with?
Ah. Seems you might be building something competitive. Coherence is under IP and TM protection as are my other moats. Glad you see balance as broken. Keep preaching. You’re using many of my words and terms since we last spoke live. I’m honored. Again, keep preaching the gospel - don’t copy.
Not competitive at all, Mark. Different lanes, same mission — helping people thrive.
Appreciate you sharing what you're building. Plenty of room in this space for multiple voices.
For anyone following along who wants to dig deeper into the approach I'm taking, here's more context on ResultsOS and how self-sabotage patterns show up in the work.
Rooting for your continued success with ONELife. 👊
ResultsOS: https://www.resultslab.io/p/results-operating-system
But Mike you’re getting in the mix of 200k life coaches with the same msg.
Related to French éminent - rising above; exceeding in quality or degree;"
Is excellence our pursuit of its own? Or are we seeking some extendable validation that others believe we are great, our prominent?
Love the etymology pull, Scott. "Rising above" — that's exactly it.
And your question is the one most people never ask themselves.
Are we chasing great because it matters to us? Or because we want others to see us as great?
Both can drive results. But only one actually feels like a great life when you get there.
I think the answer shifts over time too. Early career, external validation runs the show. Later, you start asking "wait… whose standard am I even chasing?"
Where do you land on it?