Alex Pattakos > Quotes

“When we work creatively and productively with others, our experience of meaning can be profound. When we work directly for the good of others, meaning deepens in ways that reward us beyond measure. Whenever we go beyond satisfying our own personal needs, we enter the realm of what Frankl called "ultimate meaning." some call it connection to a higher self, to God, to our own spirit, to universal consciousness, to love, to the collective good. No matter what it's called, it is deep meaning and it transforms our lives.”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“The search for meaning in our lives takes us on paths large and small. When we go beyond ourselves-whether in forgiveness, unselfishness, thoughtfulness, generosity and understanding toward others-we enter into the spiritual realm of meaning. By giving beyond ourselves, we make our own lives richer. This is a truth long understood at the heart of all meaningful spiritual traditions. It's a mystery that can only be experienced. And when we do experience it, we are in the heart of meaning. We are no longer a prisoner of our thoughts.”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“In life's most difficult situations, it is our capacity to cope and personal resiliency that are put to the ultimate test. It's then that the freedom to choose our attitude takes center stage. To exercise this freedom effectively, however, we must be able to view any given situation from different vantage points. We must know we are and be flexible and courageous enough to make a shift when necessary, even if it means moving away from what is expected or considered "normal.”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“Between stimulus and response, there is a space. In that space lies our freedom and our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our happiness.”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“Live as if you were living already for the second time and as if you had acted the first time as wrongly as you are about to act now!50”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“Every human being is a Leonardo da Vinci. The only problem is that he doesn’t know it. His parents didn’t know it, and they didn’t treat him like a Leonardo. Therefore he didn’t become like a Leonardo. That’s my basic theory.47”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“the I-It relationship, we treat other people as objects and expect something back from each relationship. In contrast, in the I-Thou relationship we relate to others out of respect, friendship, and love.”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“BOB DIAMOND: "Being from earth as you are and using as little of your brain as you do, your life has pretty much been devoted to dealing with fear.

DAN MILLER: "It has?"

BOB DIAMOND: "Everybody on earth deals with fear. That's what little brains do."

BOB DIAMOND: "Did you ever have friends whose stomach hurt?"

DAN MILLER: "Every one of them."

BOB DIAMOND: "It's fear. Fear is like a giant fog. It sits on your brain and blocks everything. Real feeling, true happiness, real joy, they can't get through that fog. But you lift it and buddy you're in for the ride of your life."

(From the movie 'Defending Your Life')”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“«Entre el estímulo y la respuesta hay un espacio. En ese espacio reside nuestra libertad y nuestra capacidad de elegir nuestra respuesta. En nuestra respuesta radica nuestro crecimiento y nuestra felicidad.»”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisioneros de nuestros pensamientos: Los principios de Viktor E. Frankl para descubrir el sentido en la vida y en el trabajo

“Whenever possible, he fought against the idea of collective guilt, even though it was an unpopular stand immediately after the war.”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“Significantly, we now turn to online news sources that reinforce a particular worldview. As we filter out what does not resonate with us, sooner or later, we fail to see or hear any alternative views. Eventually we find it difficult to interact meaningfully with those who hold differing views. As we view the world through a smaller lens, we lessen our ability to learn from diverse perspectives. Our societies become more fragmented as a result of this increasing myopia.”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“We often seem to create meaning by complaining. This can feel momentarily satisfying, but ultimately it undermines the integrity of our experience. It sucks the meaning out of our work and out of our relationship to our”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“Remember also that the great complaint carnival is not a celebration; it’s a bandwagon of misery. Our complaints trivialize our experience — both at work and in our personal lives. When we complain, we disconnect. When we complain, we hold whatever or whoever we’re complaining about as a shield between us. We perpetuate an old community of victimization and helplessness. But when we take the time to communicate about our fears and insecurities — our real lives — we connect on a deeper, authentic level. When we connect through this deeper humanness, we create a new community of support and possibility”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“many bullies lack the self-awareness and insight to see how their power plays are destructive, not only to themselves but to others around them.”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“1. We choose a positive attitude about the situation at hand. 2. We choose to visualize what’s possible to deal with the situation at hand. 3. We choose an attitude that generates passion for the action that makes the possible become a reality.”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“زمانی که به کاری مشغول هستید و علاقه ای نسبت به آن ندارید، دو گزینه پیش روی شماست، یکی اینکه آن شغل را رها کرده و یا راه دیگر اینکه سعی کنید معنا را در آن شغل بیابید.”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“As humans, we tend to see a lifespan as having a narrative arc—from childhood to old age. Any interruption of the unfolding story is seen as tragic. Maybe that’s not it at all. Maybe the universe exists because goodness requires it. And maybe what it’s all about is that humans were to evolve to discover/create love and meaning—because that’s God’s nature expressing itself. If that’s at least possible, then my wife has accomplished many lifetimes already through her children, her friends, and her relationship with me. That can never be undone; it exists forever.”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“The range of what we see and do Is limited by what we fail to notice. And because we fail to notice That we fail to notice, There is little we can do To change Until we notice How failing to notice Shapes our thoughts and deeds. R. D. Laing With”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“Hans Selye, de Montreal, Canadá, célebre por sus investigaciones y escritos sobre el estrés. Selye enseñaba que solo cuando tenemos un trabajo y unos proyectos significativos se fortalece nuestro sistema inmunológico y se ralentizan las fuerzas degenerativas del envejecimiento. Denominaba a esta clase de estrés «eustrés»”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisioneros de nuestros pensamientos: Los principios de Viktor E. Frankl para descubrir el sentido en la vida y en el trabajo

“Being part of any solution means taking action. And taking action involves more than just dreaming, no matter how vivid, how real, one’s dreams appear. Whether dreaming or awake, when we are prisoners of our thoughts, we can’t always see very clearly through the bars of our metaphorical prison cell, let alone take action.”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“اولین کاری که باید بکنیم این است که دست از شکوه کردن برداریم.”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“No worthy end can ever really be accomplished with unworthy means.”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“Between stimulus and response, there is a space. In that space lies our freedom and our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our happiness. I”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“I don’t just deliver mail,” she said enthusiastically and with a great deal of pride. “I see myself helping to connect people to other people. I am helping to build the community. Besides, people depend on me and I don’t want to let them down.”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“De este comandante aprendemos que el coraje no consiste en la ausencia de miedo, sino en la conciencia de que existe algo más importante.”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisioneros de nuestros pensamientos: Los principios de Viktor E. Frankl para descubrir el sentido en la vida y en el trabajo

“When meaning is honored at the top of any organization, it can be easy to bring meaning to our jobs. It’s a natural reflection of meaningful values. If we are valued and appreciated, if our well-being is nurtured, we feel a part of a meaningful whole. But soulfulness can trickle up, too. It might be more difficult to honor meaning at work with little evidence from above, but it also might be more important to do so.”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“Sadly, we are losing the “soul” of our communities, ignoring the danger that when a community (or society) loses its soul, it loses itself.”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“Bullies use various power tactics, such as spreading malicious gossip, excessive criticism, withholding resources or information, excluding a targeted person from the group, and other devious behaviors intended to undermine the confidence and performance of others. Bullies often take aggressive action against individuals in an effort to control and have power over them.”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“Man is not free from conditions. But he is free to take a stand in regard to them. The conditions do not completely condition him.”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work

“Skalleberg also has a revolutionary formula for building a company culture in the postmodern era: “Confidence is the start of it, joy is a part of it, love is the heart of it.”
― Alex Pattakos, Prisoners of Our Thoughts: Viktor Frankl's Principles for Discovering Meaning in Life and Work