Code of Conduct

Lessons learned this week:

Sister Dew taught us the importance and critical character trait of integrity in her talk entitled, True Blue, Through and Through, BYU-I Devotional, March 2004.  This talk was profound and beautifully written.  In it she offers seven things that will help us be women and men of integrity.  Below I have listed her 7 things accompanied with the insights I gained from each of her steps toward becoming a person of integrity.

1.      “Decide today, once and for all, that you will be worthy of trust.”  We have the power within ourselves to simply not accept anything less.  We can decide, and that decision, already made, will empower us in times of temptation.

2.      “Have faith that the Lord can and will help you, and then diligently seek His help.” The Lord wants us to be successful.  We must believe that he can help us overcome our tendencies or temptations to let our integrity fail.  When we believe, and turn to the Lord, through the power of his Atonement, he can strengthen and fortify us against our weaknesses.  We must simply let Him.

3.      “Make covenants and keep them.”  Our covenants bring power into our lives and an added measure of strength.  When we make and keep sacred covenants, we enter into a partnership with God, yoking ourselves to him.  He then has the power to bring us through the muddy pits of life, and to the other side, victorious.

4.      “Stand up for what you believe.” Do not shy away from standing for righteous principles out of fear of rejection.  Sometimes you will be surprised at how many people are grateful you had the courage to stand for the correct thing.

5.      “Expect your integrity to be challenged.”  Satan is not going to take your integrity lying down. Plan on his attacks, on a regular basis.  Be prepared for them.

6.      “Don’t give up.” Sister Dew went on to say, “So learn to delight in repenting and obeying…” because it will be hard and we will mess up, but we must never give up.

7.      “Covenant–or perhaps I should say, renew your covenant–with our Father and His Son to do what you came here to do.”  We must “remember” one way or another, the promises we made before we came here.  The Lord will help us do it, and from that understanding we will be strengthened to keep our promises.

Life Plan - Stars and Stepping Stones

Lessons learned this week:

Pausing and reflecting on what I would like my life to look like when I am laying on my death bed, has been a profound experience for me.  I was reassured that I am on the right path to accomplish the things I would like to accomplish in my life.  Also, considering a bucket list was a difficult task, but it was also profound as I was able to discover that there are many things I want to do with my life that I did not, to this point, slow down and acknowledge.  Having never acknowledged them, I think I might have gotten to the last day of my life and looked back with regrets.

In particular, I contemplated what joy I would get from having the privilege of directing a large production.  After submitting that assignment, the very next day, I as approached by my Stake Music Chairperson who invited me to be the director of a large musical fireside to be held in April.  Had I not just contemplated it the day before, I might have talked myself out of it, not truly contemplating the importance it will play in my life.  I will be excited in April to check that item off the list.

In this course, I look forward to focusing carefully at the needed steps I must take, in order to reach many goals that are not necessary for life, but for which I will be sure to feel as though I really lived, rather than simply existed.

A couple of concepts and quotes that stood out to me this week from the readings and videos:

“It would be a shame to wander aimlessly through a journey we will all only take once.” Jeff Sandefer, Stars and Steppingsones: Some Choices Only Come Around Once

The same process we would use to find our spiritual gifts, we must use to find our callings in life.  Having a sense of our gifts = “inoculation against the vicissitudes of the job market.”  When you find your calling, your work will be bliss.  Don’t expect deep meaning without paying the price for it.  (Jeffrey A. Thompson, What is Your Calling in Life?, BYU Speeches)

“Wait long enough and people will surprise and impress you.  When you are pissed off at somebody and you’re angry at them, you just haven’t given them enough time.” Randy Pausche’s Last Lecture (I needed this lesson this week, though it doesn’t directly apply to the content of the lesson this week.)  (My thought, this may also be true for ourselves.)

Questions/Answers for Assignment:

• Why do you think Randy Pausch was able to achieve so many of his childhood dreams? 
• It seems evident to me that the dreams were achievable, he kept them at the forefront of his mind, and he determined that he could.
• Do you feel that dreaming is important? Why or why not?
• It is important to dream.  The scriptures tell us that we are agents unto ourselves, free “to act for themselves and not to be acted upon.” (2 Nephi 2:26)  By dreaming, we set a vision for our lives.  Identifying those dreams allows us to set a course, to take control of our lives and to go out and get what we want.
• Discuss at least one of your childhood dreams. Explain why you believe you can or cannot achieve this dream.
• As a child I wanted to be a lawyer.  I think that what enticed me was the following:
• The ability to make a case through logic and reason
• The ability to help other people
• The ability to stand for what is right
• The opportunity to participate in public speaking, which would end in, hopefully, doing good for my community.
• I did not pursue this career because it was not consistent with other dreams I had that took priority (my number one goal as a child was to be a mother, nothing else really mattered).  I see now as an adult that the reasoning behind the why of this dream has been made manifest in my other pursuits.  In my adult dreams, the same reasons are behind my new dreams.  I am pursuing those new dreams and I believe I will achieve them because, first and foremost, it is the Lord’s will for my life. I’m certain of it.  And if it is His will, he will give me the drive and the passion to make it happen. I am certain of that, as well.

The "Start-up of You"

Important lessons from this week:

A.     Contemplating the following questions now, will assist me in ensuring I will be happy and satisfied in the end of my life.  I can use these as part of my guardrail as I make both personal and professional decisions throughout my life.

1. Did I accomplish something meaningful?
2. Was I a good person?
3. Who did I love and who loved me?

I must always remember that no money, no fame, no success or power can compensate for or make me truly happy.

B.     To discover my calling in life, I can consider the following ingredients:

• Gifts and strengths
• Joys/passions
• World’s deep burning needs

As I discover my God given gifts and strengths, and couple them with what brings me joy, or the things I can be or are passionate about, and find a local niche of need where I can impact my little corner of the world, I will find the greatest fulfillment in my work, and will likely find real success.

C.      The next step in my journey will be to choose to be thoughtful and to ask questions that will help me to set my priorities.  This will require me to look back on where I have been, consider where I am now, and decide where I am heading.  This will include introspection about all the things previously mentioned; identifying my strengths and passions, and what brings me joy, then looking for where to use them in the world.

D.     I am in control of my journey.  Charles Noble said, “First we make our habits, then our habits make us.”