Managing with Aloha

  • Home: Our Philosophy
  • About the Site
  • About the Book
  • A Manager’s Calling
  • The 19 Values of Aloha
  • 9 Key Concepts
  • New Here?
  • Hire Rosa at RosaSay.com
You are here: Home / Key 3. Value Alignment / ‘Imi ola: We are meant to be Seekers

‘Imi ola: We are meant to be Seekers

November 1, 2016

‘Imi ola is “to seek life.”
Our purpose in life is to seek its highest form.
Fourth in Series Two on Managing with Aloha | By Rosa Say

It’s time for ALOHA woven into our autumn of 2016.

Finishing well, and Leaping ahead

At this time of year, my thoughts tend to go in two different, yet very complementary directions. With one, I think about finishing well. With the other, I think about getting a head start on the New Year to come.

It just so happens, that our #AlohaIntentions value for the months of November and December frames these two complementary directions perfectly: Our value is ‘IMI OLA, subject of chapter 3 in Managing with Aloha, which is “to seek life.”

You will find my kick-off essay published on RosaSay.com:
‘Imi ola: We are meant to be Seekers

Self-coaching with Value Guidance

Before you click over to read it my essay, take a moment to ask yourself a simple question: What am I looking for?

As one of our Aloha Intentions, “managing with Aloha” entails two parts, self-managing our own behavior, and managing the behavior of others. If not a “manager” explicitly by title and responsibility, we manage the behavior of others by acting in full awareness of our ability to influence others.

Thus the question of what you may be looking for, asks those two things as well:

  • What are you looking for, for you?
  • What are you looking for, for others who surround you, those living and working with you?

Be a seeker, and support those who are your seekers.

Asking Good Questions

Asking a good question of ourselves is always a good way to start working within any value-of-the-month program.

“What am I looking for?” relates to the ‘imi of ‘IMI OLA —to look, to hunt, to search, to seek. To take notice. To observe with intent. To explore. To discover. To have an aha! moment of wonder:

My Girl Sasha Looking Good on the Street by Thomas Hawk

My Girl Sasha Looking Good on the Street by Thomas Hawk

Wonder

To have an inner capacity that can always make room for awe and wonder is such a blessing.
To return to child-like innocence and acceptance, to be rendered speechless, and have it feel good and right, never helpless.
To not have all the answers but feel it is perfectly fine not to, to just have wonder.

~ Twelve Aloha Virtues

To ask yourself, “What am I looking for?” is to ask yourself what you hope to gain from the next two months, and to clarify exactly what it is you want to happen: The Instinctive Natural Selection of Wanting.

However ‘IMI OLA is freeing as well; it gives you the option of not having a specific answer, and simply indulging in the search, as you look for one.

To Seek, and To Ask, is to Be Open to Discovery

An answer can surprise you.

I myself have sat with the question, “What am I looking for?” for a few weeks now, for so goes publishing schedules (Ke Ola needs my essay a full two months in advance to prepare for their magazine’s printing).

Ever the pragmatist, my own answers started off logically and predictably. Then I challenged myself to keep asking: Every weekend, I have written, “What am I looking for?” atop a new journal page, then folded the page into 2 columns, “For me (self-managing)” on the left, and “For others (managing intention)” on the right.

I push myself, so each column of notes capturing my thoughts will not duplicate what I wrote the weekend before.

It’s been an interesting exercise so far, and I intend to continue it for the remaining weekends in 2016, both to finish well and to leap ahead.

Join me. Value your month, to value your life. Our Aloha Intentions seek to bring good to us, if only we let them.

Related Reading:

  • Alaka‘i Managers Make Plans
  • To Manage with Aloha is to Hack Behavior
  • Better Person, Better Manager, Better Leader. Alaka‘i Batch 24

Hibiscus_1201 by Rosa Say

Subscribe for our weekly newsletter:
Talking Story with the Ho‘ohana Community.

· Key 3. Value Alignment

Trackbacks

  1. ‘IMI OLA Freedom: A Self-Coaching Exercise for November says:
    November 7, 2016 at 3:58 am

    […] Our value immersion study for the months of November and December, is: ‘IMI OLA: We are meant to be Seekers […]

  2. ‘Imi ola Makes It Yours says:
    November 21, 2016 at 11:14 am

    […] tacked onto one of my Pinterest boards, and thought it was worth sharing, especially in light of our current value study of ‘IMI OLA: This year remains in your hands, and it is far from […]

Newly released! Managing with Aloha, Second Edition

MWA2-cover-front

Book Preview:

The Core 21 Beliefs of Managing with Aloha

Read the ChangeThis Manifesto: Managing with Aloha—Yes! You Can Too!

Buy on Amazon.com
Softcover— July 2016
ISBN 978-0-9760190-1-5
Read the Publisher’s Synopsis

Managing with Aloha, First Edition
remains available while supplies last
Hardcover— November 2004
ISBN 976-0-190-0-0

Talking Story with the Ho‘ohana Community

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter:

powered by TinyLetter

Preview past issues in the Letter Archive

Recent Articles

  • Do it—Experiment! December 18, 2020
  • Hō‘imi to Curate Your Life’s Experience September 24, 2020
  • Kaʻana i kāu aloha: Share your Aloha November 6, 2019
  • Managing Basics: The Good Receiver October 18, 2019
  • What do executives do, anyway? They do values. October 14, 2019

19 Values of Aloha: Index Pages

There are 19 Values of Aloha taught within the Managing with Aloha philosophy:

Ch.1 Aloha | Ch.2 Ho‘ohana | Ch.3 ‘Imi ola | Ch.4 Ho‘omau | Ch.5 Kūlia i ka nu‘u | Ch.6 Ho‘okipa | Ch.7 ‘Ohana | Ch.8 Lōkahi | Ch.9 Kākou | Ch.10 Kuleana | Ch.11 ‘Ike loa | Ch.12 Ha‘aha‘a | Ch.13 Ho‘ohanohano | Ch.14 Alaka‘i | Ch.15 Mālama | Ch.16 Mahalo | Ch.17 Nānā i ke kumu | Ch.18 Pono | Ch.19 Ka lā hiki ola | Full Listing

Resource Pages

New Here? Start with this introduction: Reading Pathways

Additional Resource Pages: 9 Key Concepts | 12 Aloha Virtues | A Manager’s Calling: 10 Beliefs | Conceptual Index (Lexicon Morphology) | Daily 5 Minutes | Hawaiian Glossary | Sunday Mālama | Archives

Article Categories

The 9 Key Concepts of the Managing with Aloha ‘Ohana in Business Model

Key 1. The Aloha Spirit | Key 2. Worthwhile Work | Key 3. Value Alignment | Key 4. The Role of the Manager Reconstructed | Key 5. Language of Intention | Key 6. The ‘Ohana in Business Model | Key 7. Strengths Management | Key 8. Sense of Place | Key 9. Palena ‘ole

Copyright © 2021 · Simply Pro Theme by Bloom Blog Shop.