“ahoi!” (German for “ahoy!”) is what the sailor in the crow’s nest calls out when a ship sets sail. He has a destination. He knows for what it’s worth to set sail. Do you know for what reason you “set sail”? What makes you call out “ahoi!”?
The knowledge of what really drives us has dwindled in the last decades. As a result, it has become more difficult or entirely impossible to focus, leading to sensory overload which the brain no longer can (and shouldn’t be required to) process properly.
Being stressed out is not a status symbol anymore.
The results become particularly clear on days when 24 hours just isn’t enough. When you’ve gotten a lot done but still feel you haven’t achieved anything. The result is disorientation, fatigue and sulkiness.
Getting closer to your own goals with ahoi!. It sounds simple and it actually is, if only we knew what our goals are.
Knowing what your goals are makes life simpler.
When did you last hear someone say: “Just say what you mean!” ? Our everyday communication has become a pragmatic exchange of information. Where our grandparents took the time for a tea-time chat with their aunts, today’s issues are often only discussed in passing. We all live in our own world and know the available facts about the situation. Statements or requests are made and questions are asked only based on these facts, in a short and imprecise way for the other party, but entirely logical from one’s own point of view. For example: the husband leaves the house to get the remaining groceries, when his wife calls after him “Don’t forget to bring some nice bananas!” In addition to the other ingredients, he buys some nicely-shaped impeccable-looking yellow bananas. Exactly the kind of bananas he likes. His wife is aghast at the sight of them and asks him what she is supposed to do with them. She says they are way too hard and not ripe enough. She wanted to make banana curd! So he was supposed to buy some ripe, brown bananas! But only she knew that she wanted to make banana curd. She didn’t pass this information to him. (Just to give you a short impression of one of our kitchen talks at home.)
The origin of all conflict between me and my fellow men is that I do not say what I mean. MARTIN BUBER (1878-1965, jüdischer Religionsforscher u. Philosoph)
So we can’t just expect the other party to perceive the moment exactly like we do or to be able to look inside our head, thereby knowing what we think, feel or want. It would be nice, for a start, to know it ourselves and to be able to express it. The woman in our example wanted to have soft, ripe bananas. Why didn’t she say so? It would have made things a lot easier.
How do I know what I want?
The woman could have taken the time to express herself more precisely and in a way that evoked the same image in her head as it did in her partner’s: a transparent statement. Habit and stress caused a misunderstanding and she only thought she said what she wanted. Experts call such a statement a ‘position’. What I really want, however, is the interest behind the position. So it’s not so hard to know what you want after all.
The solution? Transparency first! And make sure to make precise statements.
At ahoi!, I will answer the question by revealing the causal relationships (“impact chain”) between values, goals, exclusion and focus. We all have values and standards that shape our actions. Our goals are derived from these values. Sorting out and avoiding things that contradict our own values, as well as focussing on things that matter, makes us more careful and attentive – at first towards ourselves and then also towards others. We become more aware of our actions and can actively make decisions. We’ve come full circle:
Froh zu sein bedarf es wenig und wer froh ist, ist ein König. german Song: It takes little to be happy. And whoever is happy is a king. AUGUST MÜHLING (1786 – 1847, deutscher Organist, Dirigent und Komponist)
You only need to have your own will, a little time and some help to be able again to get to know yourself and others better. Just as with the good old tea-time chat, only this time without aunts. And the result: 24 hours is enough again and you have orientation, motivation and maybe even a little smile on your face.
ahoii. 