There is a an audio version of my Wordpress Blog on this subject: https://soundcloud.com/lex-mckee/life-can-get-better-and-better The Wordpress Blog is at: http://wp.me/p1gvgd-3J This is all about how to have a life that gets better and better. How? By following a natural model for success, sustainability, and satisfaction. An assessment sheet is available to help you evaluate just how vibrant your life currently is!

1. Life Quotient for Individuals
By Lex McKee with background
images courtesy of NASA/Hubble

2. Living a life to the full is about living in two
worlds - the world of thought (where your
values, beliefs, and attitudes define your
vitality and joie de vivre), and the material
world (where your daily habitual actions
determine the results you enjoy).
For these reasons, the Life Quotient
questionnaire takes into account your
internal and material worlds.

3. This questionnaire
sheet can be
downloaded and
then printed off
from the link
provided in the
notes below.
Also available in
MindManager
2012 format.

5. Each question
should be given a
rating between ‘0’
= not true for you,
and ‘5’ = one of
your core
strengths.
Four support slides
follow each
question slide.

6. MOVEMENT
All living organisms live, and move, and have their
being. There is a sense of liberty (and thus of a life-to-
the-full) around mobility.
We are either moving towards something we want, or
away from something we don't want.
These three questions focus on the positive aspect of
what we do want.

7. I am moving towards a • Without doubt, a life-to-the-full is a life 'on purpose'. In the
words of Henry David Thoreau:
clear purpose in my life • "I went to the woods because I wished to live deliberately,
to front only the essential facts of life, and see if I could not
learn what it had to teach, and not, when I came to die,
discover that I had not lived. I did not wish to live what was
not life, living is so dear; nor did I wish to practice
resignation, unless it was quite necessary. I wanted to live
deep and suck out all the marrow of life, to live so sturdily
and Spartan-like as to put to rout all that was not life, to
cut a broad swath and shave close, to drive life into a
corner, and reduce it to its lowest terms, and, if it proved
to be mean, why then to get the whole and genuine
meanness of it, and publish its meanness to the world; or if
it were sublime, to know it by experience, and be able to
give a true account of it in my next excursion."
• Having a purpose is without life though if it isn't
accompanied by corresponding movement towards it.
Thoreau went to the woods - he took the action required.
• Or equally eloquently as the New Testament puts it, "Faith
without works is dead."
• First steps then, in pursuing a life to the full, is deciding on
a purpose. All other steps involve moving towards that
purpose.
• Live life deliberately...

8. I move towards my • You can't happily be alive one
specific goals on a daily day and dead the next - not if
basis you are to live a life-to-the-
full. So we need to take
consistent, habitual action
towards our goals on a daily
basis.
• This involves:
• knowing our goals
• tracking our progress
(movement)
• taking action day-by-day

9. I feel I have a real sense of • As with the outer world, so
momentum towards more with the inner world.
of what I want in life
Movement is propelled.
Something drives it. Consider
the literal meaning of
"motivation" - there's
movement in that word!
• So, to enjoy a life-to-the-full,
we must feel motivated, or as
I have put it here, have a
sense of momentum towards
more of what we want more
of in life.

10. The three questions again
Rate yourself from 0-5

11. The three questions for “Nutrition”

12. Nutrition has several purposes:
To give us energy
To supply the building blocks for growth
To be enjoyable.
What gives people energy? In a word, "Attention"! Solitary
confinement is designed to be unpleasant because the sensory
deprivation shrivels the soul of any normal human. So, are you
getting enough positive attention?
To grow, we need information - we need feedback - we need
communication. So many people feel starved of sufficient
interaction with others. So, I include 'communication' under
nutrition.

13. • The emphasis is on the 'positive attention' -
I believe I receive some people get unwelcome attention.
sufficient positive • Without enough positive 'strokes' (as they
attention are known in Transactional Analysis), our
nervous system suffers. Appalling
experiments on primates (experiments of
which I do NOT approve) showed actual
neurological damage to young primates
who were deprived of positive attention.
Even negative attention is better than no
attention at all, as every tempestuous
toddler demonstrates at some stage in their
development... and some executives never
grow beyond this stage!
• This is so fundamental to our well-being
that I invented a new currency of attention,
the Neuro, to encourage people to pay
more attention to one another.

14. I am entering into • Interaction with others is
sufficient interaction with
others nourishing. It edifies us - an
old-fashioned word for
‘building us up’. So then,
attention and interaction
energise and edify

15. I make sure I boost my • The end result of good nutrition is a sense of energy -
vitality. Many people seem slothful - living their lives in a
energy on a daily basis state of low-energy. Dynamic people, on the other hand,
have a certain 'Spark!' They've got some 'Oomph!' to
them!!
• They've got a confidence, a healthy glow, a self-assurance,
that are the signs of a good diet.
• One major way to achieve this is to make sure you have a
daily diet of inputs that energise you.
• This goes way beyond the positive attention and
interaction with others that we've mentioned previously.
• For the more introverted amongst us, energy comes from
times of quiet reflection - this is food for the soul. Many
religious disciplines talk of having a "Quiet Time" in order
to nourish the inner life.
• I feel I would be unwise to be prescriptive here. You alone
know (or are beginning to learn) what really energises you.
Music plays an important role in the nutrition of the souls
of many. Most of us can boost our energy by listening to
some music with which we have positive associations. The
important action to take here is to make sure we are
proactively feeding on that which energises us on a daily
basis. I'd recommend three good 'meals' a day!

16. Once more, the questions for “Nutrition”
Rate yourself from 0-5

17. The three questions for “Reproduction”

18. Many of Nature's cruel dramas are played out over the issue of who gets to
mate with whom. Even plants are very competitive when it comes to making
sure their genetic distinctiveness is passed on to the future.
In the terms of the late Stephen Covey, this is about leaving a legacy - making
a lasting difference.
If movement was 'on purpose' - reproduction is about leaving the artefacts
that maintain your vision long after you've been promoted to the next life!
Stephen Covey's work is a perfect, shining example.
We talk of "procreation" when we think of breeding. Our model is more
metaphorical, so we will talk of "creation" and "creativity" instead... planting
the 'seeds' of your thoughts in the minds of others.
Many great religious leaders have chosen not to procreate. Are they any less
alive? I don't think so. Their legacy remains.
I mourn the passing of the late, great Sir Patrick Moore. He is a great example
of a non-religious figure whose natural enthusiasm and articulate
communication skills ignited thousands of young minds with a desire to delve
deeper into astronomy.

19. • Creativity in Nature is all about seeds. Our ideas
I am very creative are seeds, and those who live a life to the full
have lots of ideas, dreams, and visions. They
then use movement to take action towards
fulfilling these ideas.
• How many people say, "Oh, I wish I could play an
instrument"? or "I wish I could draw"?
• Expressing your god-given creativity
(remembering that most religions have the
Creator as their divinity, and believe we are
made in the divine image) is a force of life.
• My belief is that everyone is creative - they may
just have to find the way. I have challenges
around singing in tune - and I don't paint very
well (yet), but that doesn't mean I'm not
creative. I express my creativity in other ways.

20. I readily share my ideas
with others
• Reproduction in Nature is
rarely an individual activity.
Plants share pollen, and the
birds, bees, and chimpanzees
are all 'doing it'.
• For our metaphor, let's
suggest that a life-to-the-full
cannot be a life of isolation. It
is a life of interaction.
Creative ideas and outputs
have to be shared if they are
to germinate and take root.

21. I am enthusiastic • "My enthusiasm is contagious"
• Our metaphor of non-physical reproduction is
completed by the vehicle that transports the
ideas. This is, without doubt, our natural
enthusiasm.
• I hope that all of us have had the joy of meeting
a teacher or enthusiast whose very energy was
enough to kindle our interest - or even light the
fire of the same passion within us.
• That History Teacher, the Maths Teacher, the
English Teacher who switched you on to a
subject - rarely was it because of the content,
but rather because of the passion.
• People who live a life to the full are full of
passion... it's a life force.
• Enthusiasm =
• Fascinatingly, renewing our divine associations
with being a creator, "Enthusiasm" literally
means having god within. The idea of being in an
ecstatic state through being filled with the divine
spirit – and god is the life-force. Nice.

22. Once more, the “Reproduction” questions
Rate yourself from 0-5

23. The three questions for “Excretion”

24. Stuff happens... but to avoid being
poisoned by the toxic waste that life
inevitably produces you must be able to:
learn
let go (and move on)
avoid it next time. III
I walk down the same street.
Portia Nelson's biography in 5 chapters: There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
I I see it is there.
I walk down the street. I still fall in ... it's a habit.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk. My eyes are open.
I fall in. I know where I am.
I am lost ... I am helpless. It is my fault.
It isn't my fault. I get out immediately.
It takes me forever to find a way out.
IV
II I walk down the same street.
I walk down the same street. There is a deep hole in the sidewalk.
There is a deep hole in the sidewalk. I walk around it.
I pretend I don't see it.
I fall in again. V
I can't believe I am in the same place. I walk down another street.
But it isn't my fault.
It still takes a long time to get out.

25. I proactively seek to learn • A Chinese proverb says, "If a man
from my mistakes strikes you on the cheek, shame on
him. If the same man strikes you
twice, shame on you!"
• Life strikes us on the cheek.
Sometimes it's our fault,
sometimes it isn't. In terms of living
a life to the full, the blame is
irrelevant, the key is in what you
learn and what you do next.
• Those who do not learn from their
mistakes (and the mistakes of
others) are destined to repeat
them.

26. I am able to let go of the • We've all met people who have
emotional baggage of been 'poisoned' by life. Most,
errors however, haven't been poisoned by
life so much as being poisoned by
clinging on to their reaction to
what happened.
• Bitterness is a poison.
• The next step in living a life to the
full is to let go and move on!
• This takes a high degree of
emotional maturity (see 'Growth')
but is added here because of the
impact of the retention of such
poisonous attitudes on our vitality.
• Forgiveness is tough, but
unforgiveness is far tougher.

27. I am able to use my
experience to avoid such
• People say, "Forgive and
waste in future Forget" - but that, to me, is
insanity. We must
remember the lessons
learned or else how shall
we avoid similar dangers in
the future?
• Learn from it and earn
from it!

28. Once more, the “Excretion” questions
Rate yourself from 0-5

29. The three questions for “Growth”

30. In Nature, signs of life in the growth arena are
height, strength, territory, and size of the group
you are a part of. The latter two are outside the
individual so are not technically the life-signs a
biologist would look for, but they are signs of
vitality.
For us, we are interested in the maturity of
growth shown in:
Strength
Knowledge
Wisdom

31. I am growing stronger day- • Individuals cannot be fully alive
by-day
and enjoying a life to the full
unless they are physically
healthy - a healthy mind needs a
healthy body.
• To score a maximum of '5' in this
area, you must be fit and
healthy, and pursuing health and
fitness on a daily basis.
• Clearly there are issues as we
age, so this is about being the
best that you can realistically be
at your current time of life.

32. I am learning more and
more, month by month • Continuous learning is
ageless - and, in fact,
should only improve with
age since you have more
knowledge to associate
new knowledge with.
• "To those who have, even
more shall be given."

33. I am developing deeper • This is experiential wisdom - the
wisdom as the years go by
quality of character often looked
for in interviews. It's about you
having been there, done that,
got the T Shirt... and having
become a better person for it!
It's about being more "grown
up".
• It is impossible to rate yourself
as a '5' on this one unless you
are proactively and positively
reflective - learning well the
deeper lessons in the school of
life.

34. Once more, the “Growth”questions
Rate yourself from 0-5

35. The three questions for “Respiration”

36. Respiration is really about making a
contribution - giving something back to
the environment in which you live and
move and have your being.

37. I make a positive • This contribution could be
contribution to my
community in the form of giving your
time, money, or expertise
(or all three) to community
causes.

38. I make a positive
• We've all met people who
contribution to my social take, take, take - but rarely
circle
give. They are asphyxiating
to be around.
• A '5' on this aspect of
Respiration is that you give
other people air time - and
space to breathe.
• You’ve got to listen to
breathe in and out!!

39. • This culture frame-of-reference is a game-
I seek to make a positive changer. If you are proactively seeking to
contribution in every make a positive contribution in any
exchange with any person or group you
encounter meet, you're heading for a '5' here.
• By way of stark contrast, we've all met
selfish, rude, or aggressive people - who are
at a low ebb when it comes to being truly
alive.
• I like the late Stephen Covey's attitude: to
always seek a win-win. This is the spirit of
respiration.
• (Interestingly, many languages and religions
use "breath", "wind", and "spirit"
synonymously. We also have the fascinating
concept of "inspiration" - literally, to breath
in. But don't just breath in, give it out or
you'll burst!)

40. Once more, the “Respiration” questions
Rate yourself from 0-5

41. The three questions for “Sensitivity”

42. Sensitivity is about being connected -
hardwired into your internal environment, and
softwired into your external environment so
that you are aware and alert.
I am connected (I am a networker)
I am alert (I have sensory acuity)
I am aware - (I am emotionally intelligent)
Sensitivity is the application of Social
Intelligence - both in the Intrapersonal and
Interpersonal aspects.

43. I am a great Networker – • This reflects the "strength
well-connected within my
community
of weak bonds" - the idea
that we prosper when we
have a multitude of 'weak'
connections, rather than
relying on a few strong
connections.

44. • All Living Organisms live in a context
I am alert to the where they must be alert to
opportunities and threats opportunities and threats. Only in this
in my environment way may they avoid being harmed and,
equally importantly, notice where
opportunities to thrive exist.
• A key to rating yourself on this one is
how much you live in the 'Now' - being
fully alert in the present. Daydreamers
can get eaten!
• If you find that you regularly miss cues
in your environment - if you're a poor
listener, for example, then you are not
yet at a '5' on the rating scale.

45. I am aware and responsive • Emotional Intelligence is
to the feeling and ‘state’
of those around me
the ability to be
sympathetic or even
empathetic. It includes the
skill to be able to 'read'
others accurately - their
body language, their non-
verbal cues. It is also the
ability to pick up the fuller
message from their verbal
cues – below the surface.

46. Once more, the “Sensitivity” questions
Rate yourself from 0-5

47. You should now have seven sets of scores.
These add up to a maximum possible Life
Quotient of 35.
How alive are you?
What actions will you take to boost your
Life Quotient?

48. If you liked this questionnaire
there are two more to follow in
the series…
“The Living Leadership LQ”
And
“The Living Organisations LQ”

49. Remember the questionnaire mind map
sheet can be downloaded and then
printed off from the link provided in the
notes below.
This will make it easier for you to
calculate your Life Quotient.

50. I can be contacted at:
Lex_mckee@me.com
Also, please checkout:
www.entertrainment.co