MOVING FORWARD TOGETHER What Prisoners of War Can Teach Us About Getting Through The Pandemic
“Freedom has a taste to it to those who fight and almost die that the protected will never know.” – Written on a prison wall by a captive in Vietnam I heard once that the purpose of a crisis is not to break us as much as it is to break us open. As Remembrance […]
HOW TO RECOVER THE HUMAN ELEMENT
The students of a Hasidic rabbi approached their spiritual leader with a complaint about the prevalence of evil in the world. Intent upon driving out the forces of darkness, they requested the rabbi to counsel them. The rabbi suggested they take brooms and attempt to sweep the darkness from a cellar. The bewildered disciples applied […]
Four Ways to Protect Your Well-Being In Colder Months
I love this time of year. It’s my favorite season. I call it “late summer.” The crisp air in my morning walks, the dropping temperatures, and the leaves beginning to turn remind me of going back to school, my days of harvest on the farm, starting a new year of teaching, and beginning a new […]
Leadership By Modeling The Way: Let’s Choose Courage – Together
As a parent, I have learned that children are great imitators. The key is to give them something great to imitate. Michelle Skene, principal of The Ridge at Kanata Montessori School, where my daughter teaches, sent an inspiring note to parents as they prepare to send their children back to school this week. Her message […]
Facing Racism: It Starts With Personal Accountability
I was lamenting with a colleague about how we all have areas in our lives and our leadership that drive other people crazy, cause damage to the world around us, and hurt the people we care about. And we are blind to them. That’s why we call them blind spots in our leadership development program. […]
RESPONDING TO OUR TIMES: Lessons From Nelson Mandela
For many years the life and leadership of Nelson Mandela has inspired and guided my work. Mandela had many teachers in his life, but the greatest of them all was prison. In the words of his biographer, Richard Stengel, “Prison taught him self-control, discipline, and focus, and it taught him how to be a full […]
CREATING PSYCHOLOGICALLY SAFE WORKPLACES – It Will Depend on All of Us
There are people in our world who do not feel safe because of the color of their skin. There are people who don’t feel safe because of their gender. There are people who don’t feel safe because of their religious beliefs or sexual orientation. This has to stop. It’s time to decide, once and for […]
DON’T WASTE THIS CRISIS Let’s Not Get Back to Normal
A crisis is really a terrible thing to waste. – Paul Romer, Stanford economist In college, while on the track team, I was inspired by the university’s volleyball coach. He had a mantra that guided all his practices. Every time the ball came on your side of the net he would say, “use it.” “The ball is not your enemy,” he would continually remind […]
HOW TO EMBRACE CHANGE AUTHENTICALLY
Authentic leadership is both active and reflective. One has to alternate between participating and observing. I am in the midst of navigating my own way through that journey and feel compelled to share my experiences and perspective with you. This pandemic is an enormous experiment in shared authenticity. Fear and grief can bring out our […]
Accountability, Ownership, and COVID-19
The focus of my life’s work and passion is authentic leadership. At the foundation of authenticity lies ownership and personal accountability. In part, this means the ability to distinguish between what you can control and what you can’t and putting energy into that which you can influence. I am aware that COVID-19 is causing concern […]
