Category Archives: authenticity

(#429) Everything Is Up for Revision


Considered evaluation can alter, broaden, and strengthen our belief system. My wife and I recently heard several teens deliver a Sunday message at their church. Their individual messages struck common chords about compassion, acceptance, and communal growth. One of the … Continue reading

Posted in Appreciation, assumptions, authenticity, awareness, focus, generativity, Gratitude, growth, Integrity, Life lessons, resilience | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

(#428) What Does Success Look Like To You?


Is success a noun? A verb? An adjective? Does it have to be connected to the common good? Last week, in a local shop at the beach, I spied the photo below. Th caption caught my attention: “Success is knowing … Continue reading

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(#426) It’s Easy to be Left Behind


“Aging in place” may describe what the residents were doing but not who they wanted to be. In the mid-1990s,  the Walt Disney Company brought the principles of new urbanism to life when it broke ground on Celebration, Florida. Located … Continue reading

Posted in aging, authenticity, awareness, change, change management, Community, community development, dignity, Life lessons, resilience, social capital | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

(#425) A Community of Mentors for Music, Hope, and Rainbows


Neighbors entertaining neighbors while enjoying the company of other neighbors. Research tells us that “hope” requires three ingredients: Goals + Pathways + Agency. Our goal—a rainbow that attracts and draws our attention—must be valuable to us and/or our community.  A … Continue reading

Posted in acceptance, amplifying, Appreciation, authenticity, awareness, Being REMARKABLE, Community, community development, confidence, core values, creating your future, Creativity, Friendship, listening, mentoring, Mindfulness, mindset, Motivation, Personal growth, Personal Wellbeing, Relationship, resilience, respect | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

(#424) Connections


“Marriage has no guarantees. If that’s what you’re looking for, go live with a car battery.” – Erma Bombeck – Random thoughts about the power of connections. On those times when we take chances, when we risk stepping outside of … Continue reading

Posted in amplifying, Appreciation, assumptions, authenticity, awareness, Community, Connection-Disconnection, family, fortitude, Friendship, growth, happiness, health, humor, Integrity, Life lessons, listening, love, Reflective practice, Relationship | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

(#423) Poverty


When communities build walls to separate their people (due to a poverty of understanding or compassion), the lack can seem insurmountable.  “The world tends to define poverty and riches simply in terms of economics. But poverty has many faces—weakness, dependence, … Continue reading

Posted in accountability, action, assumptions, authenticity, awareness, Being REMARKABLE, change, change management, Choice, Civility, collaboration, Critical Thinking, Life lessons, respect, responsibility, risk-taking | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

(#418) Helping A Village Find Its Voice


Listen and respect one another. Find your voice. Use your voice. Pursue your rainbows.  We have heard that the village raises up a child.  What do we do, however, if the village has inadequate infrastructure, health disparities, high crime and poverty, … Continue reading

Posted in acceptance, accountability, action, Appropriate Behavior, assumptions, authenticity, awareness, Balance, change, Choice, Civility, collaboration, conversation, core values, creating your future, Dreams, empathy, information literacy, Integrity, leadership, Relationship, relevance, resilience, vulnerability, wellbeing | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

(#416) A Safe Place to Land


I kept hearing about the connections between congregants and neighborhood, congregants and congregants, as well as congregants and their own souls. Consider this. It’s 1993. You are an exuberant minister with a young and growing family.  You walk into a … Continue reading

Posted in acceptance, assumptions, authenticity, Being REMARKABLE, Choice, Civility, collaboration, Communication, core values, vulnerability, wisdom | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

(#414) Come Together: Food, Friends, and Family


The food might have brought us together; the bonding kept us coming back. The word hygge or coziness comes to us from the Danes and it describes the feeling associated with “good drinks, good friends, and conversation” says Dan Buettner. … Continue reading

Posted in authenticity, collaboration, collegiality, Communication, Community, community development, conversation, core values, family, Friendship, social ties | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

(#410) Your Backstory


Who are two people who have had the biggest impact on your life? Bernadette Jiwa’s new release, Story Driven: You Don’t Need to Compete When You Know Who You Are, “invites you to begin retracing your steps on you journey … Continue reading

Posted in accountability, Appreciation, authenticity, Being REMARKABLE, Choice, creating your future, Failure, Friendship, Goals, resilience | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment