In her early thirties, my friend Annette made her first trip out of the United States. She moved to Paris, and her dream was to sing jazz. She arrived in Paris with only a few hundred dollars in her wallet, a few words of French and a hotel reservation that had been cancelled after her flight was delayed. While she was switching trains at Metro Châtelet on her way into the city from Orly, she heard a guitarist playing in one of the tunnels. She put down her suitcases and started singing Summertime, filling the major commuter train hub with her voice. Continue reading
leadership
What Do you See: Leadership & Identities
“The question is not what you look at but what you see.” ~ Henry David Thoreau, 1851
Amidst news of violence, chaos and suffering from around the world, a story emerged to give us a little light relief: “Dutch king reveals he has been a KLM pilot for 21 years,” as CNBC headlined matter-of-factly. Many news channels dramatized the story with headlines like “Dutch king reveals secret life — as a KLM airline co-pilot” in the Washington Post or “Dutch King Willem-Alexander moonlights as KLM airline copilot” in USA Today. Words like “secret life” or “moonlight” suggest that the king was doing something more sinister than flying an airplane as a licensed pilot. Continue reading
This Was My Plan All Along
Not too long ago, I was being interviewed for an article, happily sharing information about how I got started podcasting for kids, about my sources of inspiration, when I was asked, “What do you expect kids to get out of participating in your after-school program?” Wait, what? You want to know what I expect to happen from my efforts? You want to know how things will turn out? You want to know if I’m seeing achievement or progress on some indicator? You want my expected outcomes?!
Meeting People Where They Are: Meeting is a Journey
Recently at my niece’s school, I was walking along a hallway lined up with pre-kindergarten and kindergarten classrooms. In front of each classroom, there was a board showcasing the kids’ recent work, which at the time happened to be about what they wanted to be when they grew up. While their professional interests covered a spectrum of professions – from doctors to police officers and from ballet dancers to firefighters – the most common profession seemed to be teachers, not surprisingly since these kids spent most of their days with their teachers. These boards brought back the memory of my younger years. Like these kids, I had many interests for my future profession. Unlike many of these kids, however, I knew for sure at that very young age that I did not want to become a teacher. I learned early on that being a good teacher was hard, and I didn’t think that I had what it would take to be a good one. Continue reading
Meeting People Where They Are: What Is On the Other Side?
“What you do as an actor is you’re inhabiting souls. And you’re asking those souls to come into your space. And you could only do that in a non-judgmental way,”
British actress Naomie Harris spoke in a CBS interview of her process to become a crack addict, single mom in the movie Moonlight. Researching and becoming her character was not an easy process. Harris said, “I couldn’t understand this concept. … We know how destructive drugs are. So how does somebody get attracted to that, you know? And she has a son. And so I had so much judgment, actually, and I really had to work very hard to overcome that judgment.” Continue reading
Boo! – Perceived Reality
“Help!” squeaked a mouse. “He’s coming!”
Who’s coming?” asked a frog.
“Big Bro,” said the mouse.
“He’s rough, he’s tough, and he’s big.”
“Big?” said the frog. “How big?”
The mouse stretched out his arms as wide as they could go.
“This big,” he cried, and he scampered off to hide.
A Question from a Blue Cat on a Time Machine
What would you do if you had a time machine? The future would no longer be a possibility, but a reality. And the past would not be just a path to the present, but the present that could still be acted upon. Imagine all the actions and outcomes that you could change and the mistakes that you could correct with your 20/20 hindsight. I usually don’t think much about time machines; I practice mindfulness (or at least try to), and jumping away from the present moment is the opposite of my practice. That all changed recently when a blue robot cat arrived on a time machine and jolted me out of my sleep. Continue reading
Who is a Leader?
“I don’t like monsters and I really don’t like mean people.” –Melvin Bubble
Could you work for Melvin Bubble? Would you follow Melvin Bubble if he had a great idea? Do you think Melvin Bubble would listen to you? Do you think Melvin Bubble could help you out if you had a problem? Is Melvin a leader? How much more would you have to know about Melvin Bubble before you could support him as your leader? Continue reading
Strange Bird: An Endangered Species
Last year, I was following a search for a leadership position that happened publicly. It was the search for the new general manager of the Washington Metropolitan Area Transit Authority or the Metro, one of the largest public transit systems in North America. Initially, I was following the development because I regularly traveled to Washington, DC, and as a frequent rider of the Metro, my safety, my comfort and my ability to get to places on time and conveniently were on top of my mind. Continue reading
A Most Amazing Leader
“The quietest thing in the world is a worm chewing peanut butter.”
I love this line from Judi Barrett’s book, “Things That Are Most in the World.” There is something especially delightful about this sentence. It is reassuring and ridiculous all at the same time. It feels great to know exactly what is the most quiet thing in the world! Doesn’t it? Continue reading