Fast and Far

You’ve likely heard the African proverb: “If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go together.”

It’s always rubbed me the wrong way. Can we not go both fast and far together?

As a professional facilitator, I’m confident that well-structured group conversations can help people use their time more effectively and make wiser decisions faster. But this idea of going faster together resonates more deeply than that, especially right now. Continue reading “Fast and Far”

Sustainable Recharge

Different kinds of batteries charge in different ways. (Or so I’m told…please don’t ask me to explain this much further…!)

Our cell phone batteries gradually deplete over time. Plug in the charger for a few minutes and you gain a bit more battery life. Overnight, and you’re good for the next day.

In gasoline-powered cars, the battery recharges while we’re driving. Continue reading “Sustainable Recharge”

The Ability to be Hopeful

One of my favourite opening questions to build connections in meetings (other than, “Share the most boring thing about yourself,” which is actually hilarious), is “Put one adjective in the Chat that describes how you are really doing today.” Sometimes, I’ll ask it twice, with the second round adding the cloak of anonymity, which tends to increase candour. I use it several times per week. Continue reading “The Ability to be Hopeful”

The Gift of a Goal

Further to last week’s post, I’ve been thinking more about the motivating power of a compelling goal.

Energy is a very precious currency.

If you are running a race for which you have trained for a long time, and you find yourself exhausted near the finish line, you don’t want your coach offering you a seat, a hug and a glass of wine right then. You want them to remind you of your goal and your committed preparation, so you’ll keep running and finish strongly. Continue reading “The Gift of a Goal”

When your mojo is down, level up

I know we’re weary. When we’re weary, it’s hard to find the capacity to do anything extra. But what if when we’re weary is exactly the time to do those extra things? Not just any extra things, but ones carefully chosen to energize us.

Part of why we’re weary right now is not because we’re doing too much but because we’re doing too little. Not enough of the things that bring us joy.  We may even be doing less than we could do, within the admittedly constrained range of possibilities before us one year into a pandemic. Continue reading “When your mojo is down, level up”

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