Mental fitness touches a nerve in everyone, myself included. It exposes one of our deepest fears, the fear of deviancy and incapability, of losing it, of not measuring up, of not being seen as a person. The signs are everywhere. … Read More
Archives
The World Needs More…Of You
The world needs more of you. Not just your projects, programs, and innovations. It needs the thinking, values and aspirations behind them. It needs to understand the soul of your work. Otherwise your projects, programs and innovations will have limited … Read More
A Bystander’s Guide to Civility in a Time of Rage
Uproar, anger and righteousness are flourishing. Black Lives Matter, #MeToo, Idle No More are three examples. You may have been on the receiving end of their concerns directly. Or felt the insinuation indirectly via mainstream or social media. You may … Read More
A Desperado Waiting for a Train
It’s after midnight, the prairie wind is blowing cold and people are secure in their cells at the school for the incurables. Or are they? Curfew was hours ago and the guards are lulled into holiday drowsiness. Or maybe they’ve … Read More
Using Starlight and Statistics to Reclaim our Humanity
The Harper government dimmed the lights at Statistics Canada and the National Council of Welfare in 2012. Into that darkness stepped the Caledon Institute, who committed to continue collecting, analyzing and publishing data related to poverty and welfare in Canada. … Read More
Hold on to your Crowning Achievements
Season two of The Crown dropped into Netflix on the weekend. The historical backdrop is the Suez Crisis which earned the future Prime Minister of Canada, Lester Pearson, the Nobel Prize for “saving the world.” I wondered who would play … Read More
What to do when the door to the status quo opens slightly
There are times when you manage to open the door to the status quo ever so slightly. By status quo, I refer to those organizations and institutions (foundations, big budget non-profits, universities, government ministries, health systems, police departments and so on) … Read More
I Felt Your Outrage
I felt your outrage. It exploded full blast. Catching me sitting at the back of the room. Unaware. Me, who neither shares your experience or your identity. Me, who you accuse of privilege. Who can never be one of you. Why … Read More
First Leap, Bold; Second Leap, Wild
That first bold leap usually lands you right at the front of the status quo but not very far ahead of it. That’s because you are carrying the lethargy of the past and the momentum of outmoded approaches on your … Read More