About This Blog
I am a Change Catalyst, writer, coach, educator and life-long learner whose life purpose is to evoke insight, clarity and new perspectives to energize, empower and inspire. This blog is designed to weave together concepts and ideas so as to help people “see” things in new ways – to develop new mindsets and broader perspectives – and build connections and community.
Many of us approach the world with a rational and linear perspective, attempting to understand things through compartmentalization, categorization, and division. This way of seeing the world through the “head” often leads to an “either/or” perspective. I prefer to view the world through the “heart,” focusing on connections and community, using a “both/and” perspective. A linear approach takes the view that there is one “truth” that can be determined by logically examining “the facts.” A heart-based approach, on the other hand, leaves room for the existence of multiple realities and places value on emotions and feelings as well as analysis with the goal of enhancing mutual understanding.
The very richness of the diversity that makes humanity and individual human beings magnificent and wonderful is also the source of much conflict and tension. Instead of being able to learn from and appreciate our differences, in nations across the globe, we have developed social constructs based on our differences that are used to separate rather than connect us. In the process, we have become disconnected from each other based on group identities of all kinds and have become disconnected from our own souls and spirits as well. In the United States, among the primary reasons we have become disjointed and fragmented are the inequities and injustice that result from the power differences and meanings attached to social identities such as race, gender, class, sexual orientation, etc. (A simple look at statistics demonstrates disparities based on social identity. As an example, a white man with a criminal record has a higher chance of being employed than an African-American man without a criminal record. Similarly, if we look at the top layers of leadership in most corporations, there is a dearth of women and people of color of both genders.)
My goal for this blog is to illustrate connections between concepts, thoughts, feelings, ideas, books, and dynamics that may otherwise appear unrelated. I do this by sharing my thoughts and feelings along with metaphors and stories. Metaphors and stories are useful in helping people see things in new ways by providing a different framework or perspective. They can enable us to transcend narrow viewpoints so as to be able to take in the “bigger picture” – one that is more inclusive of different perspectives. And, they can make it possible for dialogue around these perspectives rather than debate. Through this process, I hope to help bring about learning and positive transformative change (in myself and others) through analyzing the impact of societal disconnections and exploring ways for building connection and community.
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