Your Soul Food Friday for January 16th 2015: Empathy, Charlie Hebdo, Everything is Cyclical, Making Friends with Structure & Phenomenal Pictures

Happy Soul Food Friday!

The events of the past week clearly cry out for more empathy from us all…

“Could a greater miracle take place than for us to look through each other’s eyes for an instant?”– Henry David Thoreau

Empathy is at the heart of all good design. Without the understanding of what others see, feel, and experience, designing anything is a pointless task. Alternatively, when communicated as in the example below, empathy can be truly inspirational. What the following Cleveland Clinic movie reveals is the true scale and complexity of the challenge of understanding a complex social situation in order to design a system that supports many and various needs.

How do you go about being inspired by empathy?

9 Points to Ponder on the Paris Shooting and Charlie Hebdo

http://www.onbeing.org/blog/9-points-to-ponder-on-the-paris-shooting-and-charlie-hebdo/7193

‘Everything Is Cyclical’: Christian McBride Looks At 2015 In Jazz

Some gems to soothe your soul…

http://www.npr.org/player/v2/mediaPlayer.html?action=1&t=1&islist=false&id=377224137&m=377267082

Make Friends with Structure:

WHAT IF…”going with the flow” could actually disrupt your flow?
RESEARCH SAYS: Creativity and structure actually work together. When you’re trying to rise to the next level, sticking to a schedule and setting goals isn’t a drag—it helps your brain focus and gain traction.

TRY THIS: Think of one creative goal you’d like to accomplish this year–redecorating a room in your house, streamlining a system at work, finishing that secret novel hiding in your desk drawer. Now make a structure for just this week that helps you work on it. Tell us how you feel at the end of the week. How much closer did you get to your goal than if the structure wasn’t there?
Recent Tips:

#230 – The Secret to a Successful Marriage

#231 – Hey Leaders, Mindfulness Matters!

#232 – Balancing Negative and Positive Feedback

Past Popular Tips:

#96 – Why a Vision is Better Than a Plan

#109 – Nobody’s Perfect

#215 – Positive Pleasure

Read Will’s latest leadership/career blog post:

Do You Feel Your Infinite Value?

Connect with Will on LinkedIn to be up to date on his latest leadership knowledge and insight.

Phenomenal Pictures

Thanks this week go to Paul S, Tim B, Dan S, Will M, Larry H & Improvisers Everywhere!
Pay it Forward!