“The day will come when, after harnessing space, the winds, the tides and gravitation, we shall harness for God the energies of love. And on that day, for the second time in the history of the world, we shall have discovered fire!” –Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
Getting to the Heart of Business: Shift Happened! Foresight is 20/20
A seismic shift of positive proportions is already well underway in San Diego.
In stark counterpoint to silent killers like heart disease, or silent scourges like depression, or not so silent dividers like polarizing political party affiliations, a stronger silent typography has emerged in America’s finest, kindest and most purpose-filled region. Like lotus blossoms that thrive in the murkiest of waters, running equally silent and equally deep, there is a steady emergence of heart-centered individuals, organizations & communities committed to a living from a deeper place of being, where love not fear is the prime driver, and elevating humanity is the goal, aim and purpose.
Tired of the sordid spectacle of the 24 hour news cycle, and yearning for real substance and significance, with a ravenous hunger for better ways to define success in life and in business, as well as a deep thirst for authentic connection and belonging, we’re seeing more and more individuals and organizations saying enough is enough!
Instead of capitulating to the status quo, they are consciously choosing to put people whole-heartedly at the center of their organizations, and shifting mind sets, heart sets and skill sets toward a love-centered approach to work and life. These companies know empirically and intuitively that doing well by doing good is enlightened self-interest with significant positive implications for attracting today’s workforce, connecting more deeply with customers, and making a difference of consequence for our communities.
While pockets of innovation are found everywhere, San Diego is helping lead the way to encourage the heart, exemplified with the latest work of two local authors, Steve Farber and Moshe Engelberg, & convened by local organizations including the Chamber of Purpose San Diego.
Best-selling author Steve Farber’s newest book “Love Is Just Damn Good Business”, was just released this month.
Dr. Moshe Engelberg’s book “The Amare Wave: Uplifting Business by Putting Love to Work is due out in November.
These thought leaders are propelling San Diego to a sea change that builds the amare wave and creates damn good business for all of us.
Business is not akin to war, so we need to stop talking and acting like it is. Deficit thinking is as dated and destructive as bloodletting. Companies that have the courage to lead with love, do better—often much better. That’s the key idea of Dr. Moshe Engelberg’s upcoming book The Amare Wave: Uplifting Business by Putting Love to Work. In it, he shows how a mighty wave, growing in momentum and force every day is propelling good organizations away from the fear-based “business as war” fighting paradigm, and toward a fresh, love-centered approach that works better for business and society.
Love is not only appropriate in the context of business, it’s at the very heart of great leadership, and, therefore, the very foundation of a thriving, competitive, sustainable enterprise. When love is intentionally part of an organization’s framework and operationalized in its culture, that’s when something transformative and great happens. That’s when you foster loyalty. That’s when you cultivate raving fans. That’s when people love you in return.
That’s the core message of San Diego author Steve Farber’s latest book, Love Is Just Damn Good Business, and its creating a new paradigm in the business world with implications that spill into every aspect of our lives.
If you are tired of getting pounded in the white water and ready to get in the flow that you already know, you’re invited to the official San Diego book launch party for Love Is Just Damn Good Business and the building of this new turning tide!
No one of us is as powerful as all of us and there is no bystanding!
We’re inviting you to co-lead this EVOL-ution (love backward that needs to be reversed).
If we can change the expectation and experience of what it means to be in business, we change everything!
This is way more than just a launch party; this is a sea change to an entirely new future for all of us.
To know and not to do, is not to know…
Join us on Friday, September 27 from 7 – 10 PM at Corporate Alliance of San Diego. There’ll be food, mingling with kindred spirits and great collective energy. Marco’s Pizza, a company featured in Steve’s book, is generously providing pizza and salads. And we’ll have other nourishment and sustenance for your heart and soul too.
It time to co-lead this LoveBiz EVOL-ution.
Are you in? Spread the love, mobilize your peeps, and sign up below so we can expect you and feed you.
Thanks this week to Moshe E, Steve F, Larry H, Steve S, Larry K, Cathy J and so many of you bringing love to the world!
Will YOU pay it forward?
Love,
Neville
“Love is misunderstood to be an emotion;
actually, it is a state of awareness, a way of
being in the world, a way of seeing oneself and others.” –Dr. David Hawkins
Love Quotes? 10 Life Quotes That (If Applied) Will Change the Way You See The World Forever: “Why do we love life quotes so much?
I think I have the answer. Life quotes have a way of piercing through the B.S. and noise surrounding us. Life quotes are the Gordian knots that cut through that noise and reveal the essence of life we know deep down but tend to forget.
I’m a writer, which means I love quotes. But I also understand how simultaneously insightful and useless they can be. You can do one of two things with a quote — use it as inspirational fluff to post on Instagram or use the insight to change your life. The wisdom of quotes is extremely powerful when applied”… https://psiloveyou.xyz/10-life-quotes-that-if-applied-will-change-the-way-you-see-the-world-forever-d05338ae489b
Love Real World Education? Launching New EdCorps + a Fundraising Campaign: 143 New Student-Run Businesses Changing the World
On Monday morning, 143 new student-run businesses launch, each with their own unique mission, goals, and universe of learning and possibility. It’s one reason this never gets old – because each class can use their business as a vehicle for creativity, experimentation, and connection to the world around them. And it looks different every time.
Before we push play on our fifth school year, I wanted to share the EdCorps ’18-’19 Yearbook from this past year. In it, you’ll find stories of a pre-k class using their business to support people with epilepsy and those of high school students building products that address local ecological issues. Compiling these stories is always my favorite time of year because the patterns are undeniable; students discovering what they’re capable of and finding ways to use their skills and passions for their communities. The entrepreneurial journey is different in each class, but the student transformation happens everywhere. I wanted to share those stories with you here.
I’ve got other big news – this is the beginning of our first public fundraising campaign. In the past, we’ve been so busy focusing on classrooms that we haven’t made it easy for passionate people to help us grow the movement. That’s changing. Today, everyday people can invest directly in student learning by becoming EdCorps Angels and giving monthly. And for those excited to help scale the impact of the EdCorps Community in more substantive ways, they can become an Impact Sponsor and invest in projects that help us improve outcomes for thousands more students. You can learn more by clicking here or below.
Over 450 student-run businesses to date – all because of the tenacity of educators, the persistence and brilliance of students, and the support of fellow dreamers, doers, and thought partners like you. We wouldn’t have made it this far – and wouldn’t make it too much further – without people like you. So whether it be a monetary gift, your mentorship and personal insights, or note of encouragement or support, we’re grateful you’re on our team.
Elyse Burden
Co-founder, Real World Scholars
Love is Just Damn Good Business…
Love is Just Damn Good Business…
Save the Date: September 27th 2019 at 7pm at Corporate Alliance- Love is Just Damn Good Business Book Launch Party Sponsored by the Chamber of Purpose as we stand up Love as a cornerstone in San Diego!
My friend Steve Farber, author of The Radical Leap, The Radical Edge, and Greater Than Yourself, has just released his latest and, I think, greatest book.
It’s called Love Is Just Damn Good Business, and I believe that it’s going to help create a new paradigm in the business world.
The book tosses aside the touchy-feely notions of love in business and recognizes the real power it holds. Love is not only appropriate in the context of business, it’s the foundation of great leadership, and, therefore, the very foundation of a thriving, competitive enterprise. When love is part of an organization’s framework and operationalized in its culture, employees and customers feel genuinely valued.
Employees who are passionate about their work are more loyal, innovative, creative, and inspired—and that translates to great customer experience. They don’t serve others out of obligation, but because of a genuine desire to improve people’s lives. And when customers reciprocate by loving your products, your services, and your people, that’s when something great happens. That’s when you get loyalty. That’s when you get raving fans. That’s when people love you in return.
And in that spirit, you’re invited to the official San Diego book launch party for Love Is Just Damn Good Business!
Join us on Friday, September 27 from 7 – 10 PM at Corporate Alliance of San Diego. There’ll be food and mingling and great company. And, of course, Steve will read selections from the book.
Let’s co-lead this fantastic LoveBiz revolution. If we can change the expectation and experience of what it means to be in business, we change everything.
Click this link to RSVP to the shindig, and let’s do what we love in the service of people who love what we do. http://evite.me/N9k9Yrw44n
“World peace must develop from inner peace. Peace is not just the mere absence of violence. Peace is, I think, the manifestation of human compassion.”— HHDL
This week: “The odds that you exist at all are basically zero.” YOU Are A Miracle So Act Like It:
A few days after accepting a scholarship offer to play basketball at the University of Michigan, Austin Hatch was involved in a plane crash that killed both his father and step mother. Austin suffered life-threatening injuries and brain trauma. He was in a coma for two months. It was a horrible tragedy made worse by the fact that Austin had lost his mother and two siblings in another crash that he and his father had survived eight years earlier.
Austin has the rare distinction of being someone who has survived two plane crashes. The odds of this happening are 11 quadrillion, 5 trillion to one. Yet as miraculous as this was, the doctors believe it was even more miraculous that Austin not only walked again but graduated high school, attended Michigan, and joined the basketball team to play for Coach Beilein who amazingly still honored his scholarship. Austin even played five games as a freshman before deciding to become a student manager for the team.
Austin couldn’t play like he used to, but his leadership was a huge asset to his coach and Michigan teammates. While talking to Austin on the phone recently, he told me about not letting circumstances define him. He said he made a decision in the hospital while trying to walk again that he would do whatever it took to walk out of that hospital. He wanted to be a miracle for others.
He said, “My life is only a miracle if I can be a miracle for others.”
Now as a graduate of Michigan, he is living with his wife in Ann Arbor and giving motivational talks about his experience and life. He is a walking, talking, living, breathing miracle. But Austin isn’t just content with being a miracle. He doesn’t just want to show what a miracle looks like. He is living to be a miracle for others through his words, inspiration and leadership.
In thinking about Austin, I realized that everyone is a miracle and has the opportunity to be a miracle for others.
Then I did a little research and found Tara Maclsaac’s article where she shared that Dr. Ali Binazir looked at the odds of your existence by calculating the odds of your parents meeting and your parent’s ancestors meeting, mating and all the right things coming together to eventually create you. He came to the conclusion that “The odds that you exist at all are basically zero.” He explains that “It is the probability of 2 million people getting together to play a game of dice with trillion-sided dice. They each roll the dice and they all come up with the exact same number – for example, 550, 343, 279, 001.”
Dr. Ali Binazir wrote, “A miracle is an event so unlikely as to be almost impossible. By that definition, I’ve just shown that you are a miracle. Now go forth and feel and act like the miracle that you are.”
I would add, AND BE A MIRACLE FOR OTHERS… like Austin.
“Bloom Where You Are Planted”
Being a Champion Means “Winning” Both On and Off the Court: Coco Gauff and Naomi Osaka’s emotional joint post match interview | 2019 US Open
In an age where winning at all costs seems to be everything and where civility, courtesy and benevolence sadly seem to be values from a bygone era, here is what a real champion and real leadership looks like from this last weekend at the US Open.
While the match itself is a rich lesson in body language, seasoning, and preparation, (mindset & skillset) it’s the encore interview after the match that evokes deep insight and inspiration into what makes a champion! (Not to mention millions of hits and accolades on social media)
These amazing young women, 21 year old –Naomi and 15 year old- Coco have more maturity and character (heartset) than many that are older than both their ages combined and their grace and kindness coupled with their fierce competitive spirit moved me to tears and gives me real hope for the future… https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q8mJLAkXZng
Thanks this week go to Larry H, and all of you that periodically send me content that speaks to your heart for Soul Food Friday.
Please pay it forward and be that miracle for others!
This week marks the 400th anniversary of the first enslaved Americans arriving in Virginia, and the 50th anniversary of Dr. King’s “I Have a Dream” speech delivered on the National Mall at the largest political demonstration to date in American history with more than 250,000 people converging in Washington.
What have we learned over the years and what can you and I do in 2019 to advance the democratic principles and ideals that put into practice define this country and ignored or denied defile this nation?
This week: Reframing and Celebrating 1619 and the 400th Anniversary of the First Enslaved Americans Yes enslaved Americans built some of our most iconic institutions like the White House.
Equally significantly, African Americans have served as the real testing ground for Democracy in America and continue to pay a huge price as we put these democratic values into practice.
Let’s celebrate the contributions of black America and reframe the narrative with respect to their critical role in our history as a nation…
Strange Fruit: Billie Holiday helped shape American popular music with her voice and unique style. But, her legacy extends way beyond music with one song in particular — “Strange Fruit.”
The song paints an unflinching picture of racial violence, and it was an unexpected hit. But singing it brought serious consequences. https://www.npr.org/2019/08/20/752909807/strange-fruit
“The 1619 Project”: Nikole Hannah-Jones on Confronting the Truth about Slavery: The New York Times magazine is launching a series called “The 1619 Project.” It marks the 400th anniversary of the arrival of the first enslaved Africans in the colony of Virginia. The series examines the ways the legacy of slavery continues to shape America and “aims to reframe American history” to place “the consequences of slavery and the contributions of black Americans at the very center of the story we tell ourselves about who we are.” https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/the-1619-project-nikole-hannah-jones-on-confronting-the-truth-about-slavery/vi-AAGaCQ8
Serena Vs. The Umpire: A behind the scenes in-depth look as we unpack this big moment in sport and culture through this contextual lens.
There was far more to this story… including interactions between Ramos, the Chair Umpire and Williams that were concealed from the television audience, and that happened off the court.
BTW, the U.S. Open starts this weekend, and Ramos won’t be officiating any games with either Williams sister. https://wamu.org/story/19/08/26/serena-vs-the-umpire/
If you are local… Care to Join Us for this Intimate Luncheon on September 6th?
How UCSD is influencing a kinder, gentler, and smarter San Diego
UCSD is known as the “Science School” but alumni are out making a big impact in the non-STEM fields as well. The SoCal social responsibility consciousness is certainly alive and well on campus and out in the community.
We continue our streak of great discussions with another great UCSD Connection Lunch on Friday September 6th withNeville Billimoria, Senior VP of Marketing/Membership and Chief Advocacy Officer at Mission Federal Credit Union.
Neville has accountability for all outward facing functions at the largest credit union exclusively serving San Diego County with more than $3.5B in assets. His responsibilities include leadership administration of a strategic array of crucial member-focused functions including: leading and managing the Marketing and Community Relations departments. He also has shared responsibility with the CEO for promoting Mission Federal Credit Union’s public image and brand, with active engagement in the community as part of the Credit Union’s social purpose.
San Diego Alumni Lunch September 6th, 11:30 am
750 B Street, 34th Floor
San Diego, CA 92101 Street parking is available
Thanks this week go to every American that remains committed to creating a country and culture that is caring and inclusive of everyone! Please pay it forward
Love,
Neville
“An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity.” -Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
How A Few ‘Renegade’ Thinkers Helped Usher In A New Era Of Anthropology:
Americans are talking a lot about race these days and whether immigrants from certain regions should be welcomed into the country. Charles King, writes about a time a little more than 100 years ago when he says educated people in the U.S. believed it was established science that there is a natural hierarchy of cultures, with Western civilization at the top, and that people’s abilities and potential were defined by their race and gender.
His new work chronicles the work of a group of trailblazing anthropologists who undermined those ideas in the first half of the 20th century. They were students of German American professor Franz Boas. And some, particularly Margaret Mead, became widely read authors. Their work studying cultures around the world challenged fixed ideas about race and nationality and changed the way many Americans saw themselves and others.
What Climate Change Means for Food Production: Recently, the UN released a report warning of the long term effects of climate change on our food supply.
And there are growing concerns that climate change will make food insecurity an even bigger problem in parts of the world like Central America. https://www.wnycstudios.org/story/climate-change-food-supply-insecurity
What Machine Learning Teaches Us about CEO Leadership Style: CEOs are communicators. Studies show that CEOs spend 85 percent of their time in communication-related activities, including speeches, meetings, and phone calls with people both inside and outside the firm. Now, new research using machine learning is attempting a deep dive into the words and facial expressions of chief executives to see if leadership style can be correlated with a firm’s performance. The researchers believe their work could open new directions in big data analysis, combining image and textual analysis to create a more complete picture of how a chief executive influences firm performance. https://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/machine-learning-can-help-us-understand-ceo-behavior?cid=spmailing-28653279-WK%20Newsletter%2008-21-2019%20(1)-August%2021,%202019
Get inspired by two remarkable soul-filled social justice women warriors! In stark contrast to many purported leaders who seem more than willing to compromise their core values for expediency, power or self-interest, here is the real deal.
While from different eras; one is 80 and the other is 16, each with a different cause; abolition of the death penalty and the climate crisis, you can’t help but be inspired by how each of them in their own right embody passion, purpose, authenticity and integrity- rare qualities in today’s leaders of any stripe.
Don’t miss these incredible stories by inspiring women, daring to be themselves, daring to be different, and in turn daring us to unleash our full potential attending to the broader concerns of all humanity…
Sister Helen Prejean on Fresh Air with Terry Gross “I read scripture to them. … All I knew was: I couldn’t let them die alone.” Prejean is best known for her 1993 memoir, ‘Dead Man Walking,’ about her role as a spiritual adviser to a convicted killer on death row. The story was adapted into an Oscar-winning film starring Susan Sarandon and Sean Penn. Prejean has accompanied six prisoners to their executions and has been at the forefront of activism against the death penalty. Her new memoir, ‘River of Fire,’ details her spiritual journey up to that point.
This interview captures what real spirituality looks like when put into practice.
BTW, John Powers review of the documentary ‘Honeyland’ at the end is awesome too!
16 Year Old Greta Thunberg’s Zero Carbon Journey: ‘I might feel a bit sea sick’
“By Stopping flying you don’t only reduce your own carbon footprint, but that also sends a signal to other people around you that the climate crisis is a real thing”
Climate change activist Greta Thunberg will spend two weeks travelling across the North Atlantic on a boat with no toilets, kitchens or privacy.
Greta, 16, has stopped flying due to environmental reasons, but is due to attend a crucial climate change conference in New York.
She told the BBC that travelling by boat sends a signal that “the climate change crisis is a real thing”.
Electricity on the boat will solely come from wind turbines and solar panels, meaning the journey has a zero carbon footprint.
Thanks this week go to NPR/KPBS and the BBC for keeping me informed and inspired, and to Cathy J for helping me get this blog out to the world every week rain or shine, work or vaca!
Thanks also to Dusty for this encouraging comment on our Soul Food Friday Blog:
“It’s a shame you don’t have a donate button! I’d definitely donate to this superb blog! I guess for now I’ll settle for book-marking and adding your RSS feed to my Google account.
I look forward to brand new updates and will share this site with my Facebook group. Chat soon!”
If this blog resonates, don’t pay me but do please pay it forward!
“An individual has not started living until he can rise above the narrow confines of his individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity.” -Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Given the pain and unimaginable hurt many around the country are feeling and working to remedy, I hope we can all find solace in one another, in what we hold near and dear and in this set of pictures…
Who stops to smell the flowers?
??
Did you notice that some even closed their eyes?
If you are local and made the Purpose Party last week…
Thanks for joining our friends at Conscious Capitalism, San Diego Social Venture Partners and Mission Driven Finance along with visionaries of other organizations for the inaugural Chamber of Purpose – Corporate Alliance Purpose Party last week! It was a uplifting occasion of building community and authentic connections to advance San Diego’s reputation as America’s Kindest City. Stay tuned for details coming soon for our fall gathering where we’ll hear from San Diego’s newest purpose leaders and their bold visions for our collective future.
See you soon and thank you for all you do!
Steven & Neville & Larry
Thanks this week go to Bob C, and all the Purpose Champions in SD
“The trick is in what one emphasizes. We either make
ourselves miserable, or we make ourselves happy.
The amount of work is the same.”– Carlos Castaneda
“Expedients are for the hour, but principles are for the ages. Just because the rains descend, and the winds blow, we cannot afford to build on shifting sands.”
– Henry Ward Beecher (1813 – 1887) American Presbyterian Minister
On Belonging…
This American Life, Sunday July 28thThe Weight of Words Act Three: Where I Came From by Ben Calhoun
If this story doesn’t move you, I would be very surprised…
The Power Of Purpose: How Peter McGuinness And Chobani Fight For ‘Better Food For More People’:
Passionate, provocative and innovative, Peter McGuinness, the Chief Commercial and Marketing Officer of Chobani is one of the leading voices championing the idea that business can be a force for good. Founded by the visionary Hamdi Ulukaya, the company starts with its employees: paying double the minimum wage in its factories, and creating a shared-equity platform which means employees own 10% of the $2 billion company…
Be a Pollinator and a Positive Energy Broadcaster!
The “Green Thing”:
Checking out at the store, the young cashier suggested to the much older lady that she should bring her own grocery bags, because plastic bags are not good for …the environment. The woman apologized to the young girl and explained, “We didn’t have this ‘green thing’ back in my earlier days.”The young clerk responded, “That’s our problem today. Your generation did not care enough to save our environment for future generations.”
The older lady said that she was right our generation didn’t have the “green thing” in its day. The older lady went on to explain: Back then, we returned milk bottles, soda bottles and beer bottles to the store. The store sent them back to the plant to be washed and sterilized and refilled, so it could use the same bottles over and over. So they really were recycled.
But we didn’t have the “green thing” back in our day. Grocery stores bagged our groceries in brown paper bags that we reused for numerous things. Most memorable besides household garbage bags was the use of brown paper bags as book covers for our school books. This was to ensure that public property (the books provided for our use by the school) was not defaced by our scribblings. Then we were able to personalize our books on the brown paper bags.
But, too bad we didn’t do the “green thing” back then. We walked up stairs because we didn’t have an escalator in every store and office building. We walked to the grocery store and didn’t climb into a 300-horsepower machine every time we had to go two blocks. But she was right. We didn’t have the “green thing” in our day.
Back then we washed the baby’s diapers because we didn’t have the throw away kind. We dried clothes on a line, not in an energy-gobbling machine burning up 220 volts. Wind and solar power really did dry our clothes back in our early days.
Kids got hand-me-down clothes from their brothers or sisters, not always brand-new clothing. But that young lady is right; we didn’t have the “green thing” back in our day.
Back then we had one TV, or radio, in the house — not a TV in every room. And the TV had a small screen the size of a handkerchief (remember them?), not a screen the size of the state of Montana. In the kitchen we blended and stirred by hand because we didn’t have electric machines to do everything for us.
When we packaged a fragile item to send in the mail, we used wadded up old newspapers to cushion it, not Styrofoam or plastic bubble wrap.
Back then, we didn’t fire up an engine and burn gasoline just to cut the lawn. We used a push mower that ran on human power.
We exercised by working so we didn’t need to go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity. But she’s right; we didn’t have the “green thing” back then.
We drank from a fountain when we were thirsty instead of using a cup or a plastic bottle every time we had a drink of water. We refilled writing pens with ink instead of buying a new pen, and we replaced the razor blade in a razor instead of throwing away the whole razor just because the blade got dull. But we didn’t have the “green thing” back then.
Back then, people took the streetcar or a bus and kids rode their bikes to school or walked instead of turning their moms into a 24-hour taxi service in the family’s $45,000 SUV or van, which cost what a whole house did before the “green thing.”
We had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances. And we didn’t need a computerized gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 23,000 miles out in space in order to find the nearest burger joint.
But isn’t it sad the current generation laments how wasteful we old folks were just because we didn’t have the “green thing” back then?
Main Gym UC San Diego
This little plot of dirt has sat fallow and unattended for decades outside the Main Gym at UC San Diego until Laurel D, took it upon herself to create a pollinator garden for Monarch butterflies and other insects critical to our collective survival.
By simply planting, watering and creating a pit stop on their long journey, Laurel has modeled for all of us how we can contribute positively to our complex and threatened ecosystem through a constructive investment and with a caring spirit.
Maybe we can all change the world for the better if we start with small acts of intentionality and kindness…
Start your secret garden today!
Decide to be Vitamin C: In the 21st century, we tend to privilege Information and subordinate Energy
Our capacity to influence others through our energy alone is palpable and powerful…
“You are contagious! The energy you put into your team and culture determines the quality of it.”
Research from the Heart Math Institute (HeartMath.org) shows that when you have a feeling in your heart, it goes to every cell in the body, then outward – and people up to 10 feet away can sense these feelings. This means that each day you are broadcasting to your team how you feel. You are broadcasting negative energy or positive energy, apathy or passion, indifference or purpose. Research from Harvard University also supports the idea that the emotions you feel are contagious and affect the people around you.
Your team is just as likely to catch your bad mood as the flu, and on the flip side, they will catch your good mood as well.
As a team member, your attitude, energy and leadership are contagious, and has a big impact on your culture and team.
When you walk into the office, or the meeting, or into the school, hospital, or locker room, you have a decision to make. Are you going to be a germ to your team or a big dose of Vitamin C?
Please know that you don’t have to be an extrovert to be positively contagious. Sharing positive energy doesn’t mean you have to be a rah-rah person and bounce off the walls. It means that, from the heart, you simply broadcast the love, passion, positivity, and purpose that you have for your team. It means that you decide to be a fountain of energy instead of an energy drain. It means that you fuel your team with positive energy instead of being an energy vampire that sucks the life out of them.
Great teams are collectively positive and positively contagious. They give and share positive energy to each other, and the more they give, the more comes back to them.
All-Star Teachers Play The Skills Game: The 90th annual MLB All-Star Game was played on July 9th at Progressive Field in Cleveland, Ohio. The American League won the game for the seventh straight year. Players are selected based on their SKILLS by three groups—fan voting, player voting, and the Commissioner’s office.
In schools and classrooms, we call it the SKILLS GAME taught by All-Star Teachers at all grade levels. The “fan voting” includes parents and students. “Player voting” includes teachers and staff. The “commissioner’s” selections are from school and district administrators.
What might you find on a SKILLS SCORECARD?
On one of the older cards, you will find Bloom’s Taxonomy—the “go to game” for thinking skills a few decades ago.
Many of you will remember the SCANS Scorecard, highlighting the need for employee skills in three general areas:
1) basic skills (reading, writing, math, listening, speaking);
2) thinking skills (thinking creatively, making decisions, solving problems, reasoning); and
3) personal qualities such as responsibility, self-esteem, sociability, self-management, and honesty.
You may have seen the Business World’s Scorecard where people are talking and writing about “soft skills.” Like it or not, emotions are an intrinsic part of our biological makeup, and every morning they march into the office (and our schools and classrooms) with us and influence our behavior. Executives are starting to talk about the importance of such things as trust, confidence, empathy, adaptability and self-control.” Shari Caudron, “The Hard Case for Soft Skills”
Currently we have the 21st-Century Skills Scorecard that includes:
Ways of Thinking (creativity, critical thinking, problem-solving, decision-making and learning);
Ways of Working (communication and collaboration);
Tools for Working (communications technology and information literacy); and,
Skills for Living (citizenship, life and career, and personal and social responsibility).
Two skills that cut across all four categories are “collaborative problem solving” and “learning in digital networks.”
The Fortune 500 Companies Scorecard identifies five top qualities these companies seek in employees:
Teamwork,
Problem solving
Interpersonal skills
Oral communication
Listening
Another Scorecard offered by the Pew Research Center showed that adults identified several essential skills that were most important for children and youth to learn “to get ahead in the world today.” These included communication skills as the most important, followed by reading, math, teamwork, writing and logic.
There are two other very essential Skills Scorecards. One is on the topic of Emotional Intelligence (ET) and the other is a scorecard that describes Social Intelligence (SI).
You know well the All Star for Emotional Intelligence. Psychologist Daniel Goleman hit a couple of “homeruns” with his books Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ, and Working with Emotional Intelligence. His scorecard included such skills as self-confidence, self-awareness, self-control, commitment and integrity.
In discussing emotional intelligence, Daniel Goleman cites Peter Salovey, a Yale professor who categorized components of emotional and social skills into five areas:
Knowing one’s emotions
Managing emotions
Motivating oneself
Recognizing emotions in others
Handling relationships
The scorecard for Social Intelligence is also revealing and relevant.
Social intelligence [social skills] is as important as IQ when it comes to happiness, health, and success. Empathetic people are less likely to experience anxiety, depression, and addictions later in life. They are also more likely to be hired, promoted, earn more money, and have happier marriages and better-adjusted children. Mitch Prinstein, Ph.D., Board-Certified Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychologist If we increase social skills, we see commensurate increases in academic learning. That doesn’t mean that social skills (including cooperation and self-control) make you smarter; it means that these skills make you more amenable to learning. Stephen Elliott, Vanderbilt Peabody Education and Psychology Researcher and
co-author of the newly published The Social Skills Improvement System.
Lastly, there is the Ten Skills Scorecard from the work of Stephen Elliott and Frank Gresham who surveyed over 8,000 teachers and examined 20 years of research in classrooms across the country. They identified these top 10 skills that students need to succeed:
Listen to others
Follow the steps
Follow the rules
Ignore distractions
Ask for help
Take turns when you talk
Get along with others
Stay calm with others
Be responsible for your behavior
Do nice things for others
“Top 10 Social Skills Students Need to Succeed,” Research News at Vanderbilt University, 9-27-2007
Does this sound like the “skills-game“ teachers are now playing in schools and classrooms? If so, then give these teachers your vote and be sure they are rewarded for being an ALL-STAR.
Ed DeRoche, Director, Character Education Resource Center, University of San Diego.
BLOG, July 2019
How to Keep a Commonplace Book:
A commonplace book, if you’re unfamiliar, is a notebook, digital or otherwise, that you fill with information like ideas from books, notes from courses, thought-provoking quotes, and more. So, today, I learn about how to build a commonplace book. https://www.samuelthomasdavies.com/how-to-keep-a-commonplace-book/
If you are Local… Join Us at the Purpose Party Next Week on August 1st and Connect with Kindred Spirits!
Purpose Party 2019
Presented By: Corporate Alliance & Chamber of Purpose
Join the Purpose Community of San Diego at our first Annual Purpose Party on August 1st!
Come out to the Corporate Alliance Hub and mingle with Members of Corporate Alliance, Chamber of Purpose, and guests for a fun evening of socializing and networking.
Branch Out Market will be bringing a fun pop-up selection of handmade and give-back items for you to shop the night of the party. Every purchase makes a difference in the life of an artisan, woman entrepreneur, or beneficiary such as orphanage and school. Come shop and be amazed at the products which are giving back all over the world. High quality and guilt free shopping for sure!
Thanks this week go to Bob C, Laurel D, Larry H, Ed D, Moshe E, The Purpose Players, and all of you who hold the space for making our world better! Please pay it forward
Love,
Neville
A Child’s Defiance Is Often NOT a Relationship NOR a Discipline Problem: Parents beat themselves up because they assume that these conflicts are proof that they have failed to establish the authority and respect they deserve. Or, worse yet, they believe that these conflicts occur due to the selfish nastiness of their children. Often the challenges and refusals occur even around small issues and seem to go on and on.
For many parents, the repeated refusals and never-ending conflicts are a painful reminder of their failure as parents. They feel that if they communicated a strong image of their authority from the “get go” then there would be fewer arguments. They falsely assume that asserting authority better results in more positive parent-child communication and cooperation. In many homes the stress that results as a parent struggles to control what he perceives to be a defiant child seriously affects the parent-child relationship.
Did you notice that some even closed their eyes?
Happy Soul Food Friday! 