How Are You Feeling?

So how are you feeling at this time of year? Really feeling.

I’m slightly overwhelmed with the thought of making the holiday season, as well as the end of the year, a happy experience for everyone in my life. I’m a tad anxious at wondering how a blended family will do over the coming days as we all adjust to a new family situation. I’m a skosh nostalgic of family gatherings in the past and trying to live up to expectations. I’m more than ticked that I can’t stay focused in the present.

A few weeks ago I mentioned in my email about this year’s annual fund drive how it is so easy to hide from the world and that we have so much to want to hide from. Most of what we want to hide from is made up in our head. We catastrophize every world event, every awkward look, every miscommunication into something that is 10 times worse than it might actually be. In many ways, we can look back on the year and feel the same way.

The missed opportunities. The failed relationships. The use of the wrong word. The pain we take on.

I’m not going to do that any more. I mean it.

I used to think that life was supposed to be perfect. That I was supposed to be perfect. I thought that I could solve everything, be everything, fix everything. That hasn’t worked for me.

What has worked is to show up as authentically as I can. Admit my mistakes. Say I’m sorry. Listen and don’t solve. Be present. The best gift or experience I can give my family, friends, and colleagues is to be present and raw. Be vulnerable. Realize that the end of the year can bring a ton of feelings that can be positive and negative. They are just feelings. We all have them.

Let’s embrace those feelings and be thankful for the messes in our lives. Be grateful for the “warts” in our families. Be accepting of the process that we are all in.

Take a deep breath and realize we are all imperfect. Imperfections make the best stories. The best memories. The best laughs.

So instead of looking at the end of the year as a time of never ending lines, unlimited sale advertisements, and guilt for what we haven’t done, let’s focus on the present. The good right in front of our eyes. The smiles we can return. The nods that let someone know that we see them.

Those feelings are the ones we will cherish. The ones we remember. The ones that make us smile.

That helps to make a more just, caring, and thriving world.

Paul

World Kindness Day

There are a lot of holidays that bring attention to the meaningful and the silly (national donut day anyone?) and everything in between. Today is World Kindness Day, a holiday born in 1998 from a gathering of like-minded kindness organizations from around the world.

The Random Acts of Kindness Foundation, is also involved with World Kindness Day. They define the day as “A global 24-hour celebration dedicated to paying-it-forward and focusing on the good.” The ideas they have on their website to recognize the day are so easy that you could even pick one thing to do today, without having planned for anything.

When you read over the suggestions that the Random Acts of Kindness Foundation has to offer - share a kindness quote on social media, take care of yourself, express your gratitude towards someone in your life, donate to a cause that is important you – they all seems pretty effortless. In fact, they seem so easy that we wonder what would the world be like if we approached every day as World Kindness Day?

How would you be different if you were kind to yourself every day? If you got enough sleep, if you fueled your body with healthy food, if you spoke to yourself lovingly?

How would your relationships be different if you told those around you that you appreciate them and shared exactly why?

How could the causes and organizations you believe in grow if you donated even a week’s worth of coffee money to them?

We think – maybe even know – that you, those around you, and those causes you support would actually flourish from all of that consistent kindness.

So let today be a day to put kindness out into the world. And let tomorrow and all the other days after be more of the same.

Dates Announced!

The LeaderShape Institute provides a transformative learning experience for those who attend, engage, and participate. The six day program gives participants an opportunity to explore their values and develop a vision for something they care about. They do this work in community with others as they embrace a healthy disregard for the impossible. It is a program we believe in deeply and are honored to work on year after year. 

It's no wonder we are excited to announce the dates for the 2015 national sessions of the Institute! This year we will be holding 4 national sessions in 3 locations. 

• Sunday, May 17 - Friday, May 22
  (Boston, MA)
• Sunday, July 19 - Friday, July 24
  (Champaign, IL)
• Saturday, July 25 - Thursday, July 30

  (Atlanta, GA)
• Sunday, July 26 - Friday, July 31
  
(Champaign, IL)

We are fortunate to have a community of people willing to share their experience at the Institute, so if you aren't sure about the program's impact please visit this page and spend a little time reading over what participants have had to say. Reading these comments motivates us in our work and renews our faith in the creation of a just, caring, and thriving world. We hope they do the same for you!

To reserve space or ask questions about sending students or attending yourself, please contact Vernon Wall at vernon@leadershape.org.