What does it make possible when people who work together know each other as whole people? For starters, knowing each other is a prerequisite for trust. And respect. And caring. And having each other’s back. So then, what is the worst that could happen if people who work together do not know each other as … Read more
The worst time for having to be with lots of other people is when we’re feeling stressed or even depressed. The holidays often bring both those things at the same time — stress AND being with people. Talk about set up to fail! My Catalytic Thinking practice has changed all that for me. When I let that … Read more
Year-end is a joyful time for some, a struggle for others. For most of us, it’s a mixed bag of both! To help bring out the best in all of us, over the past few weeks we’ve been asking this question at Facebook: What songs give you instant strength when you are feeling less than strong? … Read more
The July 2016 Creating the Future board meeting will focus on legal compliance. • While Creating the Future is in transition from one organizational structure to the next, are we remaining in compliance with the law? With our own bylaws? • If not, what will we do about that? Warning: If you’re thinking this is a … Read more
Last fall, as we set out to launch a new online curriculum at Creating the Future, Dimitri posted this post asking for input about possible technology platforms for teaching these classes. Many people responded to that post, some in the comments, many more privately. Some suggested specific platforms, while others helped deepen our search by … Read more
What is Creating the Future? Being an enterprise rooted in an idea (vs. a Food Bank or Crisis Shelter or org that builds wells in the developing world), we hear that question every day. Our tagline helps to answer that question: “Change the Questions, Change the World!” But what questions are those? And how … Read more
When preparing to plan, what are the most important questions to answer, to set the stage for successful and impactful planning? The experts in Creating the Future’s Facebook group for consultants to community benefit organizations have a wealth of experience in this type of work, so we asked for them to share their wisdom on … Read more
Last week, in Creating the Future’s Facebook group for consultants to community benefit orgs, an article from Forbes titled Are You Dealing With A Real Expert Or A Fake? 7 Ways To Tell led to an interesting discussion. The list included this at #2: Real experts have no trouble saying: “I don’t know.” That led to an interesting … Read more
I am very lucky – I get to spend a lot of time with community benefit consultants. As a recovering consultant myself (now an organizational founder), I cherish that I get to spend so much time with people who have chosen their work based on their passion for making the world a better place. After … Read more
One of the most important skills of any changemaker is the ability to listen. But what are we actually listening for? And what should we be doing with what we hear? These are the questions at the heart of Creating the Future’s FlashClass, “High Potential Listening.” After that class is over, this post will be the … Read more