Image Credit: Erin O’Flynn / The Daily Beast / Getty

“Humankind has not woven the web of life. We are but one thread within it. Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves. All things are bound together. All things connect.” Chief Seattle

What did you notice in January as you explored your main character's energy? The image above is a metaphor for the many ways we are interconnected. We continuously feel the effect and create an impact on others, even if our minds can't quite grasp the idea of not being in control. What happens if we hold love as the primary impulse that places us in this system of connections? Pause just a minute to gaze into the image, feel and notice the ideas that surface to communicate to your inner self how connected we are. Let this image remind us of the importance of being deliberate about our mindset because it does ripple far and wide.

I experimented with this during January, and the month flew by for me. I gave extra attention to learning about the tremendous volume of new ideas, technology, and adventures occurring on Planet Earth. And, no, this column is not being written by a ChatGPT, and the image wasn't generated by DALL-E, and aren't those tools so very cool (yep, an old Baby Boomer term)?

The more I listened and looked at the tremendous connection between disciplines, I sensed a tension between wisdom and innovation, challenging me to open to the foreign and disruptive while patiently reflecting on placing what's new in a context I can choose to navigate and learn. Easy to say, much more challenging to embody and navigate change in my daily choices. You will recall that I have an opinion about judgment that is a tad radical (I've learned). However, I am rewarded when I allow judgment to surface into my awareness and practice self-management to pause and let a sense of wonder bubble up. Even the thorniest problems become less charged by asking myself a set of questions.

Our Vanguard Conversation Series, co-hosted with Choice Magazine Editor-in-Chief Garry Schleifer, resumes with the first session in March. We will explore the first daily tension of presence all leaders experience: Conflict <-> Breakthrough. We are thrilled to welcome our global vanguard leader, Beverley Wright, to this conversation. As a preview to get you started on this year's exploration, use the graphic below to begin reflecting on any thorny problem you are experiencing with an element of Conflict and an aspect of Breakthrough co-occurring. The picture below supports a deeper reflection on all that shapes our mindset. Our mindset influences a lot, for example, how we show up in the world, make decisions and interact with others. Answer the four questions – write if you want to or not. What's valuable for you is to allow space for inner reflection – about a specific thorny problem.

This series of questions provides a generative approach to originate new thinking. Hence, we are more fluid and agile in how we respond. Moreover, being sovereign in our choices for how we relate to the conditions of Conflict and Breakthrough evokes motivation to move from feeling stuck and doubtful to action with optimism and greater harmony.

Cheers & Happy Exploring,

Janet

Learn more about the daily tension of presence: Conflict <-> Breakthrough