Inspired Personal Leadership
Reflections on seeing & leading differently...
a note from chris…
Every week or so, sometimes more often, I write a thought piece about some aspect of seeing differently – in life, in relationships, in work and our engagement with the world. Please feel free to search by category, using the tools on the right, or just browse to your heart’s content. Your comments make all of this rich with your ideas and insights. Enjoy!
Beyond Thankful
Welcome to my life... No pay for sick days or vacations. Weekends are an illusion from the past. Health insurance premiums are a nightmare. And I am thankful beyond words. Failures outnumber successes. Uncertainty is my constant companion. Fear stands waiting. And I...
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A Dance with the Universe
I first published this four years ago. My daughter is now a Fulbright Scholar teaching in Thailand, and my mother-in-law has descended into the house of mirrors that is Alzheimer's. Yet, I am deeply moved by how much remains the same - as truth tends to do. As you...
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The gift of saying “yes” to yourself
You might think (as most of us do) that the hardest part of doing something new or risky is knowing how. In reality, the hard part isn't knowing how, it's saying "Yes." When we actually say a full-throated "Yes," a whole host of neurological, emotional and...
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Suffering without catharsis is just wasted pain
The day was bright and clear, and I was thoroughly enjoying my walk to the beach, when I heard Liz Gilbert, author of Eat Pray Love, say these words in my ear: Suffering without catharsis is just wasted pain. (No, I don't normally hear Liz Gilbert's voice in my head....
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Do you know what you’re doing?
Do you know what you're doing? Not, do you know what's on your to-do list? Not, are you good at doing what's on your to-do list? Do you know what you're trying to achieve? Your purpose? Your why? Or did that long ago take a back seat to getting things done? Don't get...
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Full of thanks, and…
This is the season we all strive to be genuinely full of thanksgiving - and so we should be. Even in the midst of our suffering, there is so much for which to be grateful. We live in a Universe where, truly, in the midst of nothing, there is plenty. And... There is...
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Are your memories a match for your dreams?
Are your dreams bigger than your memories? My friend, Derek Petersen, a truly unique human being who lives with remarkable intention and purpose, triggered this question with a recent Facebook post. While I do love the question, my mind immediately began to wonder:...
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Are You Your Own Resistance?
Clarity is that incredible thing that happens when your inner voices and your outer intentions agree. Clarity comes when your aspirations are the next logical step from where you stand ("where you stand" being a state of mind, not a state of circumstances). Resistance...
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I started to ask… Does It Matter?
Tonight, I set out to write a reflection on the theme, "Does it matter?" based on a question Morrie asked in Mitch Albon's memoir, Tuesdays with Morrie. I had talked about how this question, to me, means "Does it soul matter? Does it align with who I really am? Does...
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The Last Step
Ironic, I know. I spend my life helping people get out of their heads and take inspired action. And I can tell you, those first shifts, when you finally step off the treadmill of your own thoughts, are the hardest. But what about that last step - the one where you've...
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And the dream grew closer…
I spent last weekend with a group of dreamers. Every person at the retreat was reaching for something that did not yet exist in their lives - at least not in it's fullest, dreamed-of form. So why weren't they more inspired? Why was there such pain attached to the gap...
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Looking for hope
This week's reflection, as we look in the mirror of the senseless killings in Las Vegas, is quiet and simple. In fact, the words are not my own, but those of our beloved teacher and neighborhood friend, Mr. Rogers: Look for the helpers. If you look for the helpers,...
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The Truth of Affirmations
I recently heard a debate about affirmations that made me think it was time to re-share this reflection, first published in 2009. Affirmations have become the catch-all solution, the salve for whatever ails you. Just think it and it will come true: "I am a...
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Does It Tire or Inspire?
I was reviewing reflections I wrote in 2007 and this one jumped out as a perfect reminder for our times... Talk about on the mark! On the Today show last week, I listened to Kris Carr, author of Crazy, Sexy Cancer Tips, talk about her dance with a type of cancer that...
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In My Eyes – a story of hope
As students return to school, I think back to all the kids I've worked with whose challenges set them apart - and all the loving parents who, even in the midst of exhaustion, strive to hold them in a different light. This piece, written years ago for The Hope-Filled...
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A truth-gauge for your beliefs
"I am not enough." Money is bad." "I am unworthy." Evidently, everyone's thoughts and beliefs come to them in clear and complete sentences - or so the self-help gurus would have us believe. Does it work that way for you? Me neither! Mine are hardly ever obvious....
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