Practical Ideas for Thriving in Complex Times

Thanks to the Interaction Institute for Social Change for broadcasting this 14 minute video and landing it in my inbox.

It is hard not to feel uplifted and a sense of deep pride and hope as you watch this video that dynamically tells a story about human improvement at a fundamental level.

How many teachers like Stephen Ritz would it take to initiate a sea change in our educational approaches?  I would argue, not that many.

Enjoy this presentation.

Currently, I am involved with a number of gatherings—meetings, workshops, retreats, and celebratory parties—some which have already occurred, others coming up on the calendar. The nature of these gatherings varies greatly, ranging from professional facilitation engagements and volunteer committee work to social hosting. Yet they all involve bringing people together for a purpose, and all have required the crafting of an invitation.

As a result, the obvious and subtler aspects of invitations have been on my mind lately. Perhaps to some, focusing on an invitation may sound overly formal, even fussy. However, as leader, convener, and hostess, I have found that taking some thoughtful time with this first step to planning a meaningful gathering can do much to set the tone, attract the desired participants, and manage expectations — all of which can make a meeting, a workshop, a retreat or a party more successful. To me, success means that the purpose of the gathering has been met —the meeting was productive and satisfying; participants got real value from the workshop; the retreat was fruitful and energizing for the group; or the party was fun, inclusive, maybe even magical.

The other day I happened to hear Terry Gross interview chef and restaurant owner Alice Waters--not the Alice of "Alice's Restaurant" but a contemporary, sort of the west coast version of that Alice.  Alice Waters started Chez Panisse, one of the most renowned eateries in the country, where the farmers, ranchers and fisher folk who provide the restaurant with it's ingredients are as lauded as the chefs who turn those foods into elegant, delicious meals.

At one point, Gross asked Waters, "What's a dish you came up with that you're particularly proud of?"  Alice said the fruit bowl.  For the last fifteen years she's asked the pastry department to put together a bowl of fruit to round out their dessert offerings.  She spoke of the discernment required on the part of the cooks: "...choosing just the right moment for that fruit and connecting with the farmers at the last minute to bring just the most beautiful taste to the table."

Terry then quoted Michael Pollan (a renowned writer on food and other topics) who ate at Chez Panisse and ordered the fruit for dessert, "not quite sure whether a plain bowl of fruit on a restaurant menu was best interpreted as an expression of culinary modesty or culinary audacity [my emphasis]."  Terry asked Alice which she thought it was.

Ms Waters: "I think it's both, you know, in a way.  You just want to bring people into something that's unintimidating [my emphasis]."

This is the third and final chapter in a three-part blog series about my community of Reading, MA, and its approach to recent drug-related murders of two former Reading High graduates. The town hosted three consecutive community meetings to address the public outcry against teen substance abuse and violence in our town, and the demand that local authorities be accountable.

If you want to catch up, you can read about the first community meeting held in September using the World Café conversation process, and the second held in early October. 

The Town of Reading recently hosted the 2nd of 3 community meetings planned in response to a public outcry against substance abuse and violence after recent, drug related murders of two young men, former graduates of Reading High. Angry, afraid and critical of police and school administration, residents wanted answers and action.

Town leadership, however, employed a strategy for addressing community concerns that departed from more traditional approaches – rather than hold a public meeting where people come to demand “solutions” from local officials and experts, leaders decided to slow down and take the time to help the community explore together the nature of substance abuse and violence in Reading, before addressing what is being/can be done.