As the northern hemisphere enters the colder months and today is the Winter Solstice, when the longest night prevails, I thought it appropriate to express love, loyalty, and enthusiasm for that which draws us closer to the Mystery of Life. In that spirit, I am sharing this poem by Mary Oliver: Whistling Swans Do you […]
We are coming to the close of a tremendously stressful year. This has been a particular hit for the association community, which generates value by bringing people together. In that regard it has been an extraordinary year, filled with heroic efforts by many associations to make the best of the virtual environments with which we
2021: The Year of the Game Change for Associations Read More »
Global Harmony Through Personal Excellence is a small organization here in the Washington, DC, area, run by a very close and loved friend of mine with the support of volunteers. Its mission is to support the expression and humanity of children. I give money every winter to this amazing initiative. It includes both an essay
Supporting Local Change Read More »
Associations have a special place in this world. We reach out through society and encompass people of all political persuasions, ethnicities, gender orientations, the marginalized, and the mainstream. Our arms encompass the world. We have an opportunity to do something remarkable with our work, link the profession, trade, or cause we represent in a way
Holiday Aspirations for Associations Read More »
There are so many issues in our world today where large-scale social change could make a great impact. During my 13 years at the World Bank, I had the opportunity to work within a small team that led an internal social change. We discovered that bringing people together who care deeply about a particular topic
Driving Social Change Read More »
A visionary leader is one who looks into the future to identify emerging trends and support those that are consistent with their organization’s mission and benefit a larger external stakeholder group as well. I am a proud member of the American Geophysical Union, an association of earth and space scientists. I’m not an earth or
Visionary Leadership Read More »
This is the third pizza I made from scratch over 3 days after it came out of the oven Saturday. The first was inedible. The second tasted like bowling alley pizza. However, this one was a keeper. Every once in a while I pick a food to master and I keep making it over and
During the pandemic, it’s important to take the necessary measures: masking up and social distancing the foremost. But that doesn’t mean you can’t get out. When we have to spend so much time indoors it becomes really important that we find special times to be outdoors. During a recent trip to South Carolina my daughter,
In March 2020, when the first shelter-in-place orders were issued, I leaned in hard to understand what CEOs were facing. Kicking off my 100 CEOs in 100 Days initiative, I conducted one-on-one interviews with CEOs of trade associations, professional societies, and certification organizations. I also hosted zoom meetings on specialized topics like retooling diversity, equity
New Leadership Groups Forming Read More »
Sometimes it can be challenging to find something to do that everyone enjoys. My wonderful wife, Laura, came up with a plan on the first day of Diwali – together we would construct a rangoli. It brought together my mother-in-law, Phyllis, a wonderful artist, with my daughter, Ruchi, who also loves visual art, and the
The Practice of Joy Read More »
