We all know grief. It looks different for each of us and has different sources and intensity.  Our mourning rituals vary. And our ways of moving with it are uniquely our own. Our own grief is individual. Experiencing grief is universal. I’ve had a lot of it lately, and I know from our conversations that you all have too. It shows up in our world, in our work and on our personal path. 

I live near a beautiful pond set in the heart of the city. There’s a walking path around it, and I’ve worn a track in the asphalt as I’ve circled it over and over again. Last summer my pond was sad. It looked ‘kind of’ ok – sort of an overgrown, wizened, nostalgic kind of ‘ok’, but it wasn’t well. The color of the water was a green that caught your eye but was also slightly wrong. And the smart nature wisdom-ers knew that the pond needed to be stripped down to be able to thrive.

All great products benefit from continual refinement and refresh – people are no exception. Adding new features, following new interests, applying established skills to new uses. Where there’s a version 1.0, there can be a version 2.0! Where’s there’s a version 7.0, there can be a version 8.0…

Identifying and celebrating strengths – and the natural talents & gifts that underpin them. AND recognizing that others see our strengths clear as day. What is natural to you, is profoundly remarkable to others. It sets you apart. These standout strengths about us do just that – they Stand Out. 

Feeling exhausted? You’re not alone.

I’m on the phone all day with people who take responsibility – for leading themselves and leading others. Just like you. In some aspect of your daily life (probably in all aspects), you are holding stuff together. Over the past few years of intense up/down uncertainty and plot twists, you have likely been the glue for your ‘team’ – the stop of the buck, the deep well.

The leaves in Chicago are simply stunning right now and I am really appreciating the restorative power of the trees in the park outside my building. Wanted to send over some short prompts  – which you may have even received from me before – to encourage you to get out and be with these beauties. Go for a Tree Walk.