A Philly School's Big Bet on Non Violence
So often our mindset is that we must 'control' violence, that we must set out to ensure that violence has no way of inserting itself onto the path we walk each day. And, with respect to our children, we instinctively build fortresses to shield them from harm and injury. But, in doing so aren't we instilling an attitude of continuous fear? Read what happens when a school in the most dangerous secti... posted on Oct 11 2013, 21,551 reads

The Heroic Imagination Project
What makes a hero? Are they exceptional people, or ordinary people who do extraordinary deeds? Philip Zimbardo, professor emeritus in psychology from Stanford, and pioneer behind the infamous Stanford Prisoner Experiment, is working with high school students in Oakland and Los Altos to find the answer. Read more about his efforts to catalyze our "heroic imaginations" and inspire everyday heroes ac... posted on Oct 10 2013, 15,324 reads

Life, Love & Uncle Don's Last Visit
"That first night, we didn't get to bed until four; it was as if we'd all agreed to wring every last bit of life out of these few days together. Thursday night I baked a six-layer cake I'd found in Bon Appetit... we were singing happy birthday to Uncle Don, as he turned eighty-eight. "You know," he said, "you live alone for so long, and then people do something like this for you, it just makes yo... posted on Oct 09 2013, 19,556 reads

Peter Buffett: We're Not Doing Enough to Change the World
"We're always talking about lifting people out of poverty from living on two dollars a day, but I am thinking, how can we all live on two dollars a day?" If this quote sounds to you like an intriguing and different approach to philanthropy and world change, you may want to read on to learn more about Peter Buffett, son of billionaire Warren Buffett, and his critique of "philanthropic colonialism."... posted on Oct 08 2013, 25,033 reads

Harlem Hate Crime Victim: I'm Feeling Gratitude
"People keep asking me what it feels like to have been assaulted in a hate crime. Honestly, I can't come up with a better response than simply 'gratitude.' I'm thankful for a few reasons. If they had attacked me any more violently, I may not be awake right now to tell my story. If they had attacked me even half an hour earlier, they would have harmed my wife and one-year-old son. [...] My wife and... posted on Oct 07 2013, 27,857 reads

How the Mind Can Heal the Heart
Daniel Goleman, author of "Emotional Intelligence" and "Social Intelligence", and Tara Bennett-Goleman, psychotherapist and author of "Emotional Alchemy," explain the science behind "mind whispering" - a technique for overcoming self-defeating habits of mind. Mind whispering is an integration of Eastern and Western psychologies and draws on mindfulness, cognitive therapy, and Buddhist psychology t... posted on Oct 06 2013, 30,570 reads

Death Cafe: Talking Tea and Mortality
"'Do you have a death wish?" is not a question normally bandied about in seriousness. But have you ever actually asked whether a parent, partner or friend has a wish, or wishes, concerning their death? Burial or cremation? Where would they like to die? It's not easy to do." For the past few years, "death cafes" have cropped up organically in Great Britain, providing a safe and open space for peopl... posted on Oct 05 2013, 4,626 reads

Lessons In Living From A Cat Named Ali
At a recent retreat held in New Jersey, attendees were asked to think of a gift they had received that had a special impact on their lives. "One personal reflection of mine, took me down memory lane to about seven years ago, to a time when I was experiencing some hardships that wanted to come in a sequence of one after the other... However, a turning point came my way, by way of being given a gif... posted on Oct 04 2013, 30,485 reads

How Is Your Leadership Changing?
Well-known author and organizational consultant Margaret Wheatley has written about a troubling trend: the movement of today's leadership toward a command-and-conquer model that stifles worker motivation and creativity. In this article she challenges readers to check in on their leadership styles and to consider moving toward a style that is more trusting and distributive of responsibility. To thi... posted on Oct 03 2013, 27,329 reads

Being Kind: The Music Video That Circled The World!
The 21-Day Kindness Challenge launched on September 11th. 98 countries. 6000 people. And a collective tidal wave of good that inspired many -- including young rapper-activist "Nimo" Patel at the Gandhi Ashram in India. Nimo wasted no time channeling that inspiration into an infectious music video. "Being Kind" was created on super short notice by an intercontinental crew of volunteers working out ... posted on Oct 02 2013, 8,422 reads