Mind In The Forest: The Intelligence of Trees
Scott Russell Sanders spent many meditative days in the H. J. Andrews Experimental Forest in the Cascade Mountains of Oregon, among the giant trees. He asked himself, How does their intelligence compare with our own? What might we learn from them? He concludes that "only cosmic arrogance tempts us to claim that all this reaching for sunlight, nutrients, and water means nothing except what we say i... posted on Jul 11 2013, 12,676 reads

What Is It To Be Intellectually Humble?
According to Aristotle, "All people by nature desire to know." The wish to know and understand things can foster great ambition. But this article is about intellectual humility, when we care so much about knowing, understanding, and getting to the truth that we become oblivious of what we are "worth." The apostle Paul says, "Knowledge puffs up, but love builds up." Can love of knowledge bring us h... posted on Jul 10 2013, 34,392 reads

Uncovering the Blind Spot of Leadership
Why do many of our attempts to address the challenges of our times fail? This article presents the view that two leaders in the same environment acting in the same way can bring about completely different outcomes depending on the inner place from which each operates. We know very little about this inner dimension and this lack of knowledge constitutes a blind spot in our approach to leadership an... posted on Jul 09 2013, 86,967 reads

8 Fearless Questions
"What, really, is available to us if we can't save the world? What do we fund our work for? Where do we gain energy if we don't believe that we're going to be successful? How can we do our work without hope that we will succeed? There's something very interesting to understand about hope. That is, that hope and fear are one. Any time we're hopeful, we don't know it necessarily, but we're bringing ... posted on Jul 08 2013, 42,861 reads

The Morality of Meditation
Meditation is a hot trend in the arena of mind-improvement. Mounting evidence that the practice can boost memory, creativity and IQ has attracted mainstream attention. "But gaining competitive advantage on exams and increasing creativity in business weren't of the utmost concern to Buddha and other early meditation teachers. As Buddha himself said, "I teach one thing and one only: that is, sufferi... posted on Jul 07 2013, 39,152 reads

Love Books? 4 Ways to Share Them
Love books? Learn how you can share this love with others with these simple and fun ideas. From sending your books on a journey to creating a tiny library in unexpected places, these ideas offer a way to promote literacy and build community.... posted on Jul 06 2013, 26,875 reads

Mama Hill: A Gang's Worst Nightmare
This is an inspiring story of a 73-year-old former school teacher who has transformed her home into a refuge and resource center for local youth in Watts, CA. From her days of marching with MLK Jr., to raising kids as a single mom, and a long career serving in some of LA's toughest schools, Mama Hill (as she is endearingly called by her community) has a deep understanding of what urban youth need... posted on Jul 05 2013, 8,625 reads

Can Patriotism Be Compassionate?
Patriotism can be a tricky word in a world where love of one's country can sometimes be streaked with a fear or intolerance of other nations. But that's not the whole story..."When the Greater Good Science Center analyzed the results of its "connection to humanity" quiz, it found plenty of people who identified with both country and humanity. They are not mutually exclusive. Indeed, so far the res... posted on Jul 04 2013, 20,031 reads

What I Learned From 30 Years Of Watching A River
"In all the years I have spent standing or sitting on the banks of this river, I have learned this: the more knowledge I have, the greater becomes the mystery of what holds that knowledge together, this reticulated miracle called an ecosystem. The longer I watch the river, the more amazed I become (afraid, actually, sometimes) at the confidence of those people who after a few summer seasons here a... posted on Jul 03 2013, 9,898 reads

Talking It Out: Conversation Centered Leadership
"Every year, hundreds of thousands of new graduates enter the business world, eager to climb the corporate ladder. Their progress on the early rungs of that journey will often be determined by qualities like hard work, determination, knowledge and technical proficiency. But business consultants Alan S. Berson and Richard G. Stieglitz argue that those same qualities prove less helpful at higher run... posted on Jul 02 2013, 36,279 reads