The 'E' For Empathy Test
"If you ever want to understand your boss, corner him (or her) at the next office party and see if he'll play a little game. Tell him you need only 30 seconds. Then ask your boss to extend his right forefinger. "Go ahead," you might need to assure him, "this won't hurt." Then ask him to take that extended finger and draw a capital E on his forehead. Does he draw the letter so that it faces him -- ... posted on Jan 18 2013, 16,484 reads

Instant Grants In The Park
A group of calling itself the Federation of Students and Nominally Employed or Unemployed Artists spent four hours giving away "instant grants" in a park in New York City. Photographers, knitters for the homeless and artists of all types lined up for small grants. The funds were raised or donated by the federation and the exercise went deeper than just dollars for some. As one recipient noted: "It... posted on Jan 17 2013, 3,056 reads

Are You Building Your Legacy?
"What are you going to be remembered for? Will people talk about the relationships you had with friends and family? The once-a-year dish everyone looked forward to? The impact you made on a company and its employees? How is a legacy created and cultivated, and what can you do to build your own legacy? These are all huge questions with small and critical answers. Here's the story of my legacy, and ... posted on Jan 16 2013, 37,142 reads

My Daughter's Noble Sacrifice
"My wife called,"How long will you be with that newspaper? Will you come here and make your darling daughter eat her food?" I tossed the paper away and rushed to the scene. My only daughter Sindu looked frightened. Tears were welling up in her eyes. In front of her was a bowl filled to its brim with curd rice. Sindu is a nice child, quite intelligent for her age. She has just turned eight. She pa... posted on Jan 15 2013, 11,430 reads

15 Serious Games Aiming to Change the World
Using games for purposes other than entertainment is nothing new. There are war games, educational games, throne games. But a new class of games has sprung up in recent years, designed to create awareness and raise support for a variety of global issues. Such serious games seek to harness the power of competition and/or novelty to attract players and get the word out for a good cause. Here are 15 ... posted on Jan 14 2013, 35,262 reads

The Generosity Paradox
Generosity is paradoxical. Those who give, receive back in turn. By spending ourselves for others' well-being, we enhance our own. In letting go of some of what we own, we better secure our own lives. By giving ourselves away, we ourselves move toward greater flourishing. This is not only a philosophical or religious teaching, it is a sociological fact.... posted on Jan 13 2013, 14,513 reads

Curry Without Worry: Food from the Heart
"The founder of Curry Without Worry, Shrawan Nepali, has shoulder length salt and pepper hair, brown eyes that sparkle like he's about to break into a smile, and a lightness to him, as if he seems to defy gravity...They feed approximately 250 people in San Francisco, and 300 in Katmandu, Nepal every Tuesday night. Kerry Adams, a man waiting in line, told me, "Not only is the food here healthy and ... posted on Jan 12 2013, 13,600 reads

The World Needs More Love Letters
Finding a letter of encouragement in the mail or tucked unexpectedly in the unlikeliest of places is sometimes all we need when in doubt or feeling down on our luck. And imagine receiving this note anonymously, as if some magical force out there knew just what you needed to hear and wanted you to know that you haven't been forgotten. In the fall of 2010, in the midst of her own depression and lon... posted on Jan 11 2013, 26,155 reads

Naomi Shihab Nye On Kindness
The poems of Naomi Shihab Nye have an uncanny way of showing up at exactly the right moment to summon you below the surface of your life. The child of a Palestinian father and an American mother, her poems speak a language deeper than culture, history or religion. Through the portal of the everyday -- a grocery store, an olive press, the headlines -- she draws us into the most profound questions a... posted on Jan 10 2013, 27,110 reads

The Power of Whimsy
Public spaces serve multiple functions for society and, more and more, they are being utilized in ever-creative ways. In many of these cases, whimsy seems to be at the heart of the matter, even if it is not the main driver. For instance, in a bid to improve public health by encouraging more people to use the stairs instead of the escalator, The Fun Theory (a Volkswagen initiative) transformed a se... posted on Jan 09 2013, 21,544 reads