potlatches or the Kula ring cycle, in which gifts circulate in the group, solidifying bonds of relationship and redistributing wealth. The question of abundance highlights the striking difference between the market economies which have come to dominate the globe and the ancient gift economies which preceded them. There are many examples of functioning gift economies—most in small societies of close relations, where community well-being is recognized as the “unit” of success—where the interest of “we” exceeds that of “I.” In this time when the economies have grown so large and impersonal that they extinguish rather than nurture commun... posted on Jan 19 2021 (10,530 reads)

Snyder’s saying: ‘Go somewhere and stop.’” Tanya acknowledges that’s harder to do without the family roots that make it obvious where one might dig in. A lot of these folks “want safety; they want something to enfold them and make a safe place to be,” which she understands. “That’s what I was looking for, to come back here, to be here for my children.” When people finally find a place to stop, what’s the next step in making a successful home? “Well, first, you have to be in it,” she says, meaning that people have to commit to staying put, working together, eating together as part of their daily routine. That... posted on Nov 24 2021 (5,847 reads)

positive neighborhoods. The program is part of a growing trend of “whole-neighborhood” projects around the country that seek more comprehensive ways to improve the lives of children in impoverished communities. This approach has been made famous, in part, by the Harlem Children’s Zone (HCZ), a program that coordinates multiple social and educational services for residents in a 100-block radius of Harlem to help their youth stay in school and out of trouble. The success of HCZ inspired the Obama Administration to introduce the Promise Neighborhoods Initiative, a program offering one-year grants to support non-profit and community-based organizations in d... posted on Jun 2 2011 (11,314 reads)

action in the world. These leaders recognize and value social identities based on nationality, religion, race, gender, politics, education and culture, without rigid intolerant boundaries and relate to these diverse aspects with ease and respect. They also recognize that we all have different personal styles of expression—different personalities—unique ways of moving in the world. They are able to work with professional skills, talents and abilities in the world towards achieving success, prosperity and service. Their ability to work with multiple profiles is extremely valuable. Too many local and global wars are revved up and fought on social identities or profiles!  ... posted on Jul 20 2012 (17,444 reads)

which the poet saw as planting the seeds of intolerance. On April 19, 1919, Tagore writes: Dear Mahatmaji, Power in all its forms is irrational; it is like the horse that drags the carriage blindfolded. The moral element in it is only represented in the man who drives the horse. Passive resistance is a force which is not necessarily moral in itself; it can be used against truth as well as for it. The danger inherent in all force grows stronger when it is likely to gain success, for then it becomes temptation. I know your teaching is to fight against evil by the help of good. But such a fight is for heroes and not for men led by impulses of the moment. Evil on ... posted on Feb 7 2013 (14,549 reads)

looking for acceptance, approval, accolades, wild thunderous applause? Is it painful when you don’t get those things? You’re probably performing. If you’re experiencing, on the other hand, you’re exploring what something feels like. Trying to see what would happen if… When you’re experiencing, you can appreciate negative outcomes as well as positive ones. Sure, acceptance and approval and accolades feel good, but those things don’t determine success. Success is based on whether you fully immerse yourself in the experience, no matter how it turns out, and whether you learn from it. That’s a result you can always achieve regardless of... posted on Feb 10 2013 (28,713 reads)

consecutive titles not once, but twice, from '91 to '93 and '96 to '98. Then he did it yet again with the Lakers and Shaquille O'Neal and Kobe Bryant, from '00 to '02. Before Jackson arrived, both the Bulls and the Lakers were teams that, despite the presence of breathtaking talent, had failed to achieve the harmony needed to win championships. Yet under his guidance, schooled in his characteristically unselfish, team-oriented style, they went on to record-breaking success. So what does this remarkable head coach have to say about the heightened group consciousness that can awaken when teams come together beyond the divisive forces of the ego? WIE spok... posted on May 13 2013 (34,762 reads)

during encoding.  When it comes to discovering the details, bear in mind that our brains evolved to learn is through trial-and-error exploration. This is true of learning and adapting to both our social and physical environments. Therefore, using what we learn to attempt to solve real-world problems and adjusting our behaviors or ideas based on the results augments the retention of skills and information. We are born to explore, and teachers who make use of that will probably find more success in the classroom. Tips for Applying Brain Science to the Classroom The brain is a social organ: that’s why it pays for teachers to create positive social experiences in the c... posted on Jun 2 2013 (147,929 reads)

human beings are seekers. We seek love, wealth, security, power, happiness, and recognition. We also seek knowledge. Aristotle said, “All people by nature desire to know.” The desire to know can be very ambitious, like that of the scientists who sought to solve the structure of the DNA molecule, or rather modest. It can be enormously satisfying to know and understand things. What does it take to have intellectual success—to come to know and understand something challenging? Well, you need some raw intelligence and memory, and you need to work hard and persevere when it doesn’t come easily. You’ll be better off if you’re surrounded by learned people ... posted on Jul 10 2013 (34,468 reads)

unable to be motivated to change if you’re depressed. It causes us to lose faith in ourselves, and that’s going to make us less likely to try to change and conditions us for failure.” When we are compassionate with ourselves, however, we can admit that we made a mistake—and then simply try to do better next time. That’s a citizenship skill worth cultivating. 4. Embrace authentic, not hubristic, pride. Pride is a natural emotional response to success and high social status, but some forms of pride are healthier than others. Many recent studies have revealed the downside of what psychologists call “hubristic pride,” which is ... posted on Jul 4 2013 (20,059 reads)

you, I think, trying to hold space for a new conversation. So it was really painful. There were parts of it that were very hard for me and that I felt very unprepared for. Somewhere I write something about, you know, I'm a big Leonard Cohen fan and there's the "Hallelujah" lyric that says, "Love is not a victory march, it's a cold and broken hallelujah." Vulnerability is not a victory march either. Ms. Tippett: But, you know, the other lesson in that is success is not a victory march, right? Ms. Brown: No. Ms. Tippett: Because you are talking about what, for you, may have been the thing that you let in most, which was the criticism an... posted on Mar 21 2014 (33,089 reads)

daily robs us of the very capacity for joy and wonder that makes life worth living — for, as Annie Dillard memorably put it, “how we spend our days is, of course, how we spend our lives.” “Expect anything worthwhile to take a long time.” This is borrowedfrom the wise and wonderful Debbie Millman, for it’s hard to better capture something so fundamental yet so impatiently overlooked in our culture of immediacy. The myth of the overnight success is just that — a myth — as well as a reminder that our present definition of success needs serious retuning. As I’ve reflected elsewhere, the flower doesn’t g... posted on Mar 18 2014 (42,975 reads)

seat, and the weight of the tires. But Brailsford and his team didn’t stop there. They searched for 1 percent improvements in tiny areas that were overlooked by almost everyone else: discovering the pillow that offered the best sleep and taking it with them to hotels, testing for the most effective type of massage gel, and teaching riders the best way to wash their hands to avoid infection. They searched for 1 percent improvements everywhere. Brailsford believed that if they could successfully execute this strategy, then Team Sky would be in a position to win the Tour de France in five years time. He was wrong. They won it in three years. In 2012, Team Sky rider Sir Bradl... posted on Apr 4 2014 (80,680 reads)

makes some people more successful in work and life than others? IQ and work ethic are important, but they don't tell the whole story. Our emotional intelligence -- the way we manage emotions, both our own and those of others -- can play a critical role in determining our happiness and success. Plato said that all learning has some emotional basis, and he may be right. The way we interact with and regulate our emotions has repercussions in nearly every aspect of our lives. To put it in colloquial terms, emotional intelligence (EQ) is like "street smarts," as opposed to "book smarts," and it's what accounts for a great deal of one's ability to navigate l... posted on May 1 2014 (114,435 reads)

your work with who will give you honest and constructive feedback. It’s not always what you want to hear, but that is often exactly what is needed. It can be very confronting, but very useful. This brings us to the most poignant question: How to unbridle one’s work, whether lauded or criticized, from one’s sense of self-worth. Collage and mixed-media artist Hollie Chastain reflects: I think as an artist it’s very easy to [equate self-worth with artistic success] because of the nature of the work. If you think of art as a job, then your product is so much more than hours invested. The product is a piece of yourself, so of course if the reception is no... posted on Apr 22 2014 (26,251 reads)

a long term view of success is critical, and it doesn’t take a psychologist to tell you that discipline is how you get from Point A to the sometimes elusive Point B. Or as Aristotle would so aptly put it… We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence then, is not an act, but a habit. Since that’s the case, how can we actually form good habits and make them stick? If you’ve asked yourself the same question, you’re in luck—today I’ll be covering a large selection of research on the psychology of planning and keeping the habits that matter. Let’s dive in! A Big Misconception About Building Habits First thi... posted on May 14 2014 (29,400 reads)

of developmental cognitive neuroscience at the University of British Columbia. She's a formative figure in innovative networks in British Columbia and beyond that are bringing the fruits of unfolding science into classrooms and educational systems — informing environments where children learn how to pay attention, to problem solve, to collaborate, and to work creatively with what they know across the life span. Facility in these skills, research is showing, is a stronger predictor of success — even academic success — than IQ. Adele Diamond's thinking has been influenced by her participation in the “Mind and Life Institute” — the Dalai Lama'... posted on Dec 6 2014 (26,359 reads)

No one ever died saying, “I’m sure glad for the self-centered, self-serving and self-protective life I lived.” Offer yourself to the world — your energies, your gifts, your visions, your heart — with open-hearted generosity. But understand that when you live that way you will soon learn how little you know and how easy it is to fail. To grow in love and service, you — I, all of us — must value ignorance as much as knowledge and failure as much as success… Clinging to what you already know and do well is the path to an unlived life. So, cultivate beginner’s mind, walk straight into your not-knowing, and take the risk of failing and... posted on Nov 3 2015 (59,565 reads)

imagination — half a century before the telegraph became the first widespread medium of instant communication and long before contemporary social media, his essay, so to speak, went viral: Ardently discussed and passed hand to hand across the scientific and Quaker communities at a speed unprecedented in that era, it soon found its way to the prestigious journal Annual Review. Soon, Howard was catapulted into the status of a scientific celebrity — but his feelings about fame and success, like Steinbeck’s, were ambivalent: Mired in self-doubt, he was embarrassed by the praise he received but was gladdened to see his labor of love make a lasting imprint on culture. Hambly... posted on Nov 5 2015 (15,960 reads)

the utter ubiquity of photography in the USA, most Americans probably don’t view photography as special. But in impoverished areas around the world, personal photos can be rare. On visits to her birthplace of Kolkata, India, Bipasha Shom frequently took portraits of people she met, and she was struck by how many people lacked access to a camera and had no family photos of her own. Shom hatched an idea to use instant film to bring photography to these people, and she successfully pitched Fujifilm out of the blue. With donated Instax Wide cameras and film in hand, she recently traveled with her husband Chris Manley (Director of Photography for AMC’s Mad Men) and friend/pho... posted on Feb 27 2016 (11,326 reads)