This is my third time in Zimbabwe. The first time was in 2006 and I was supporting a small group who wanted to replicate the customer service training program I had introduced through the Tourism Board in New Zealand.
I stayed in a compound and learned from the people working there how little oppor...
Perhaps it is the storytelling gene inside all of us that wants to proclaim that this moment in history -- our moment -- is totally unique. And yet the dynamics -- one might say the story elements -- are not new.
Generational struggle. Power imbalance. Gender issues. Disparity in access to resour...
In the many conversations I’ve had in my networks over the past weeks, three themes seem to consistently arise:
A overfull life / Intensity / Overwhelm
These people feel like there’s too much going on; the plate is too full or there are too many things to juggle. They are living in a consist
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I've been quiet for some time now, just cooking on my last journey and reflecting on the state of our world. There are two stories that stick with me from my very brief week in Istanbul. They reflect two lenses on what is happening and how we can host it.
The first is a moment in our Art of Hosting...
Have you ever thought much about your senses?
They are the main way we meet the world in this physical body. Sight, sound, smell, taste, touch all help us to interpret the world.
But often we get into a routine with the sensory realm and we respond to the world through habit. Working daily on com...
I've just come back from spending a week in a house surrounded by forest in Connecticut. It had no internet, so I got away from the keyboard and the scrolling and spent time reading, resting and reflecting.
On my way there I stayed two nights with the vibrant and thoughtful Juanita Brown and her pa...
Stories in a word...
German journalist Uwe von Seltmann fell in love with the Yiddish language and culture and has written many books about music, writers and history. These days he tours giving readings through Germany and the world. Here he talks about a favourite Yiddish word "die Levone" or moo...
Do you ever feel you speak a different language to other people? And I'm not talking about all the flavours of English out there (which believe me, are wide and varied, the idioms will get you every time!).
Two words I use a lot are PRACTICE and PRACTITIONER. I often hear crickets when I mention th...
Stories in a word...
Just in case you're a fan of the Netflix series "The Witcher", Gabi von Settlzmann tells where it came from.
Stories in a word...
Polish artist Gabi von Seltzmann talks about the true meaning of the Polish word "Wiedźma" or witch. It means a woman with knowledge or wisdom. In the old Slavian traditions, she knew about herbs, healing and had contact with ancestors and magic. In the middle Ages the word ind...
Stories in a word...
The Danes have a particular focus on what they call "seeing eye to eye" or "being at the same eye level." Moving past the time of the sovereign kings, Denmark's people had to work together to rebuild their society. Being at eye level is a stance and a value. Toke Paludan Møller...
Stories in a word...
Toke Paludan Møller talks us through the Danish concept of "dannelse", which is all about educating your "humanbeing-ness." The Danish Folk High School system -- still renowned around the world -- focuses on balancing knowledge and skills with supporting people to become humans...