Wallowing in the depths of self-doubt is common. It’s what you do when you realize you are there that makes the difference.

Here are some recent insights on how to be messy AND brave in your life.

I’ve been rolling around in the muck of self-doubt lately, trying to get balance and clarity on the positive change and impact I really want to have in the world, but mostly worrying whether the change I want to create is possible. Then the universe gave me a couple of gifts that helped...

Picture credit: The Daily Mail

I’ve been riveted by coverage of the total devastation wrought by Hurricane Irma. I’m speechless, my throat tight with tears for the heartache and suffering being experienced by those who are impacted. I’m motivated to action and to be of service and struggling with doing more than giving money.

This is a call to action I can’t ignore. My life’s work is in brave, honest conversations. I have extensive experience in working with...

Picture source: Americabythenumbers.org

Protests, marches, petitions. Riots, police barricades, people injured and killed. Anger, righteous indignation, tragedy and discrimination. Natural disasters, food insecurity, terrorism, poverty. We have some real challenges on this small planet. Some real struggles we aren’t dealing with very well.

What we are doing a lot is talking at each other, over each other and about each other.

We need a new way.

I’ve worked in the arena of public...

• Violence in Charlottesville.
• Climate Change impacts destroying property, wildlife, the environment.
• A growing divide between rich and poor.
• Discrimination, polarization and a rise in hatred.
• Globalism and the refugee crisis.
• Depressing levels of trust in government, media and big corporations.
• Addiction, substance abuse and family violence.
• Impacts of colonization on indigenous peoples.
• Burnout, stress and a lack of innovation inside companies.

Should I go on? The list is endless. All these...

Photo credit: National Geographic

“Retreat 3 is a week of learning to lead from nothing.”

I’m part way through a year long Leadership program with the Coaches Training Institute and as I recently headed into Retreat 3, I was thinking; What is going to happen here? What are we going to learn about NOTHING? How do you lead from NOTHING?

And yet here I was. I thought I would be able to connect my experience of facilitating tough conversations and “holding...

Photo credit: dailyquotes.co

In the 2015 election campaign, the Liberal party of Canada led by Justin Trudeau, campaigned on a promise of electoral reform. He promised that 2015 would be the last election that used the first-past-the-post system.

After the Liberals won the 2015 election and took office, Prime Minister Trudeau said, “I believe that fundamentally we can do better. We can have an electoral system that does a better job of reflecting the concerns, the voices of...

Photo credit: clipartkid.com

We live in a world where we value the 50/50 equation as a path to partnership, career, relationship and life. We look at it as a way to equally divide and share the experience, benefits, challenges and investment of an undertaking. When we equally divide, we split the good, the bad, the favourable and unfavourable. We also divide the effort, energy and resources needed by each of us to make something real—we’re each only responsible for half of what...

Wise words. Photo credit: livedogrow.com

Our reaction and response to fear is variable. It can be influenced by the situation, the depth of our fear, and our state of mind. It can also be highly influenced by our desire to make a choice to overcome the fear itself.

Some fears have little impact on our lives. For example, if you were to overcome a fear of spiders, but never plan to spend time in the desert or jungle, making a choice to address that fear isn’t necessarily going to result...

Hong Kong government officials participating in a session on how to meaningfully and effectively involve the public in decision-making.

Recently I had the privilege of spending a few days working with Hong Kong government officials to improve how they interact with and involve the public on projects. I was asked to design and deliver a training program about public participation in environmental impact assessment. I did that. And I also had the opportunity to share the attitudes, behaviours...

Photo Credit: AP / Gregory Bull

We should be afraid, very afraid. The world is a very scary and dangerous place. We need safety—from each other, from “others”, in our communities. There are bad people out there and they are coming for you.

The media tells us this every day. Over and over again, on replay.

We experience it in social media ourselves, when some of our “friends” and “followers” belittle, bully, intimidate or threaten us or others....