Reflections

7 Frame-Changing Experts on Social Business and Social Organization

March 13, 2012

With the growing interest in social business and how social technology can change organizations, we’re starting to hear more and more mainstream business commenters weigh in with their opinions. While these new and novice commenters won’t drown out the voices of the well-established experts (especially those who have corporate support behind them), the increase in [...]

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Rethinking a Work Life Fit Issue: Am I late again, or on some other schedule?

January 4, 2011

As I was gearing up this morning to look over the past year’s blog posts, I found myself being pulled down by that feeling that I was “late again”. It seems as though I missed another key seasonal window … while other bloggers spent the time between Cristmas and New Year’s crafting recaps of the [...]

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The Stress of Not Having It All, guest post by Fran Melmed

December 2, 2010

[One of the special joys of blogging and tweeting about progressive movements in organizations and leadership is the relationships we make as we find kindred souls. These kindred souls are often tucked into niches other than our own, but because their approaches share the our fundamental values and because they are working with a shared [...]

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A Quiet Thank You to our Transgender Colleagues

November 19, 2010

November 20th is Transgender Day of Remembrance, a day to honor people we have lost due to anti-transgender bias, prejudice, or hatred. While I can be thankful that I have no friends or family members who have died due to anti-transgender bias, I do have friends and family members who have been hurt by anit-transgender [...]

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The Day “The Patrick” Disappeared: A story of lost identity

October 20, 2010

This is a story about a quirky little cafe that disappeared. While I lived in town, and for a few years after we moved, this cafe was a touchstone, a demonstration, of one of the experiences that made our small town so interesting. When the cafe changed just one little thing, it lost what made [...]

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5 Tips About Realigning Organizations I Learned by Falling Off A Horse

September 20, 2010

(No, it was not “Get right back on.” Everybody knows that.) Sustaining organizational authenticity requires continually realigning organizational identity, purpose and action. But realigning can be harder to do than you’d think. I learned recently, after falling off a horse, that getting back into action was only the start of a longer, harder realignment process. [...]

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Can a Flu Shot demonstrate Authenticity?

October 15, 2009

Has your organization made it easy for you to get a flu vaccine? If your organization really wanted to be authentic, maybe it would offer everyone flu shots. At a private pre-school near me, they had a pediatrician offer a “flu shot clinic” for children, teachers, parents and caregivers– doing their best to get flu [...]

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Can Starbucks Touch Your Soul?

October 8, 2009

When an organization is being authentic, you can feel it. Even when its character is being expressed in a very small way, or through a very small action, an organization’s expression of its authentic self can touch your soul. I was reminded of the power of small, authentic acts to touch your soul while I [...]

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Focusing on the Authentic in the Individual

October 2, 2009

Jamie and Maren Showkeir, authors of the book Authentic Conversations, also write a blog about the same concept. Their work is inspiring, and I often find myself referring to their book when I talk with organization members about how they can bring more authenticity into their organizations through their relationships with each other. Just yesterday, [...]

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Local Heartbreak, bankruptcy style

April 24, 2009

Sometimes organizations fail, and you just don’t care that much. Other times organizations fail, and you wonder why you care SO much. It’s a failure in the second category that’s making me sad today. With Fountains of Wayne, Route 46 sustains its authenticity as the scenic route from the Hudson to the Delaware. Without Fountains [...]

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