There is a climate of ridicule among us today. You hear it on the news and laced into conversations, especially when politics or religion are discussed. Funny thing is, individual people, regardless of political or religious leanings, are people—a mixed bag of the good, the bad, and the ugly. We’re…
Made to Stick
You should make something, Angel said to me. To display at the art conference. Confusion set in. I’m a writer, I thought—I’m no artist. My vision was zero, so I asked her to explain what she meant. Do something with words, she said. My first impulse was to decline. But…
My heart broke this summer. Like the fairy tale, I had a great fall, and there’s no putting me back together again. You see, I met some kids whose eyes reached in and grabbed hold of my heart. These were old souls staring out from young bodies. They were mere…
It is rare for an idea to come without baggage. We have a lifetime of experiences through which we’ve formed opinions that are difficult to disconnect from (remember the Curse of Knowledge?). When I mention the words Christian and Christianity to someone who does not know Jesus, often there is…
Stories are precious. The True Woman conference has been a showcase of stories—of trial, victory, hurt, healing, despair, hope. A few stories have been highlighted and heard from the platform, and yet there are many more untold stories here among 6,000 women. These highlighted stories belong to all of us…
Sticky ideas are concrete, not abstract. (And yes—you do want your ideas to be sticky! Sticky is good when it comes to ideas.) How do you make ideas concrete? Well, authors Chip and Dan Heath explain this in chapter three of Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others…
An effective communication book I once read described good conversation as the tossing of a ball between two (or more) people: I say something (tossing the ball to you); you say something (tossing the ball to me); and on it goes. The exchange keeps both parties involved and connected. In…
My simple gets trampled on. A lot. By me, myself, and I—and the many words I can’t seem to part with. It’s buried by my inability to be concise. Authors—and brothers—Chip and Dan Heath give some great excavating advice in their book, Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and…
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