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Spawning deep roots and sturdy wings
Adorno’s controversial book about the jargon of authenticity makes a key point about the struggle for belonging: Shelteredness is an existential value that we all long for, and the experience of home will only come to be when it has freed itself from particularity. And so, for those of us curious to press on in search of where our we belong, we must open and expand and evolve our own definition of the…
The moral horizon we choose to inhabit
What is the definition of honest work? Perhaps it means a career that isn’t the best paying. Or a project that is unglamorous, but legal and useful to the world. Maybe honest work is a holding a mundane day job that provides a living for your family, even though it’s not your primary meaning container for holding your hopes and dreams. Then again, honest work might refer to a…
If there was a god, it would be in his hands now
We don’t get what we deserve, we get what we negotiate. And so, if we are waiting for our success to be delivered to our door like a pizza, praying that this next big opportunity will finally be one thing that changes everything forever, entirely by itself, without us really doing anything, then we are going to be waiting a very long time. Because there is no deserve. There…
There are no awards for awakening
Acheson, the secretary of state who played a central role in defining the foreign policy of our nation, famously said: The great corrupter of public man is the ego, and looking at in the mirror distracts one’s attention from the problem. As such, it’s worth unpacking some of the assumptions connected to this ego. First, we assume that our ego is always out to protect itself at the expense…
My value has been added to you in the shape of power
Masters writes a gorgeous definition of power in his book about the transformation through intimacy: Power is the capacity to act effectively, to generate significant change and to impose our will on our environment, both inner and outer. This definition is worth parsing out word by word. Effective, meaning the belief in our capabilities to organize and execute whatever courses of action that the moment requires. Generate, meaning bringing forth some…
The last mirror we look into to get a glimpse of who we are
Accepting low paying gigs. Saying yes to mediocre opportunities. Acquiescing to the comfortable vortex of the middle market. Compromising our fee just to get our foot in the door. Discounting our value because we’re afraid of turning down new work. Violating the boundaries of our generosity just to make an impression. Allowing ourselves to be flattered into free labor. These are just some of habits that trap us in…
A system you have inherited, a self you have initiated
The word culture literally means the tilling of the land. And so, from the anthropological view, culture is the way we cultivate the ideas, beliefs, values, and knowledge, and transmit them from one generation to the other. It’s the ultimate food for thought and the basis for society’s ongoing discussion with ourselves as to how we think we should be. As the saying goes, without culture, we are nothing. And yet,…
You’re angry at the world for lying to you
Some people actually believe that every joy must be equalized by a setback. Their cosmic scorecard must always be balanced. And to inoculate themselves against not feeling too bad, they make sure never to feel too good. Because surely, right around the corner is something that’s going to be the end of everything. The problem with this posture, aside from being exhausting to be around, is the damaging effect…
It’s not a sticker, it’s a steeple
Buber’s groundbreaking philosophy of dialogue says that when two people relate to each other authentically and humanly, god is the electricity that surges between them. He called this the melting of the between, the shared unity of being. The sacred space that can only be created through encounter, where the divine pervades and interpenetrates. According to his theory, god is not some keeper of the black book of transgressions….
Exalt what is and adore that it returns
Hyde’s research on the gifting process explains that gratitude is the labor undertaken by the soul to effect the transformation after a gift is received. Meaning, when lady fortune comes to us with both hands full, and we stand in the stream where surplus wealth flows toward need, we close our eyes, breathe it in and give thanks. This peaceful feeling of thankful agreement with existence is how we…
