– John F. Kennedy

I grew up in a little dirtbag town with adoptive violent and evangelical parents. In that environment, I remember watching JFK get elected and introduce a form of optimism and eloquence, unlike any president since. In my childhood, the most significant impact of Television was to see our President and his wife demonstrate that while civility and eloquence were not in my home, it was alive and well in our country. I was too young to fully understand politics and the global challenges he wrestled with. But, I was mesmerized with the beauty of that family and his poetic speeches. Perhaps it was the music in his voice that connected with me at the deepest level. I wanted to be part of whatever he was selling.

I remember the day it all came to an end. I was in first or second grade when our principal came into my schoolroom and announced that someone had just murdered the President. My father pulled up in his new Pontiac Bonneville. As my sister and I approached it, the door locks popped up. We got into the car. Everyone was wordless. When we walked into the living room our mother was sitting in front of the TV sobbing.

For the next decade, optimism took a back seat to cynicism and contempt. Baby boomers engaged or revolted in a pointless war. After Watergate, they traded in their protests for credit cards.

But, we lost far more. John F. Kennedy was the last President before our political system was taken over by focus groups. Instead, he told us to take action. Kennedy inspired us to take responsibility for our lives, to give and contribute to the less fortunate. Here was a President that told Americans how to build upon our postwar optimism. Whether they liked him or not, American people joined hands in making the world a better place. He brought poetry into our politics by using words that soared. He spoke with such credibility that we listened.

Today, politicians promise they are going to fix things. They promise to give us jobs, cut taxes, put more in our pockets, save us from climate change or bring back coal and cashiers in malls. But, they never tell us we are responsible for how things have turned out.

Today, we can recite, “Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country.” But how many of us are living the words?

This Friday will mark the 56th year since his passing.

The motorcade carrying the President and his wife, the Governor of Texas, and his wife was on its way to the Dallas Trade Mart. The transcript of the speech he never delivered portrays ideals, and a way of being our country would do well to remember.

 On Leadership

“This link between leadership and learning is not only essential at the community level. It is even more indispensable in world affairs. Ignorance and misinformation can handicap the progress of a city or a company, but they can, if allowed to prevail in foreign policy, handicap this country’s security. In a world of complex and continuing problems, in a world full of frustrations and irritations, America’s leadership must be guided by the lights of learning and reason – – or else those who confuse rhetoric with reality and the plausible with the possible will gain the popular ascendancy with the seeming swift and simple solutions to every world problem.”

On Partisanship

“There will always be dissident voices heard in the land, expressing opposition without alternatives, finding fault but never favor, perceiving gloom on every side and seeking influence without responsibility. Those voices are inevitable. 

But today other voices are heard in the land – – voices preaching doctrines wholly unrelated to reality, wholly unsuited to the sixties, doctrines which apparently assume that words will suffice without weapons, that vituperation is as good as victory and that peace is a sign of weakness. At a time when the national debt is steadily being reduced in terms of its burden on our economy, they see that debt as the greatest single threat to our security. At a time when we are steadily reducing the number of Federal employees serving every thousand citizens, they fear those supposed hordes of civil servants far more than the actual hordes of opposing armies.

We cannot expect that everyone, to use the phrase of a decade ago, will “talk sense to the American people.” But we can hope that fewer people will listen to nonsense. And the notion that this Nation is headed for defeat through deficit or that strength is but a matter of slogans, is nothing but just plain nonsense.”

On the Nation’s Future

“Almost everywhere we look, the story is the same. In Latin America, in Asia, in the councils of the world and in the jungles of far-off nations, there is now renewed confidence in our country and our convictions.

For this country is moving and it must not stop. It cannot stop. For this is a time for courage and a time for the challenge. Neither conformity nor complacency will do. Neither the fanatics nor the faint-hearted are needed. And our duty as a party is not to our party alone, but to the Nation, and, indeed…to all mankind. Our duty is not merely the preservation of political power but the preservation of peace and freedom.

So let us not be petty when our cause is so great. Let us not quarrel amongst ourselves when our Nation’s future is at stake. Let us stand together with renewed confidence in our cause – – united in our heritage of the past and our hopes for the future – – and determined that this land we love shall lead all mankind into new frontiers of peace and abundance.”

When we embrace his message, We are not a Democrat or Republican.

John F Kennedy’s presidency didn’t happen because of what he was going to do for us.

It happened because of what he would ask of us.

Brought to you by David Harder, President – Inspired Work, Inc.

Schedule 15-Minutes to Discuss Your Workplace or Career with David (Here)

(C) Copyright, 2019, Inspired Work, Inc. – (All Rights Reserved)

The post The Speech John F Kennedy Was About to Give on the Day He Died appeared first on Inspired Work Services.

I like to sit alone at lunch to decompress and that was when I read the news of Peggy Albrecht’s passing. Peggy had become an iconic figure in the recovery community. Thousands of women had gotten sober because of her commitment to the community. The news hit so hard you could have knocked me over with a feather. In some ways, I loosely thought of Peggy as my first client, long before we launched Inspired Work. I met Peggy in my 20’s while I was running a temporary help service in downtown Los Angeles. She had a dignity and kindness about her that was distilled and perfect. I felt honored to be her friend. One day, Peggy called and asked if she could take me to dinner.

At the time, Peggy was working as a legal secretary. At dinner, she told me that the work had little meaning for her and that she felt compelled to find a better fit for her life. I asked her what she enjoyed doing more than anything else. She took a long pause, looked back at me and said, “I most love helping women get sober.”

I smiled and said, “Go do that.” Candidly, I didn’t have enough expertise to say much more and in hindsight, it was intuition, God, a higher power that came through with those three simple words. But, she called me not long after to say she had found a job with a sober living facility called Friendly House. From that day forward, every time that I saw her, whether it was a week, a month or a couple of years, Peggy was happier and more at peace with the world. She had that kind of head-to-toe transformation that can only happen when we define and live the purpose we were born to do.

A few years ago, I ran into Peggy for the last time. Physically, she had become pretty frail but her indomitable spirit beamed joy, contentment, and peace. I told her that I had found my life’s work and fully understood why she was surprisingly more whole and lovely and serene everytime we connected. Her life helped thousands of women find their way. Her being in the world became a testament to all of us of what can happen when we devote our lives to something greater than ourselves.

After lunch, I stepped in front of our participants and opened my mouth; instead of words, tears flowed. So, I told them of Peggy Albrecht, a humble and kind secretary who felt a greater calling in her life. It took one act of courage for her to step into the very place that matched her heart. Today, her body of work is one that lives around us and through us. How much potential did she unleash and bring into reality? The answer is bigger than all of us. I knew where she came from and had a glimpse of what she had become. More than all of it, her love for the work grew that little home into an iconic landmark for healing, supported by thousands including the rich and famous who were moved by this woman’s unmatchable heart.

Peggy Albrecht was one of my favorite people that ever walked the earth. After getting through the initial shock and tears I remember that whenever she looked my way, she had the means of conveying such pride and happiness in what I had become – that look will always be around when I call her name.

Namaste Dear One.

Brought to you by David Harder, President – Inspired Work, Inc.

(C) Copyright, 2018, Inspired Work, Inc. – (All Rights Reserved)

Schedule 15-Minutes to Discuss Your Workplace or Career with David (Here)

The post How One Legal Secretary Saved Thousands of Lives appeared first on Inspired Work Services.

– John F. Kennedy

The following statement is not partisan. It is an issue of need. There has never been a time in history where we needed political leaders who embrace the strategy and courage to tell us to take responsibility. In the last election, both party members promised jobs in sectors of the economy that are dwindling to say the least. How much healthier would it be to have leaders that routinely give us statements like this?

I was a little boy when John F. Kennedy was gunned down. But, that event colored and shaped the rest of my life. I had been adopted into a very dark and difficult family. I remember seeing him on Television and being so impacted by his optimism, civility, and dignity. Most of all, I remember his focus on personal accountability, promoting the truth that none would hand success to us and his high-minded beliefs that Americans had the power to be fully accountable for greatness. I was six-year-old when I heard him say,

“Ask not what your country can do for you but what you can do for your country.”

To this youngster his words were so bold, clear and visionary that I heard them, bought them and knew that I wanted to be part of a solution rather than a problem. But, I remember even more shockingly the ashen-faced principal of our evangelical school walking into class and telling us that Kennedy had just been shot dead. I remember my father pulling up in his brand new white Pontiac Bonneville and the power door locks clicking as my sister and I got in. I remember him wordlessly driving home and our mother crying in front of the TV. I was struck that they had recently referred to him as “the devil” simply because he worshipped in the wrong church.

For me, John F. Kennedy was all about an opportunity, of galvanizing the human talent of a fresh superpower and focusing our nation on vision, on abundance and of living out a “pay-it-forward” philosophy that underpinned the actions of an entire dynasty.

With his abrupt departure, America entered a decade of shocking dissension and a strikingly escapist era of anger, sexuality and drugs. With the absence of aspirational vision from the top, baby boomers got out their credit cards and forgot a moment in time where putting people on the moon seemed like a good idea, where sending our best young people to impoverished nations was normal and where education could and would set anyone free.

As the anniversary of his passing approaches, I would like to share with you portions of the speeches he was going give right after that terrible event. His words signify the best within all of us, especially when we devote our lives to something bigger than ourselves:

On Leadership

“This link between leadership and learning is not only essential at the community level. It is even more indispensable in world affairs. Ignorance and misinformation can handicap the progress of a city or a company, but they can, if allowed to prevail in foreign policy, handicap this country’s security. In a world of complex and continuing problems, in a world full of frustrations and irritations, America’s leadership must be guided by the lights of learning and reason – – or else those who confuse rhetoric with reality and the plausible with the possible will gain the popular ascendancy with the seeming swift and simple solutions to every world problem.”

On Partisanship

“There will always be dissident voices heard in the land, expressing opposition without alternatives, finding fault but never favor, perceiving gloom on every side and seeking influence without responsibility. Those voices are inevitable.

But today other voices are heard in the land – – voices preaching doctrines wholly unrelated to reality, wholly unsuited to the sixties, doctrines which apparently assume that words will suffice without weapons, that vituperation is as good as victory and that peace is a sign of weakness. At a time when the national debt is steadily being reduced in terms of its burden on our economy, they see that debt as the greatest single threat to our security. At a time when we are steadily reducing the number of Federal employees serving every thousand citizens, they fear those supposed hordes of civil servants far more than the actual hordes of opposing armies.

We cannot expect that everyone, to use the phrase of a decade ago, will “talk sense to the American people.” But we can hope that fewer people will listen to nonsense. And the notion that this Nation is headed for defeat through deficit, or that strength is but a matter of slogans, is nothing but just plain nonsense.”

On the Nation’s Future

“Almost everywhere we look, the story is the same. In Latin America, in Asia, in the councils of the world and in the jungles of far-off nations, there is now renewed confidence in our country and our convictions.

For this country is moving and it must not stop. It cannot stop. For this is a time for courage and a time for challenge. Neither conformity nor complacency will do. Neither the fanatics nor the faint-hearted are needed. And our duty as a party is not to our party alone, but to the Nation, and, indeed…to all mankind. Our duty is not merely the preservation of political power but the preservation of peace and freedom.

So let us not be petty when our cause is so great. Let us not quarrel amongst ourselves when our Nation’s future is at stake. Let us stand together with renewed confidence in our cause – – united in our heritage of the past and our hopes for the future – – and determined that this land we love shall lead all mankind into new frontiers of peace and abundance.”

When I embrace his message, I am not a Democrat or Republican.

No, I am that little boy living in an angry and divisive house, who listened and believed every word.

Brought to you by David Harder, President – Inspired Work Services, Inc.

(C) Copyright, 2017, Inspired Work, Inc. – (All Rights Reserved)

If you would like to discuss your workplace or your career with David Harder, schedule fifteen-minutes Here.

The post If JFK Lived One More Day appeared first on Inspired Work Services.

Let’s just bring up a few names as examples:

Google, HBO, Disney, and Lloyds of London. What imagery and stories do these hallowed brands bring up?

For many, Google is the number one brand representing progress. HBO is the goldplated provider of premium Television content. Disney is magic for families. Lloyds is the supreme protector.

What do people think of when your name comes up?

If there is trouble answering the question, that is a problem.

These are chaotic times. The rate of change is reaching epic proportions and will only grow. We crave brands because they represent certainty. Brands produce faith in others because they are consistent. Well-crafted brands do not try to cater to everyone because they know and understand their consumers.

Virtually all of our individual clients need a personal brand. Yet, that idea is often met with initial resistance. First, many of us never establish a personal brand because whatever that is changes with our mood swings. Our colleagues or employees see one person on a good day and another when we are off. Many people are reluctant to fully define a personal brand because that might wall of professional options. But, we find that state-of-mind ensures we never get the traction with the career or business that we really want.

Years ago, Oprah gave her first and only business interview to Fortune. In the middle of it, the journalist asked what her personal brand was. She responded, “You are responsible for your life.” I assert she is so much more than that but as I sat with the statement, every action she had ever taken made much more sense.

These one-line responses are so limited including the dreaded “elevator pitch.” Ugh!

“Hi! Who are you?”

“Definitely not an accountant. A facilitator of great profit. Average Joe.”

I modified this one to the protect the innocent. But, all that I had to do was go through about twenty profiles to find an elevator pitch listed as part of someone’s heading. Here is what I dislike the most about elevator pitches. Human beings are capable of thinking about something other than themselves a maximum of fifteen seconds. That means that during any type of sales communication the consumer is motivated by one thing – fulfilled expectations. Elevator pitches are one-dimensional and usually generic statements that produce little impact because we are not being respectful enough to find out anything about the person we are talking to. This is when we tell them something that might just matter.

A fully established personal brand embraces how we are wired, how we solve problems, and, our morals, values and ethics. It tells people our unique gifts, and our mission, vision, and purpose. A great personal brand lets others know what motivates us. It is the truth so that we can easily live up to it. All messages are clear. And, it has great impact on others. Why? We only use the parts of that brand that is relevant to the needs and expectations at hand.

For example, if we are discussing apparel design, we might use the portion of our brand that shares our design ethos, our market, and what drives us throughout the development process. If that same person is showing up as a boss, we bring up the portions of the brand that include the types of people that fit into our tribe, how every single person that has worked on our team went on to have an amazing career, and how we sweat the details in being fair.

Highly developed personal brands also become that foundation that helps us maintain consistency on the bad days. Rather than succumbing to our moods, we recognize that by coming in and displaying behavior that doesn’t fit our brand, we not only shoot ourselves in the foot, we shoot everyone in the foot.

I have yet to sell any business in elevators. But my brand? Virtually anyone with an issue about work, who engages with me, is a lucky person indeed. I’ve helped thousands transform their very experience of work, connect with dream jobs, launch successful first-time businesses and reach that one individual who gives them a career turning-point. I’m persistent. If I get shot-down and the pursuit is worthy, I will be back. However, when an organization asks that I lead an executive team through very difficult business issues, I don’t discuss the previous parts of my brand. I talk about my ability to bring about the truth in constructive and actionable ways. The point is, each and every aspect of my brand has been defined and written out, embedded in my psyche so that it is consistent. This means that if I show up to that retreat on the worst day of my life, I am there to bring about the truth in constructive and actionable ways.

Personal brands will take on even great importance as we continue to accelerate change. If we change the story of who we are just to get any job, any opportunity, we will never get what we want.

The days of “just a job” and the pursuit of survival and predictability of swiftly coming to an end. Defining who we are, what we do, how we do it, where we came from, what shaped us, and how other can depend on us is a worthy venture indeed.

After all, in a world of abundance, who wants just anything?

Brought to you by David Harder – Founder & President, Inspired Work, Inc.

(C) Copyright, 2017, David Harder – (All Rights Reserved)

Get your copy of The Workplace Engagement Solution here.

The post What Brand Are U? appeared first on Inspired Work Services.

As we shift from an industrial revolution based workplace to one that is driven by accelerating technological change, the way we relate to fear has profound implications of whether or not we are involved and enthused or in a trance brought about by one’s inability to change.

Fear has been a loaded subject since the beginnings of time. Aristotle characterized fear as the opposite of confidence and that it could be overcome through courage. Epicurus believed it was best to predict and avoid fear at all costs. Calen, another Greek philosopher, noted that people often became paralyzed over imaginary fears. Thousands of years later, much of mainstream culture is engaged in the same outlooks and debates.

But, have we progressed?

Humans, especially Americans, can believe anything they want to believe. The impact of what we believe is often hard to track because our transactions with fear happen in an instant. However, what we believe about fear can last for centuries and those moment-to-moment decisions add up. Today, they add up to an American workforce in turmoil and much of the current state has to do with the continuing myths we buy into about fear. Many of these myths are keeping many of us from taking the very action that is needed in the face of change, especially in changing oneself.

Human history is filled with extraordinarily good religious and political leaders. Unfortunately, unscrupulous leaders have also recognized that perpetuating myths about fear can be very beneficial to their cause. What is the value of a populace that is “paralyzed with fear?” The paralysis of a population can pave the way for someone else’s agenda. One of the most astounding admissions from President Harry Truman, the chief architect of the Cold War, came late in his life:

“The demagogues, crackpots, and professional patriots had a field day pumping fear into the American people. Many good people actually believed that we were in imminent danger of being taken over by the Communists and that our government in Washington was Communist riddled. So widespread was this campaign that it seemed no one would be safe from attack. This was the tragedy and shame of our time.”

President Truman wrote these striking words, steeped in regret, shortly before he passed away. Bravo for the courage it took to reveal his truth. But, Isn’t so very sad that few people listened and learned from this striking case-study? Think of all the time and progress we lost to those words, “many good people actually believed.”

We don’t pay much attention how we respond to fear because what we believe becomes automatic behavior. If anything, our work culture has to become less automatic, less machine like and definitely more open to having the experience of fear. Because the sole biological purpose of fear is to take action. As technology takes on the tasks that turned us into machine-like workers, we are required to step up to the plate and become accountable, interested, empathetic, creative, forward-thinking, proactive, and especially new. Many of us have been running from the very skills we must learn to connect with others, to sell our value, to present our ideas, and to look people in the eye. I call them courage skills. But, what are we to do if we don’t bolster our courage and reward others for its demonstration?

The world is filled with sales people hawking programs promising to overcome our fears. However, the most successful people in the world don’t even attempt to become fearless. But, they are filled to the brim with courage.

Brought to you by David Harder – Founder & President, Inspired Work, Inc.

(C) Copyright, 2017, David Harder – (All Rights Reserved)

Get your copy of The Workplace Engagement Solution here.

The post Why Is Courage Essential in Any Engagement Program? appeared first on Inspired Work Services.

That morning opened with a drive down Pacific Coast Highway to the Loews Beach Hotel. Walking through the lobby, each step felt like a jump out of a plane without a parachute. But, an inner voice suggested I would find my wings and fly. It was 1990 and I was 37. Thirty-six people were waiting in a room drawn by the promise of defining and finding the lives they were meant to have. We also promised they would transform their entire relationship towards work.

I knew we had a bold curriculum but absolutely no idea how it would actually turn out. A tumultuous year had painted me into what appeared to be a very big a corner. A long relationship had ended and I was broken-hearted about that. So, I threw myself into work optimistic it would lead to fulfilled dreams. I was a staffing executive by day and a jazz musician at night. I did both so I could live in Malibu until I got the cherished record contract. The deal actually happened. Then, my producer dropped dead of a heart attack. In that one moment, I realized that not only was my brief recording career over but that I had been putting off my happiness for many years. In fact, I knew nothing of value in how to build sustainable happiness in my life.

Socrates believed that you could bring people to truth by asking them the right questions. So, I sat on the beach with a notepad and wrote my way out of what some would characterize as a severe mid-life crisis. My answers led to an awareness that in our culture work is the biggest relationship that we have. That means that if we are in love with our work, we tend to be in love with our lives. But, our culture, especially our industrial culture sold work as a source of predictability and survival. Characteristics such as joy, meaning, creativity, legacy, purpose, were quickly cast aside for survival and predictability. Along with the very people we served, I did it myself. At the time, this was the norm.

In the midst of answering questions, I realized that questioning everything we have been told is the true act of revolution. For almost three hundred years, we were given the legacy of fitting in. If we were a little more intelligent than the rest, we were told to become, for example, a doctor. That is what had happened in my home. It didn’t matter that I passed out whenever it was time to dissect a bug, a mouse, or a cadaver. When I ran a staffing business, it was clear that most people gave lip service to happiness, but quickly settled for the predictability and survival offered by fitting in one more time.

The door to the ballroom was open and as I looked at each participant, I was reminded of my expression when the call came in that my producer had passed. Everyone had a workbook. I explained that we would cover one aspect of our lives and our work at a time. In the first hour, someone stood up and announced a major career change. By lunch, it seemed that everyone was in some sort of revolution with her or his life. That night, I sat on the beach with my two dachshunds. There was moonlight on the water and a storm had created fresh waves. I pondered, “What have I done to my life?” Everything was new. These were the same themes of our participants. When the program was over, I sat in the parking garage unable to move. I was enthralled and I was terrified. What happened over the course of those two days changed everyone’s life and became a turning point. Years later, some of them were irritated to learn it was the first program and that I was going through the very same issues they were going through.

I turned my resignation into my boss. Gail was one of the most fearsome and seemingly fearless women I have ever known. We had lunch two years ago. I had not seen her since the day that I left. Gail sold the company and has become a celebrated artist. Her first words to me were, “What is it like for you to wake-up in the morning? What is it like to have changed so many lives?” I laughed, “All that I really did was change my own life. That is how real change works. No one does it for you.” She pushed, “Yes. But, who knows what would have happened if you had continued on the same path?”

Who knows?

In 1990, I believed that anyone could have a great relationship towards work. Today, I know this is true. Today, I know that all of us have a unique purpose and that until we find and define that purpose, we suffer. Today, I know that all of us can do the work that we love and that finding that sweet spot is just as practical as it is spiritually rewarding. To know this makes me one of the most fortunate and blessed individuals on earth.

Brought to you by David Harder – Founder & President, Inspired Work, Inc.

(C) Copyright, 2017, David Harder – (All Rights Reserved)

Get your copy of The Workplace Engagement Solution here.

The post 27 Years – What Did I Learn? appeared first on Inspired Work Services.

Los Angeles is the single most diverse city in America. Here, we are used to differences in a town filled with countless tribes and neighborhoods. Partially, this is because we have attracted one of the most powerful talent pools on the face of the earth. Those of us who want happiness in the city of fallen angels have become fairly permissive about the diversity of beliefs. And, why not? California is the birthplace of an ideology. We hatched the idea that if you are an American, you can believe anything you want. “Truthiness” began on the bluffs of Big Sur where Esalen opened its doors in 1962. The organization was quite attractive to the human cerebral cortex, that unique wrapper that allows us to make things up. The new movement attacked science, medicine, history, religion, anything was up for grabs. Timothy Leary doled out LSD, Emily Coleman led nude encounter groups. One of the founders was led off to a mental institution, clearly a conspiracy by the 1% to suppress the new truthiness.

Are we really prepared to do away with an embedded idea that if you are an American, you can believe anything you want?

This past weekend, we could not get to Gold’s Gym in Venice because of a rally against Google. Ever since James Damore was fired for his incendiary memo about what’s wrong with gender equality in the tech world, crazy people have been pouring out of the woodwork. There I said it. Personally, I believe that Google did the right thing in letting Mr. Damore go but they were not very clear in their reasoning. Mr. Damore’s interminably long and poorly written memo revealed he was not the brightest bulb in the chandelier. Lack of smarts is a felony at the world’s biggest information company.

Turf protection is the big unvoiced driver behind bias and racism. The notion there isn’t enough for everybody shows up in all types of stories that with any type of rigorous examination simply will not hold up. The 50-year growth of you can believe anything you want is now emerging as a war of ideas. Beliefs have become a blood sport in this country as well as the workplace where erroneous stories flourish in the face of accelerating change. I believe the craziest amongst us are driven by their terror of the future.

When it comes to the truth, the stories we tell are not as important as the quality of the questions that we ask. Socrates began a movement that I participate in today. He believed that if you ask people the right questions they would come to their own truth. Unfortunately, the political and religious leaders of the time had him poisoned because they did not want to have the population thinking for themselves. Right now, our country is in a war of ideas and beliefs. Personally, I believe it is healthy for us to be engaged in the conversations and arguments at hand. But, we are in very real danger when we give up questioning what is in front of us.

Here are a few examples:

• Why would developing people for jobs in coal, oil, retail big box stores, and trucking represent a good investment in our future?
• What evidence is there that gender, gender preference, the color of one’s skin, and religious belief relate to productivity and value?
• How can I tell this is a belief, an idea, or it is really true?
• Is this story coming out of fear or is it something I ought to pay attention to?

Questions trigger cynicism and contempt. But, over time, they really do help us get to the truth. So, as this storm of ideas and beliefs and fears and aggression flows through the nation and the workplace, start asking questions. Don’t give much energy to the close-ended questions that can easily be dismissed with a “yes” or “no.” Ask the questions that push people to make their case, that trigger their innate intelligence.

Like Los Angeles, we are a nation of tribes. Right now, we are witnessing a new form of terror that multiple tribes are losing in the game of turf protection. Instead of being at war with each other, what would happen if we went to war with stagnation and with holding onto the past? What would happen if we responded to erroneous beliefs with the very questions that inspire truth?

The real price of diversity are the casualties from our ongoing distraction. Make no mistake. Our arguments and shock and outrage are distracting us from intellectual, moral, and spiritual growth.

I don’t really know if everyone has a place at the table or the capacity to change or the capability to establish her or his unique place in the world. But I choose to believe it. I work on that mission every single day. When people come into our programs, we suggest that rather than arguing with our point of view they try on our philosophies for a couple of days. See where the ideas take you. Then, we ask questions.

Perhaps it would be valuable that instead of making our case, we start asking the rigorous questions that will lead our nation to the all important outcome of truth.

Brought to you by David Harder – Founder & President, Inspired Work, Inc.

(C) Copyright, 2017, David Harder – (All Rights Reserved)

Buy a copy of David’s new book The Workplace Engagement Solution here.

The post What Is The Real Price of Diversity? appeared first on Inspired Work Services.

It will require us to reinvent, learn, unlearn, and relearn in shorter periods of time. When we ask or order our employees to “snap out of it” or “get used to it,” how can most of them comprehend how to do that? Yet many leaders continue to display the “do it or else” tactic in a world in which talent pools are filled with experts in going through the motions. Similarly, this idea that people should somehow be skilled at continuous personal change is equally far-fetched. This is why organizations, realistically, must develop their workers to not only understand change, but to learn how to change themselves continuously.

Bestselling tech journalist Kevin Kelly talks about how the rate of change has increased to the point where we are no longer moving towards a set goal. Instead, we are in a constant state of “becoming.” It would seem that having a clear sense of mission, vision, and purpose is optional in such a state. Instead, much of the American workforce settles into mindless frenzy. And yet, this workforce is headed towards greater underemployment, the real scourge of our economy. The most valuable state of “becoming” is to be grounded with clear personalized mission, vision, and purpose, which becomes the keel that keeps the boat upright throughout the storms of change.

To the surface mind, this sounds stressful. But to those of us who want to grow, who want to learn, who want to see how far we can develop our lives, these are exciting times indeed. As a boater, I can testify that getting a sailboat through a storm can be a life-changing experience. Some will get sea sick, but the ones that experience growth will ask, “How quickly can we do it again?”

For organizations, this is why it is such an important time to develop mentors out of the very people who’ve adopted the skills to change, reinvent, and engage. There are many fortunate individuals who’ve realized there was no alternative but to dive into self-inquiry, developing new life skills, and continual learning. The first breakthrough was not drowning. The second was experiencing the life altering benefits of using the waves in front of us as an opportunity to grow into new, stronger, more exciting, more interesting, and more valuable workers.

Success within this adventure requires a democratic solution, which means everyone is responsible. We can make a case to business that the moral thing to do is to help every worker come along for the ride. History has proven we need to meld morality and profit-making for real commitment. So, let’s take a closer look at the math:

• 87% of the world’s workers are disengaged
• 48% of American workers characterize themselves as underemployed

With numbers like that, are we going to recruit enough workers to build an engaged culture?

I assert the only way we can get there is to build changed and engaged workers. Returning to a democratic and fully responsible theme, if you get this message, don’t wait for your employer to help you. The future is a finish line moving towards us so quickly that it is time to wake-up indeed.

Learn how to change. Learn how to grow. Learn how to let go. Learn how to surf.

Life is good.

Brought to you by David Harder – Founder & President, Inspired Work, Inc.

(C) Copyright, 2017, David Harder – (All Rights Reserved)

Buy a copy of David’s new book The Workplace Engagement Solution here.

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How on earth do we unlearn? How do we identify the beliefs, the software, the education and conditions that are obsolete and delete them? How do we become skillfully suspicious of everything we know?

Many of us never have the gift of unlearning and yet that became natural for me because of a brilliant and wise mentor. I went to USC to become a classical pianist. As a freshman, I was fortunate to become part of concert pianist Daniel Pollack’s Master Class. There, I found myself in a ridiculously competitive environment but stayed ahead of the game by practicing until I dropped – day-after-day. During one session, Pollack asked what I wanted to work on. I pulled out a copy of Herbie Hancock’s concert album from Lincoln Center and shyly announced, “I want his job.” The idea of stepping out of classical music was dismissed on the spot. However, to my point-of-view, Frederick Chopin had also been a revolutionary very much like Hancock. Pianists of his time voiced great difficulty in being able to play his music because older styles filled their musical vocabulary. Later, I had the same challenge growing as a jazz musician. Old software got in the way. Quite simply, there wasn’t room for the new.

A rock singer told me of Phil Cohen, the legendary Artistic Director of Concordia University’s Leonardo Project. I asked what he did and she said, “He gets rid of blocks. He opens the door to becoming a true artist.” I had the good fortune to get a session with him. Phil was wearing a Heisenberg Fedora and sunglasses, sitting in the corner of a recording artist’s living room. He motioned to me, “Play something.” I performed a tortured little ballad that I was quite proud of. When I was finished, he asked, “You studied at USC? Did you play the Russian exercises for hours? Even on the floor?” After several affirmative answers, he continued, “You need an emotional enema. If you hope to play one living note of music you are going to have to forget everything you have ever been taught.”

It was one of the single most frightening moments in my life. By asking him to teach me to unlearn, I agreed to give up what I had been taught for 20 years. He had an acute radar in zeroing in on thinking and behavior that blocked the parts of me that had yet to flourish. Over the years, Phil gave me the skill of forgetting, of letting go of the “right way” to play or think or behave. I had the nicest piano of his LA clients so he moved everyone to my home. I used to sit in the hall and peek through the slats in the door simply stunned at the musical icons sitting at my piano or singing as he played. But what was even more exciting was to see some of the most successful artists in the world of music eager to surrender their best thinking – quickly.

Phil’s work informs so much of what I do. His teaching shows up when a client throws away the script and facilitates a miracle. I see it when a client who wants to be a writer forgets the syntax and let’s out his soul. It happens when someone answers one of our questions and realizes the one belief that continues to dictate his or her life is obsolete. The new truth can flow in. Time and time again, it is clear that untruth and truth cannot occupy the same place.

Self-inquiry is the most reliable way of beginning an unlearning process. Until we examine our own lives, we are usually living someone else’s life or instructions. Questioning our beliefs and way we live is key to having fulfilling lives and it is key to positive change. Periodic self-examination used to be enough. Today, change happens so quickly that continuous self-inquiry not only allows us to be more flexible and nimble, it paves the way for rapid and transformative growth. I know this because we teach it.

The ability to unlearn gave me the life that I lead today. It pierced through the righteousness that once held up a one-dimensional future where music was the one and only hard-won option. It opened the door towards realizing I am here to touch people’s lives. Unlearning allowed me to open my eyes in the morning and realize that life is now filled with meaning and purpose and goodness. Unlearning not only makes it easier to change, it make it possible to change. Because of mentors like Phil Cohen, I am no longer concerned with hanging onto my old or even current self. It is far more exciting to see what’s coming. By identifying the restrictions and letting go, each edition is better than the one before.

It doesn’t get better than this.

Each day, we get to see the world with new eyes.

Brought to you by David Harder, President – Inspired Work, Inc.

P: (310) 277-4850 / E: david@inspiredworkservices.com

(C) Copyright, Inspired Work, Inc. (2017) – All Rights Reserved

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In front of us is a world filled with more opportunity to craft successful lives than ever before. But, in order to fulfill that opportunity, we have to learn how to change on very personal and fundamental levels. We need to embrace continuous education and self-inquiry. Why? Because without a compelling and personalized sense of mission, vision and purpose to fuel internal motivation, employees will lack the initiative, the “juice” to go through the challenges inherent in actualizing the personal change that is required.

Welcome to the reality of future shock. Over the last thirty years, we progressively removed predictability and survival from the workplace. Then, technology introduced change with such growing ferocity that today’s average college graduate will change careers, not just jobs, an average of four to six times. If we dare to expect the majority of our workers to engage, we need to help them become change experts in ways that are not only valuable for our organization but also in ways that are personally meaningful. Like every other set of skills, when and if our capacity to personally change becomes as natural as other relevant skills – navigating software platforms, mastering social media advertising, and the like – we will become more effective in responding to other organizational, market and technical changes that are continuously thrust upon us.

This is where many managers give up and organizations throw up their hands. This is where we look to the high potential and assume they are special because they learned self-promotion, accountability, personal drive, extensive people skills, and solid self-awareness. Why? We are certainly not teaching these skills and attributes in our schools. The average American family watches Television 4 hours a day. Out of the hundreds of families that I’m aware of, I can count on one hand the ones that routinely teach and role model these skills at home. The fact is, everyone needs these life skills today.

Is a positive and democratic outcome attainable? Absolutely. After awhile, investing in leader training becomes redundant. Why not invest in everyone’s ability to change? Afterward, why can’t we hold everyone accountable to change and engage? Why not jump start a culture revolution and sustain that revolution through internal mentorship? Why not build a workforce that is confident they can change with or without the organization?

We can only change and we can only engage if we teach each other how to connect, how to draw healthy attention to ourselves, how to build effective support systems, how to ask good questions and listen to the answers, how to become an active learner and how to conduct solid self-inquiry. Self-inquiry? Well, most people are tired of adopting other people’s vision and view the continuous drone of “buy-in” as manipulation. No, we have to get people to learn how to define their own vision and present that effectively, even if it leads to a departure. How can we possibly get people to own their vision and work if we don’t have the courage to help them define and articulate what they want? Or, to listen?

Is there going to be discomfort? I’ve observed that we are frightened with or without the ability to affect positive change. Without it, we stand in fear hoping we won’t lose what we have. With the skills, we experience the discomfort of growing. Here, we constantly learn how to be more, more capable, more gifted, more secure, more happy, more intentional, and more enthused about the future rather than pining for the past.

Which one shall we pick?

Brought to you by David Harder, President – Inspired Work, Inc.

P: (310) 277-4850 / E: david@inspiredworkservices.com

(C) Copyright, Inspired Work, Inc. (2017) – All Rights Reserved

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