Kathryn Schulz: On being wrong | Video on TED.com

I recommend the book "Being Wrong" by Kathryn Schultz. Her research on how we need to be "right," from the personal to the international level was really challenging. This book would make great reading for discussion groups of co-workers, business colleagues, or even family members. Hear the author talk about her premise in the following video, and let me know what you think.

Our need to be right colors our memories, our interactions, our decisions, and the filters through which we view the world. The ability to step back and understand this compelling need helps individuals and groups work with greater purpose and harmony--creating stronger connections with one another, with their shared purpose, and with their "best selves." Connective change depends on being able to recognize and acknowledge that others' views may be right--if only for them--or that occasionally you may be wrong.

Vital Voices

Last night I had the great privilege of attending Vital Voices 10th Anniversary Global Leadership Awards, entitled, “A Decade of Investing in Women to Improve the World,” at the sold-out Kennedy Center Opera House. The entire evening was moving, from Secretary Clinton’s passionate plea for justice for women throughout the world to the awardees’ moving stories of their struggles against impossible odds in addressing issues like human trafficking. The recent program for women leaders in the Middle East and Northern Africa where I shared my work on Connective Change was cited as an illustration of Vital Voices’ courage to go where it is needed when it is needed.

The Global Trailblazer Award for Voice of the Decade was awarded to Daw Aung San Suu Kyi from Burma. This was particularly meaningful for me because nine years ago I met with the members of her party in Yangon to help them with envision and strategize for her release, as well as a more democratic nation afterwards. She was released from prison later that week, although, as we know, not permanently. In her comments last night, Suu Kyi encouraged us to keep an eye on Burma and hold it accountable for implementing the inclusiveness it's leaders are promising.

The musical tribute that closed the ceremony was a choral piece, “Walk On,” written by Bono as a tribute to Aung San Suu Kyi. Talking about the 1991 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, he said, “Suu Kyi, with an idea too big for any jail and a spirit too strong for any army, changes our view—as only real heroes can—of what we believe is possible. She’s a character of great grace. Her struggle has become a symbol of what’s best about our humanity and worst.”

From actors like Sally Field, journalists like Tina Brown and Wolf Blitzer, political leaders like Senator Kay Baily Hutchinson and the amazing awardees from all over the world, the message was clear: “A society that values its women will be healthy and strong. Women must have a vital voice in the decisions shaping their future.”

Working with purpose and harmony, the Vital Voices global partnership launches its second decade. I am proud to be on their team. See more at Schiller Center for Connective Change.

Get Out and Give Back

A friend of mine, Jane Hess Collins, has launched an organization called Get Out and Give Back, to encourage people to do just that in whatever ways interest them in their own communities. Jane also practices what she encourages others to do, and so she spent last Friday at our local day shelter, called David's Place. Her account of it can be read at: http://www.getoutandgiveback.com/blog. Having been a volunteer and board member at its host organization, Carpenter's Shelter, I was really interested in Jane's insights. So few people who want to volunteer take the time to "walk in the shoes" of others, as Jane did. I encourage you to bookmark her blog and stay tuned to what Jane is learning as she inspires people to contribute in whatever ways make sense to them. Jane is a good example of Connective Change, working with purpose and harmony.

Allende: Passion Lives Here

Please take a moment to view this TED speech of Isabelle Allende:
http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/isabel_allende_tells_tales_of_passion.html

She demonstrates the power of stories. I laughed out loud, cried, learned a lot, and was inspired and motivated--all from her short talk about women and passion. One of my favorites lines: "Heart drives us and determines our fates."

I have found so much of what Allende says about societies to be true of organizations as well. We should all adopt the Olympic slogan she quotes,"Passion Lives Here."

Al Jazeera

While in the Middle East recently, I was impressed by the fine reporting by Al Jazeera on what was going on throughout the region. Distressed by CNN's obsession with Charlie Sheen as news, I called my cable company today and learned that Al Jazeera is not available, regardless of how many pay-for-view deluxe upgrades I purchase.

Take a few minutes and treat yourself to this recent ted interview with Wadah Khanfar, head of Al Jazeera:http://bit.ly/i9DdKF

Egypt: 48 B.C.

As I attempt to relax with a book at the end of a wild day here in the Middle East, I read the following passage from "Cleopatra: A Life," by Stacy Schiff, winner of the Pulitzer Prize:

Throughout the Mediterranean a 'strange madness' hung in the air, ripe with omens and portents and extravagant rumors. The mood was one of nervous exasperation. It was possible to be anxious and elated, empowered and afraid, all in the course of a single afternoon. Some rumors even proved to be true.

Transformative Change

Today our Middle East North African (MENA) policy advocates group had the honor of hearing from Professors Fatima Sadiki and Moha Ennaji about how the family law of Morocco has been reformed to be more supportive of women and children. It was a wonderful example of how transformative change looks from a distance as if it occurred in an instant--but in reality has taken the work of many people over a long period of time. The transformative nature of the changes in Moroccan family law seemed unfathomable to some of the participants from other countries in the region. It was a dramatic reminder that all incremental change does not lead to transformation--but all transformations are the result of many incremental steps--often taken place out of view--that are focused on a united intention. This is what Malcolm Gladwell meant by "the tipping point." The butterfly didn't appear out of nowhere, the Berlin Wall didn't fall by accident, and the current changes in family law of Morocco began in 1946.