Breaking It Down

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200 words, building community, common, Diana Schwenk, Diana's Enormous Book of Quotes, goals, mission, Purpose, strategy, teams, vision, working together

If I look at the masses, I will never act. If I look at the one, I will.

– Mother Theresa

Mother Theresa was referring to the masses of people she cared for during her life with the above quote. But the wisdom in the quote can apply to many situations. I often apply this principle when working on something big.

Whether you’re looking to improve the lives of a specific group of individuals like the poor, the sick, elderly, oppressed, vulnerable or working on a complex personal goal,

or your goal is to create a team that’s on page and working together for a common purpose or negotiating rules of engagement between several groups with varying needs,

or you’re tackling a project like constructing a building, planting or harvesting a crop, renovating your house or designing and implementing a functional system,

you can very easily become overwhelmed if you digest it all in one gulp. When an individual looks at the entirety of a cause, project, or goal, they can become swallowed up and paralyzed by the enormity of it all.

So it really does make sense to break it down into smaller, chewable pieces.

~ DIANA’S ENORMOUS BOOK OF QUOTES ~

 

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Can You Catch Me In A Lie?

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body language, community, deceit, Diana Schwenk, Hump Day Chronicles, lies, Personality trait, team dynamics, teams, teamwork, Truth

I’ve always been very interested in personality tests. I think it’s because I love the idea of teams working together and if I understand what makes individuals tick, I can more easily figure out how to get a group of individuals to work together toward a common goal.

Just in case you’re curious, I’m an ENFP according to Myers Brigg, a Number 7 (generalist, visionary) according to Enneagram and Orange in the True Colors Personality test.

Anyway, you have no idea how excited I was when I had the opportunity several years ago to attend a Body Language workshop facilitated by an experienced police investigator!

In this workshop we learned, among other things, how to tell when someone is being deceitful. To practice what we had learned, we were divided into groups of 3 or 4 people and given time to come up with two truths and one lie about ourselves and then try to catch each other in the lie. I was amazingly good at it!

I know that you don’t have the benefit of watching my body language but I thought it would be fun to share two truths and one lie about myself here and see if you can spot the lie. And in turn, I would love if you shared two truths and a lie about yourself in the comment section so I can try to catch you in a lie.

OK, ready? Here goes!

1. I once saw Neil Young at a Tim Hortons.
2. I once did a standup comedy routine at Yuk Yuks.
3. I once auditioned for a small part in the movie Cadence.

So can you guess the lie?

Is it 1?

Is it 2?

Maybe it’s 3?

~ HUMP DAY CHRONICLES ~

So….

What are your two truths and one lie?

Using the talents of those around the table

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200 words, community, compassion, Diana Schwenk, Diana's Enormous Book of Quotes, dreams, goals, living in the moment, make a difference, mission, needs, passion, talents, team dynamics, teams, teamwork, vision

Use your eyes to see the needs, and use your talents to meet them. ~ unattributed

We all have things we are passionate about and most of us want to make a difference in the world.

We have all been gifted with unique talents and abilities.

And I have been amazed and delighted at how often the passions and talents of people are fortuitously matched; equipping them to accomplish their desired goals.

Even more alluring to me is how people with a common passion and a wide range of talents are drawn to each other to work together toward a common goal.

It’s like a choreographed dance or a beautiful symphony.

How lucky for me, that it happens this way, as that is my passion.

Because I believe we all have a mission and we are equipped with the exact right talents, education, experience and passion to accomplish it.

I believe that every person/skill you need is right there sitting around the table with you and together you can change the world.

 ~ DIANA’S ENORMOUS BOOK OF QUOTES ~

What’s your passion? What unique talent(s) help you to accomplish your goals? How do they complement the talents of your team?

What are you doing to build community?

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building community, community, Diana Schwenk, family, Mother Teresa, peace, strength, teams, thrive

Mother Teresa 1985 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

“I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples.” Mother Teresa

What is community?

Quite simply, community is a group of people who live, work and/or play together.

Communities consist of neighbourhoods, work teams, families and clubs, etc.

Healthy community is:

A safe place where each member can respectfully be uniquely themselves;

where disagreements are OK because each person is loved;

where each individual is recognized for the gifts they bring to the table;

where others need us and we can count on them when we’re in need;

a deep understanding, based on experience, that together we can weather any storm.

I want to be more intentional about building community.

I want my family, my team to know I’ve got their backs.

I want to know they’ve got mine.

I want to really listen without judgment.

I want to build people up, not tear them down.

I want to be part of something bigger than myself.

Let’s face it. We need each other.

Is community important to you?

What are you doing to build it where you live?