Over the recent years it seems as if we have lost the ability to dream. Our native American Indians believed in the power of dreams and visions. So much so that they crafted Dream Catchers not to catch the good dream but to capture the bad dreams from getting to the children of the tribe. Our culture and that of our Native American Indian friends give us the opportunity to not just think, but to dream big!
On this day in US history – a date which will live in infamy, the cultures of many nations were impacted. The US was attacked directly at our naval and air force bases in Hawaii. As a result of this aggression, the US was engaged into World War II. This war changed nations and caused great disrespect for Germans, Japanese and other cultures. May we learn from history and not be so foolish to repeat it.
It has become a meme in our current culture to punctuate a performance or more sadly the delivery of an insult by actually or figuratively dropping a mic. This act of visual exclamation although having its place for positive reasons to build consensus of success or results has become diluted by its use in punctuating evil spirited attacks. The rise and fall of cultures are attached to the behaviors of its people. When behaviors drift from good to evil and then are celebrated for the achievement of the evil we should take notice as our culture is at risk or devolving.
As we in the United States sit down to a meal on Thanksgiving, may we all take a moment of silence to be genuinely thankful for all the blessings we have now, have had in the past and will have in the future. The very foundation of this day of giving thanks rose out of the need for a culture to acknowledge those relationships which gave sustenance to survival in a new land.
The old saying of nothing happens until the sale happens shines light on the need to recognize that your business world needs to exist inside of a sales culture. Everyone on the team participates in the sale of goods and services regardless of their particular role in the company. Some are directly in the revenue acquisition process while others deliver the goods. Everyone’s mindset needs to appreciate, understand, and act to be in a sales culture.
These days the word transparency is used and attached to many statements regarding communication. It is healthy and valuable to have open and meaningful communincation. It is critical that transparency is not controlled by agendas or desired outcomes. If communication is to be truly transparent then it must be able to be completely see through. Not opaque, not foggy, not distorted, it needs clarity of thought so all can value its’ insights.
Today is the “Day of the Dead” or “All Souls Day.” This is a day where cultures celebrate those who have gone before us to their next place on the journey. It is critical that we take time to recall and deeply remember those who have set our culture in motion, and we need to respect that heritage by respecting those who have led the way.
Turn on the TV or look at social media on your phone and you will get an overwhelming number of opinions and perceptions of what is or is not going on around us in our culture. These perceptions when not clarified through a constructive review can sometimes cause great discourse in our culture. The perceptions can lead to misunderstandings. If the perceptions are not appreciated, understood and acknowledged appropriately within the desired culture, they blossom into potentially evil outcomes.
When we look at history, we can see that over time cultures have come and gone. They have evolved from nothing and ultimately return to nothing. During the journey the culture has times of quick pace and other times when it slows to a crawl. As we are directly part of the culture which we live inside, we must take time to look at long-term sustainability and scalability of our culture so that our culture may not just expand but to be vibrant.
Stop for a moment and look around you at all the variety of people in your life. This collage of people adds so much energy to our culture that words cannot do it justice. People are at the center of our culture. Whether the culture is positive or negative it is people who ultimately cultivate the culture. This places a significant responsibility on us to ensure that our actions contribute to a good culture.