As I've contemplated creating this new world vision with all of you that stop by, many things have come to mind. I continue to marvel at how many people have come here, showing their interest in creating a better world just by showing up. I don't fully understand why more people don't share their ideas, posting comments, but I've learned that in the silence of this virtual space there is a rich dialogue going on in people's minds and hearts. Although, I wish we could talk with one another, I appreciate knowing that we are here and that even in the quiet, if you are like me, you are thinking about a new more equitable, healthy, loving and generous world for all people. Imagine it!
Some years ago, when I wrote Action Dialogues:Meaningful Conversations to Accelerate Change, Frances Hesselbein, a visionary leader and mentor... and recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom wrote a beautiful foreword for my book. It spoke about the vision we are working on here. I wanted to share it with you:
Over thirty years ago, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. set an examle about the power of meaningful dialogue when he spoke of his dream on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C. It was a remarkable speech, but if you were there or have ever watched the footage of that day, with the vibrant faces and the response of those taking in his message, it is clear there was also a dialogue taking place. A dialogue with a deep sense of shared meaning between him and all the people there with him. His circle of influence continues to reach out to us today.
There is much we can learn from Dr. King's example that will help us respond to one of the most critical quesions in today's world, "How do we help people deal with their deepest differences?" In just a few minutes, with relatively few words, he spoke the truth. He asked everybody to examine their own behavior and make a pledge to continue to be part of change. Regardless of the struggle that came before and the distance left to travel, he marked the time as a beginning. He appealed to the goodness and dreams of all people. He brought us together with inclusive language that we could understand.
...In 1980, in Managing in Turbulent Times, Peter F. Drucker reminded us, "A time of turbulence is a dangerous time, but its greatest danger is a temptation to deny reality." It through honest, open dialogue followed with concrete actions that we will be able to move beyond the barriers we have built, consciously and unconsciously, around race, gender, equal access. The old answers and language do not fit the new questions and challenges we face in a world that must learn to understand, relate, communicate and work together in the 21st Century across all its boundaries for the good of every nation.
As we reshape the world as we have know it, this is a time of remarkable opportunity for innovation. The individual efforts of thousands of leaders, in millions of organizations, will begin to transform the vision into a new reality of the diverse and inclusive community.
Frances Hesselbein
Chairman of the Board of Governors
Leader-to-Leader Institute
(former The Peter F. Drucker Foundation)
Recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom
What thoughts come up for you as you think about and imagine the opportunity we have to innovative and create the world anew?
Help all of us enrich our perspectives with the view from where you are.
Debbe Kennedy
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YOU'RE INVITED!
Visit the Global Dialogue Center and the World Vision Dialogues at Socrates Hall. You won't want to miss, Joshua Peace Seeker's compelling practical ideas on What YOU CAN DO today to be the change we need in the world.
Learn more about Action Dialogues: Meaningful Conversations to Accelerate Change
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