Set The Table

Many people have become far more practiced at criticism than stewardship.

It’s easy to identify what’s broken. It’s much harder to consistently cultivate environments where people can actually flourish.

Eventually, communities become shaped by whatever people repeatedly reinforce: cultivation or complaint.

Research supports that someone can hear a 100% accurate fact....and still walk away with their mind unchanged.

For influence to take root, there is a relational infrastructure that has to be established first.

From parenting, to educating, to leadership, to modern-day evangelism… this is often where we go wrong.

We want to change minds before we’ve established a basis of trust. We push information before connection has been built, and then we wonder why our words aren’t landing.

Unfortunately, many people have become so focused on winning the argument that they fail to realize they may have won the debate… while simultaneously losing the person.

(More information below on building the necessary influence to reach a distracted and divided world. Link in comments).

Whether through better dialogue, stronger relationships, or healthier ministries & workspaces, human dignity is at the center of everything that makes the world go round.

Organizational problems need human solutions. And the same intentionality we bring to systems and strategy, we also need to bring to the people and relationships driving those systems.

Lately, it’s been a joy partnering with companies that understand strong culture isn’t built through initiatives alone, but through the health of the people behind the work.

Here are a few moments from the work we’ve been able to do with regional teams and leaders.✨

It’s clear that the way we relate shapes culture. Culture shapes the human experience. And that experience impacts how people live, lead and ultimately flourish within their workplaces and ministries.

If we can learn to steward this well, I believe we’ll begin to see healthier organizations, healthier communities, and healthier human beings.

Hot of the IG press:

An unpacking of the EXACT playbook turning family & friends into enemies.

When you recognize that narratives don't just inform you, they train you.......you begin to guard your eyes, your heart and your ears more carefully. ✨

𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗢𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗲 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗼𝘀𝗲𝘀.✨

The way people respond to what challenges them typically reveals more about them than the person they're responding to. Oftentimes people say you've offended them, you've actually exposed something much deeper in them. And it's not yours to own.

A snippet from today’s Instagram. Avoiding harmful conflict starts with knowing your audience and recognizing the level of trust in the room.

When the trust is low, over-explaining often leads to frustration and emotional drain. Sometimes the wisest thing you can do is be direct and avoid the trap of self-defense. Say what’s clear and allow that to be enough.