I have posted about my ongoing research to find the best craft breweries in Southern California to visit on next year’s Craft Brewery Pilgrimage. Even before the culmination of this year’s pilgrimage last month, I was already beginning to think of the future. Though I have not yet made any final decisions, I wanted to share the preliminary results of my efforts. My research is ongoing. Please let me know if you would like to recommend sites for me to... Read more
Are there examples of activist contemplative leaders in history, or in our own time? How would that kind of leader work, and how would their leadership be received by other members of their communities? Activists tend to draw their purpose from responding to the needs they perceive in the world around them. They are connected to networks of people and communities from which they gain strength and urgency. Contemplatives tend to find their meaning from within themselves. They draw strength... Read more
Why is it important to become an Activist Contemplative Leader? What are the benefits, and why would anyone want to do the challenging work necessary to accomplish that? For me, the effort to find that balance, to encompass both activism and contemplation, has made four of my most meaningful relationships deeper, richer, and more productive. First, becoming more of an Activist Contemplative Leader is changing the way I connect with People Around Me, namely, those who follow my leadership. The... Read more
From an early age, I was an activist. I was deeply committed to justice, and caught up by politics and causes. I ached to respond to the people and the needs I saw in the world all around me. I have always been organized and strategic, a natural campaigner. More recently, I have become more contemplative. Still deeply committed to justice, my life has become more about knowing my true self and putting my core values into practice. With a... Read more
A few months ago, in the midst of the first Craft Brewery Pilgrimage, I posted an description of how the pilgrimage, and an incredibly influential blog, were bringing attention to craft brewing in Southern California. The story did not end there. Not only have mainstream media understanding our community in new ways; the marketplace has begun responding to our message as well. The examples are springing up throughout Southern California. Congregation Ale Houses have already been established in Long Beach... Read more
Is it possible to be on Twitter and to be contemplative at the same time? That was one of my main concerns about Twitter before I started. Before that, Twitter seemed like the opposite of contemplation: writing without thinking, words without reflection. It is not unusual for some of the contemplative people I know to see Twitter, and other social media, as unnecessary distractions. I was concerned about whether I could use, and appreciate, Twitter and continue developing a healthy... Read more
I started running again a couple of months ago. Last week, I had the most dramatic day I have ever had as a runner. I started late, and followed my usual route. I was more than half way, headed back, when I fell. I do not really remember falling; I remember running, taking a step, and feeling that my body was not where it was meant to be. I took the next step, aware that something was not right,... Read more
You may have noticed that I usually call Benedict “Benedict,” not “Saint Benedict.” Part of that is my Protestant heritage. Recognized saints were not really part of my background. When I applied to become a lay oblate at New Camaldoli, Father Robert tried to explain to me that many people chose their saint’s day as the day they would be received as an oblate. It took me a little while to remember that I actually knew when one saint’s... Read more
My Craft Brewery Pilgrimage for this year culminated on October 1 at Stone Brewing Company in Escondido. That does not mean, though, that I have had an entire month without anything to do. Far from it. We are crafting a movement; I have already begun the arduous task of researching stops for next year’s pilgrimage. This is not the sort of project that anyone wants to undertake on their own. I have already enlisted to help of strategic pilgrims,... Read more
When I talk with someone about leadership coaching, I begin by asking some questions to get a sense of who they are. “What kind of leader would you like to become?” I generally ask. Some people know exactly what kind of leader they want to become. They may have a particular person in mind that they would like to emulate, or they may be seeking a combination of traits they see in several people. They may have specific qualities... Read more
Strategic Monk
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