 Headlines remind us daily of the volatility affecting our world, with ripple effects reaching deeply into communities, organizations, and our personal lives. None of us is immune to challenges being hurled our way.
In precarious and divisive moments, our natural instinct often drives us to grasp for certainty — something solid to anchor ourselves. Wired for survival, our instinctive responses to stress so easily trigger fight, flight, freeze, or fawn. What if the most powerful response to uncertainty is leaning into the not knowing and asking questions? Questions can…
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A client and I were talking last week about a challenge they were facing. My mind wandered to a time I faced a similar situation and what I would do if I were them. Oops! Sound familiar?
We've all experienced times when we felt truly heard and those when someone was just waiting for their turn to speak. The difference comes down to the level of listening being practiced. Generative AI technologies (like ChatGPT) consume 100-1,000 times more energy than traditional digital services. GenAI also presents concerns about exploitative labor practices, security vulnerabilities, and effects on human relationships. Nonprofits ought to consider and acknowledge how the use of GenAI conflicts with their mission, vision, and values. To address impact, leaders should 1) limit AI use to essential tasks, 2) disclose when AI is used, and 3) request transparency from providers about environmental and ethical impacts.
-- As a consultant and coach with over 20 years of experience in the nonprofit sector, I believe having an GenAI ethics framework serves multiple purposes for mission-driven people and organizations:  Have you ever caught a glimpse of yourself in the mirror and thought, 'Who is that person looking back at me?' Not because of new wrinkles or gray hairs, but because something deeper feels out of alignment. This isn't about appearance; it's about authenticity.
Life constantly pulls at us, asking us to become something we're not. When we repeatedly sacrifice our authentic selves to please others or adapt to circumstances, we gradually feel more disconnected from our core. For anyone in a service or leadership role, showing up misaligned comes with consequences. Whether you support clients, lead a team, or care for family members, your ability to be present for others diminishes when you're disconnected from yourself. Authenticity = Fierce Courage + Connection + Aliveness There are three essential qualities that help us return to our authentic selves:  Have you ever met someone who seemed to need to fill up the silence and wondered, "why are they still talking?" Have you ever caught yourself in the middle of a lengthy explanation and wondered the same about yourself?
An important lesson I learned about myself over recent years is how easy it is to take up a lot of space in conversations as a shield against losing control or to please others. This is where the powerful practice of WAIT (Why Am I Talking?) intersects with understanding our saboteurs. Words can heal or harm, elevate or diminish. They can build bridges of understanding or walls of separation. The most potent aspect of our words isn't just what we say, but when, how, and why we choose to say them. The Voices Behind Our Words We all have these inner voices—our saboteurs—that we believe protect us, but actually hold us back. What's fascinating is how each saboteur uses excessive talking for different reasons. Listen closely, and you might recognize which ones are driving your own communication patterns: |
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