Women in the LEAD

I am Sure That the Time Is Now

We have it in our power to begin the world all over again. A situation similar to the present hath not appeared since the days of Noah until now. The birthday of a new world is at hand.

Thomas Paine 1775

I have been putting a lot of thought recently into what a unique and special time that we are all living in. Technology has never been faster and more efficient, medicine and healing both hold endless possibilities. Today we have available to us the knowledge and wisdom of the earth and what she needs to continue her unconditional and unending support of our lives. We also have immediate knowledge and access to history and to the wisdom of ancient seers and teachers. Never before have we been able to go to a corner bookstore or to a library to have direct access to as much powerful and insightful information as we now do. I also believe that we have been given this access and wisdom so that we may build on what has come before us and so that we may evolve beyond the evolutionary levels that we have reached in the past.

I believe that we sit at a new set of crossroads; at a new place in time on this planet. I guess that's why Thomas Paine's quote really struck home for me.  Mr. Paine wrote the quote one year before the signing of the declaration of independence- the document that outlined the founding values and principles of this nation. At that time he believed that people had the power to start over again-to start anew. I feel that we are in a similar place.

What could be better?

What could be different?

How can we treat each other with dignity and respect?

What would a mutually caring world of equity, abundance and care for all look like?

What one step are you willing to now make in your own life to contribute to ...beginning the world all over again..."?

Maureen Simon

Is Your Voice Being Fully Heard?

"The voice, like the eyes in the face, is traditionally a window to the soul."
                                                                                   - David Whyte

David White, an English/Irish poet for whom I have great respect , alludes to Gerald De Nerval when he writes " The seat of the soul is not inside a person or outside a person, but the very place where they overlap and meet their world, then the voice is as good a candidate as any for getting the measure of our soul life.  The voice carries the emotional body of the person speaking...."

The voice carries our strenght , our weakness our fear and our deams. It links us to the world in a way that we can be fully heard. Many of us give little thought to our voices or how we are being heard in the world. Yet many of us hold important information and knowledge that the world now needs.

What message do you now carry for the world that your voice does not speak?

Is it time for this voice to be heard?

How might the world be a better place if your true authentic message and voice were now heard?

Maureen Simon

IN GRATITUDE: After the Storm

The sun was shining on the lighthouse here this morning. A symbol of new beginning after Hurricane Rita.  For every life spared, for every fear subsided, for all that was lost, knowing it could have been much more, a deep sense of gratitude is present. Today, I saw a little dog rescued by a stranger, shaking in her welcoming arms.

We've seen so much devastation this year. Not just by natural disasters, but also the man-made ones. In the quiet after and in between the storms, may we hear and respond the highest of human callings---to love our neighbors. May we find in these troubled times new appreciation for each other and let it shift our consciousness even just a little bit. Imagine the power of just that seemingly small change.

At times our own light goes out and is rekindled by a spark from another person. Each of us has cause to think with deep gratitude of those who have lighted the flame within us.
--- Albert Schweitzer, German Medical Missionary, 1952 Nobel Peace Prize

This morning a devotional message arrived unexpectedly, at just the right moment, with a timely question. I share it with YOU:

GRATITUDE
Each sunrise, regardless of yesterday's struggles,
a great song of gratitude rises...
Today, I join this humble choir and
with eact step, I walk in gratefulness.

How may I show my gratitude?

Debbe Kennedy

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Communication:What We Send Out Is Equal To What We Get Back

My exposure to the work of Virginia Satir was one of the greatest influences in my early years.  I had the opportunity of reading one of her  well known books entitled- Peoplemaking.  I also had the opportunity of watching her masterfully work as she used her amazing  skills and abilities as she worked with a family that was in deep pain and distraught over their inability to speak to each other and to be heard.Virginia Satir was a pioneer and master in the fiels of family dynamics.  Her artful, powerful way of understanding human communication and it's importance has not left me - one day of my life.

Virginia wrote, in her book, Peoplemaking " I see communication as a huge umbrella that covers and affects all that goes on between human beings.  Once a human being has arrived on this earth, communication is the greatest single factor determining what kinds of relationships he makes with others and what happens to him in the world about him.  How he manages his survival, how he develops intimacy, how productive he is, how he makes sense, how he connects with his own divinity - all are largely dependent on his communication skills".

Since these early days in my professional life when Virginia Satir made such a major impact on my thinking, her words have lived on almost daily for me. I have related her theories and ideas to how I am in my personal relationships, my work and even to the way I  see nations relate to each other and to how we understand or misunderstand different cultures.

When we listen closely to the messages that we send out  into the world daily, we can begin to understand why our world is as it is.

What messages are you sending out in your communication? What responses or outcomes are you receiving back?

Maureen Simon

True Leadership

This quote came my way...

"True leadership consists first and foremost in being led.  This conception involves a profound paradox.  True leaders are not in any important sense initiators; rather, they are chiefly responders to the Divine Will.  This means that the chief determinant of authentic leadership is not human talent, but availability to the Divine.  The only authentic leadership is divine fellowship.  When leadership ceases to be Spirit led, it ceases to be authentic."

Where are you leading from a place of deep listening?

Do you know when to move out of the way and allow
your will to be released for Higher Good?

Maureen Simon

Disaster or Opportunity?

In the Chinese language the word for disaster and opportunity are the same. At points in our life that thought may be challenging to take in. As we look around the world today , it is very hard to understand how the intense challenges that so many are facing  could at some point serve them as an opportunity.

How can we look at the challenges that we now have in our life and see them as opportunities? How can we move the darkness towards potential and possibilities?

I have recently been looking at these questions in my own life.The questions have forced me to take a look at what I have to be grateful for and to look closely at the challenges that I face. I am finding that when I look closely and do not run with fear from the things that challenge me --I gain strength and clarity.

What is your greatest challenge today ?

What opportunity might it lead you to ?

Maureen Simon

Finding the Silence From Within

"The traveler is drawn

To good music and food

But the Tao is much more subtle.

Looked for, it cannot be seen,

Listened to, it cannot be heard,

yet its power is inexhaustible."  (Tao, 35)

Recently, I have been reconnecting with silence.  For me, tranquility is a solid stabilizing force in my life; without it, I can no longer function.  Abraham Maslow, one of the founders of Humanistic Psychology, said that "The Taoists and Zen Buddhists were able a thousand years ago to see what we psychologists are only beginning to be aware of.". The Tao holds the truth for detachment and movement from competitiveness. It allows us to experience our own integrity and peace of mind. When we meditate we experience a sense of detachment which allows us to gain a sense of perspective that we cannot have while fully engulfed in our fast paced world.  The level of silence and peace that we can reach within ourselves through meditation is a great gift as we gain the ability to clearly see the forest from the trees.  About 10 years ago, while traveling extensively, I had a great revelation. The revelation that changed my life was the realization that even in the midst of a busy international airport, one can find silence from within.  This lesson that I personally learned, taught me that no matter where I am, I can find a place to sit quietly, regroup and then  reconnect with the world in a stronger, clearer way.

Practice silence and meditation for a few moments today.  See what revelations may come your way.

Maureen Simon

Why Your Voice Is So Important

I was raised by Irish immigrants who came to this country because they truly believed that all men are created equal and that each has a right to be heard.  They taught me that it is no different to dine with a president than it is with a janitor as each individual contributes a special and divine gift.  They also taught me that my voice was an important contribution and consistently encouraged me to speak my truth to the world.  These early life lessons about equality and of speaking one’s true voice are themes that have defined my life.

The desire to promote equality and to help people find their voice launched my early career.   I was focused on empowering people to provide integral leadership both in their own lives and within their communities around the world. I guess that's why voice and full expression is so important to me and so important in my work with women leaders. I realize that if we can value our inner voice and natural leadership abilities we can make major contributions in the world.

Looking back I realize that I found my voice and gained confidence in the moments that I "came out into the world". The moments where I addressed the issues  for which I had strong feelings and a sense of conviction. I  directed a community foundation, lobbied for low-income housing in the

New York

 

State

legislature and set up Head Start programs in

New York

 

State

in my very early career days. Sometimes I would find myself  expressing my voice in  deep water that often felt to  be far over my head. As I look back now I know that if I had not taken theses risks that I would have been playing small and that I could have never lived with myself down the road.

These days I support women leaders to fully express their voices and to live up to their true convictions. I do this daily as a Business Women's Leadership Consultant. From where I stand... I can clearly see that women are ready to create major change in the world and in  many subtle ways...... they already are.  However, I am convinced that when we move past the toddler stage and begin to  stand tall --that the world will be a very different place. And I mean --a far better place.

.

Maureen Simon

Lessons That Mother Earth Is Teaching Us

I was just reading Debbe Kennedy's blog entitled "Leadership: Be A Rainbow In Someone's Cloud" and found her words both comforting and inspiring.  I strongly agree that the innate gifts of women's leadership are being called for at this time of crisis.  One of the strongest attributes of women is our ability to easily share care and compassion, to look after the whole and the benefit of the whole and to see the big picture, often called "web thinking".  At no time in the history of the world have those skills been more greatly needed.  How can women more gracefully and with greater ease move in to positions of essential leadership in our world today?

Debbe wrote of the strong need to address human issues, the need to listen to people, the importance of setting clear priorities, and of the need for focus and greater communication.  The more I learn about the attributes of the feminine, the clearer I am about the need for their full expression in the world.   I now believe fully in the many studies showing that these gifts come to most women with natural ease.  So how can women work side by side with men now in the world, eliminating any concern for polarization between the sexes?  How can women allow their voice and attributes to be at the forefront of every decision made affecting business, communities and lives?  What do we individually need to do to rise to the occasion where we can trust our natural instinct and offer the right solutions with clarity at the right time?

I'm not saying that women alone should lead the world, but I am very clear that when we balance the masculine and feminine gifts and attributes in leadership that the world will be an entirely different place.

Maureen Simon

What Must We Now Learn From The Darkness In The World

It has been a slow morning for me. I took a few days off to regroup and have some reflective time. I have been planning this break for weeks. Today has been quite different than I expected. For years I have claimed these pensive blocks of time to regroup and re-evaluate things; my life , my work , my values and my contribution to the world that I live in. I am not much of a television viewer but have been drawn to the television repeatedly today.

I am drawn to our brothers and sisters in the south in New Orleans, Mississippi and Alabama. I am saddened to see the pain and misery that they are experiencing in the ruination of their lives. I am feeling great sorrow and a strong sense of interconnectedness. I am questioning why it has taken 4-5 days to address their dyer needs and what I can do to be of help. I am questioning what the greater lesson for us all to learn is. I want to understand how we can truly be of better support to each other.

This crisis will for sure, teach us many lessons. I return to ask myself to what part of this darkness can I shed light.can I