Category: Wisdom
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You may have thought I’ve been blogging too much about dictators and authoritarianism lately. There is a reason for that. Today, Donald Trump looked into the cameras and said the quiet part out loud: “Maybe people like dictators.” Are you paying attention? This is how authoritarianism works—not in a single cataclysmic moment, but in small escalations…
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The conversation started like so many others. Someone in a leadership position, someone committed to justice and positive change, reached out to talk about the pressure they were facing. A campaign of criticism had begun to circle. The local press had picked up a selective narrative. A few influential figures were stirring doubt about their…
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There is a certain kind of leader who is deeply committed to making sure nothing really changes. They are often praised for their ability to “keep the trains running on time” and for their calm focus on efficiency and return on investment. They measure success in the neatness of spreadsheets, the tidiness of processes, and…
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Audiences can always sense when a speaker is recycling a talk or going through the motions. The slides look generic, the stories do not quite connect, and the message hovers above the realities of the room. That is why I never give the same keynote twice. Every audience, whether teachers in Santa Barbara, community advocates…
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I was angry when someone who reported to me in the provost’s office wanted nix our funding commitment to the Native American community on campus. His justification stopped me in my tracks. He said, “There are only four or five Indians on our campus.” I was incensed. The comment was not only inaccurate, it was…
Cloaking Inequity 