Changing of the guard....

Wow....hard to believe today is THE Inauguration! Someone recently asked me how I felt about Obama becoming our President. The first thing that came to mind was hopeful. Yes, hopeful. Granted I don't agree with all of his views, but I truly believe God will use him as an instrument for positive change in our country and the world. He's an excellent communicator and I believe he'll be one to keep the conversation rolling!

Maren and Jamie Showkeir, co-authors of "Authentic Conversations: Moving from Manipulation to Truth and Commitment" last month applied some of their ideas about the power of conversation to establish truth and create change, in an excellent piece in the Chicago Tribune. The piece "Obama to the world: Let’s talk" , the Showkeirs write: "In our work with organizations, we encounter many people who, as Obama said in his acceptance speech, are "cynical and fearful and doubtful" about what can be achieved. We, too, have been accused of naiveté (and worse) because we advocate choosing optimism and commitment even when a disappointing history whispers, "This will never work." And we’ve seen firsthand the transformation that can happen when people engage in authentic conversations. In this regard, the president-elect is doing a lot of things right."

These include:
•Obama avoids labels.
•Obama understands that authentic conversations require the courage to raise difficult issues.
•Obama recognizes intention is important. Intention answers the question "What do we want to be in this world?"
•Obama believes in collaboration and partnership.

I have no doubt it will be an eventful and memorable presidency to come! And I definitely encourage you to check out the article as well as to check out their book "Authentic Conversations: Moving from Manipulation to Truth and Commitment" and add it to your reading list. It's already on my "books to buy" list!!