Lead With the Message You MOST Need Your Audience to Hear. If you need to communicate with your team about upcoming changes, avoid the urge to bury it or sandwich it between other key points. Instead, practice leading with the most important message you need your audience to hear and then build on it.

Even in challenging and uncertain times, there will always be people who light the way and protect the truth; leaders who bring their souls to work, and who care without condition, as I felt repeatedly in this hopeful series of conversations. Thanks to each of these special guests for joining me this season and to you, for being along in this learning journey with me.

As we've learned well over the years, any strategic planning process—from launching a prize to setting an organization up for its next five years of impact—requires a fierce commitment to focus, a shared understanding of the goal, and a collective commitment to the target. 

Your role might change, and your job might evolve, but your mission can always remain intact, whether you choose to stay or leave a certain environment. When everything around feels upended, stay planted in what you know for sure, even if that means advancing the work a different way, and from a different place.

There’s no other way to say it. These are difficult days that require difficult conversations and decisions. We can either feel defeated and come into each new day unsure if we have a chance, or we can align around what’s in our control and maintain our best game plan discipline.

So, while the headlines may lead you to believe that DEI is dying, look closer, and you'll see that most organizations remain just as committed to their core commitments, even as pressures mount. Look beyond the headlines. You'll find positive actions and adjustments being made to keep DEI efforts on track and moving forward—and excellent inspiration to keep your efforts moving forward, too.

Take 10 minutes today with this playlist. Sit on the ground or get out in the fresh air and find a song that speaks to you. Tune out the chaos of the world if just for a few minutes and let music do what it does best... Let the music ground you. Let it calm you. Let it meet you wherever you are.

This roller coaster ride will likely have more dips ahead. If you're already feeling queasy, focus now on grounding yourself and your team in careful planning so you can be here for the long haul.  

There’s so much we wish we could avoid, control, and change. But we are here now. So, let’s see what we can do about it together.

This was almost the end of a true story until a thoughtful group of veterans came together with a local nonprofit and CBS News to make good on America’s promise. They rented a venue right here in Maryland and covered the costs of plane tickets and travel to bring all musicians and interviewees to one place, giving dozens of hardworking, talented student musicians a chance to play the music they had been promised.

We may not be able to predict the future or reduce the uncertainty of what’s ahead, but we can remain grounded in the certainty of what’s right in front of us, taking stock of what we know, showing appreciation for who we have, and taking positive action at this moment. You may find that your actions calm someone else’s sense of uncertainty.

No matter the industry or the discipline, whether you work on issues of healthcare or housing, problem-solving is best done when it involves those closest to the problem. And yes, sometimes, the best action is to simply get out of the “dam” way.

Mitch Albom has a way with words. As the author of some of the most beloved and bestselling books of our time, his tales about love, life, and faith help us see better versions of ourselves and our shared humanity. Albom is brilliant at telling stories that let us get lost in words only to find deeper meaning at the end of each story he writes.

Though President Trump was Bishop Mariann's primary audience, was she actually addressing all of us? Was her message a simple reminder—in moments big and small—that grace, compassion, and empathy for one another should guide how we treat one another?

AI is most powerful when used to augment and enhance human intelligence rather than replace it. While the use of AI in communication moving forward is inevitable, it is only human to have a brain, a heart, and a conscience. If you want to distinguish between real and fake, look for the human between the words.

On a morning like this, it is easy to feel either frozen by the news or fried by the arduous election process. Choose carefully what you say today and, in the days to follow. There is no going back and today, you can choose to move forward.
 

There’s no use predicting what may lie ahead in the coming weeks, so focus on what you can control: being the calm in the storm for your team and community.

From her body language to her focus and strategic use of story, Kamala Harris took the stage last night to connect with voters. She conveyed calmness under pressure and experience over ego, and she showed the power of communication when used as a force for good.

Disagreement and debate don’t have to be bad words, and they shouldn’t be written off before they begin. Consider opportunities to disagree better on issues as a practice to bring people closer together.

Every day, ordinary people do extraordinary things. It is on each of us to display and practice the characteristics of the leader we need. So, the next time you lament current-day leadership, pause and look in the mirror. You are the leader you need.