Snippets: Good to Great

In contrast to the very I-centric leaders of the comparison leaders, we were struck by how the good-to-great leaders didn’t talk about themselves.… When pressed to talk about themselves, they’d say things like, “I hope I’m not sounding like a big shot.” … Those who worked or wrote about the good-to-great leaders continually used words like quiet, humble, modest, reserved, shy, gracious, mild-mannered, self-effacing, understated, did not believe his own clippings; and so forth.… The good-to-great leaders never wanted to become larger-than-life heroes. They never aspired to be put on a pedestal or become unreachable icons. They were seemingly normal people quietly producing extraordinary results. (27-28)

Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap... and Others Don't

Review: Dreaming in Chinese: Mandarin Lessons in Life, Love, and Langauge

Deborah Fallows book Dreaming in Chinese is a cleverly presented exploration of Chinese culture, as seen through her eyes as an expatriate living in China.  Her book is presented through the lens of a learner of Mandarin and Chinese culture, and is a record of the cultural insights she gains as she explores new facets of life in China.
     The book is well-organized, with each chapter beginning with a Chinese character and word.  This word serves as the launching point for the facet of language and culture she explores in that chapter.  Her chosen topics focus on aspects of everyday life, such as conventions of politeness, names, giving directions, and rule-following.  Other chapters focus more directly on the conventions of language, such as tone, dialect, and pronoun use, but then explore the way in which language has made its imprint on culture.  Much of the book is an exploration of the relationship between language and culture; however, it is neither dry nor theoretical.  Language and culture connections are explored through well told stories of the author's daily interactions while in China.
     Dreaming in Chinese is an excellent book for anyone interested in learning more about Chinese language and culture.  The book also captures much of the shared experience of anyone seeking to become a part of a new culture by learning its language, and resonates well with those on the culture learning journey.

Dreaming in Chinese: Mandarin Lessons in Life, Love, and Language

Snippets: Living Gently in a Violent World

I'm not interested in doing a good job.  I am interested in an ecclesial vision for community.  We are brothers and sisters, and Jesus is calling us from the pyramid to become a body.
-Jean Vanier

Living Gently in a Violent World: The Prophetic Witness of Weakness (Resources for Reconciliation)

September Reading Log

This month has been a little more hectic than most, so the reading log for this month is a short one.

• Dreaming in Chinese:  Mandarin Lessons in Life, Love, and Language by Deborah Fallows
• With:  A Practical Approach to Informal Mentoring by Alvin L. Reid
• Set Apart: Calling a Worldly Church to a Godly Life by Kent R. Hughes
• God, Grace, and Girlfriends by Mary R. Snyder
• Living Gently in a Violent World:  The Prophetic Witness of Weakness by Jean Vanier and Stanley Hauerwas
• Speech is a River by Ruth Mead

Snippets- Humilitas: A Lost Key to Life, Love and Leadership

In his book Humilitas, John Dickson outlines the historical development of humility as a virtue in Western cultures.  He describes how growing in humility allows a person to lead others well.
A few key insights from the book:

Humility is the noble choice to forgo your status, deploy your resources or use your influence for the good of others before yourself. More simply, you could say the humble person is marked by a willingness to hold power in service of others (Kindle location 167)

a. Persuasion and example are keys to effective leadership. b. Humility enhances persuasiveness, partly because it is a compelling character trait in leaders. c. Therefore, humility is important for leadership (Kindle location 407)

The first is the simple observation made in the previous chapter: humility is persuasive. People find themselves trusting the decisions and arguments of someone who puts others before themselves. (Kindle location 1433)

Humilitas: A Lost Key to Life, Love, and Leadership

Review- The Workshop Book: From Individual Creativity to Group Action

  The Workshop Book: From Individual Creativity to Group Action by R. Brian Stanfield sets out a process for participatory workshops in a variety of settings.  The book outlines a process that can be used in a variety of settings to lead a group towards a consensus-oriented problem solving model.  His five steps are:
1.  Setting the context
2.  Brainstorming
3.  Clustering ideas
4.  Naming the clusters of ideas
5.  Symbolizing the resolve
He defines the five steps as follows:

1.  The context sets the stage for what is to follow.  It calls the group to attention.  It outlines the process and the timeline for the workshop.  It explains the product and the outcome.  It highlights the focus question.

2.  Brainstorming the ideas gathers all relevant data from the group and puts it in front of them.

3.  Clustering the ideas develops clusters of ideas and puts similar items of data together into related clusters 

4.  Naming gives each cluster of ideas a name.  Larger clusters or sub-clusters are identified and given names.  The result is a comprehensive picture of the ordered relationship of all ideas generated in the workshop.

5.  Resolving confirms the group's commitment to the decisions they have made and moves it to action.  The leader reads through the named clusters out loud and then holds a discussion to reflect on the workshop, using focused conversation questions.  Finally the group decides on the next steps, and how they will document the workshop results.  (26)

Throughout the book, Stanfield highlights principles of creating a participatory environment, writing "The workshop assumptions require respect, depth of listening and honouring of each participant.  They are the key to creating a more participatory, engaging workshop environment." (56)

     Stanfield's approach is simple, and avoids the possible complications of other participatory models which require the facilitator to master a variety of tools.  He explains how to apply the tool to groups of different sizes, and how to manage difficulties that may arise in workshops.  

     One possible criticism of the book is the title- the description of the process as a "workshop" can easily be misinterpreted as a training event, rather than a tool to facilitate discussion.  He does describe how the process can be developed into a series of discussions, which may more closely resemble a workshop.  However, the majority of the book focuses on the topic of facilitating group discussions.

     The Workshop Book is a helpful tool for those who facilitate groups of adults in educational or work settings.  It presents a simple, and yet powerful strategy that can be easily adapted to a variety of groups and situations.

The Workshop Book: From Individual Creativity to Group Action (ICA series)

Review: I Exalt You, O God by Jerry Bridges

 Jerry Bridge's book,  I Exalt You, O God:  Encountering His Greatness in Your Private Worship is a month-long devotional written to facilitate personal worship.  The book begins with an introduction that highlights the importance of personal worship, in addition to weekly worship.  The remainder of the book contains 31 days of devotional readings, divided into four focal areas.  The first set of readings focuses on God's greatness, while the second set focuses on God's holiness.  The third group of readings focuses on God's wisdom, and the fourth focuses on God's love.
     Each day's reading begins with a short reflection, and concludes with a scripture-based prayer.  These prayers are the highlight of the book, leading the reader through a focused prayer that draws deeply from several Bible passages.
     I Exalt You, O God is somewhat counter-cultural, as it leads the reader primarily through focusing on the greatness, holiness, and wisdom of God, rather than on one's own personal needs.  The final section ties together the attributes of God's greatness with His love for His children.  Bridges writes,
There should always be a healthy tension between the confidence with which we come before God as His children and the reverential awe with which we behold Him as our sovereign Lord.  There's a difference between holy familiarity and unholy familiarity with God.  We have indeed received the Spirit of adoption, the Spirit by whom we cry 'Abba Father' (Romans 8:15).  This expression conveys the warmth and confidence with which we may come into His presence.  At the same time, we should remember that this One whom we're invited to address as our Father is still the sovereign and holy God.  He is still the King who is eternal, immortal, and invisible, and who lives in unapproachable light, whom no one has seen or can see (1 Timothy 1:17, 6:16). (109)
     This devotional is infused with scripture, and is recommended for anyone desiring to establish habits of personal worship.

I received a complementary review copy of this book from the publisher.

I Exalt You, O God: Encountering His Greatness in Your Private Worship