Latest posts from Danny Brown

Enjoy the latest posts from Danny Brown, and feel free to add your own thoughts in the comments after the post.

Assume Others Are Good Until You Know Otherwise

Looking around us, whether it’s on the news or our various social networks, you’d be forgiven for thinking the only things happening in the world are bad ones.

The rise of radicalized terrorism, whether home-grown or otherwise. Racial tensions. Increases in hate crimes.

These, and more like them, would suggest civilization is on an irreversible downward spiral from which there is no return.

But that thinking would be missing the bigger picture.

Yes, times are hard. Yes, people are broken. Yes, humanity seems to be fragmenting not just in one or two countries, but many.

And yet…

For every bad act or person, there is a good equivalent. For every evil intent, there are many more good ones.

As my friend, Ike Pigott stated so well over on Facebook recently, bad things have always happened. They just seem more prevalent now due to the ability to live stream every moment of our lives, good and bad.

So. The next time you feel the world is beyond repair, consider Ike’s words below and take the time to think about all the good that remains.

Because that far outweighs the bad – we just need to reinforce that message.

If We Encouraged Everyone to Be Leaders In Their Own Right

Take a moment to ask yourself these two questions:

How are we encouraging hope in those around us?
How are we helping to grow the leaders of tomorrow?

Like it or not, we?re all acting in a role of leadership with every action we do.

Our reactions to situations and people around us shape the mindset of today?s kids ? tomorrow?s leaders.

We swear; they swear. We smoke; they smoke. We do drugs; they do drugs. If we?re not setting the example, how can we expect our kids to?

How we work with colleagues dictates how we lead our workforce.

Even if we?re not managers, we?re part of a decision-making process that defines that company?s culture and success.

Work smart, work intelligently, work respectfully.

Our voices define our outlook. Disagree with something or someone by all means, but respect their view to differ.

Religion, simple points of view, movie tastes, etc. ? wouldn?t it be boring if we were all the same?

Make your point, but allow more than yours.

Speak?for the voiceless when words aren?t enough. Actions speak louder than words ? know someone who?s right but afraid to say so?

Say it for them ? don?t be a passerby when the slightest encouragement can offer so much hope.

None of us are born leaders ? that takes time to cultivate. Even then, leadership is born from respect of our peers, employers, friends, and colleagues.

People earn leadership ? bought leadership is just politics.

Leaders make changes that others wish for but never act on.

Imagine if we encouraged everyone around us to be leaders in their own right?

This Borrowed Life

Today was a fairly big day for me and my wife. And, I guess, our two kids – but they seemed to be less perturbed about it than we did, so they don’t really count…

As of today, both our son Ewan and our daughter Salem are at school. The “big school”. No more daycare – these days are gone.

Instead, Ewan began grade one, having finished senior kindergarten before the summer break, and Salem started junior kindergarten (JK).

Two big steps in their ongoing evolution from our babies into young children into youth and beyond.

It was a very mixed emotions kind of day.

Pride that our babies are their own very distinctive people. Pride that they’re excited about this new chapter. Pride that they’re discovering more about who they are each day.

Sadness that the daycare years are over, as that’s something that tells us our babies are no longer that. Sadness that this is where perhaps they’ll start to grow a little apart from each other as they discover new friends and independence.

There’s also a feeling of awareness. That this life we have – my wife, our two kids, and me – is one that isn’t ours.

We can’t stop our kids from growing up. We can’t stop our lives from changing as they take the steps that, one day, will see them leave our home and begin to make their own elsewhere.

Neither should we try – or want – to stop them. After all, that’s how we got here.

But it made me realize that no matter what we do, or say, and how we love each other, and help each other grow, this life is still a borrowed one.

There’s no extended warranty. There’s no ownership. There’s no trading it in when we’re tired of it.

This life is all we have. Each part of it – love, sadness, pain, happiness, children, no children, future, past.

So. Enjoy the moment. Enjoy the lessons, the takeaways, the growing up.

Make good of what you have now.?One day, it’ll all be gone.

Until then, borrow well.

How Change and Persistent Vision Can Help You Find What Matters to You

In his book Tribes, Seth Godin talks about Chris Sharma, an American rock climber who forever changed the way climbers looked at scaling a cliff.

Instead of the normal left-right, left-right approach of hand over hand, Sharma jumps (known as a dyno).

It?s a leap of faith at its purest, since a fall while rock-climbing can be a long way down.

Dear Internet Hate Mob

Earlier this year, we saw the tragic news that a silverback gorilla named Harambe had to be shot dead when a toddler fell into the gorilla?s enclosure at Cincinnati Zoo and was dragged by Harambe around the enclosure.

Officials at the zoo made the heartbreaking decision to shoot Harambe, noting their belief that the boy was in danger.