Outward Discipline #3: Submission

As we continue with the study of Richard Foster’s Celebration of Discipline, he points out that every discipline has its corresponding freedom.  In fact, the purpose of the Disciplines is freedom. Our aim is the freedom, not the Discipline. The moment we make the Discipline our central focus, we turn it into law and lose the corresponding freedom.

The liberation is the end; the Disciplines are merely the means.

What freedom corresponds to submission? It is the ability to lay down the terrible burden of always needing to get our own way. The obsession to demand that things go the way we want them to go is one of the greatest bondages in human society today.

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Leadership 101 for White Men: How to Work Successfully with Black Colleagues & Customers

Juneteenth became a federal holiday in 2021.  Last year, I summarized Annette Gordon-Reed’s book On Juneteenth. 

This year, I’m taking a different angle.  Ten years ago when I was Deputy HR Director at NASA’s Johnson Space Center, we were exploring ways to improve diversity & inclusion. After benchmarking with some leaders in diversity training—including Lockheed-Martin and Georgia Power—we focused on two organizations:  White Men as Full Diversity Partners (whose approach is summarized here) and Chuck Shelton’s GreatHeart Consulting.  In fact, Shelton conducted a 1-day class on “Engaging the Majority Culture” that was very enlightening.

While we ultimately went with White Men as Full Diversity Partners (refer to my Diversity & Inclusion Incompetency for some additional history), I was intrigued by Chuck Shelton and his approach.

Click here for a summary of Shelton’s book Leadership 101 for White Men: How to Work Successfully with Black Colleagues & Customers