Christmas Archives - Larry Ackerman

What do you believe? (v.7)

admin — Tue, 17 Dec 2019 21:49:39 +0000

It’s been two years since my end-of-year viewsletter focused on what you believe. Too long! Over time, readers have submitted dozens of answers, ranging from the illuminating, serious, and funny, to the distressing and the reassuring. Let’s do it again. After all, we are in the season of believing — believing in family, in friendship, in giving, and yes, for some, even in Santa Claus!

We seem to be living in the land of opposites these days, at least, politically and culturally. So, let’s use opposites as our 2019 beliefs theme.

Before you pick up your proverbial pencils, let’s warm up. Take a look at a few entries (I believe) have been some of the more memorable responses people have offered …

I believe grace is about going slow to go fast

I believe Congress needs an enema

I believe nature deserves a fighting chance

I believe denial is a disease

I believe religion needs to be updated

I believe children are what we all eventually become

OK. Now, it’s your turn!

Here, you will find 12 fill-in-the-blank statements organized into six pairs of opposites, so you can reflect on them, together. Fill in some of them, or all of them with whatever comes to mind. Fill them in, in your head, on a piece of paper, on your computer, or post your answers as comments on this blog.

Ready, set …

I believe joy _____________________________________

I believe sorrow__________________________________

I believe age_____________________________________

I believe youth___________________________________

I believe abundance______________________________

I believe scarcity__________________________________

I believe bravery__________________________________

I believe cowardice________________________________

I believe guilt _____________________________________

I believe innocence ________________________________

I believe captivity__________________________________

I believe freedom__________________________________

Do you have your own ideas about opposites that shed light on the world we live in today? If so, what are they and what do you believe about each? Fill them in here:

I believe____________________________________________

I look forward to learning what you believe. May 2020 be a year you can believe in.

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(What) do you believe? v.6

admin — Tue, 12 Dec 2017 10:00:55 +0000

It is said that opposites attract. That popular notion is being sorely tested these days, as we appear to be living in a time when polarities rule, where being opposite, indeed, in opposition, is informing our opinions in significant ways. We see this phenomenon politically, socially, and economically. Not to overdo it, but it seems at the moment that opposites don’t so much attract, as attack.

With this in mind, I’ve decided to make opposites the theme of this end-of-year viewsletter …

Before getting into the meat of the matter, let’s warm up. Let’s take a peek at last year’s viewsletter, which focused on what is topical and what is timeless. I’d like to share a few responses that include the amusing, the distressing and the reassuring:

What is topical …

I believe fake news is boring

I believe The U.S. Constitution is under siege

I believe social media is turning children into robots

What is timeless …

I believe grace is about going slow to go fast

I believe hope feeds possibility

I believe nature deserves a fighting chance

OK. Now, on to the opposites!

Here you will find 12 fill-in-the-blank statements. As before, there is one for each of the 12 days of Christmas. This year, these 12 are organized into six pairs of opposites, so you can reflect on them, together.

Fill in some, or all of them with whatever comes to mind. Fill them in, in your head, on a piece of paper, on your computer, and/or send me an email, or post your answers as comments on this blog.

Ready, set …

I believe joy _____________________________________
I believe sorrow___________________________________

I believe blame___________________________________
I believe praise___________________________________

I believe abundance________________________________
I believe scarcity___________________________________

I believe bravery___________________________________
I believe cowardice_________________________________

I believe guilt _____________________________________
I believe innocence ________________________________

I believe captivity___________________________________
I believe freedom___________________________________

Got your own idea about opposites that shed light on the world we live in today?

What are they and what do you believe about each? Fill them in here:

I believe________________________________________________

I’m looking forward to learning what you believe.

May 2018 be a year you can believe in.

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What do you believe? (v.5)

Larry — Mon, 19 Dec 2016 14:11:28 +0000

Whether the state of the world today leaves you feeling desolate and fearful, or elated and excited, no doubt you hold strong beliefs that fuel those feelings. Consider this posting your opportunity to express some or all of those beliefs.

Below, you will find 12 fill-in-the-blank statements — one for each of the 12 days of Christmas. There’s also a blank statement in each category for you to use as you wish. Fill in some, or all of them with whatever comes to mind.

Instead of being random in my picks, I’ve organized my list of ideas into two categories: What is topical and what is timeless. Why? Because one of my beliefs is that these two categories elicit very different kinds of emotions in us and are best considered, separately. Here you go …

What is topical:

I believe globalization ________________________

I believe race _______________________________

I believe WikiLeaks __________________________

I believe fake news __________________________

I believe The U.S. Constitution ________________

I believe social media ________________________

I believe ___________________________________

What is timeless:

I believe nature _____________________________

I believe music _____________________________

I believe justice _____________________________

I believe light _______________________________

I believe karma _____________________________

I believe hope _______________________________

I believe ___________________________________

Any other ideas? By all means, add them. Let’s see how your beliefs align with those of others.

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What do you believe? (v.4)

Larry — Thu, 17 Dec 2015 14:27:42 +0000

It’s that time of year again — the ‘believing’ season: a time when little kids and big kids alike, from 8 to 80, surrender just a bit to the warmth and wonder of the Holidays.

This time, I find that experience to be especially challenging, given the insanity going on in the world today. But, that’s life. So, this year, I invite you to tell me and others what it is you believe about a variety of topics — some comforting and others clearly bot. Here you go:

I believe Donald Trump ____________________

I believe compassion ______________________

I believe family ___________________________

I believe wealth ___________________________

I believe truth ____________________________

I believe freedom _________________________

I believe ISIS ____________________________

I believe denial ___________________________

I believe America _________________________

I believe evil _____________________________

I believe good ____________________________

Got your own idea? Fill it in here _______________

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What do you believe?

Larry — Tue, 17 Dec 2013 10:00:12 +0000

Welcome to the believing season, otherwise, known as “the Holidays.” It’s a time of year when we give ourselves permission to believe in, and be grateful for many things in our lives — a close family, dear friends, snow-driven evenings; whatever aspects of our lives mean the most to us, but which we don’t always take stock of.

That’s the romance behind what we believe and believe in and it’s wonderful.

More practically, our beliefs profoundly influence our lives — for better and for worse. What we eat, who we hang out with, how we relate to our co-workers, the choices we make everyday are shaped by our beliefs. So, what are some of yours?

In this month’s Identity Insights newsletter, I invite you to weigh on what you believe about a variety of topics, which are likely to stir emotions stretching from anger and frustration to hope and peace.

Check out the newsletter and share your beliefs about one or more items. Examples? Well, what do you believe about trust? How about Twitter? Congress? Integrity?

Finally, of all the adages about believing, perhaps, the one that’s most common is this one: I’ll believe it when I see it. In the spirit of the Holidays, permit me to offer a different take on this line: I’ll see it when I believe it.

Think about that for a while.

Happy Holidays.

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The peace in Bill Marriott’s eyes

Larry — Thu, 06 Dec 2012 11:00:16 +0000

This time of year it’s hard not to think about peace. We’re in the season of “peace on earth, good will toward men.” We sing about it, ponder it, imagine it, pray for it. But we don’t have it.

I believe that before we can have peace among all of us, we need to find peace within each of us.

To this end, I was struck by a story told to me recently by Jim Hackett, CEO of Steelcase, one of Fortune‘s Most-Admired Companies. He recounted a conversation about the challenges of long-term brand building he had had with Bill Marriott, Chairman of Marriott International. At one point, Bill said to him, “we know who we are not.” Jim saw “the peace in Bill’s eyes” and decided then that he wanted that peace for himself.

That ‘peace in your eyes’ is powerful medicine for many ills. It helps cure greed, insecurity, stress, envy, and a variety of other contemporary ailments that get in the way of creating a more fulfilling life, a more successful business; indeed, a more serene world.

What brings you peace?

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Romney catch-up baseball

Larry — Wed, 12 Sep 2012 23:02:48 +0000

I hate politics. It is fundamentally based on being comfortable losing touch with your integrity. Votes are religion. Everything else is expendable.

I heard Romney’s retort to Obama’s speech about the killings in Libya. It was pathetic…”what, no statement of outrage?” Puhlease…

It’s easy to follow the leader (!) with criticism. Now you have a target. It’s a lot harder to state what you believe, on your own.

People used to call Christmas the “sad season” because so many of us get depressed because we’re “supposed” to be happy – and maybe we’re just not.

This election is the sad season for me. A depressing barrage of “mine’s bigger than yours,” or some such version of how can I best separate me from you?

In short, we’re in the season of catch-up, political baseball. So far, I see no clear winner…but Mr. Romney is doing a good job of playing catcher-up.

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What do you believe?

Larry — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 10:00:37 +0000

12. I can’t get the number out of my head. It must be the season…the 12 days of Christmas, the 12 months of the year, even being on the cusp of 2012.

We’re not just in the season of 12s; we’re also in the season of believing. In family, in friendship, in giving, in — yes, for some — even Santa Claus. So, I have chosen to offer up a little “belief” quiz.

Here you go: 12 items to challenge your belief system. (For example, I believe that technology (see below) isn’t the answer to our prayers most people think it is.)

I believe companies …

I believe brands …

I believe politics …

I believe nature …

I believe children …

I believe our economy …

I believe money …

I believe in being …

I believe technology …

I believe aging …

I believe crises …

I believe I am …

So, what do you think, or rather… believe?

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