Too much of our time is spent focused on what is not working, no longer alive or has little vitality. We have become addicted to the negative, fueled by feelings of fear, doubt and an almost pathological attention to frenzy. There is a Maasai proverb that says, "Home is not far away when you are alive." If you want to feel more at "home" in your work and relationships, then focus your gaze on what has life, not death.

When you find yourself in an environment that doesn't make sense, when the patterns cannot be figured out, and when potential danger seems to be coming from all directions, follow the driving tips from India. Eyes forward to where you are going, do not look back, do not over react, and above all trust that others will do the same and adjust around you.

Americans live in time, Indians live in space. Americans are always on the move, Indians are always at rest. Americans believe in freedom of speech; we strive for articulation. Indians believe in freedom of silence; they lapse into meditation. Americans believe in science. Indians believe in metaphysics.

In January, I found myself in Tanzania. I was attempting to climb Mount Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa and seventh tallest in the world. It's summit is over 23,000 feet. Most climbing stories are filled with conquest, or at least heroic survival in the face of difficult odds. This is not one of them.

Rwanda feels more committed to forgiveness than they are to justice. The modern root of forgiveness means, "to give up the power to punish". Conversely justice is often so much about revenge. The Latin root of the word is justia, meaning “righteousness” or “vindication through assigning punishment.” Say, “I want justice”. Notice the energy of your statement and where your attention goes. Now say, “I want forgiveness.” Do they feel different?

Once I know someone’s story I usually either deeply respect or even love them. Who we are is largely created from where we have been. A woman who grates another because she doesn't follow his logical thinking is seen differently when she confides she has a brain injury. An elderly man who appears cold reveals he lost three lovers to cancer in six years, and breaks down sobbing over the injustice of life...

Anisa Suceska, program manager in Bosnia for Women for Women International, an organization that empowers women in conflict and post-conflict countries, said it well. “We cannot change the facts” she stated. “We can only change our situation.” No matter what your situation, there is always an opening for beauty.

We must remember to continually query of ourselves in real and honest ways: (1) How do I manifest my dreams in the world? How does that show itself? (2) Where do I abandon my dreams? What is the price that I pay? . . . Of course, just asking is not enough; words that are not turned into action “bring the pest”, as William Blake once said.

Last year I was in a Shiva temple in southern India. Coming down a long set of incense laden stairs I came across the poorest human I had ever seen (and that is saying something in India). He was somewhere between sixty and eighty--hard to tell given his condition—and wearing a filthy red loin cloth which barely covered his emaciated body. He was also a leper and so had parts of his hands, feet and face missing. His only possession was a dirty wooden begging bowl.

Holding creative tension refers to the ability to stay with the discomfort of the moment—the tension—rather than moving into premature action, emotional withdrawal, or a state of paralysis born from fear. When we can stay in the moment of discomfort, it is often where deep change occurs. Management theorist Peter Senge says, “Creative tension comes from seeing clearly where we want to be, our ‘vision,’ and telling the truth about where we are, our ‘current reality.’"