Weekend Wisdom

I spent part of this past weekend at Wisdom 2.0 — a conference that “addresses the great challenge of our age: to not only live connected to one another through technology, but to do so in ways that are beneficial to our own well-being, effective in our work, and useful to the world.”  There are countless amazing things about this conference (you can watch many of the talks here to see for yourself), but the biggest thing I took away both last year and this year is a feeling that my feet are firmly rooted on the ground.  Here are three simple points of inspiration that I took away and wanted to share:

Find gratitude in the everyday.  As Brother David Steindl-Rast, founder of gratefulness.org said, “You think this is just another day in your life? It’s not just another day, it’s the one day that is given to you…today.”  Check out his 5-minute video, “A Good Day,” on his site — it’s worth the time.

Sink into the present.  As little kids, we live in and around the present moment; and as time goes on, we begin to think more about what’s on the agenda for the week and month and the year.  We start talking about 5-year and 10-year goals and plans, and we scribble down bucket lists that guide our life choices and mark our progress.  This planning…this dreaming…this hoping is part of life, and in many ways, it’s a good thing — studies actually show that meaning comes from connection our past, present, and future lives.  But being in the now is a critical part of the equation.  As a favorite yoga teacher used to say, “How’s your breath?  How’s your life?”

Redefine success for yourself.  Arianna Huffington gave a great talk on redefining success beyond money and power to include what she calls The Third Metric.  You can learn more about her work and point of view by watching her talk on the Wisdom 2.0 site or checking out her new book, Thrive: The Third Metric to Redefining Success and Creating a Life of Well-Being, Wisdom, and Wonder.  I love what she said near the end of her talk on Saturday: “Life is shaped from the inside out.”

Wisdom 2.0 is holding conferences in New York City and Dublin in the fall — go if you have the chance!  The beautiful and delicate combination of inspiration, reflection, and connection offers unwavering hope that we’re on the cusp of a revolution in how we live, work, and care for one another.