author. speaker. motivator.
Affectionately known as "America's #1 Success Coach," Jack Canfield is the originator of the Chicken Soup for the Soul series and a leading authority in the areas of self-esteem, achievement motivation, and peak performance. www.jackcanfield.com
political powerhouse. media mogul. author.
Arianna Huffington is the co-founder and Editor in Chief of the Huffington Post and the author of twelve books. www.huffingtonpost.com
author. speaker. linchpin.
Seth Godin is a prominent author, blogger and speaker. www.squidoo.com/linchpin
yogi. philanthropist. dynamic teacher.
Krishna Kaur is the founder of YOGA for Youth, a program that takes yoga, meditation, and stimulating discussions on the philosophy of yoga to urban youth. www.yogaforyouth.org
producer. philanthropist. tv legend.
Norman Lear has enjoyed a long career in television and film. He is also a political and social activist and philanthropist. www.normanlear.com
race car driver. activist. carbon free girl.
Leilani Münter is a professional race car driver and an environmental activist who uses her voice in the number one spectator sport in America as a catalyst for change. www.leilanimunter.com
Freedom Fighter. Philanthropist. Game Changer.
By going undercover to meet slaves and slaveholders, Kevin Bales exposed modern slavery’s penetration into the global economy. He co-founded Free the Slaves, which has helped to liberate thousands of slaves. www.freetheslaves.net
mom. TED-talker. no-bullsh**er.
Sophie Chiche, founder of lifebyme.com, is the single mom of an amazing 16-year-old, Leah, and wicked step-mom of 22-year-old, Sarah. They all live in LA. You can find them boxing, cooking, collaging, hosting brunches, laughing their head off or bickering over who’s washing and who’s drying the dishes.
Writer. Entrepreneur. Daily Lover.
Entrepreneur and writer Mastin Kipp founded TheDailyLove.com, which merges pop culture with inspiration, and co-founded The Love Yourself Company, an apparel company that has started a global self-esteem movement. www.TheDailyLove.com
singer. musician. crier.
Liz Phair is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. www.lizphair.com
archbishop. author. peaceful leader.
Archbishop Desmond Tutu is Chairman of The Elders, a group of world leaders who address some of the world's most pressing problems. He works energetically for human-rights and in his ministry. www.tutu.org
author. ceo. humanitarian.
Zainab Salbi is the founder and CEO of Women for Women International, a group dedicated to helping women survivors of war rebuild their lives. www.womenforwomen.org
speaker. psychotherapist. life embracer.
Despite his physical challenges, Sean Stephenson has taken a stand for a quality of life that has inspired millions of people around the world. He’s a professional speaker, psychotherapist, and author. www.timetostand.com
yogi. meditator. teacher.
Kia Miller teaches Yoga at Yoga Works in Los Angeles, leads teacher trainings, and runs retreats and workshops on meditation, chakras, pranayam, and mantras, and other practices. www.kiamiller.com
creator. writer. idea geek.
Simon Mainwaring is an ex-Nike/Wieden creative, former Worldwide Creative Director at Motorola/Ogilvy, branding/advertising writer, author/speaker/blogger, Australian, idea geek. www.simonmainwaring.com
Strategist. Writer. Life Coach.
Shannon Bindler is a style editor, life coach, and the co-founder of Get Up Girl, an empowerment company that inspires women to shine. www.getupgirl.com
Designer. Art Director. Passionate Creator.
Grammy-nominated art director/designer/photographer Mathieu Bitton has designed over 450 CDs and movie posters. He’s a renowned collector of and authority on black films and their soundtracks. www.candytangerine.com
Agent. Producer. Photography Enthusiast.
Opus Reps founder and agent-producer Jorge Perez travels the world producing photo shoots with great photographers and celebrities. He's also very involved with Meals on Wheels in Los Angeles. www.opusreps.com
paradox
Deidre Combs
leadership consultant. author. storm chaser.
Deidre Combs provides leadership and cross-cultural conflict skills as a consultant, coach, author, mediator, and professor. She developed the core foundations course for Montana State University’s Leadership Fellows Certificate Program. www.combsandcompany.com
If you’d asked me what I was passionate about, I would’ve said “conflict.” That might seem a bit off when you consider the suffering in war-torn countries or the misery of divorcing couples, but I have a strange belief in the power of discord. I don’t like it – I find disagreement risky and dangerous – but I also know conflict’s critical importance and at its core I find tremendous meaning.
I can’t recall a time when I became better without being messed with. Sometimes conflict appears as a bit of internal struggle, like when a teacher presents information I haven’t considered before. Those are the easy gifts of growth, where I’m disrupted, I shift, and I quickly return to stability. Yet, the big battles, the experiences that rip my identity or my life apart, have held the most potential.
My husband calls me a storm chaser because I get strangely excited when someone recounts a midlife crisis, a furious sibling, or a battle with illness. Those situations are lousy – my chest and throat often ache when witnessing someone’s pain – yet I’m bolstered by seeing the victim now standing at the doorway of amazing possibility. It’s terrifyingly fantastic.
I’m not drawn to the lightning or gusts of an emotional hurricane, but instead to what lies at its axis. Conflict is a fabulous container for paradox. It’s where the best worst things happen. In conflict, we become wretchedly beautiful. In the eye of the tempest, irreconcilable opposites are no longer. It’s the place of up-down, light-dark, and you-me that Carl Jung called “the transcendent function.” Our adversaries push us to see a bigger, chaotically perfect reality where more belongs. Turmoil crafts a space where each side can be right and wrong, where everyone provides a critical, yet always incomplete, view of the whole. Conflict’s crucible has afforded me my greatest glimpses of a Larger Unity, or what some might call the Divine or the Tao.
I must admit that this month when a friend called, angry with me, I wasn’t thrilled. Yet, after so many years of conflict research, observation, and personal experience, I also deeply trusted that the disruption held potential salvation. “Suit up,” I told myself and headed toward the gale. I went looking for the center and what I’ve found to be my most direct path Home.
- Deidre Combs
Explore More Meaning
-
nurse vietnam veteran. healer. conscious percussionist.
Sarah Blum is a nurse Vietnam veteran, nurse psychotherapist, life coach, energy healer, spiritual guide, author, activist, African drummer, and has a black belt in aikido. www.sarahshealinghaven.com
-
marketing expert. calfinder. community builder.
Gabriel Luna-Ostaseski co-founded CalFinder, where he directs global sales and operations. Before that, he managed Varsity Painting, one of the largest construction companies in California. www.linkedin.com/in/gabelunaostaseski
-
yoga teacher. humanitarian. voice for social change.
Seane Corn is an internationally celebrated yoga teacher and humanitarian, the National Yoga Ambassador for YouthAIDS, and cofounder of Off The Mat, Into the World, a leadership-training program. www.seanecorn.com
-
inventor. educator. artist.
Artist, musician, inventor, and educator Bob Bates is the Artistic Director of Inner-City Arts, an art space on Skid Row where at-risk children explore their creativity, learn, and grow. www.inner-cityarts.org
-
educator. author. discoverer.
Author and producer Shajen Joy Aziz is a founding member of the Southern California Association of Transformational Leaders. www.discoverthegift.com
-
speaker. author. spiritual internist.
Dr. Larry Dossey is a former internist and the author of eleven books on the role of consciousness and spirituality in health. He lectures around the world. www.dosseydossey.com
-
entrepreneur. wise woman. success embracer.
Kiva Leatherman is the founder of the Wise Women Network, inspiring women to stop living vicariously though others and embrace financial, emotional, and physical success on our own terms. www.wisewomennetwork.com
-
conversationalist. author. spiritual messenger.
A modern day spiritual messenger, bestselling author Neale Donald Walsch founded the Conversations with God Foundation, dedicated to inspiring the world to move toward peace, clarity, and love. www.nealedonaldwalsch.com
- More
Today's Poll
What do you do to expand your consciousness?
Comments