Intersection of Possibilities
Ayelet Baron
February 06, 2023

What if every intersection we face is an opportunity? Aristotle reminds us that “At the intersection where your gifts, talents, and abilities meet a human need. Therein you will discover your purpose.”

FoondaMate
Ayelet Baron
February 05, 2023

Dacod Magagula and Tao Boyle birthed FoondaMate in 2020 based on their need to access study materials. There was limited access to textbooks in their schools where some classes included up to 70 students. The two built a chat-based, AI-powered learning bot with fast, easy and safe access to study materials, and help, via WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger.

Much is Being Revealed
Ayelet Baron
November 03, 2022

When we have a relationship with life and no longer see it as a series of events to get through, everything becomes possible. Who doesn’t dream of experiencing calm, joy and meaningful ways of living?

What Sparks Us?
Ayelet Baron
November 02, 2022

What if instead of asking each other what we do for a living, we asked: what sparks and makes us come alive? What are we creating in the world? Imagine the energy that would connect us when we know what sparks us.

On Being A Creator
Ayelet Baron
November 01, 2022

Being a creator means intuitively being and doing what feels healthy, conscious and aligned in the moment. There is no division or separation when we choose to be be present and create what we truly need. Our heart is our compass and we listen to its beat.

What Do We Really Need?
Ayelet Baron
October 25, 2022

Imagine you were told that you were gifted two acres of land near the ocean at a beautiful location. But there were two stipulations. One you would really need to build a structure that has never been built before to live in—from design to simple furnishings.

Is Sharing Truly Caring?
Ayelet Baron
September 30, 2022

Sharing meals supports our physical and emotional wellbeing. Sitting together for dinner is not just about the food but also the conversation and connections we are building. Anthony Bourdain believed that “You learn a lot about someone when you share a meal together.”

October 2022 Forecast
Ayelet Baron
September 29, 2022

Working as a futurist means putting a stake in the ground about where we’re headed and what’s possible for the next few years and of course, October 2022. My body of work focuses on opportunities and possibilities from a human perspective. As you know, I believe many of us are being asked to heal ourselves, our communities and our planet right now from the inside out.

Beyond Rhetoric, There is A Field
Ayelet Baron
September 06, 2022

Rhetoric is defined as the art of effective or persuasive speaking or writing. And today rhetoric is simply language designed to have a persuasive effect on people. But too often lacks in sincerity or meaning.

The Heart of Integrative Law
LinkedIn
August 25, 2022

J Kim Wright is a pioneer of our times. With many others, she is imagining and creating the legal system for the emerging world ranging from conscious contracts to integrative law. In this world, lawyers are peacemakers, problem-solvers, and healers of conflicts; agents of transformation with their clients.

The Silent Awakening
LinkedIn
August 23, 2022

The veil of reality is lifting for many people and feels like bursting the bubble. It is personal and it takes a willingness to let go of safety and experience discomfort. And, if we are not exploring the unknown, we are not open to the natural flow of life.

Beyond Planning
Ayelet Baron
August 11, 2022

The common belief is that planning helps us achieve our goals. And it also allows us to be efficient when it comes to our time and resources.

We are taught to always be ready and not to be lazy or fall behind. Many love planning and having things to look forward to in life. Because in this world, we tend to live mostly in the past or the future. Listen to stories people share and your own. You may observe we focus on what happened or anticipation of what will happen.

Grief Reveals Us
Medium
April 22, 2022

Dedicated to anyone grieving Natural cycles teach us everything there is to know about life and death. The tree in a garden will witness more people in its lifetime than a human ever will, which is why I chuckled when the ne

Be A Giver, Share Your Liver
Medium
April 17, 2022

Are you a potential donor who can save a life? Defying the Odds When Tim McDonald, a Tampa area resident, was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer with metastasis to his liver in November of 2020, he was told that his life

Dreaming and Creating The Future Together
Medium
April 01, 2022

When building sustainable organizations, we don’t just sell a product or service, we invite people to join us because we’re in it together: the customers, the employees, the partners and communities. What this means is that each and every person believes in the mission and values — which guides in everything that is done.

Not My Circus, Not My Monkeys
Medium
March 31, 2022

When Life Feels Like A Circus, Maybe We Have Too Many Clowns Around Us? Many of us learned from an early age to seek validation externally and it usually requires constant feeding. Would life look different when we no

Questioning Everything as A Way of Life
Medium.com
March 27, 2022

As I was questioning everything, I read this comment yesterday that stayed with me, “Same shit. Different decade.” As a child of war, I laughed out loud and wept on the inside. Some of us choose to rely on trusted, and w

The Future is Human and Connected
Medium.com
February 18, 2022

Meaning is at the Heart of Creation When we truly have shared purpose and an understanding of why we are here, we see our humanity in each other. And the future is human when we have trusted relationships with

What If It’s No Longer About Solving Problems?
Medium.com
February 10, 2022

Isn’t it time to usher in the Human Era? Solving problems is not our way forward. Understanding needs and transforming problems into possibilities is a path that has been waiting for us, around the bend. And it’s time to

Forecasts for the Future (Part 1)
Medium.com
February 04, 2022

Creating the World We Need Part 1 of Forecasts for the Future There is so much that is possible that we can envision when we start focusing on what can change over the next 5–10 years instead of what’s broken or not

Mindful Path of Self-Compassion
Import from wordpress feed
January 10, 2022

Why Self-Compassion Matters Self-compassion is our ability to treat ourselves with kindness, understanding and acceptance. It also increases our joy and decreases feelings of anxiety and depression. Author e.e. Cummings reminds us that “To be nobody but yourself in a world which is doing its best

Opportunity-Creators Are Trekking into Possibilities
Import from wordpress feed
January 09, 2022

A World of Opportunity-Creators Opportunity-creators see the opportunities within problems and challenges. And, the future (and present) belong to those of us who dream and know how to imagine and create. People who walk our talk; do what we say, and do it with humility and an inner knowing that eve

Making the List of Being the Healthiest You
Import from wordpress feed
January 08, 2022

What Does It Take to be the Healthiest You? There is an inner knowing we have been conditioned and trained to silence within ourselves when we downloaded the manual of life and it rarely included the path of being the healthiest you. It included deep programming of what’s considered good and w

What Are You Choosing as Your Fashion Story?
Import from wordpress feed
January 07, 2022

Sustainable Fashion is Here In years to come, you will see much from visionary, conscious leaders like Shamini Dhana, Founder and CEO of Dhana Inc. and D/Sphere, who is deeply transforming our relationship with fashion in sustainable ways. Shamini is one of the 180 million people on the planet creat

Why The Great Questioning Affects Us All
Import from wordpress feed
January 06, 2022

Questioning Starts with Each of Us A few days ago, in a conversation with a second-year law student from Madrid, I listened deeply not only to his words but also to the deep questioning of young people around him. He observed that while half his classmates may be studying law, they are unsure why th

Being Aware is A Way of Life
Import from wordpress feed
January 05, 2022

Being Aware is A Conscious Choice What is the root of misunderstandings and conflict? Being aware that engaging in division means we are making a choice and often it is unconscious. So, is it simply people taking sides—whether it’s a marriage, kids and parents, a business partnership, a boss

Inspire Thyself
Import from wordpress feed
January 04, 2022

Who Inspires You? Our world needs people who know how to build trust-filled relationships. People who know how to collaborate, cooperate, and support a functional community. We need people more than we need celebrities or heroes who “inspire” us to be like them. Should your inspiration not come

This is A Time for Action, Not Just Words
Import from wordpress feed
January 03, 2022

Do You Have A Need to Take Action? These are some of the most exciting times in history, despite the news reports. First of all, because we’re all here right now. And second of all, because we are each being called to take action. The words, the inspiration, the debates, the intentions are no

Can Thriving Be the New Normal?
Import from wordpress feed
January 02, 2022

Can Thriving Be the Healthy Normal? Nature teaches us that deviating from the norm and staying in flow is key to thriving. And it need not be a battle of survival. The natural world thrives when it adapts to change by becoming stronger and more resilient. While the hungry bear may have climbed the p

Gate of Opportunities, Waiting to Be Struck
Import from wordpress feed
January 01, 2022

What Opportunities Are Here Now? There is a tipping point when we become aware that we live in a world filled with opportunities and choices. When we trek into the unknown, we ultimately learn humility and patience. When the journey feels impossible, it introduces feelings in us to face and sit with

Welcome to 2022 and Beyond
Medium.com
January 01, 2022

You are enough and 2022 may be calling you to embrace this unique time in our history to not only shine your light but connect with your true self and those creating a healthy new world filled with hope and possibilities. We no longer need to accept or conform to the institutions of suffering that we inherited or supported until now, as we know in our hearts that there is another way.

No One Knows
Medium.com
December 27, 2021

I really have a hard time when people tell me they know how I am feeling or that they have been in my shoes. They may think they know but they don’t have a clue. They are not me and I am not them.

On Giving Yourself Permission to Be the Leader You Need​
Medium.com
November 30, 2021

We are moving through incredible times and there are decisions and choices to be made. And it’s very personal. No one has our answers because no one truly knows us, or our questions. There is a growing awareness that no one is coming to save any of us — that’s an old, dying story and a belief too many still hold on to. Could it be time to give ourselves permission to be the leaders we need? And it can simply start by living a healthy life of meaning and well-being.

Can Anger Be Channelled?
Medium.com
November 24, 2021

There is not one person on this planet who has not experienced some level of betrayal, loss, shame or has been wounded deeply. And sometimes the anger just builds up inside of us, especially as we visit the dark places in our mind and stay with the disappointment and hurt. And not knowing how to channel it, we lash out at the world and continue to feed these cycles at our own expense.

Doing Your Inside Job
Medium.com
November 24, 2021

You will also no longer believe the old story of competition in which you were taught that achieving and being the winner at the top of the pile was the goal.

And So It Begins
Medium.com
November 19, 2021

Feeling into the deep, profound and radical importance of how to navigate the path in my own way has been the most recent focus of my life. By practicing being present, living regeneratively, observing without judgment, transforming problems into opportunities, new paths open up to mysterious places.

Be as authentic as you know how to be at this moment
Medium.com
October 03, 2021

Ask questions. And, understand that no one has your answers. They may offer you ways to promote yourself or the keys to success but they don’t know you and you are not them. They may want you to be just like them but when you awaken, your own authentic heartbeat emerges.

What is Your Moment of Truth?
Medium.com
September 20, 2021

What we are witnessing right now is death. The only thing we know for sure is that one day we will die. Everything dies. Everyone dies. And we have such fear associated with death that too often we are too scared to live fully and stay stuck relying on false safety nets.

When Progress Meets Nature
Medium.com
September 13, 2021

Natural laws are always guiding us to find balance and wholeness. It’s in the very design of how we were created. But our societal conditioning has been engineered and hardwired in a way that’s not aligned with nature.

Which Opportunity Are You Creating?
Medium.com
September 01, 2021

We have created and brought apps into our lives that unconsciously instruct us on how we should live our lives. We allow them to track our goals, achievements and even our deep moments of silence and meditation. We celebrate every time we hit the daily goal of 10,000 steps without always fully feeling into our physical body. There’s always some goal that we must achieve with clear intentions but what if this is a limiting belief that keeps us stuck? But who dare question the accepted way of life?

It’s Time for Conscious Leaders to Question and Listen Deeply
Medium.com
August 10, 2021

Questioning everything allows us to begin a journey of a lifetime as it opens us up to what is possible. Do you know what your greatest opportunities are as an individual or as an organization?

We Are Being Called to Be the Architects of the Future
Medium
July 27, 2021

Many of us have learned to receive our energy from the world around us, and in doing so, the increasing external noise that surrounds us is making us sick or anxious. It seems like everyone has an opinion or three, and yet, take a look at our world right now and you will see that no one really knows much of anything. If we did, would this be the world we would want to live in?

What Are You Feeding Your Mind?
Medium
July 27, 2021

Our material world has made us obsessed with feeding our minds. From the time we are children, we are educated to be obedient, smart and rewarded for success — from potty training to winning praise for being good boys and girls.

Is it Time to Unf️ck Yourself?
Medium
June 15, 2021

There is so much insanity playing out on our collective stage right now. It’s easy to get caught up in the noise and lose pieces of yourself and yet, it’s always a choice.

How to Lead from Your Heart
Medium.com
May 29, 2021

We have learned to not only seek knowledge and love outside ourselves, but we have also been conditioned to trust others before truly trusting our hearts. It is not surprising since we have learned from a very early age to live from our minds when our opportunity is to listen to the whispers of our hearts and integrate them with a healthy mindset.

Getting in Touch with Your Heart
Medium
May 23, 2021

Life is a journey for each of us, with different expeditions, that sparks our willingness to bring our full self to face our challenges and opportunities.

Letting Go Sets You Free
Medium
May 22, 2021

When was the last time you were in control?
What role does being in control play in your life?
How attached are you to manifesting your intentions?

Do You Really Want to be Saved?
Medium.com
April 06, 2021

Some dream of going back to normal, while more and more people are curious about what’s beyond what is socially acceptable (normal) today. What we are experiencing is personal and each one of us has the right and opportunity to respond in our own way. We just may not know it yet.

One Day You Break Free
Medium
February 17, 2021

One day you break free.
And you no longer pine for a parade or award to recognize your success.

Are you following or creating? It’s always a choice …
Medium
February 10, 2021

When you prefer to carefully color within the lines of conformity, you may find that you respond positively to strong rules, which maintain order and create the illusion of safety — but please consider that it may prevent you from exploring anything beyond the norm and outside of what is expected to live a ‘successful’ life.

You Are Enough
Medium.com
February 08, 2021

There are some of us who are always living in panic — jumping from one crisis to another; one drama to another. You’d think our lives may be a TV show and that we are here to play some character on the stage of life. Oh, if only we had the spotlight and the good life, wouldn’t everything be perfect then?

What Are You Choosing for 2021?
Medium.com
December 20, 2020

When we trek into the unknown, we ultimately learn humility and patience. When the journey feels impossible, it introduces feelings in us to give up.

What is Your Moment of Truth in 2020 and Beyond?
Import from medium.com
November 30, 2020

What December 2020 May Be Asking You as 2021 EmergesContinue reading on Medium »

About Writing Books
Import from medium.com
November 24, 2020

Opening yourself up to everything and everyoneContinue reading on Medium »

Leading from the Heart
Import from medium.com
November 16, 2020

There are many broken parts in the existing business model, and trust is one of the biggest. Too often in today’s business world, we lead…Continue reading on Medium »

The Great Shift is an Inside Job
Import from medium.com
October 27, 2020

Nothing changes until we do.Continue reading on Medium »

Reflections for the Soul
Import from medium.com
September 28, 2020

This time in history is asking each of us to find our way homeContinue reading on Medium »

Are You Ready to Discover the Wonder of You?
Import from medium.com
September 23, 2020

Letting go means making space for your wildest creationsContinue reading on Medium »

Are You Ready to Trek into the Unknown?
Import from medium.com
September 06, 2020

What gates are waiting for you to see them?Continue reading on Medium »

Beautifully expressed and a huge opportunity for many of us!
Import from medium.com
September 03, 2020

Beautifully expressed and a huge opportunity for many of us!

Is it Time to Step into Your Power?
Import from medium.com
September 03, 2020

Opening yourself to living a meaningful lifeContinue reading on The Pink »

Is Giving Up An Option?
Import from medium.com
August 27, 2020

Open reflections on what we can truly handleContinue reading on The Pink »

If You Feel Unsure About Your Future, Take A Leaf Out of Nature
Medium.com
September 22, 2019

Everything is here to be discovered, when you tap into your intuition for guidance.

Hidden under your feet is an information superhighway that allows plants to communicate and support each other. Around 90% of land plants are in mutually-beneficial relationships with fungi, which have been described by scientists as partnerships and alliances.

Re-Imagining: Are you aware of where your automatic responses come from?
Medium.com
September 19, 2019

Did you know that when most of us make decisions and take action, 95% of our decisions are made with limited conscious awareness? What this means is that the tapes and beliefs that have been programmed into our minds have created automated responses from how we react to situations and the people we bring into our life.

A Brief Guide to the Beginning of A Healthier World
Import from medium.com
September 16, 2019

Photo by Kristin Brown on UnsplashPeople have been predicting the end of the world forever. You would think it is a modern, futuristic prediction or affliction but it is as old as time.Throughout our history, people prophesied the end of the world. As far back as 2800 BCE, an Assyrian tablet was w

The Future is Yours to Create: What Do You Re-Imagine?
Import from medium.com
September 11, 2019

A lot of people today are wrestling with doing their job and at the same time, listening to their intuition and gut feelings. For some it’s like having an unhealthy meal. They know that when they put the greasy food to their lips that they later will regret this decision. Their gut knows that when

What Are You Choosing Every Day
Import from medium.com
August 13, 2019

What Are You Choosing Every Day?Never give up and yet, learn from every situation and person who crosses your path.When someone shows you who they are in the first 15 seconds, believe them.They are doing the best they know how and recognize what is healthy, for you, and what is toxic, when it com

Everything is Waiting for You
Import from medium.com
July 23, 2019

Photo by Jen Theodore on UnsplashWhen you meet someone for the first time, how long does it take before they ask you, “what do you do?” Would someone react differently if you told them you were an executive, or a janitor? Do you believe that what you do will tell them everything they need to kn

Are You Connecting or Broadcasting: What Opportunities Are in Front of You?
Import from medium.com
July 10, 2019

Are You Connecting or Broadcasting: What Are You Creating in the World?Photo by Jonalyn San Diego on UnsplashThe current world is about one-way broadcasting of information, which is stuck in an antiquated model. Brands are hardwired to communicate in one direction. The old world is about announcem

Who Controls Your Volume?
Import from medium.com
July 02, 2019

Photo by Jon Tyson on UnsplashThe ageless question about the forest is, if a tree falls in the forest and there is no one around to hear it, does it make a sound?Peace is not found in the achieving or the winning, despite everything you have been told. There is noise as you move away from things t

Things We Don’t Talk About
Import from medium.com
June 14, 2019

Photo by Kristina Flour on UnsplashWhether it is your parents, your teachers or other “guides” who appear in your life early on, you are taught to trust others before yourself. The systems you are born into teach you to put your trust into them so you can develop into fully functioning, contrib

What Are You Fighting For? There is another way …
Import from medium.com
May 24, 2019

What Are You Fighting For? There is another way …When I worked in corporate, I was part of a very big machine, a large company in Silicon Valley that was winning and wanted to continue to win by being #1 and crushing the competition. It was a daily race to success with hours of filling out endles

What Are You Learning?
Import from medium.com
May 20, 2019

What Are You Creating?Life truly is remarkable. When you strive to be at the center of the party, it is mostly an illusion as it can only last so long. You will need to keep grabbing attention to stay at the center. Learn to be the center of your own story and deal with the punches life will throw y

Thanks Beatriz Abrantes … we are all here to become aware and I can imagine a world of conscious…
Import from medium.com
April 16, 2019

Thanks Beatriz Abrantes … we are all here to become aware and I can imagine a world of conscious creators …

One Heart Worldwide
One Heart Worldwide
January 01, 2014

One Heart Worldwide (OHW) is a 501(c)3 organization with over fifteen years experience providing on-the-ground training in newborn and maternal health. Our mission is to end all preventable deaths in remote areas of the world. Based on over ten years of experience in the Tibetan Autonomous Region, OHW has established an effective,... see more

F*ck the Bucket List for the Health Conscious: Trusting Your Heart
Heartpickings Press
May 24, 2021

When you are health conscious, you become a dynamic creator of your life. You can no longer afford to sit back passively and complain or blame the world or anyone outside yourself for your problems. Why? Because you can no longer be satisfied with the world the way it is now. You consciously choose to step out of being told how to live your life.

F*ck the Bucket List for the Health Conscious serves as a wake-up call for anyone who is no longer satisfied with the way things are, and an inspiration to anyone who is trekking into the unknown.

F*ck the Bucket List for the Adventurer: Trekking into the Unknown
Heartpickings Press
January 25, 2021

At a certain point in your journey, you may not know where you’re headed but you become more curious and courageous to experience life and all it has to offer. Your heart knows when you’re ready to take the first few steps. And once you do, nothing will ever be the same. No one can do this work for you; it’s your job to become fully aware that you are standing at a juncture of possibilities. Are you entertaining thoughts about a healthier direction in your life? Are you ready to experiment and try things on to see what actually fits you?

Through all of the knowing and unknowing, the visible and invisible, facts and mystery, loss and gain, sanity, and insanity of it all—you are here. Trekking into the unknown takes courage because it forces you to realize how much you don’t really know. F*ck the Bucket List inspires you to ask questions, dig deep, and create your own meaning. The story starts and ends at your own pace.

This isn’t just another self-help book, spiritual book, or memoir—it’s an experience, beyond categories and labels, that asks each of us to tap into the universal wisdom that says we can live our lives our own way. This book is for anyone who is ready to question everything, and simply say f*ck it—or whatever words you choose to use—when something in life no longer serves you. Are you ready to discover the wonder of you (Book 1, for the Soul), trek into the unknown (Book 2, for the Adventurer), and trust your heart (Book 3, for the Health Conscious)?

F*ck the Bucket List for the Soul
Heartpickings Press
September 29, 2020

The universe is full of wonder and wisdom... and so are you.

It's a voyage of courage to show up with questions and an imagination. You find yourself wondering whether there's much more to life than you were told. But often, you find yourself so immersed in the chaotic pursuit of "success" as defined by society that you simply don't have time to experience life to the fullest.

Are you ready to live a more intentional life in which you consciously decide what is uniquely healthy for your mind, body, and soul, and let go of what is unhealthy? If you are, life will never be the same. The journey will be intense. It is not for the faint of heart. But as you learn how to access and trust the universal wisdom within your own heart, your life will begin to shift dramatically.

These books are not for everyone. They're for anyone ready to start questioning everything and to simply say f*ck it--or whatever words you choose to use when something in life no longer serves you. It will help you become more aware of the choices you make, and your responsibility as an architect of your life, not its victim.

F*ck the Bucket List helps you realize that this is a time to listen to the whispers of your soul. As the Universe insists: Letting go means making space for your wildest creations. Come discover the wonder of you.

Dear CEO
Thinkers50
October 24, 2017

This collection of specially-commissioned letters offers clear, calming and concise advice from across the spectrum of current leadership thinking. Written by respected business thinkers around the world, these 50 letters provide guidance, wisdom and personal insight into the particular challenges facing the business world today and anyone in a senior position. Contributors include high-profile thought leaders.

Our Journey to Corporate Sanity
Param Media
January 01, 2017

The prevailing mindset in business, which values profit above well-being and the environment that sustains us, is insane. Creating a healthy, humane world requires more than new organizational models that merely shift the deck chairs on a sinking ship. We need to entirely re-imagine the nature of business, work, and life. In Our Journey to Corporate Sanity, Ayelet Baron guides us through transformational stories from leading business pioneers who share how they are profitably creating a beautiful and humane world. We can draw from their collective wisdom to help us chart our own journey to a new mindset of 21st century leadership.

This Ex-CSO of Cisco Took Off to the Amazon Rainforest and Discovered a New Calling
eShe
April 14, 2021

Ayelet Baron has been described as a force of nature when it comes to envisioning a more humane world. A former corporate honcho who has worked in global boardrooms in Silicon Valley, London and Singapore, she touched the pinnacle of her career as chief strategy and innovation officer at Cisco, Canada.

And then, Ayelet jumped off the regular grid of ‘success’ and charted her own path. She went on to win an award for her book trilogy, F*ck the Bucket List, based on her own learnings, and is listed among Forbes’ top 50 global female futurists.

CXBuzz Interview With Ayelet Baron Forbes 50 Global Female Futurists
CXBuzz
March 11, 2021

The three most important currencies of our time are trust, relationships, and community. When we have a shared purpose, we see our humanity in each other, and we can have excellent relationships with all people—the people who work with us, the people who buy our products and services, the people who help us get our products and services to the market, the people who live in the communities we serve, and the people who care about what we create in the world. But you need to treat your customers and employees as co-creators of your business and bring teams together to achieve your highest goals. That is what 2020 showed us and is paving the way to 2021 and beyond.

An increasing number of us are questioning everything and major shifts are taking place as we understand that no one is coming to save us. Leadership is not outside ourselves and this is a time of conscious leadership. Is it time to begin focusing on the realities of the future of work and life proactively?

Simply have in mind how we would like our relationship with work and life to be and hold that vision. When we choose to do so, it becomes easier to manifest new beginnings and let go of the past.

Many people—from employees to managers and executives—are questioning the future of work. Sure, there is the reality of paying bills and this world reminds us all the time of our connection with money. But there is an undercurrent taking place that will not stop when it comes to living meaningful lives.

With continued staffing issues in front line jobs, the people in charge are starting to feel worn out. Organizations have been slow to create thriving cultures that respect people and the cracks are showing up everywhere. Being on the defensive and offering solutions will not stop the bleeding that is going on right now. This is a time to see opportunities and create healthy ways of working and living. And it’s in our own hands to be architects of the future, not its victims.

We are witnessing the Great Questioning across the globe as more people become aware that the systems we have built are falling apart, especially when it comes to work and life. Organizational structures that were created in 1911 are still the foundation of many companies around the world and they no longer serve where we are headed.


In 2022, there will be continued turmoil around the world and it will allow people to see the divergent paths we can take: one leading to more misery and suffering and another opening portals of opportunity and possibility. And, a new conscious business movement is emerging around the world in the most unlikely places. Here are four trends on our horizon:


1) Conscious choices. The biggest shifts will come from small businesses who have a radical purpose and operate with conscious agreements, and practice self-management. These movements are starting organically and will increasingly demonstrate that we have a choice in how we work, who we are willing to work for and how we want to live. Change is coming from the edges and not the mainstream. And because we are so connected online and can bypass traditional media sources, more people will become aware of this new way of living and working. Technology levels the playing field.


2) Dialogue and Connection. The undercurrents that will be created will require today's leaders in large organizations to realize there is a major transformation happening in the workplace. Communication and dialogue are going to be increasingly important and they will no longer be able to delegate their responsibility to lead authentically and consciously to an executive communication function. 2022 is the year when walking the talk and closing the gap between words and actions will be what leaders will be asked to face. And many are not ready for this shift and will try to hang onto the ingrained command and control structure. But leading from the heart, in alignment with the mind, will be key to future success.


3) From Authority to Personal Accountability. There continues to be widespread mistrust of societal institutions and leaders around the world (Edelman Trust Barometer 2021). As more people question everything, we should not be surprised that the choices made will be more about making a life and less about making a living. More of us will begin to walk away from needing more and more and question what we really need. And it will no longer be the corner office, the trendy company or time away on endless business trips. The person who dies with the most possessions rarely wins. As more people learn to trust ourselves, we will witness people taking personal accountability in every aspect of life and 2022 is just the beginning of what will unfold over the next five years.


4) No more hiding in dark corners. Once we start questioning everything, the veil of reality is slowly revealed. We will no longer accept the status quo and move to the edges of what's possible by making conscious choices around what matters most. I can share from firsthand experience that this new world that will emerge by 2027 is being co-created right now.


This is an exciting time when we realize that we are not here to change, fix or make our current broken world better. 2022 allows us to become aware that we have a choice: continue fighting for our lives or become powerful creators of our lives?

The Cult of the Expert
Thinkers360
February 13, 2023

In a society obsessed with solving problems, it’s easy to fall into the trap that there is an expert who can fix them for us. We have been so enamored with the idea of expertise that we often give our power away.

We are actually encouraged to be the expert in everything. Our decaying world has a love affair with celebrity, worship and following the crowd. And so many young people as a result want external validation through fame and money, as do "grown ups" actually!

But the truth is, the "cult of the expert,“ as Sir Ken Robinson shared about our current education system, can be incredibly limiting. He never wanted to be the expert himself. 

Have we asked ourselves why the current education system instills a fear of being wrong, which prevents us from thinking for ourselves?

When we rely solely on experts (and AI) to guide us and make decisions, we neglect the power of our own intelligence and deeper knowing. Our ability to be discerning slowly gets shut down when we trust people outside ourselves more than our own hearts and minds.

Citizen Science on the Rise

Community science, began in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Ordinary people collected and recorded data, often as part of larger scientific projects. Citizen science emerged in the 1990s when people were able to participate in scientific research on a larger scale due to systems that enabled collaboration.

Today, citizen science is on the rise as a result thanks to our ability to connect to each other through technology. We are beginning to become aware that insights and experiences of everyday people are just as valuable as that of the gurus. We are aware that our perspectives and experiences play a critical role in shaping our understanding of the world.

The big shift is happening slowly when we are choosing not to  blindly trust those in positions of authority. Because they often do not know what we need and are working on their own agendas. We have witnessed over the last few decades so many harmful decisions that have had a profound impact on increased division.

And we’re no longer willing to put more lipstick on a bulldog. We want peace and healthy living. It’s that simple. And it’s up to each of us to be in charge of our bank of trust. Understanding that we will experience heartbreaks along the way, which inform us who is trustworthy and walks the talk. Not just talks.  

Being Our Own Expert

We’ve talked about it before that of course, we want a mechanic to help us with our vehicles. We want heart-centered medical professionals to help us with our holistic health. We want conscious lawyers to help us create conscious contracts.

But we are aware that there is no expert on our lives and only people who can ask questions and listen. And we always listen to our hearts in alignment with our mind. It’s up to us to no longer need to be right or wrong and fight for our lives.

There is magic in the not knowing and we can honestly share, we don't know as no one needs to test us. Our power lies in our ability to be real and raw. And if we get shamed then maybe we need to understand that we are in an unhealthy situation? The question is, do we have the courage to break through the 'cult of the expert’?

There is a healthy path where we value experiences and insights. And make them our own. We leave the archetypes, stories, models and someone else's analysis of who we are behind. And imagine and design our own existence. This is why dialogue and community are increasingly making a comeback in a world where no one wants to be lectured.

By doing so, we create a healthy world where we have a voice. And the opportunity to find our way with people who care about what we care about.

The Layoff Parade
Thinkers360
January 27, 2023

t’s easy to be frightened by headlines about a potential recession and a mass layoff of tens of thousands of people. And this fear is always alerting us to prepare for the next disaster in our external world.

The fear is being projected across the globe. But what if we peeked under the covers and asked a few questions, what would we actually see?

According to Yahoo Finance, Meta hired 42,372 human beings during the pandemic and recently laid off 11,000. Google hired 67,880 and slashed 12,000 humans from its payroll. Microsoft had over 220,000 employees at the end of 2022 which is up from 163,000 in 2020 and 181,000 in 2021.They added more than 57,000 employees in a two-year period before cutting 10,000.

Maybe this is a reversal of a hiring spree that surged during the pandemic? And what’s interesting is that most tech companies are still larger than they were three years ago when it comes to the number of “headcount.”

Maybe long-term employees unexpectedly finding their access cut off to their beloved company is a workforce restructuring? Perhaps a slowdown is coming as a wake up call that we have been focusing on unhealthy growth?

While these are statistics, there is a very real impact on each person who was informed they were no longer needed or valued for whatever reason.

Unconscious Communication

There are a million reasons and stories of why this is happening. But maybe what we need to remember is that all we can do is question.

Despite all the noise of leadership and communication, what is happening is no different than decades ago. It’s all pretty much unconscious or maybe all the internal communication and leadership development employees were laid off first?

Although it used to be that we got laid off in a meeting with our manager and it was frowned upon to hold these meetings on a Friday. But this modern round of layoffs are happening over email, Slack, and other platforms. And few are being informed over a video chat or a Zoom.

Loss of access is now discovered early in the morning when the “communication” reaches the “affected” employees. Some have also shared openly they were having dinner when they got the news that their job was slashed.

In a digital world, companies want to make sure their trusted employees don’t take the company’s data with them so access is cut immediately.

The tech industry increased its public job cuts by 649% in 2022. It’s estimated that about 130,000 people have been laid off from large tech and media companies in the past 12 months.

This is the highest since the dot-com crash more than 20 years ago. Maybe layoffs are trendy now for CEOs and why some call this the layoff parade? Obviously, the culture or the values don’t matter when people can be restructured or slashed due to cost cutting.

Beyond the Layoff

Trust is broken and breaking. How many of us know some impacted people and feel their anguish? Many loved their jobs and companies.

The headlines and panic around a recession and more layoffs needs to be questioned. Maybe this is an opportunity to step back and not buy into the fear?

What if we become aware that every choice we make is contributing to a future that can be healthier than the past? Maybe tens of thousand of people will make healthier choices now that they face a new reality? There are lots of people who need support right now; not just ones in the fresh round of cuts.

Maybe we are here to create the future of work and leave a healthier living legacy for future generations? Can we stop reliving these stories by creating healthy systems that value human life? We are not machines.

We Create the Future
Thinkers360
January 03, 2023

No More Sacrifices?

Sacrifices are about giving something up for the sake of gaining something. Some of us sacrifice our health, for example, to wake up every morning at 5 am, drive two hours to our jobs, so we can put food on the table and pay our bills.

What if we no longer had to make any sacrifices? Maybe we are waking up to the reality that sacrifices are simply a thing of the past that don't need to come with us?

The Great Questioning that sprouted in 2022 is manifesting in our evolving relationship with life and work today. The Wall Street Journal, for example, reports that workers are less ambitious today than three years ago. And employers are "scrambling" to meet productivity goals.

It seems that many of us no longer want to work on weekends, holidays or overtime. And we don’t want to go above and beyond what is expected to advance in the collapsing business machine.

It's so interesting that Robert M. Pirsig, in the Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, tells this story, “People arrive at a factory and perform a totally meaningless task from eight to five without question. Because the structure demands that it be that way.

There’s no villain, no “mean guy” who wants them to live meaningless lives. It’s just that the structure, the system demands it. And no one is willing to take on the formidable task of changing the structure just because it is meaningless.”

Creating Meaning

And what is emerging is that we cannot lead with structure anymore or expect someone else to change the systems for us. When we become the leaders of our own lives, everything changes, especially when we begin to make discerning meaningful choices about everything.

Questioning allows us to open avenues and path to creating the future of work—without anyone outside ourselves instructing us about how it should pan out.

It is life changing when we get to choose how to work and create systems that are meaningful and support us. We choose when we rest and pause no longer bound by concepts like PTO (Paid Time Off).

What we will see over the next five years is more of us creating healthy language around having balance and meaning in our lives. Not having acronyms like PTO regulating when we get "time off" and when we don’t. What if there is simply life to experience and to do so, we need balance? Why? Because we are not machines. And we no longer see our life’s goal to be productive and efficient cogs.

We no longer want to “bust our butts” to be productive and get new unnatural growth targets every new fiscal year. Enriching shareholders and executives has been making many of us sick as we stay in meaningless stories that deplete us.

Spreadsheet Sacrifices

I remember being asked by a very senior executive at Cisco if I felt like I was part of the “Cisco family.” I shared that if tomorrow we would not meet our goals, I would be told: "thank you for creating so much here but we need to let you go."

Managing by heartless spreadsheets and metrics create inhumane systems. And the irony is that we can’t blame AI or anyone outside ourselves for creating these manmade structures. I did play a foundational role for the company and got to experiment on the edge with brilliant people. But at the end of the day, the furniture in the office was an asset and I was a liability on a financial spreadsheet.

So, with more of us questioning, we imagine and experiment. Frontline employees have had enough and so have many managers. The perks are no longer as important as living healthy, meaningful lives where we get to create something meaningful. We don’t want to work for companies that poison the Earth or treat people poorly. And we are choosing not to work ourselves to death in the name of advancement.

It's Up to Us

This is why our opportunity is to do our inner work and see what’s possible for ourselves. This is why the work of Michael Strong is so important to help young people navigate what’s possible for them; outside the cookie cutter education systems. And bring dialogue to young people as a healthy technology to tap into their curiosity and imagination.

Suicide rates among young people are soaring right now, especially among young men. It's up to us to get to the root and introduce foundational changes. Our young people are ready to share. But are we ready to truly listen and engage in meaningful dialogue?

Isn't it time to involve our youth in the creation of the future of work instead of instructing them on what it looks like?

When we have imagination, curiosity and courage guiding us, we get out of the way and clear the path to our greatest opportunities. Our lives depend on stepping out of the old stories, taking a meaningful breath and asking ourselves, what matters to me at this very moment.

It’s not like we have lost ambition as the WSJ claims. It is that we want to create meaning and spend precious time with our kids, our elders and the unknown.

Maybe a life well-lived is possible? Where we are headed is an exchange of value and for many of us, an experience economy is on the horizon.

Letting go means making space for our wildest creations. 

CEOs Are Not Coming to Save Us
Thinkers360
July 07, 2022

A CEO Choosing the Beach

A CEO (chief executive officer) of a billion-dollar asset management firm announced he will be leaving the company. Why? To “sit at the beach and do nothing.” After three decades in the UK, he is heading back to Australia.

Headline reported by Bloomberg, reads: “Andrew Formica, the CEO of Jupiter Fund Management PLC, announced that he will be leaving the $67.9 billion company due to personal reasons, including wanting to be closer to his elderly parents.”

“I just want to go sit at the beach and do nothing,” he said in an interview. “I’m not thinking about anything else.”

The CEO Questioning

Looks like CEOs are also entering The Great Questioning. And as Jack Kelly shares in his Forbes article: “Believe it or not, the CEOs have feelings and emotions that are not too different from the workers in their organizations.

Recent studies show that the top executives … are growing tired of the unrelenting stress, pressure and accompanying burnout. Similar to the folks who’ve left their jobs in pursuit of a better work-life balance, C-suite executives are following suit.”

Over 500 CEOs left their jobs in 2022, according to Challenger, Gray & Christmas. There is an increasing number of companies that are reevaluating everything as inflation, supply change shortages, delivery issues, staffing shortages, and recession concerns are on the rise. There is much weighing on the shoulders of CEOs at this time. 

While many state that they are leaving for personal reasons like elder care or to build sandcastles at the beach, this is a time for true leadership to rise. This is an opportunity for leaders who want to bring about transformation and have the guts to do so to take center stage. 

And what will happen with those who go to the beach at 51 to do nothing? We don’t really know yet but Jack Kelly shares his insight that:  “For some, the headaches aren’t worth the lush pay packages, especially as the economy and business environment will only worsen in the near term. 

It makes prudent sense for the CEOs to take much-needed time off to rest and recuperate, so that they can return when the market turns around for the better.”

We will also be witnessing a lot of shuffling chairs as CEOs go from one company to another. It has already begun.

Let’s Consider Our Opportunity Here

Creating a healthy, humane world requires more than new organizational leaders who shift the deck chairs on a sinking ship. It takes entirely rethinking the nature of business, work, and life

I urge us to consider this time in our history as an opportunity to usher in a healthier reality where questioning everything means creating what we need. Not more of the same, different channel, same programming.

 “You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete.”—R. Buckminster Fuller

Leadership is not outside ourselves. Let’s enjoy the beach, take impeccable care of our elderly parents and also take responsibility for our part to create the healthy systems we so need in the world at this moment.

No one is coming to save us. Not even a CEO. 

Question everything. Embrace the unknown. Big or small. Take action.

“I’m not trying to counsel any of you to do anything really special except dare to think. And to dare to go with 

Stepping Out of How Things Should Be
Thinkers360
June 30, 2022

When we are trapped inside a specific model of how things should operate in this world, like how to reduce time to market or be more productive and efficient, we can’t see much else. 

In the current model, resource efficiency is a servant to sustainability. Because we are so efficient we can produce seven air conditioners, for example, instead of one.  We don’t necessarily consider the resources and materials it takes to build one or seven items when all we are focused on is productivity rates. 

We can’t claim we’re efficient and care about the environment when we choose to ship our trash to another part of the world. Making our trash someone else’s headache does not come close to systemic thinking. 

And because many organization are operating on 19th century linear models, we stay stuck in how things should be productive.

But we can step out of the hamster wheel when we’re ready to see that there is another way.   

Complexity is uncomfortable because it requires being comfortable with the unknown. It is where true innovation happens. And yes, we can learn to navigate uncharted waters.

To collaborate across boundaries, we need shared values and cultural understanding of not only the problems but our opportunities. 

Two people are working on a project. One sees a gap and asks, ‘shall we address this gap?” The other looks confused and asks, ‘what gap do you mean? I don’t see anything missing? This is how things should be.

We experience a sense of politics when two people with two different visions or agendas try to work together. And therefore, communication becomes key in understanding people’s agendas and how to bridge the divides. True understanding requires acknowledging uncomfortable realities like that not everyone can be right all the time. And that negotiating in the new world means coming to an understanding of what we are working on together; not being stuck on how things should be. 

Who wants to constantly live in the past where we only jump from solving one problem to the next? It becomes a type of addiction to always explore where we went wrong and try to solve the same problems with limited progress. 

Imagine that every time you hear, ‘this is what’s wrong with …”, you asked yourself, what’s possible? 

Do things really need to escalate when there is another path of collaboration and caring about what we are creating?

Many don’t want to hear that we need to do much more than re-think our current systems. But what If what we need is to create sustainable ones? Our current economic system and lifestyles, for example, are gobbling up our natural resources. The Earth has no productivity goals as it focuses on sustainability and regeneration. 

The more we focus on what’s possible, the more we learn how interconnected we are and how important it is to see the whole system from nature’s point of view. 

When we’re in alignment with nature, we understand that unlimited growth is not sustainable and even possible. The Earth simply cannot support unlimited growth. 

If we want to be sustainable and build a healthy economy, we need to understand systems and expect unpredictability. 

Our opportunity, as leaders, is to think and create on multiple levels. Perhaps our greatest opportunity is right in front of us in plain sight?

Forecasts for the Future (Part II)
Thinkers360
February 05, 2022

Elinor Ostrom, in her Nobel Prize Lecture in 2009, shared: “Humans have a more complex motivational structure and more capability to solve social dilemmas than posited in earlier rational-choice theory. Designing institutions to force (or nudge) entirely self-interested individuals to achieve better outcomes has been the major goal posited by policy analysts for governments to accomplish for much of the past half-century. Extensive empirical research leads me to argue that instead, a core goal of public policy should be to facilitate the development of institutions that bring out the best in humans.”

There is no universal guide for how we should each live our lives. It’s personal and requires some of the most meaningful work we ever do. As a futurist, I am here to share with you that despite our current challenges, there are vast opportunities that appear when we understand why we are each here at this point in history. 

#4 The Future is Human

More and more people of all ages are starting to feel a need to have more meaning in life rather than traditional success. Careers have been mostly ingrained in us from an early age as our ultimate goal of leading a successful life. And the traditional “labor” market placed us in one job at a time. Twenty years ago it was frowned upon if we were in a job for less than three years. But all this is changing at the edges.

In the mainstream, the current system—from choosing a major in high school to university recruiting to profiles on LinkedIn and tax returns—is designed around each one of us having a career. The system is not geared toward the creator economy and people not choosing the 9-5 life. Today, we are having conversations about remote work and hybrid work but we no longer know what work actually means.

The need to generate an income and not only feel fulfilled but to follow a deep desire to make an impact will open up pathways that will drive the next decade. We will witness people questioning retirement. As we are living longer, is retirement still relevant? Why stay in a job that depletes one’s energy?

People are questioning why they work so hard and only get to truly have time for life, at the end of the road. One’s life may end up being about choosing to make a life, where work is part of it as we define ourselves less by how we make a living. And then, there are also many who have reached early retirement and have become serial entrepreneurs who are hungry to make a deeper meaning than accumulating more and more stuff.

Organizations will need to adapt to people who have multiple interests that they want to apply and a lot will need to change when people are in the driver’s seat and are no longer seen as liabilities on a financial spreadsheet. Why? Because more and more people are choosing life over working for someone who seems them as disposable.

People are wisening up when they get laid off and told their role is no longer needed and then see their company post in the local business journals that they are hiring the best people for six-figure salaries. It’s always amazing that so many companies claim to hire the best and the brightest and then treat them like they are disposable. And this only happens when we allow it and in a human future, what’s most important than how we treat ourselves and each other?

What can happen when job interviews shift to the candidate figuring out if the company is worth their life investment? It’s not here yet, but it’s definitely coming when we become aware that we have choices and practice discernment.

Albert ​​Einstein, for example, was not simply born a genius. He had to work extremely hard to develop his depth of mind, passion, and creative intelligence, and he was especially critical of the educational system he had endured along the way. In contrast to the overemphasis on specialization found in this system, he believed that students must aim to ‘acquire a vivid sense of the beautiful and of the morally good.’

This noble goal is something that he himself lived by. He writes that ‘the ideals which have lighted my way, and time after time has given me new courage to face life cheerfully, have been Kindness, Beauty, and Truth.’

#5 Choosing to Break Cycles is on the Menu

Some predict diversity is the mantra of our times but today’s increased focus creates greater divides and separation. We have a crisis when it comes to teen boys choosing to leave the planet and it is a silent pandemic spreading around the world. Replacing the patriarchy with matriarchy will not break the cycles of human suffering.

This belief that if only x because it’s better keeps us stuck in old stories and beliefs. When we give attention to a problem, we create more of it. When we only talk to people who share our beliefs and unfriend those who dare to think differently, we fragment ourselves. There is no way we can agree with everyone but this insatiable conditioning to be right decreases our ability to truly listen. Our divisions are getting wider and more dogmatic. The more we refuse to mingle outside of our social circles, the more we’ll continue to stay stuck in the same belief systems and build the same ineffective infrastructure and unhealthy blueprint models. 

For one team or one person to win, the other must lose. That is how the current game is played. Everyone is a “warrior” today in their battles, their adversaries, their camps—spreading more fear, greater division, more anger, and more pain, making us all a little bit blind. We teach our kids to win at all costs and to be the best in the world, often at their own expense.

Our opportunity is to create healthy ways to have open and honest conversations to explore what youth need today, for example. And help each of us to come into balance with our own feminine and masculine elements. Allow for diversity of opinions, which will help us understand that we are more similar than different. Listening becomes a major asset in the coming years. Imagine a world where we take our biggest problems and transform them into our greatest opportunities

#6 This is the Time to Become Whole Within Oneself

This is true at an individual and community level. Wholeness, harmony and balance are all-natural systems that surround us. It is humans that divide, label and create stories and beliefs. And we are each being called to address where we are divided and why. It is not an easy road as there will be many traps and seductions that test us along our path.

Our individual and collective stories of suffering and struggling shift when we make healthy choices and choose to no longer fight for our lives. More of us are becoming aware that we can thrive just as much as entering the battles of right and wrong, even though we may feel the magnetic pull to do so.

As more dare to step out of the conflicts and angst, we will find ourselves gravitating towards people, places and things that encourage dialogue, connection and true collaboration. More and more people want to dream together and live in communities where we grow food and laugh together with people and land we care about.  And when it comes to business, the days of siloed departments and cross-functional interlock processes are numbered.

When we pause, we will make time to become aware of what is calling us. And we will be surprised by people we assumed were “happy” with their life also wanting to make choices that impact well-being. What if suffering, struggling and misery can shift into a desire to simply thrive?

This happens when we begin to ask questions like why are we fighting? And what do we actually win at the end of the day? The future is calling us to become aware of the importance of wholeness not only at an individual level but organizations will need to heal the rift between divisions and create living systems that support their true purpose. 

What will happen when customers and employees become owners who are community-driven and interdependent? There is a lot of talk already about DAOs (distributed autonomous organizations), which are online communities owned and managed by their members.  Can collective ownership of small companies force big companies to take a look at how they are conducting themselves?

When every stakeholder of a DAO is deeply incentivized to help build, share and drive their brands, would that become a threat to the big brands?  What will happen when more and more people with a common goal get together, pool their resources and collectively collaborate to achieve a shared purpose? What can happen when more of us become owners in the businesses and marketplaces we frequent, including our local cafes, restaurants and hardware stores?

We are only starting to experiment as new ways of living and working are being created by us. We can give our trust to algorithms (likes, favorites and predictability) and people who have proven to be untrustworthy, or we can tap into our own intelligence and live like never before.

What is happening overall is that we are each starting to understand that we no longer need to be passive participants but it is up to us to hold companies, governments and ourselves accountable for the choices we make.

The future is here. It’s always a choice. Health is everything.

You can find Part I here https://ayeletbaron.com/forecasts/

2022 Predictions for the Future of Work
Thinkers360
November 05, 2021

We are witnessing the Great Questioning across the globe as more people become aware that the systems we have built are falling apart, especially when it comes to work and life. Organizational structures that were created in 1911 are still the foundation of many companies around the world and they no longer serve where we are headed.

In 2022, there will be continued turmoil around the world and it will allow people to see the divergent paths we can take: one leading to more misery and suffering and another opening portals of opportunity and possibility. And, a new conscious business movement is emerging around the world in the most unlikely places. Here are four trends on our horizon:

1) Conscious choices. The biggest shifts will come from small businesses who have a radical purpose and operate with conscious agreements, and practice self-management. These movements are starting organically and will increasingly demonstrate that we have a choice in how we work, who we are willing to work for and how we want to live. Change is coming from the edges and not the mainstream. And because we are so connected online and can bypass traditional media sources, more people will become aware of this new way of living and working. Technology levels the playing field.

2) Dialogue and Connection. The undercurrents that will be created will require today's leaders in large organizations to realize there is a major transformation happening in the workplace. Communication and dialogue are going to be increasingly important and they will no longer be able to delegate their responsibility to lead authentically and consciously to an executive communication function. 2022 is the year when walking the talk and closing the gap between words and actions will be what leaders will be asked to face. And many are not ready for this shift and will try to hang onto the ingrained command and control structure. But leading from the heart, in alignment with the mind, will be key to future success.

3) From Authority to Personal Accountability. There continues to be widespread mistrust of societal institutions and leaders around the world (Edelman Trust Barometer 2021). As more people question everything, we should not be surprised that the choices made will be more about making a life and less about making a living. More of us will begin to walk away from needing more and more and question what we really need. And it will no longer be the corner office, the trendy company or time away on endless business trips. The person who dies with the most possessions rarely wins. As more people learn to trust ourselves, we will witness people taking personal accountability in every aspect of life and 2022 is just the beginning of what will unfold over the next five years.

4) No more hiding in dark corners. Once we start questioning everything, the veil of reality is slowly revealed. We will no longer accept the status quo and move to the edges of what's possible by making conscious choices around what matters most. I can share from firsthand experience that this new world that will emerge by 2027 is being co-created right now. This is an exciting time when we realize that we are not here to change, fix or make our current broken world better. 2022 allows us to become aware that we have a choice: continue fighting for our lives or become powerful creators of our lives?

Is It Time to Step into Your Power?
Thinkers360
August 02, 2021

How to Lead from Your Heart
Thinkers360
May 30, 2021

This world — that we created and inherited — tells us that everything we need, even love, is outside of ourselves.

We have learned to not only seek knowledge and love outside ourselves, but we have also been conditioned to trust others before truly trusting our hearts. It is not surprising since we have learned from a very early age to live from our minds when our opportunity is to listen to the whispers of our hearts and integrate them with a healthy mindset.

The new age gurus will tell you that this is a time to move from your mind to your heart, but the truth is that the journey we are on right now is learning to listen to our heart and become healthy — mind, body and soul.

#1 Becoming Aware of Traps and Seductions

We have been conditioned to think that someone outside ourselves has our answers or holds our power. So many of us want to belong and be part of something bigger than ourselves. I’ve heard people say that they would be able to know right away if they were being recruited into a cult or someone’s scheme. But often, those of us who believe we are too smart to get sucked in are enticed by promises of self-improvement and a supportive community. In fact, over two-thirds of cult members are brought in by a family member or a friend who is deemed trustworthy.

When someone offers a front row seat to the secrets of the universe, anyone seeking answers can be tempted. And the seduction of being loved and cared for is what most are seeking. Anyone who has been in an abusive relationship has come into contact with an insidious liar and their trickster energy — someone pretending to be the exact opposite of their truth. Once you can clearly see the manipulation and deceit that is happening, you can start addressing the wounds and going to the root cause of your seduction. It takes a lot of compassion, self-reflection, and curiosity to heal ourselves.

Until we become aware of our seductions, the same type of people or experiences or bosses will come into our path. The first step is understanding and becoming aware of what and who can hook you into their story. And question everything from not just our mind, but your deep inner knowing. Listening deeply and questioning are key to unraveling and rewilding yourself. No one has your answers.

#2 Doing Your Work

Inner work involves healthy doses of undoing and unraveling. Flow is key as we tap into the intelligence of nature. We can choose to fight the wave and let it hit us with thousands of ripples of pain, or we can teach ourselves to ride the wave by Trusting the Currents. Each one of us has screwed up along the way and trusted people who were toxic to our well-being. It doesn’t mean that we must stay in our own prison when our opportunity is to learn and grow at our own pace.

The best revenge is no revenge; the best revenge is living well by learning to understand that our energy and attention are our most valuable assets, and how we invest and use them is up to us. It takes forgiveness of ourselves and courage to find our own path in our own way. Otherwise, we simply relive our history over and over with reruns and sequels of the same story.

Rumi, the thirteenth-century Persian poet, reminds us that “everyone has been made for some particular work, and the desire for that work has been put in our heart.” You choose whether you’re facing opportunities or challenges. You can create peace within yourself or you can war with yourself and those around you. When you imagine from the heart, you become aware that everything begins with a single thought in your mind. You have the ability, on your own or in a community, to imagine and create.

Many of us have cried, screamed, judged, blamed, and pointed fingers of shame. But once we take back our power through pursuing inner work, we can no longer remain victims. We can no longer afford to hide. The only path we can take is forward, accepting that we have the power to guide ourselves by following our hearts, which beat in harmony with the universe.

#3 Letting Go Means Making Space for Your Wildest Creations

Most of us have been encouraged to be a good person to others — and yet, similarly, most of us have never been encouraged to be kind, gentle, and compassionate with ourselves in a pure and loving way. We’re now faced with an opportunity to shift our stories, and shed the lifelong practices handed down to us by society and our ancestors.

We have an opportunity to become increasingly aware of what drives someone and how that truly impacts us. “One must shed the bad taste of wanting to agree with many. ‘Good’ is no longer good when one’s neighbor mouths it. And how should there be a ‘common good’! The term contradicts itself: whatever can be common always has little value. In the end it must be as it is and always has been great things remain for the great, abysses for the profound, nuances and shudders for the refined, and, in brief, all that is rare for the rare,” writes Friedrich Nietzsche in Beyond Good and Evil.

Despite all the success stories we hear, more people are becoming aware that everyone has a story. We can either succumb to be a victim or we can understand that we can control how we choose to respond and show up in our lives. What matters is what action we take: do we remain stuck in our past, or release ourselves by choosing a different path that may be unknown but healthier for us?

You hold great power and an inner ability to navigate your life. The noise and chaos in the external world continues to increase but the true question is whether you are able to trust yourself and let go of deep seeded fear, sadness, or anger. It’s okay to feel into each emotion but freedom comes when you learn to let them pass through you. When you hold on to the past with everything you have, you will experience more of the same. The unknown can be frightening or exhilarating. By breaking through false safety nets and entering uncharted waters, you reclaim your power and freedom. Letting go means making space for your wildest creations.

#4 Leadership is Not Outside Yourself

Leadership is not outside yourself, and it’s your time to understand that you don’t need false prophets, leaders, or profits to have a full life. It’s time for health-conscious souls to take our place in history and step into our power. It’s our time to create a healthy life, and world.

What is Your Heart Whispering to You?

You have a wealth of information to understand and claim from your own heart. All you are being asked to do is listen and question. Unlike lava, which spurts from a volcano and never holds back its pure eruptions, we have been trained to keep our feelings, thoughts, and desires inside ourselves. Do you feel a need to hold back or can you start releasing?

The cracks we are witnessing in the world are like cracks in the hardened arteries of the human heart. Can you feel the fracturing of the world and the unmasking of who you truly are at the heart of it all?

A heart-centered life is an extraordinary gift

Each of us is on our own unique journey, and once we discover our own wonder and have the courage to trek into the unknown, we can begin to explore what’s truly in our heart and find others who share our passion for whatever sparks us. It could be starting a garden or forming something to ignite the imagination of children. Though you believe in what you’re creating, you’ll meet many people who will laugh at you or judge you, and it will be up to you to keep going, by lifting yourself up and not taking on the fears of anyone else.

F*ck the Bucket List Trilogy is dedicated to anyone ready for a journey of a lifetime. This post weaves excerpts from the three books.

Leading from the Heart
Thinkers360
December 09, 2020

Conscious leaders are the light that shines on others, not to dominate or control others, but to help us ignite our own inner light and become a leader as well, so that we can find our higher purpose that drives connections, communication, and relationships. Conscious leaders are not perfect, but we are willing to go through the challenging process of transformation to become more whole. We are more likely to be giving, vulnerable, compassionate, and inspiring, though we will not necessarily possess all such traits.

What is Your Moment of Truth in 2020 and Beyond?
Thinkers360
December 08, 2020

Perhaps what December 2020 is really asking from us is to be open to let go of what has outlived its usefulness, because when we become aware of death, we simultaneously open the door to birth. And that is where we find ourselves right now, enter It takes work, and at some point, you make a sacrifice of your old self to birth a new world and emerge aligned to your true nature, and nature itself. The process of transformation is a death and a birth. They are one. They are interconnected in flow. The Zen Japanese term shoji means birth-death. There is no separation between life and death other than a hyphen that connects the two. You cannot truly be alive without being aware of death. Death is always with us, helping us to discover what matters most and serves as a teacher of letting go.