Brian Allain

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From “Secrets in the Dark: A Life in Sermons” by Frederick Buechner We all want to be certain, we all want proof, but the kind of proof we tend to want – scientifically or philosophically demonstrable proof that would silence all doubts once and for all – would not in the long run, I think,

From the NY Times

From the NY Times

From “Innovation and Entrepreneurship” by Peter F. Drucker Successful entrepreneurs do not wait until “the Muse kisses them” and gives them a “bring idea”: they go to work. Altogether, they do not look for the “biggie,” the innovation that will “revolutionize the industry,” create a billion-dollar business,” or “make one rich overnight.” Those entrepreneurs who

From “Let Your Life Speak: Listening for the Voice of Vocation” by Parker J. Palmer Behind this understanding of vocation is a truth that the ego does not want to hear because it threatens the ego’s turf: everyone has a life that is different from the “I” of daily consciousness, a life that is trying

From “Discernment: Reading the Signs of Daily Life” by Henri Nouwen with Michael J. Christensen and Rebecca J. Laird “Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him,” but as soon as they recognize him, he disappears from their sight. In the same moment as the two friends recognize him in the breaking of the

From “Mindset: The New Psychology of Success” by Carol S. Dweck, PhD Studies show that people are terrible at estimating their abilities. Recently, we set out to see who is most likely to do this. Sure, we found that people greatly misestimated their performance and their ability. But it was those with the fixed mindset

From “Where Good Ideas Come From: The Natural History of Innovation” by Steven Johnson Shared environments often take the form of a real-world public space, what the sociologist Ray Oldenburg famously called the “third place,” a connective environment distinct from the more insular world of home or office. The eighteenth-century English coffeehouse fertilized countless Enlightenment-era

From “The Discipline of Inspiration: The Mysterious Encounter with God at the Heart of Creativity” by Carey Wallace It’s clear that too much constraint, especially in the form of poverty and stress, can crush an artist. And the removal of those difficulties can lead to profound flowering of important work. When patrons made it possible