Who we are in practice

I’ve been dwelling on a quote from Herminia Ibarra from the London Business School:  “We learn who we are in practice, not in theory.”  Observing my own practice disconnecting with who I believe I am in theory has been disconcerting lately.  I went back to my mission statement, written MANY years ago:

“To each day, live the legacies I will leave by: maintaining my integrity at all times; supporting what I believe through my actions; being present for all who need me; being my true self, understanding and analyzing the perceptions I create, and working to make who I am, who I think I am, and whom others think I am one and the same; and finding good in others, lessons in experiences, and enjoying the journey of life.”

While I certainly haven’t been working at living up to my entire mission lately, I’m glad to report that I have not gone so deep into a rabbit hole of just being a cranky old bitch that I can’t turn crawl back out.  Comparing notes with fellow “caregivers” and others who find the world just a little “off” right now help me realize that I’m not as crazy as I think I am (or others are as crazy as I am?).

Now I’m dwelling on St. Augustine’s observation:  “This awful catastrophe is not the end but the beginning. History does not end so. It is the way its chapters open.”

Let’s see where that takes me.