What is Superforecasting? Well imagine the ability to consistently predict world events, or the stock market, or even an election. Philip Tetlock has spent the last decade overseeing a government funded contest to see who the best forecasters really are. And the findings are in the book Superforecasting: The Art and Science of Prediction.
Do you ever feel overwhelmed by all the ways we’re suppose to make a difference in the world? We’re suppose to eat certain foods, wear certain shoes, support certain organizations, “like” certain Facebook posts … sigh … sometimes it all feels overdone. A type of “justice fatigue” sets in. How can we stay committed to justice and mercy and not feel like Sisyphus, constantly pushing a rock up the hill?
Kent Annan has written Slow Kingdom Coming: Practices for Doing Justice, Loving Mercy and Walking Humbly in the World so we can all take a deep breath and get back …
A friend asked what have been the best books of the first quarter of 2016. I’ve read about three dozen this year and after looking through the list it was easy to spot what I thought were the best. Decided to break them down into three categories reflecting the genres I’ve read most.
My favorite fictional book has to be The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah. Beautifully written story of two sisters in France during World War II, and how they handled their impossible situations. Simply brilliant. A second choice would be the mystery Adios Hemingway by Leonardo Padura Fuentes.
My …
This isn’t a long review of the book Pirate Hunters, by Robert Kurson, but I wanted to post a strong recommendation for this modern day adventure story. It caught my attention because of my love for Belize (a nation on the Caribbean coast with a long history of pirates).
There’s nothing quite like a true life adventure, and this book delivers a fast paced account of modern treasure hunters using the latest technology — and thorough research — to identify an actual sunken pirate ship in the Caribbean. Not just any pirate led this particular ship, but the multi-talented …
Years ago I was given a little book by David Livermore about the importance of cultural understanding in short term missions. Since then I’ve read pretty much everything David has written, and his most recent book Driven by Difference: How Great Companies Fuel Innovation Through Diversity
What I like about this book is the emphasize on “how” instead of the “why.” I’ve read all the books and articles about why diversity is important. I’ve watched the TED talks and sat in seminars about cultural awareness. I’ve taken the CQ and IDI and all the other tests …
Several months ago my friend Ken Wytsma asked me to comment on a book he was writing. He sent the pdf version and it surprised me to learn the topic was on creativity. Not that Ken isn’t a creative person — just the opposite actually. He’s written two books already, started the significant Justice Conference, pastored a church in Bend, and launched a new college. He’s plenty creative! But it’s rare to see a ministry leader focus on a topic that is usually the domain of social scientists or tech leaders.
The first draft of Create vs. Copy: Embrace Change. …
If you are in leadership then you probably spend time thinking about resource allocation. To simplify that phrase, you probably have had to decide where to focus your energy, talent, and capital. This is true whether you run a Fortune 500 company or coach a little league team.
It’s one of the most important things a leader has to do. Taking the time to do it isn’t always easy — there are so many things to do that seem urgent. But reflecting on our priorities is a necessary habit we all need to develop.
I recently read The Outsiders: Eight …
A friend of mine, Pam, is a bright person seeking to solve many of the challenges of our era. She’s doing good work for the right reasons in a graceful way.
Pam was visiting my daughter and there was a case of my wine on the kitchen counter. I purchased the wine online and my daughter had picked it up for me.
I’m still not sure what happened, but somehow Pam dropped a bottle of the wine onto the tile kitchen floor.
And it exploded. Usually a bottle just bounces back — wine bottles are remarkably rugged.
But this time …
