Dalai Lama Foundation Study Circle Montreal

Each of you is perfect the way you are … and you can use a little improvement. — Shunryu Suzuki

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Tip of the Day:
Criticism isn’t always easy to receive — and yet, it can be transformed into an opportunity for personal growth, emotional development, time efficiency, improved relationships, and self-confidence. This article shares 25 reasons to embrace criticism: “I realize criticism doesn’t always come gently from someone legitimately trying to help. A lot of the feedback we receive is unsolicited and doesn’t come from teachers — or maybe all of it does. We can’t control what other people will say to us, whether they’ll approve or form opinions and share them. But we can control how we internalize it, respond to it, and learn from it, and when we release it and move on. If you’ve been having a hard time dealing with criticism lately, it may help to remember the following:” http://www.dailygood.org/more.php?n=4648

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Be The Change:
This week, keep yourself open to criticism — and turn it into an opportunity to grow.

**Share A Reflection**
http://www.dailygood.org/view.php?qid=4648

If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other. — Mother Teresa

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Good News of the Day:
Kecia Cruz’s son had been sleeping on a cold linoleum floor since returning to live with his mother nearly two weeks ago. Cruz has served time in prison and her son is a recovering drug addict. Cruz sees her child’s return as a second chance. She didn’t want him sleeping on the floor, but she didn’t know where to turn. Her neighbor had an answer: Beremedy — an organization that utilizes social media such as Twitter, Facebook and blogs to streamline the donation of food, clothing and furniture to people in need. The name is a short way to say “you be the remedy for someone in need. Within 15 minutes of posting Cruz’s need, a hairstylist with a spare mattress responded. In the spirit of generosity Beremedy connects the dots this way multiple times a day — every single day. http://www.dailygood.org/more.php?n=4638

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Be The Change:
Find a way to connect to needs in your own neighborhood.

**Share A Reflection**
http://www.dailygood.org/view.php?qid=4638

When you enter the moment with heightened awareness, what you need to do becomes obvious. You discover that you already have the answers. — Patricia Ryan Madson

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Good News of the Day:
How does an act of imagination happen? How does the mind create on command? Recent experiments have attempted to figure out the mystery behind this kind of creativity, from John Coltrane letting loose on a saxophone to Jackson Pollock dripping paint on a canvas. These are works made entirely in the moment – their beauty is spontaneous. Researchers have found that before a single note was played, jazz improv pianists exhibited a “deactivation” of the DLPFC, a brain area associated with planned actions and self-control. They were inhibiting their inhibitions, which allowed them to create without worrying about what they were creating. There was also a spike in the medial prefrontal cortex, an area often linked with self-expression. This article delves further into how creativity springs from a choreographed set of mental events. http://www.dailygood.org/more.php?n=4647

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Be The Change:
There are times to plan, and times to substitute attention for preparation. A Stanford Theater Professor on knowing when to improvise: http://www.dailygood.org/more.php?n=4647a

**Share A Reflection**
http://www.dailygood.org/view.php?qid=4647

Cleverness is a gift, kindness is a choice. Gifts are easy — they’re given after all. Choices can be hard. You can seduce yourself with your gifts if you’re not careful, and if you do, it’ll probably be to the detriment of your choices. — Jeff Bezos

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Good News of the Day:
It’s graduation season, so commencement addresses by actors, politicians, writers, musicians and other luminaries are sweeping the world of higher education, sharing advice ranging from the humorous to the profound. Even for those of us that aren’t students, it becomes an opportunity to reflect on the most compelling, provocative and deeply inspirational speeches of years past. This article highlights five favorites — including offerings from J.K. Rowling, Steve Jobs, and Meryl Streep — that delve into the benefits of failure, what calligraphy has to do with Apple’s success, and the nature of gifts vs. choices. http://www.dailygood.org/more.php?n=4646

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Be The Change:
Consider what your own “words to live by” would be, and take steps to be in increased alignment with them.

**Share A Reflection**
http://www.dailygood.org/view.php?qid=4646

In every community there is work to be done. In every nation, there are wounds to heal. In every heart there is the power to do it. — Marianne Williamson

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Inspiration of the Day:
Alice Pyne, 15, has been battling a deadly form of cancer for the last four years that is now spreading throughout her body. Last week at her mother’s suggestion the teenager started a blog for friends and family, titled “Alice’s Bucket List” and included her life wishes (high on the list were swimming with sharks and having everybody sign up as bone marrow donors). No one anticipated the tidal wave of support that followed. Thanks to the internet, in less than a week hundreds of thousands all over the world, including Britain’s Prime Minister, had rallied to help Alice check off as many of her bucket list items as possible. http://www.dailygood.org/more.php?n=4645

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Be The Change:
Write Alice a note of support and well-wishes.
http://www.dailygood.org/more.php?n=4645a

**Share A Reflection**
http://www.dailygood.org/view.php?qid=4645

Life shrinks and expands in proportion to one’s courage. — Anais Nin

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Good News of the Day:
After finishing high school in New Jersey, Maggie Doyne took a gap year during which she did service projects and cultural programs in South Asia. In India, she met a teenage refugee who had escaped Nepal seven years earlier. Maggie felt moved to accompany the girl back to Nepal in search of her family. In the process, she was deeply touched by the orphans she met in the villages. “It was really this rude awakening,” Maggie said. “I thought, it only takes $5 admission and $5 for a uniform to put her into school. Why can’t I do that?” So Maggie had her parents wire her all $5000 of her life savings, using it to build an orphanage and then a school for children in that remote area. She continues to run it at the ripe age of 24. http://www.dailygood.org/more.php?n=4631

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Be The Change:
Follow your inner voice and take a small but courageous step today.

**Share A Reflection**
http://www.dailygood.org/view.php?qid=4631

If I have seen further than others, it is by standing upon the shoulders of giants. — Isaac Newton

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Tip of the Day:
When people think of mentoring, they often think of an older executive counseling a young upstart. The senior leader advises the junior employee on his career, how to navigate the world of work, and what she needs to do to get ahead. But mentoring has changed a lot in the last few decades. The traditional mentor-mentee relationship is not necessarily a thing of the past, but it’s no longer the standard. Now, there are many ways to get the information and guidance you need. This article from the Harvard Business Review expands on four myths of mentoring, including: “You have to find one perfect mentor,” “Mentoring is a formal long-term relationship,” and “Mentoring is for junior people.” http://www.dailygood.org/more.php?n=4643

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Be The Change:
Have you benefited from an inspiring mentorship? Share your experiences with other readers here. http://www.dailygood.org/more.php?n=4643a

**Share A Reflection**
http://www.dailygood.org/view.php?qid=4643