Meaningful Mondays - Arrows Out

Is This a Herpes Moment?

"Communication isn't about what you say. Communication is the response you get."

"Anytime you use something that is 'true' to deceive, mislead, or be self-serving, it is a lie, not the TRUTH."

If people walk away confused, hurt, or misled- even if what we said was technically true- we failed as leaders (communicators).

Stop asking "What Was I Thinking?" and replace it with this...

"A reliable system turns guilt-driven ‘yeses’ into purpose-driven ‘no’s."
- Lee Brower

"Clarity about what matters provides clarity about what does not."
- Cal Newport, Deep Work.

"94% of all failures are the result of the system."
- W. Edwards Deming

When you say "yes" to something, what are you saying "no" to?

Most interesting birthday. Go BIG'R

“Can I begin this day with the intentionality, confidence, and courage to say no—even to the very important—so that I can accomplish the essential yeses that move me closer to my most meaningful future?”

“This next year doesn’t have to be my best yet…it GETS to be.”

“If I ever go looking for my heart’s desire again, I won’t look any further than my own backyard… Because if it isn’t there, I never really lost it to begin with.”
—Dorothy, The Wizard of Oz

"Don’t just look back with gratitude. Look forward with expectant gratitude. Say no to the noise— So you can say 'yes' to what truly matters."

The Greatest Super Power

“The first job of a leader—at work or at home—is to inspire trust. You don’t manage people—you model trust, extend it, and grow together."
- Stephen M. R. Covey

“Trust is the one trait that consistently boosts happiness at every age.”
— Research by Utrecht University, 2025

“Trust doesn’t follow leadership. Trust is leadership.”
- Lee Brower

In Th'River, we believe in flow—in letting trust move through us, not just to us.

“What’s the One Word That Separates Good Leaders from Great Ones?”

“You cannot overestimate the unimportance of practically everything.”
- John C. Maxwell

"Did my choices today reveal what I say matters most?"
- Lee Brower

“The key is not to prioritize what's on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities.”
- Stephen R. Covey

"We don't drift into meaning. We don't stumble into legacy. We choose our way there--one moment, one choice at a time."
- Lee Brower

When the Ice is Real but the Emotion is Gone

But here’s the thing—character doesn’t just show up in heroic moments. It shows up in keeping your word… even when it’s inconvenient and even when it is only to you.

Character is the ability to carry out a worthwhile decision once the emotion of making that decision has passed.

Scooters Wall

"A new identity doesn't erase the past. It reclaims the future."
- Lee Brower

"I am not what I used to be, not what I ought to be, and not what I am going to be, but I am thankful I am not what I used to be."
- Coach John Wooden

A Standby Moment

The image was fake. The "bias" was real. The truth was different.

"Bias is like a weed. It starts out small. But left to its own, it grows deep, spreads wide, and quietly chokes out better thoughts."
— Lee Brower

"We do not see things as they are, we see them as we are."
— Anaïs Nin
(our perspective is often colored by internal bias- unless we pause and we pivot.)

"The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge."
— Stephen Hawking

"Until you make the unconscious conscious, it will direct your life and you will call it fate."
— Carl Jung
( e.g. biPas™-- pausing to recognize and redirect unconscious bias.)

"What is not named cannot be transformed."
— Dr. Edith Eger, Holocaust survivor and psychologist.
(Supports making 'Standby Moment' an asset, not just an anecdote.)

"Just This Once..."

"Small choices make big ripples."

"What would your future self say about that choice?"

"Just this once" leads to convenience. "No matter what" leads to conviction. Conviction leads to character.

“It’s easier to hold to your principles 100% of the time than it is to hold to them 98%.”
— Clayton Christensen

Can you name two of the most powerful words a mother can utter?

Mothers are the nurturers of the world.

“Motherhood isn’t just about biology. It’s a calling to nurture, to comfort, to notice someone else’s need and do something about it.”

The Ripple of a "mother-hearted" life doesn’t ask, “Are you mine?” It simply says, “You matter.”