Gregory Loewen

I've been reflecting on a tendency we humans have: our fascination with taking things apart. I'm sure my parents often wondered where things around the house had disappeared to, only to discover them later spread across my bedroom floor. I'd dissected them to understand their inner workings. I wanted to know what made them tick. Putting them back together... well, I wasn't nearly as good at that. We separate, refine, isolate, and concentrate. We seem to believe that if we can reduce something...

I was speaking to a friend the other day about belief. Not a general discussion about what they believed in, but whether or not those beliefs were harmful to others. Does it make them kinder, more open, more compassionate? Or does it give them permission to judge, exclude, shame, or treat someone as less worthy? That’s the part that matters. A belief can sound holy and still cause harm. You can dress it up in spiritual language, quote scripture, wrap it in tradition, but if it needs someone...

At 67 years old, I think I’m finally starting to understand myself. For most of my life, I believed there was something wrong with me. My mother used to call me lazy. My teachers would tell me I had “so much potential if only I applied myself.” I look at the graveyard of business ideas behind me. I was endlessly energized by creating things — new ventures, concepts, experiences, brands, stories. The beginning stages lit me up. But once the excitement settled into structure, maintenance, or...