Death is part of the human condition. It’s something we will all experience and go through. On this dojo, Tony talks openly about how short and fragile life is- we never know when we will go, so how can we spend the time we have in a way that is meaningful and fulfilling. There is so much we can learn from death- how we process it and how important it is to implement those lessons into our lives. Tony’s hope for those listening to this dojo is for death to become an important teacher for us and to start thinking about how we can process death in a way that helps to serve us.

Resources:

• Five Stages of Grief by Elisabeth Kubler Ross & David Kessler

On today’s episode, we welcome back Mark Bennett, who joins Tony in a vulnerable conversation about death and losing loved ones. Mark shares the lessons that he’s learning from death and also, how it relates to organizational growth. Mark conveys how organizations need to prepare with coming to terms with letting go of old habits or patterns of doing business, and how we need to let go of the notion of returning to how things were before the pandemic. He dives into how organizations can grow from deaths of certain aspects that may be holding the back their progress. Mark also offers advice on how to reconcile relationships within a organizations or within families.

Mark brings tremendous value on this episode. On a personal level- we are all going to experience the passing of loved ones, and learning how to move through that process helps us in our personal lives. On an organizational level- how can we be apart of an organization in a way that helps it grow and achieve its mission, especially now when we are challenged in ways we’ve never been challenged before and how we can live to be our highest purpose every day.

Mark D. Bennett is the principal of Uniting by Design LLC, a consulting firm with a mission to help leaders unite organizations that deliver superior results, earn ethical reputations, and adapt to change. 

He left the practice of law for graduate study in counseling psychology and family therapy. Then, he began to work with a wide range of organization disputes as a full time mediator. These disputes included staff, leaders, and boards of businesses, nonprofits, government agencies, and international organizations.

Twenty five years ago, he shifted his focus from cleaning up organizational problems to promoting organizational health. He serves as a workshop presenter on leadership, teaming, conflict resolution, values-based decision making, and creative collaboration. He is also a leadership coach and facilitates collaboration, wise planning, and critical decision making. 

He has written three books:

• Uniting by Design: the Architecture of Creative Collaboration (2021) - a practical guide to building collaboration in organizations, leadership teams, work teams, alliances, and partnerships.

The Art of Mediation, 2d edition (2005) – the skills of conflict resolution and principled negotiation to help people bridge differences, make agreements, and make peace.

Episode Resources:

• Mark Bennett | Website

If you have topics you'd like for us to discuss with our community and listeners, leave a comment or contact us at [email protected]!

For More Information visit: Center For Independent Li

In the previous dojo, we talked about what humility is and what it isn’t. On today’s dojo, Tony is going to dive into humility as it pertains to learning, society, and personal growth.

Resources:

• Think Again, by Adam Grant

Marisol Rose is a State Parent Consultant for the Early Steps Program at the Florida Department of Health. She joins us today to share her experiences with having a son and daughter with a disability. Marisol talks about accessing Early Steps, a phenomenal resource that helped her our along her journey in raising her two children with disabilities, and how she came to work for the agency.

Early Steps is Florida's early intervention system that offers services to eligible infants and toddlers, age birth to 36 months, who have or are at-risk for developmental disabilities or delays. Early intervention supports families and caregivers to increase their child’s participation in daily activities and routines that are important to the family.

Positive early learning experiences are crucial for later success in school, the workplace, and the community. Research shows that children’s earliest experiences play a critical role in brain development.

15 Local Early Steps (LES) throughout the state receive referrals from various primary referral sources. Infants and toddlers are assessed in the following developmental domains to determine eligibility: physical, cognitive, communication, social-emotional and adaptive.

Each child receives an Individualized Family Support Plan (IFSP) that meets his or her unique needs. Families also receive support to develop the skills and confidence needed in helping their child learn and develop.

Services will support children in their communities where they live, learn and play. There is no income requirement to qualify for the program and although families may choose to allow access to insurance or Medicaid benefits, families are not charged for services.

Resources:

• Early Steps

On today’s dojo, Tony talks about what he considers to be one of the highest virtues and values that we as humans, can embrace: humility. What is humility, what is it not? The Oxford Dictionary defines humility as a modest or low view of one’s own self importance. Another definition of humility that Tony has found to be more fitting for himself personally, is that humility is freedom from pride and arrogance.

On this episode, Tony talks through the life lessons he’s learn, especially in regards to disability through the lens of humility and providing services. He shares that often times, his entryway into humility is going through an experience where he feels vulnerable, when he’s needing to ask for help- and in doing so, he’s leaning into his fears and insecurities. When he is then in a position where others are asking him for help, it provides him a life experience to draw upon and have empathy for others that he recognizes are coming from a place of vulnerability and perhaps just needing some assistance. A valuable lesson he’s learned is how humility provides an opportunity to be grateful for the things you have and to be of service.

If you have topics you'd like for us to discuss with our community and listeners, leave a comment or contact us at [email protected]! We'd love to have guests participate with Tony on our Disability Dojos- so if that person is you, reach out and let us know!

For More Information visit: Center For Independent Living of North Central Florida

• 352-378-7474 (Gainesville office)

“The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by an endless series of hobgoblins, most of them imaginary.” -H.L. Mencken

We are back with Jane Johnson this week, as she provides us with an update for the current legislative session. 'Tis the season of legislators positioning themselves for future re-elections! So, what does this mean? This means we are in a legislative season where we can expect a lot of red meat issues that really pander to the base and can be very divisive. The issues that Jane and Tony cover on this episode, however, aren't those red meat issues that typically get overblown in the media. Instead, the issues we’re advocating for as a Florida Association For Centers For Independent Living are real issues that affect real people. Some of these issues are related to funding that will allow people to stay in their homes, to provide home modifications, durable medical equipment, and assistive technologies, to name a few. One of the most fruitful parts of today's conversation is to help us, the residents of the state of Florida and for anyone who follows politics, to not be bamboozled by issues that are meant to distract us. They also talk about what we can do to not buy into the issues that are intentionally meant to be illusive in order to create fear, division, and keep us polarized.

For helpful general information and links to the House and Senate websites, statutes, the Florida Constitution and a directory of Florida lobbyists visit: Online Sunshine

You can also visit:

• Florida House of Representatives

Salvation comes from finding purpose, meaning, and fulfillment in life. In our previous two long form interviews, we had the privilege of having Jacob Atem, who shared his story of survival, resiliency, and adovacy. In this dojo, Tony takes the opportunity to reflect upon the lessons and takeways he’s received from knowing and talking to Jacob:

• Perspective

Listen to our Interview with Jacob:

• Surviving Civil War and The Journey of a Lost Boy with Jacob Atem

Resources:

• Jacob Atem

Jacob was six years old when his parents and several of his siblings were killed by northern Sudanese Arab militias waging war on southern Sudan. The militia entered his village, killed men, kidnapped women and children and burned homes to the ground. Jacob was in a nearby cattle field during the attack. He ran to the forest with his older cousin to escape danger when he saw the smoke rising from the village. That day was the beginning of a thousand-mile journey for Jacob as he searched for protection amidst war.

During their journey, with northern forces closely behind, they often hid during the day and walked all night. With lion attacks a constant danger, they made timetables to decide who would sleep while the other stood watch. They ran from lion attacks and swam through alligator-infested waters, and eventually they made it to safety in Kenya.

Listen to Part 1 of our conversation with Jacob: Surviving Civil War and The Journey of a Lost Boy with Dr. Jacob Atem

Resources:

Jacob stayed in Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya until he came to the United States when he was 15. He was sent to Michigan, where he lived with a foster family and received his high school and college education. Jacob traveled to the University of Florida to get his Ph.D. after he received his bachelors and master’s degree in Michigan. He currently lives in Florida with his wife, Linda, and his two kids, Samuel Dut and Theodore Yai. He graduated in December 2017 with his Ph.D. in environmental and global health, and he plans to use his education to help people around the world.

On this dojo, we continue the dialogue on how we are all called to live our life’s purpose and it is our job to find what that purpose is. Unfortunately, many of us have an un-lived life because the of the resistance, an invisible force that can felt and heard, preventing us from living our calling. On this episode, Tony shares some strategies on how to beat the resistance, which aims to bring us down:

1. Understanding and having faith that resistance is something that’s real

Resources:

Steven Pressfield: The War of Art

The Resistance Behind Behavioral Change

How the Resistance Manifests in Our Daily Lives

Paying Attention to Stress

Behavioral Techniques for Stress

Cognitive Base Strategies to Deal With Stress in Healthy Ways

Jacob was six years old when his parents and several of his siblings were killed by northern Sudanese Arab militias waging war on southern Sudan. The militia entered his village, killed men, kidnapped women and children and burned homes to the ground. Jacob was in a nearby cattle field during the attack. He ran to the forest with his older cousin to escape danger when he saw the smoke rising from the village. That day was the beginning of a thousand-mile journey for Jacob as he searched for protection amidst war.

During their journey, with northern forces closely behind, they often hid during the day and walked all night. With lion attacks a constant danger, they made timetables to decide who would sleep while the other stood watch. They ran from lion attacks and swam through alligator-infested waters, and eventually they made it to safety in Kenya.

Jacob stayed in Kakuma refugee camp in Kenya until he came to the United States when he was 15. He was sent to Michigan, where he lived with a foster family and received his high school and college education. Jacob traveled to the University of Florida to get his Ph.D. after he received his bachelors and master’s degree in Michigan. He currently lives in Florida with his wife, Linda, and his two kids, Samuel Dut and Theodore Yai. He graduated in December 2017 with his Ph.D. in environmental and global health, and he plans to use his education to help people around the world.

Resources:

• Jacob Atem