by Melissa Dinwiddie | Sep 21, 2023 | Articles, Culture, Innovation
“I could never do what you do,” Rachel said. “But I really wish I could!” We were chatting at a potluck on Saturday afternoon, after Rosh Hashanah services where I had been one of several song leaders, leading rounds from the elevated stage...
by Melissa Dinwiddie | Sep 5, 2023 | Articles, Innovation, Leadership
“I wanted to apologize,” started the note. “I’ve been thinking a lot about you since yesterday, and I’m sorry for missing chords and getting lost when accompanying you on the bandstand.” I was stunned. My accompanist was...
by Melissa Dinwiddie | Aug 17, 2023 | Articles, Innovation, Leadership
Back in the late 90s and early 2000s, when I made my living as a professional calligrapher and artist, I did quite a bit of itinerant teaching. My favorite part of teaching calligraphy (or anything, really) was figuring out how to explain a concept in a way that...
by Melissa Dinwiddie | Jun 6, 2023 | Articles, Innovation, Leadership, Play, Team Development
“This isn’t resonating for me,” Deborah said. We were part way through an exercise I’d devised specifically for this group — a team of devoted staff members at a mid-size nonprofit organization. After two years of working 100% remotely, half the team had never...
by Melissa Dinwiddie | Mar 23, 2023 | Articles, Innovation, Leadership, Play
My husband is an unrepentant generalist. (Kind of like his wife.) He calls himself a Human Swiss Army Knife®. His YouTube account is filled with science stuff, makers, back-to-the-land folks, tiny homes, auto mechanics & car reviewers, inventors, movie trailers,...
by Melissa Dinwiddie | Mar 17, 2023 | Articles, Innovation, Leadership, Play
This week I kicked off a series of leadership trainings for a creative agency, to help their top leaders, influencers, and high potentials: ✅ Connect better with audiences (be they clients, or internal audiences) ✅ Tell stories (as opposed to spitting out...