Independence: Making a Difference

May 9, 2016

 Latham Centers celebrates belonging, mastery, generosity and independence.

Monthly, Latham Centers’ staffers write short articles for our staff newsletter. This month, Tim Vaughan, Director of Leadership and Growth, wrote a particularly compelling piece about “Making a Difference.”

“Think back to the beginning of your career. Do you remember that feeling of wanting to make a difference and believing that you could single handedly change the world? Even though Life can temper this idealism, this is still an urge that is burned into our DNA. Steve Jobs once said, ‘We are here to put a dent in the universe.’

“When a person’s ‘independence’ – the desire to ‘put a dent in the universe’ – gets blocked, people act out in all sorts of ways. They become disengaged; mired in negativity; or overly defensive. If you, [or someone you know] are feeling any of these feelings, understand that these problems can be filled.

“Latham doesn’t just want to encourage your voice and development to take more control, but we require it. Our work [is] truly successful only when we all enjoy having a voice in our work while feeling a responsibility to make thing better.”

While reflecting on Tim’s thoughts I couldn’t help but think: What can I do to make a bigger dent in our universe? How can I make a positive difference in someone else’s life every day?