Memo From Michael: Teachers and Tornadoes

Once I got past the awe of witnessing Mother Nature’s astonishing power to wreak devastation in Oklahoma, I was awed by something more positive and uplifting: the instinctive capacity of our species to care about, come to the aid of, and — for those caught in the middle of the calamity — to even sacrifice their own lives for others.

A Letter from Bogota: What Do You Think About CHARACTER COUNTS! in Colombia?

I am writing this post from Bogota, Colombia. I am halfway through a full week of high-level meetings and various presentations to educators, parents and government officials. What am I talking about? Ethics and character, of course. More specifically, I am sharing my thoughts and the Institute’s strategies and programs dealing with character development, parenting, education reform and the corruption …

Memo from Michael: Bittersweet Moments of Fatherhood

When my four daughters were genuinely little girls, every milestone was a new source of joy and pride. Now that they are young women, there’s still great pride as they reach new stages of emancipation, but joy isn’t really the right word. To be honest, it feels more like sadness invoking all the clichés ever uttered about the bittersweet moments …

Memo From Michael: Thoughts on Coaching and Integrity

You’ve doubtless heard about the Rutgers University basketball coach, Mike Rice, who is shown on video in serial acts over two years abusing athletes and, quite simply, acting like a complete jerk. He was shown screaming homophobic slurs at his athletes, grabbing and pushing them and throwing basketballs at them from close range. The conduct was so over-the-top inappropriate that the discussion …

A Personal Note From Michael

It’s been an interesting and challenging couple of weeks with three major events taking place in my life: 1) I just returned from a 4-day trip to Hawaii. I was there to address the 4-H Western Regional Leadership Forum – about 300 staff, volunteer and student leaders of one of the oldest youth programs in the nation. 4-H has been …

Memo From Michael: Remembering Dr. Jerry Buss

Last week, the sports world lost one of its giants. A man who made his imprint not only on his team and his sport, but on those who worked with him and for him. Jerry Buss, the people that knew him best called him Dr. Buss, died at the age of 80 leaving behind an army of admirers. Buss was not …

Memo From Michael: The Loss of Daddyhood

I’ve written extensively about my children. I have five of them: four teenage girls and a son approaching 40 (impossible to believe). I’ve written less about them lately for several reasons: 1) they are not quite as cute; 2) they say really clever things less often; 3) they are much less interested in spending time with me. And, the biggest …

Memo From Michael: Take a Stand on Gay Rights

One thing I’ve learned in the 813 weeks I’ve been writing and posting these commentaries is that some people who love you (or at least say they do) can turn on a dime if you disagree with them on something fundamentally important to them. So I confess I think twice (or more) before I publish a commentary I know will …

Memo From Michael: A Father-Daughter Adventure

I just returned from a nearly 3-week journey to Southeast Asia with my daughter Samara (a 19 year-old sophomore at NYU). It was an exceptional trip. We visited parts of the world I’d never been before – Singapore, Thailand, Cambodia, Viet Nam and China (Hong Kong) and the exposure to the vast array of cultures and languages in this part …

Michael Josephson Named One of the Top Thought Leaders in Trustworthy Business Behavior

Trust Across America has named Michael Josephson one of the 100 Top Thought Leaders in Trustworthy Business Behavior for 2013. Also on the list is Josephson Institute Board of Governors member Roger Bolton, who is president of the Arthur W. Page Society. Trust Across America researches and seeks to enhance the trustworthiness of organizations in the United States. It publishes this list of …

Memo From Michael: The Best is Yet to Come

Happy New Year. Think of today as the first day of the rest of your life. As I said in my last note, I am committed to prove the best is yet to come and I am beginning this year with an extraordinary experience. I will be leaving tomorrow for a cruise to Southeast Asia with my oldest daughter, Samara …

New Year’s Wishes From Michael

I hope you had a great Christmas or Hanukkah and, if you had time to spend with your extended family, that you had a wonderful time or, if such occasions are not uniformly a source of joy, that you, nevertheless, found reasons to be happy and grateful. This year has been unusually challenging for me, so I suppose I am …

Memo From Michael: Thoughts on Turning 70

I am approaching this last month of 2012 with optimism but a special eagerness to enter a completely new year, a blank canvas on which I hope to paint a grand mural of another year’s worth of challenges and successes. I confess that I have some trepidation approaching my 70th birthday (December 10) – that really, really sounds old to …

Memo From Michael: Difference Between Expressing and Experiencing Gratitude

Please accept my sincere good wishes that your Thanksgiving celebration is gratifying. I’ve talked before (and again in Commentary #802.2) about the difference between expressing and experiencing gratitude. I think both are important but they are quite different. Expressing gratitude to people who deserve your thanks is more like a duty, the payment of a debt. It is a way to demonstrate …

Memo From Michael: So Much to Be Thankful For

I begin the 801st week of these commentaries with a profound sense of gratitude – the perfect attitude for the days leading up to Thanksgiving. High on my list is the privilege of communicating my thoughts to so many people. I am particularly grateful that I have been able to touch some lives in a meaningful way. I am grateful …

Memo From Michael: Celebrating 800 Weeks of Commentaries

First, I need to pause in personal amazement to note that this week’s newsletter achieves a milestone I never thought I’d reach – this is the 800th week that I’ve been publishing my thoughts on just about anything I think about. Eight hundred weeks – that’s more than 15 years. I’ll be turning 70 in a month so it’s a test …

Memo From Michael: Gratitude, Compassion and Civic Duty in the Wake of Sandy

The unprecedented devastation caused by Hurricane Sandy challenges us to be both more grateful for all we have and compassionate, genuinely compassionate, toward those who have suffered life-altering losses. At the same time, a very important election is coming up and it deserves your attention and participation. It’s frustrating that many of us live in solid blue or red states, …

The Rules of the Game, by Olympic Gold Medalist John Naber

Several years ago, Josephson Institute edited a book of 41 essays called The Power of Character. Among the accomplished and interesting contributors was John Naber, who won four gold medals and one silver medal in swimming at the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal, setting four world records in the process. Now, with the London Games in full swing, we are pleased to …

COMMENTARY 778.3: The Parable of Brother Leo

An old legend tells of a monastery in France well-known throughout Europe because of the extraordinary leadership of a man known only as Brother Leo. Several monks began a pilgrimage to visit Brother Leo to learn from him. Almost immediately the monks began to bicker over who should do various chores. On the third day they met another monk who …

COMMENTARY 778.2: Who’s Right and Who’s Wrong?

On many issues of morality we are deeply divided. The volume and virulence of disagreement on issues like stem cell research, abortion, and gay unions is testimony to the undeniable reality that millions of Americans are lined up on opposite sides of a chasm, appalled at the ethical poverty of those they disagree with. According to a May 2005 Gallup poll, about …

COMMENTARY 778.1: Mental Sunshine and Flowers

Dave had to undergo painful throat surgery. Since he wasn’t a young man and made his living as a professional speaker, the experience was frightening and traumatic. He told me his surgeon was skilled and the hospital workers were competent, but the cold indifference of the parade of nurses and doctors who came in and out of his room was …

SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT FOR TEENS: Failing the Integrity Test

This is Michael Josephson with something to think about. Chad and three of his friends were college seniors and they all had to take an important physics exam on Monday. Chad persuaded his buddies to take a weekend trip several hundred miles away to go to a rock concert. They all agreed they would study in the car driving there …

COMMENTARY 777.5: Motive, Tact, Tone, Timing

Trustworthiness is essential to good relationships, and honesty is essential to trustworthiness. Being honest isn’t simply telling the truth, though. It’s also being sincere and forthright. Thus, it’s just as dishonest to deceive someone by half-truths or silence as it is to lie. But what if honesty requires us to volunteer information that could be damaging or hurtful?

COMMENTARY 777.3: Keep Your Fork

When a pessimist is told there’s a light at the end of the tunnel, he’s likely to assume it’s an onrushing train. According to journalist Sydney Harris, “A cynic is not merely one who reads bitter lessons from the past; he’s prematurely disappointed in the future.” Pessimism and cynicism are fashionable these days, but it’s the people who see and …

COMMENTARY 777.2: Memorial Day, A Day of Remembrance

It’s not just an excuse for a three-day weekend or a day for barbeque and beer. Memorial Day is a time for Americans to connect with our national history and core values by honoring those who gave their lives fighting for this country. It’s said that this special day to salute fallen Americans was born during the Civil War in …