authentic Archives - Keith Shields

Spectacle

Since before the writings of Shakespeare, authors, politicians, teachers, script-writers, and preachers have known that if you want people to hear what you have to say and keep talking about it long after the event, you must start with a spectacle. Shakespeare’s best-known example, the three weird sisters (or witches) at the introduction of Hamlet,…

Authenticity

“The ideal of authenticity is something like the ideal of perfection. All of us have some idea of what we are talking about without ever having had any direct personal experience of it.”1 This is a revealing and reassuring statement from David Benner. For truly, none of us will ever achieve perfection, and neither will…

7 Habits and 12 Things

I like succinct lists of behaviours that will help keep one on the right track. I have sometimes placed such lists on the wall in my office where they remind me to keep focussed. One of the most minimal of these is one I have seen as a screen-saver on a laptop: “Get-up, dress-up, show-up.”…

Leading from the Second Chair

I have been reading Leading from the Second Chair1 by Mike Bonem and Roger Patterson. The book is designed primarily for those who will lead in a church context as executive pastors; yet, the insights within the book are valuable for anyone who leads or serves in any organization. This post will not be a…

Handmade

The words of the song “Handmade” by Jimmy Rankin say, “Everywhere I go everything’s plastic.” I understand these words. It is all too easy to find pretense and masque all around us. Authenticity is something for which we long. We long for it in the music industry, in business, in spirituality, and in our relationships…