Culture Matters: Building the Wise Firm

“Thanks for the feedback!” Walking down the hall in the office, I overhear this statement. It’s a common saying these days. I think about how feedback has impacted our culture, smiling in gratitude. 

I grew up in a diverse family—four sisters, one brother, three races, and a 75 year age span between the family members that still lived in my parent’s house in Tennessee. I’m so blessed to be part of a family with so many perspectives, learning to empathize with others’ positions rather than automatically becoming judgmental. As you might expect, getting along with everybody all the time wasn’t always easy. I remember one particular instance when my 5-year-old brother and 13-year-old sister were having a particularly difficult time refraining from killing each other. My mom, the wisest person in the world, pulled my sister aside and told her “I know your brother is hard to deal with and sometimes really hard to like. You know how the greatest commandment is to love God, and the second is to love others? Well, your brother was made in the image of God. You have to love him.” Mic drop.