Act Today To Make A Better Tomorrow

"Integrity is the essence of everything successful." -R. Buckminster Fuller

Four years ago, when Tesla proposed to build its new factory along the banks of the Colorado River in Austin, Elon Musk promised to create an ecological paradise on the 2000-acre property. He said, “…there will be a hiking and biking trail. It’s going to basically be an ecological paradise, birds in the trees, butterflies, fish in the stream, and it’ll be open to the public as well.” Uh huh, right. Of course. Any day now…

“Bird,” acrylic and watercolor on paper by David Burn

Not only is there no park, a petition by Tesla to release nearly 2,100 acres of land from Austin's extraterritorial jurisdiction has been approved. Giga Texas will no longer have to follow Austin's environmental regulations that they've been under for the last four years. The city's regulations include standards on water and air quality.

I bring this forward not just as a ding on Tesla, which it is, but to highlight a larger problem in the culture. The problem of saying one thing and doing another. The problem with mouthing empty promises, when actions matter most. Words can too easily deceive, whereas actions determine reality. Thus, it’s actions that we must pay careful attention to and actions that we must take. This is how we make change. One conscious action at a time.

Spring Forth

Spring in Central Texas is a season of mild temps, sunny skies, and bountiful wildflowers.

April flowers, Bastrop, Texas

The new growth is fun to observe and I believe it’s also nourishing. As flowers open and bloom, we can learn to mirror nature. We can be more open than usual to new ideas, to change, and to vivid expressions of ourselves.

I’m American Dreaming

Sierra Ferrell’s new music is beautiful. I could say more about her grit, soul, and unique voice, but I’d prefer to just listen.

When It Comes to Advice…

"Many receive advice, only the wise profit from it." -Harper Lee

Advice is almost always filtered through the provider’s own lived experience. Which is to say, what worked for the advice giver might not be the right choice for you. That’s why you have to sit with the advice and let it simmer. Even when it’s great advice, you still have to fit it into your own world and go from there. [Source: Medium]

“Trophy,” acrylic on stretched canvas by David Burn

Lagniappe

1. Draw Your World is highly visual newsletter that I highly recommend.

2. Did you know that the world is almost evenly divided between 91 democracies and 88 autocracies? Yet, 71% of the world’s population – 5.7 billion people – live in autocracies of one sort or another – an increase from 48% ten years ago. [Source: Adpulp.com]

3. Communication Arts continues to promote my writing on Twitter and I continue to appreciate their attention and generosity.

4. “Oracle’s decision to move its HQ out of Texas after less than four years is a reminder that trying to lasso global companies is like trying to wrestle the wind…” [Source: Texas Monthly]

5. Rob Schwartz says clients buy words.

6. It’s okay to be bored. “A lot of [ideation], right in the beginning, can just be boredom. It can be looking out a window…” -Neil Gaiman

Thanks for being here now,

When you or a friend is ready to run for office, grow a business, or spark a social change movement, please let me know. I’d like to help.