December 8, 2025 • 32 mins
Have you ever been part of a weekend that you know you’ll carry with you forever?
In this conversation, Nathan is joined by Dr. Linda and Brian Schubring to reflect on their time in Brussels celebrating the 20th anniversary of Serve the City International—a global movement built on a simple idea: many people doing small things together can make a big difference.
Leaders from 35 countries across 6 continents gathered to mark two decades of kindness in action. Linda and Brian opened the event with their keynote experience, “Unfolded: The Transformative Power of Serving,” and led a breakout session on how to approach challenge, change, and uncertainty as leaders who serve.
In this episode, they talk about:
- The energy of bringing together leaders from around the world who are deeply committed to serving their cities
- Why they began the conference with a mindfulness practice—a shared moment of stillness, open hands, and collective breathing
- How acts of service shape leadership: rolling up your sleeves, being in need, and receiving help
- What 3.5 million volunteer hours and 10 million lives impacted in 2024 say about the power of consistent, small actions
- How Carleton Deal and the Serve the City team use simple, repeatable phrases (“serving revolution,” “cross the line,” “know them by name”) to create a scalable, sustainable movement
- The idea of volunteers as “hope artists” in a world filled with uncertainty and negativity
- Their breakout session on challenge, change, and uncertainty, and how to help leaders remember the internal certainty they already carry
- Why serving outside the office can unlock deeper compassion and care inside the workplace
- What it takes to sustain a volunteer movement for 20+ years—and why the Serve the City vision will continue long after its founders
The episode culminates with a powerful quote Brian and Linda wrote in a Paris café as they prepared for their time in Brussels:
“When we serve with open hands, we create a space for something to land.”
Key Themes & Topics:
- Serve the City International – 20-year anniversary
- Serving with open hands
- Leadership and service
- Challenge, change, and uncertainty
- Global volunteer movements
- Sustainable vision beyond the founder
- Compassion, kindness, and team culture
- Mindfulness and preparation to serve
- The “map” metaphor for navigat
🎉 Unfolded is a National Bestseller!
#1 in Business & #5 Overall on USA Today
#17 on Publisher’s Weekly Nonfiction
📘 Grab your copy + get the FREE Reflection Guide!
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Read the full blog post here!
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
SPEAKER_00 (01:46):
When we serve with open hands, we create a space
for something to land.
Part of the inspiration of thatquote came from the type of
preparation people need to do toshow up ready to serve.
Oftentimes we need to set thingsdown that would preoccupy our
attention.
Maybe we need to open up ourhearts in a different way and
(02:09):
actually release one thing topick up something else.
And to pick up something elsecould be a paintbrush and a can
of paint.
To pick up something else couldbe, you know, to assemble some
type of food to distribute topeople that are in need.
It could be to pick up umrecycled bricks to build
(02:30):
something in a building wherepeople are going to be living.
So it's a it's this mindset andthis symbolism that for me to
serve, I need to prepare and torelease and to be ready to
receive.
SPEAKER_02 (02:45):
In short, our hands need to be unfolded.
SPEAKER_01 (02:52):
You are listening to the Leadership Vision Podcast,
our show helping you buildpositive team culture.
Our consulting firm has beendoing this work for the past 25
years so that leaders arementally engaged and emotionally
healthy.
To learn more about us, you canclick the link in the show notes
or visit us on the web atLeadership Vision
Consulting.com.
Hello, everyone.
My name is Nathan Freebrick, andhave you ever had one of those
(03:14):
weekends where you know you'rejust gonna carry it with you
forever?
Well, in this episode heretoday, I am joined by Dr.
Linda and Brian Schubring toreflect on an incredible
experience they just had inBrussels, celebrating the 20th
anniversary of Serve the CityInternational, which is a global
movement built on the simpleidea that many people doing
(03:35):
small things together can make abig difference.
Now, at this gathering, leadersfrom 35 countries and six
continents came together tohonor two decades, that's 20
years, of kindness and action.
Linda and Brian kicked off theconference with their keynote,
Unfolded the TransformativePower of Serving, exploring how
(03:55):
acts of service can fold,unfold, and transform us, both
individually and collectively.
On the podcast today, we'regoing to talk about the energy
of this event, the inspiringpeople that they met, and how
the spirit of serving continuesto ripple out across the world.
This is a Leadership Visionpodcast.
Enjoy.
(04:18):
Uh, Linda and Brian, welcomeback.
This is not the How to Get OverJetlag podcast.
Um, but today's leadership youare upside down.
How are you guys feeling?
SPEAKER_00 (04:29):
No, this is my no nap day.
This is my fourth day home, andI'm not taking a nap today.
SPEAKER_01 (04:34):
Oh my goodness.
Oh my goodness.
Well, uh, hopefully you're awakeenough to be able to talk about
this event because it soundsamazing.
Uh, my family was recently inbrothel brothels?
Broth Brussels.
SPEAKER_00 (04:45):
Don't say brothels.
SPEAKER_01 (04:47):
My family was recently in Brussels for a brief
layover when we were in Europethis summer.
Um, but I've heard it's a prettygreat city.
Tell tell me, I don't know ifyou have more you want to say
about kind of setup to thisevent, but I would just love to
hear about it.
Some of like the energy.
I Brian sent me literally, Ithink almost 80 gigabytes worth
(05:08):
of video footage from yourdifferent keynotes and small
group breakouts and whatever.
I've sort of skimmed throughsome of it, but um my initial
take is this was a veryhigh-energy event.
A lot of interesting people,very, very diverse across you
know the planet.
Tell us a little bit about thisevent, and I I would love to
hear a little bit more aboutyour keynote as well.
SPEAKER_03 (05:29):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (05:30):
Well, the event was really a special event with
these leaders coming togetherfrom all over the world.
And what was meaningful to oneof the many things that was
meaningful to me was that I'mgood friends with Carlton Deal,
the founder of Serve the CityInternational.
And 20 years ago, I rememberbeing in Brussels when Carlton
(05:51):
was sharing with me this visionthat he had and what he wanted
to do with this idea of how tomeet the needs of the people
that were in the city ofBrussels.
And then at that point, there'sjust like a few ideas on what
they could do and what they werewhat needs they were able to
meet.
The dream was much bigger thanthe actual service that that was
(06:13):
happening fast forward 20 years.
And to be in this space withthese leaders from around the
world to see just the scale andthe scope and the magnitude of
the vision, at times it wasmind-numbing, at other times it
was very emotional to hearpeople tell the stories of all
(06:34):
the different needs that theywere meeting.
And it was just really unique tobe there with Carlton and his
wife Shannon, and to know thatyou know, through the number of
service projects that I've beeninvolved in with Serve the City,
that to see how it's grown over20 years was both amazing and
humbling.
SPEAKER_02 (06:54):
And there were other people there that were on the
original team that had had thisvision for service, including a
basketball player who wasplaying in Europe 20 years ago.
So fast forward, just this dreamand this willingness to just
serve people is prettyremarkable.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (07:12):
One thing I noticed on the videos was that you began
the sessions with like a guidedmeditation.
Yes.
Is that a new thing?
Like it was so cool because as Iwas watching the video, I was
just kind of skimming throughit, like lining it up, and then
I was like, what is he doing?
And then I just was sort ofsitting there for a moment, just
kind of like doing it.
Almost I was just like pulledin, like the trance of it.
(07:34):
Like, I'm like, oh, I bet youthis is a really helpful way to
start a session.
Like, is that do you do thatoften, or is this a unique
thing?
SPEAKER_00 (07:43):
We have a client that starts every one of their
sessions with a mindfulnesspractice, and so we participate
in that and we do lead some ofthose for that client.
Oh, yeah.
My mindset was this people quiteliterally had arrived the
morning of the conference fromplaces like India and Pakistan
(08:05):
and Sri Lanka and South Africa,the Gold Coast of Australia and
all over Europe and the WestCoast of the United States.
And some people were fighting inMinneapolis, and some people,
you know, had visa issues andtravel challenges.
So my mindset was this how canwe come together as a collective
(08:26):
of global individuals and centerourselves and just be able to
give ourselves a gift, and thatgift is a moment of stillness
and silence.
Because you you know, Nathan,international travel is hectic,
it's stressful, it's anxietyfilled, there's a lot of
movement, a lot of noise.
And I thought, let's just take afew moments, give ourselves a
(08:48):
gift of being still and quiet.
And we know that when you have alarge group of people that
enters into a state of beingstill and quiet with open hands
and they begin to breathetogether, it's just something
magical because I didn't askpeople to breathe in unison, but
they all were, which I thoughtwas going to happen anyways, and
(09:10):
you could actually hear theinhales and the exhales of this
global community.
It was profound.
That's cool.
That's cool.
SPEAKER_02 (09:18):
And and we had interpreters, so there were some
volunteer interpreters that weretranslating into French, and
there were French speakingcountries from Africa
represented as well as Belgiumand France, of course.
And and so they were doinginterpretation, and it was like
the the museum interpretationwhere you they would put in
(09:41):
headphones and like the littleearpiece, yeah.
Yeah.
And I had told the interpreters,uh, they're like, we you know,
we'll follow along, and theywere incredible.
And I just said during thisportion, we're it's it's gonna
feel quiet, and so just youknow, cue it that this is just
our a time that um that we'regonna you know center together.
(10:06):
And that's great.
SPEAKER_00 (10:07):
Yeah, it was powerful.
And what I was surprised by ishow many people came up to me in
the next two days and talkedabout that moment and how much
it meant to them and how theythey were feeling certain
feelings or what their mind wasdoing.
Um and then to to end it withyou know thanking their neighbor
for coming to the conference, Ithink was quite special too.
SPEAKER_01 (10:28):
Well, like I said, it was it just took me off
guard.
I was just like kind of suckedinto this video.
I was like, oh wait, and it'slike took a moment and it was it
was really uh so thank you,Brian.
Thank you.
Yes.
Um I want to talk about yourkeynote a little bit.
Unfolded, which is based on yourbook.
SPEAKER_03 (10:43):
Yep.
SPEAKER_01 (10:43):
The transformative power of serving.
Uh what what maybe this is awhole talk, but what what
parallels are there between actsof service, service projects,
whatever you want to call it,and really good effective
leadership?
Like what's the connectionthere?
SPEAKER_02 (10:58):
There's nothing that transforms you more than serving
or being served.
Yeah.
And there are just lessons thatyou learn in the process of
rolling up your sleeves.
There are things that you learnwhen you're at a s in a state of
need and need to receive.
One of the things that Brian andI were talking about as we were
even preparing for thisconference was so many of our
(11:21):
examples of leadership andlessons learned in leadership
are rooted in our service.
So whether it was working withthe university students in
Juneau, Alaska, whether it wasin other service opportunities,
volunteer opportunities, there'sjust been uh uh well, Nathan, I
(11:43):
even talked about the our timetogether in Queens.
I heard that.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (11:49):
Yeah, the the inhaler.
I did watch that part too.
Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_02 (11:52):
Yes.
So so you can vouch that it wasan actual story.
Oh yeah.
Uh you were there.
And uh so so one thing, onething led to another, and and we
just harnessed some of thestories that that yes are
leadership lessons, but lessonsthat that are from our lived
experience that speak to thetransformative power of serving.
SPEAKER_00 (12:17):
And so part of the objective for our keynote, and
like we've mentioned before onon the podcast, we don't do a
keynote where we speak for 30,60, or 80 minutes.
We do a keynote experience wherewe're doing little keynote
vignettes for five to sevenminutes, and then the group
breaks up in the into smallergroups and talk.
And the reason why that wasimportant is because we know
(12:38):
that many of these leaders hadnot been in the same room with
people from differentcontinents.
We wanted to give the countryleaders a chance to reflect on
moments when they were servingand to remember times when they
were served, and then toreimagine what it might be like
(13:01):
to serve in new ways and justlike to give this these leaders
moments just for themselves,because I I know that many of
these people are so busycoordinating these national
efforts that they rarely spendtime pausing to remind
themselves of what serving meansto them, how serving has
(13:21):
unfolded and taught them lessonsabout who they are and how
they've reshaped even theserving experience where more
people's needs can be met.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_02 (13:30):
And what started as one event in Brussels 20 years
ago, now like the the bounces ofthe of all the acts of kindness.
SPEAKER_00 (13:41):
The statistic that they were sharing was that there
were 3.5 million volunteer hoursthat were given in 2024,
impacting more than 10 millionlives.
SPEAKER_01 (13:52):
That's right.
That's globally, obviously.
SPEAKER_00 (13:53):
In yep, in one year.
SPEAKER_01 (13:55):
Yeah, that idea of kindness or the serve the city
motto philosophy, whatever, justlike many, many people doing
small things together can make abig difference.
I'm wondering if you can talk alittle bit about like how how do
leaders use that samephilosophy, like I guess to
cultivate a culture of kindnessand collaboration and shared
purpose on their teens, becauseI would imagine that that would
(14:19):
lead to a lot more productivity,a lot better bottom lines, etc.
etc.
Like what's what's the uhtranslation you've just talked
about translation, uh, from thatcontext to a more kind of
businessy world?
SPEAKER_02 (14:35):
Well, I don't know if it's even translation because
there's a lot of people in thebusinessy world that are leading
these volunteer efforts.
So there are there are paidthere are paid workers as well
as there are many volunteers,and they have jobs and PhDs and
are literal world changers.
(14:55):
And some work in the parliament,some work for the UN, and and I
so I think the translation isthere there are obviously a lot
of organizations that reallybelieve in the power of service.
In particular, some of thesponsors of this event included
Toyota and UPS, and theircompanies were founded by people
(15:19):
who serve and who believed inmaking a better place for humans
to exist.
And so I don't I don't know ifthere is a translation.
I just think it is a almostemerging, emerging.
Shannon, one of the kind ofco-founders, I guess, as well,
she is married to Carlton, andshe always likes to say that uh
(15:43):
people that serve with Serve theCity are hope artists.
And uh right, and it's soinspirational to think about in
the times of uncertainty andchaos, like what do you do?
Well, pay it forward.
Well, you know, offer offer thatsame help to someone that can
(16:05):
afford your services.
So being around people that werereally others focused was
important, and our challenge wasdon't don't forget to to care
for yourself and note the needsthat you have yourself.
SPEAKER_00 (16:21):
I had the opportunity to have lunch with
the European director of theToyota Mobility Foundation, and
we spent the entire time talkingabout how important service is
within the business context.
And this is how the conversationunfolded is we talked about how
service opportunities createthis unique experience where
(16:41):
people begin to learn how theycan actually care for someone in
need by you know not only beingin an environment where serving
is an option, but in how theyeven prepare to show up.
Because sometimes in thebusiness context, we don't
really prepare ourselves toserve the colleagues that we're
working with.
So when we go outside theorganization and serve people
(17:03):
that are in need, we create thisconnection with one's capacity
for compassion and care forsomeone else.
And through the demonstration ofcompassion and care for a
stranger, we can then bereminded of how we can
demonstrate similar compassionand care towards those that we
work with.
(17:24):
Often within a business context,through the experiences that
teams have, we become guardedand maybe more protected with
the ones that we're workingwith.
And those are actually thepeople that may need our care
and compassion the most, isthose that we understand the
most in the business context.
So this gentleman and I talkedabout all the reasons why teams,
(17:46):
through the act of serving, cannot only better understand
individual care in capacity, butalso how they can serve one
another.
SPEAKER_01 (17:54):
I like that.
I think there's something aboutjust doing something like you
know, service project orsomething like that together
outside of you know the quoteunquote office that gives you a
whole different perhaps level ofunderstanding or insight in into
someone that uh that you workwith, and that in and of itself
(18:14):
can be you know a powerful, apowerful lesson.
You guys did a breakout sessionon change, challenge,
uncertainty, all words that I'mcompletely unfamiliar with.
Um I would love it if you couldtell me uh what that was about
and maybe even just like theadvice that you gave to some
(18:36):
leaders trying to navigate someof those some of those hot words
on their teams and theirorganizations.
Like just talk a little bit.
Give us a give us a little tasteof what uh people took away from
that session.
SPEAKER_00 (18:49):
The objective of our breakout session was to
recognize that right now all ofus feel overwhelmed by
uncertainty.
We have uncertainty on manydifferent levels, and it seems
like every resource that we useto get our news or recreation or
just updates on things is filledwith negativity, negative
(19:11):
messages, and we just feel thatthis uncertainty in our social
and political world isoverwhelming.
And people feel paralyzed bythat.
And what we wanted to do in thissession was to recognize that
there's uncertainty all aroundus, but that there's also a
certainty within us that willhelp us navigate whatever
(19:32):
uncertainties that we're facing.
And the way that we approachthis is we want to remind people
that throughout our entirelives, we faced challenges every
day or each week, challengesthat have been met by our own
capacity that we have within us.
And we've done thatsuccessfully.
(19:52):
And we've also wanted people torecognize that throughout their
lives, they've also faced changewhere they had to learn
something new, change a newdirection, and that through
reminding ourselves that we'venavigated challenge and we've
gone through changes, that whenwe face uncertainty, sometimes
the best way to begin tonavigate uncertainty is to
accept the challenge in themoment or to redirect and pursue
(20:15):
change.
SPEAKER_02 (20:16):
One of the beautiful things that we learned as they
were sharing their experiencesis the supportive family and
loved ones that help themcontinue to push through in hard
times.
And to hear that thread and thatcommonality once again across
continents, um, in completelydifferent uh climates and
(20:42):
cultures in different cities,uh, was just really encouraging.
There were so many, so manysimilar messages with just a
different different flavor ordifferent accent.
SPEAKER_00 (20:56):
And one of the unique things that happened was
because the breakout followedour our keynote, we were able to
use one of the dominantmetaphors of our keynote, and
that is we are each a map, andwe wanted to use that map
metaphor with our uh breakoutsession in about uncertainty
because we asked people to thinkof their unfolded map and to
(21:19):
think about like reading the mapand to name or to put your
finger on the places where youfaced challenges.
Who was there?
What was around you?
What was the year?
What was that challenge like?
Then when we got to the changesection, we wanted to remind
people that change is seasonal,but where on your map did you
see change?
And people were able to use thatmetaphor of map to be able to
(21:40):
say, This change happened here,and it was at this intersection
in my life in 2000.
2007 that I had to face this oneexperience.
And so that metaphor playedthrough to this breakout session
on uncertainty.
That's great.
SPEAKER_02 (21:56):
As I was teeing up this session, Unfolded, How to
Approach Challenge, Change, andUncertainty.
I realized there are many waysto approach it.
And sometimes it's like blah.
SPEAKER_03 (22:07):
Yeah.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_02 (22:09):
And I think they were there and they were
assuming, I was hoping that theywere assuming that this wasn't a
lesson in how to freak out more,but actually how to calm down a
little bit.
Freak out so much.
Exactly.
Exactly.
And oftentimes when when youhave servant leaders that are
making worldwide impacts intheir city, and they they come
(22:34):
to a session like this to getsome maybe tips and tricks about
how to help this person and thenwhat can I grab and take back to
my context?
And oh, how how could I plug inthis nugget here or there?
Instead, we flipped the script abit and started to ask them
about some of their needs whenit comes to these topics.
(22:57):
And not just their needs, wetalked about their perspectives
when they're facing challenge,change, or uncertainty that
sometimes people look for thepeople first or they look for
the places and they want toorientate to uh their
surroundings or they're lookingat the process.
And we take differentperspectives when it comes to
(23:19):
some of these, some of thesetopics.
And then as we opened up uhdifferent discussion groups, the
the learning happened whenpeople were sharing their lived
experience about how they howthey have navigated these things
very successfully.
SPEAKER_01 (23:36):
You know, as you guys were talking about change,
uncertainty, challenge, and alsomentioned that this is the 20th
year, how how do you with aespecially with a volunteer
organization what what whatcould you summarize or offer our
listeners about how do yousustain something for that long?
(23:57):
Like is it such a compellingvision that that Carlton has?
Is it you know what is it orwhat can we take away from that?
SPEAKER_02 (24:08):
There is something about how the Carlton deal
communicates that is clear andrepeatable.
So over the years, and they wererecounting this as well, that
over the years there has been,you know, what is serve the
city?
Well, it's a serving revolution.
Even I can remember that.
You know, it's well, what iswhat is serve the city then?
(24:31):
And cross the line.
And there there was another um,yeah, you said you say that
cross the line one.
SPEAKER_00 (24:37):
What what Carlton and the movement has done is
they've created these phrases,these phrases that are
pocketable, they're memorable,they're repeatable by people.
And in one of the main sessions,they were talking about all
these different phrases.
So um one is a servingrevolution, the other is cross
the line, and that cross theline um was a story about how
(25:01):
there are lines in every city.
On one line is the affluent, andon the other side are those in
poverty.
And are we willing to cross theline?
Um, there's an another uhphrase, we know them by their
need, can we know them by theirname?
Oftentimes people in in need areknown by, oh, the the person
that that's begging for money bythe corner next to the
(25:25):
convenience store.
Well, we we know their need andwhat they're doing, but do we
know them by their name?
Um small acts of service, likethese are all different like
phrases that are easy tounderstand and and to repeat.
And what Carlton is doing is heis he has a vision, and the way
that Carlton communicates thevision ignites something within
(25:47):
individuals that then allows orempowers them to pursue their
vision for serving other peoplewherever they are in the world.
SPEAKER_02 (25:58):
And I think it's a DNA that has been multiplied and
uh and it's contagious.
So one of the sessions that wesat in on as well was one where
you know uh the service projectstarted in Brussels, but then it
went to Geneva, Switzerland, andthen someone in Switzerland
picked it up and then took it tothe Philippines, and then
(26:19):
someone from Amsterdam inspiredsomeone in Australia.
And so the contagious the thecontagious nature of this
movement is what actually makesit stick.
And some of these um thesephrases or these call to actions
or these memor memorable andpocketable uh phrases are truly
(26:43):
translatable across the globebecause it is grounding into
human need and uh like theresponse of kindness.
And um yeah, then they collectstories.
SPEAKER_01 (26:59):
So if Carlton left, would it survive, do you think?
I think so.
SPEAKER_02 (27:04):
Right now, right now it is it is steamrolling.
It's steamrolling because it'sit's so embedded in the DNA, and
I think that's that's thepowerful nature of you know,
there's not just these citygroups, there are it's the Serve
the City International.
And so there are some peoplelooking at the at the much
(27:25):
bigger picture and the ways thatthey're partnering with um big
corporations and other peoplethat are just trying to make a
difference as well.
It's just it's almost ano-brainer.
They they won the NGO of theyear in Europe, awarded by the
European Union.
Um a couple a couple years in arow.
(27:46):
I can't remember what years itwas exactly, but and so they're
they're recognized.
And uh the sort of the city logois uh is a hand, a hand print,
and then inside the hand is umlike the skyline of a city.
And and so to see those handsand to see the cities and um see
(28:07):
people wearing their shirts fromtheir cities in their languages
in different colors.
SPEAKER_00 (28:13):
Each city has its own color.
So that's so cool.
SPEAKER_02 (28:16):
It's power, it's it's powerful, and and you feel
like you're a part of something,yet you are distinct.
SPEAKER_01 (28:21):
Huh.
I just interviewed Deb Dixon,who wrote the foreword to
unfolded.
And one of her big thingstalking about is like, how do I
create a leadership team thatwill thrive after I'm gone?
Yeah.
And all that you've describedseems like Carlton has done
that, and this this isn't uh uha movement based on like a
(28:41):
personality, but I have amission and kind of the shared
uh shared philosophy of of doinggood and showing kindness and
and all of that.
SPEAKER_02 (28:49):
So And several countries in Africa now where
Serve the City is, and someonestood up from Africa and just
said it's gonna be in it Ialmost claimed it.
Like Serve the City is gonna bein every country in Africa by
such and such date.
Like 2030.
Wow.
And and which is like a rightaround the corner.
SPEAKER_00 (29:12):
It is it's into 2025 now.
They got four years.
Good good luck.
But that's their vision.
SPEAKER_02 (29:17):
So it's not just I I loved because they were honoring
Carlton and Shannon, thisfounding couple.
However, they were honoring thepeople that are keeping it
alive, and they were honoring umthis guy, Jeremy, and his team
uh who created an app calledServe Now, where people, people,
(29:37):
and it's it's in three differentcities, but in Brussels it is
for sure.
Uh, where you can go on andyou're like, oh, well, you know,
it's low commitment.
Uh I have two hours on Saturday.
Uh I'll click here.
And you can try it.
If you don't like it, you can,you know, or you can just go
back every every single time.
And they they've now providedthe app open source.
(30:01):
So other organizations want touse something like this, and
they were clocking around ahundred and forty thousand
volunteer hours that were thathappened through through the
app.
SPEAKER_01 (30:15):
Um so anyway.
Yeah, I'm looking at the maphere.
There's a chapter in Virginia.
SPEAKER_03 (30:22):
Yes.
SPEAKER_01 (30:23):
But nowhere else in the United States.
That's that's interesting, andmaybe a conversation for another
time.
But uh to kind of wrap up here,I I'm curious if you there's one
takeaway or something that youhope our listeners will
remember.
I don't even know, about maybethe connection between serving
others, leading well, building aculture where people uh can
(30:46):
serve and thrive, and maybe it'sjust a summary of what we've
already talked about.
But I'm I'm curious if there'skind of one tuck takeaway.
We'll put the the romantic musicunderneath or inspiring music.
We'll put their inspiring musicunderneath whatever you're
saying here to really make thispoint hit home and go in
(31:09):
preparation for this time inBrussels.
SPEAKER_02 (31:13):
Uh Brian and I were sitting in a cafe in Paris, and
we didn't want to be jet-laggedas we came to the conference, so
we spent spent a little time inthe city of lights and sitting
in a cafe, we we kind of pennedthis uh this quote together that
that served to frame frame it.
(31:34):
So, Brian, why don't you readit?
SPEAKER_00 (31:35):
When we serve with open hands, we create a space
for something to land.
Part of the inspiration of thatquote came from the type of
preparation people need to do toshow up ready to serve.
Oftentimes we need to set thingsdown that would preoccupy our
(31:57):
attention.
Maybe we need to open up ourhearts in a different way and
actually release one thing topick up something else.
And to pick up something elsecould be a paintbrush and a can
of paint.
To pick up something else couldbe, you know, to assemble um
some type of food to distributeto people that are in in need.
(32:18):
It could be to pick up umrecycled bricks to build
something in a building wherepeople are going to be living.
So it's a it's this mindset andthis symbolism that for me to
serve, I need to prepare and torelease and to be ready to
receive.
SPEAKER_02 (32:39):
In short, in short, our hands need to be unfolded.
SPEAKER_01 (32:47):
Thank you for listening to the Leadership
Vision Podcast, our show helpingyou build positive team culture.
If you found value from thisepisode or any of our other
materials, we would appreciateit if you follow us on the
social medias.
If you followed us on subscribeto our podcast on Spotify, on
Apple Podcasts, wherever you getyour great podcasts.
(33:09):
And please join our free emailnewsletter.
There's a link in the shownotes.
You can click that link to getmore information about us or
just visit us on the web atleadershipvisionconsulting.com.
My name is Nathan Freeberg.
I'm Linda Schuberg.
And I'm Brian Schuberg.
And on behalf of our entireteam, thanks for listening.
When we serve with open hands, we create a space
for something to land.
Part of the inspiration of thatquote came from the type of
preparation people need to do toshow up ready to serve.
Oftentimes we need to set thingsdown that would preoccupy our
attention.
Maybe we need to open up ourhearts in a different way and
(02:09):
actually release one thing topick up something else.
And to pick up something elsecould be a paintbrush and a can
of paint.
To pick up something else couldbe, you know, to assemble some
type of food to distribute topeople that are in need.
It could be to pick up umrecycled bricks to build
(02:30):
something in a building wherepeople are going to be living.
So it's a it's this mindset andthis symbolism that for me to
serve, I need to prepare and torelease and to be ready to
receive.
SPEAKER_02 (02:45):
In short, our hands need to be unfolded.
SPEAKER_01 (02:52):
You are listening to the Leadership Vision Podcast,
our show helping you buildpositive team culture.
Our consulting firm has beendoing this work for the past 25
years so that leaders arementally engaged and emotionally
healthy.
To learn more about us, you canclick the link in the show notes
or visit us on the web atLeadership Vision
Consulting.com.
Hello, everyone.
My name is Nathan Freebrick, andhave you ever had one of those
(03:14):
weekends where you know you'rejust gonna carry it with you
forever?
Well, in this episode heretoday, I am joined by Dr.
Linda and Brian Schubring toreflect on an incredible
experience they just had inBrussels, celebrating the 20th
anniversary of Serve the CityInternational, which is a global
movement built on the simpleidea that many people doing
(03:35):
small things together can make abig difference.
Now, at this gathering, leadersfrom 35 countries and six
continents came together tohonor two decades, that's 20
years, of kindness and action.
Linda and Brian kicked off theconference with their keynote,
Unfolded the TransformativePower of Serving, exploring how
(03:55):
acts of service can fold,unfold, and transform us, both
individually and collectively.
On the podcast today, we'regoing to talk about the energy
of this event, the inspiringpeople that they met, and how
the spirit of serving continuesto ripple out across the world.
This is a Leadership Visionpodcast.
Enjoy.
(04:18):
Uh, Linda and Brian, welcomeback.
This is not the How to Get OverJetlag podcast.
Um, but today's leadership youare upside down.
How are you guys feeling?
SPEAKER_00 (04:29):
No, this is my no nap day.
This is my fourth day home, andI'm not taking a nap today.
SPEAKER_01 (04:34):
Oh my goodness.
Oh my goodness.
Well, uh, hopefully you're awakeenough to be able to talk about
this event because it soundsamazing.
Uh, my family was recently inbrothel brothels?
Broth Brussels.
SPEAKER_00 (04:45):
Don't say brothels.
SPEAKER_01 (04:47):
My family was recently in Brussels for a brief
layover when we were in Europethis summer.
Um, but I've heard it's a prettygreat city.
Tell tell me, I don't know ifyou have more you want to say
about kind of setup to thisevent, but I would just love to
hear about it.
Some of like the energy.
I Brian sent me literally, Ithink almost 80 gigabytes worth
(05:08):
of video footage from yourdifferent keynotes and small
group breakouts and whatever.
I've sort of skimmed throughsome of it, but um my initial
take is this was a veryhigh-energy event.
A lot of interesting people,very, very diverse across you
know the planet.
Tell us a little bit about thisevent, and I I would love to
hear a little bit more aboutyour keynote as well.
SPEAKER_03 (05:29):
Yeah.
SPEAKER_00 (05:30):
Well, the event was really a special event with
these leaders coming togetherfrom all over the world.
And what was meaningful to oneof the many things that was
meaningful to me was that I'mgood friends with Carlton Deal,
the founder of Serve the CityInternational.
And 20 years ago, I rememberbeing in Brussels when Carlton
(05:51):
was sharing with me this visionthat he had and what he wanted
to do with this idea of how tomeet the needs of the people
that were in the city ofBrussels.
And then at that point, there'sjust like a few ideas on what
they could do and what they werewhat needs they were able to
meet.
The dream was much bigger thanthe actual service that that was
(06:13):
happening fast forward 20 years.
And to be in this space withthese leaders from around the
world to see just the scale andthe scope and the magnitude of
the vision, at times it wasmind-numbing, at other times it
was very emotional to hearpeople tell the stories of all
(06:34):
the different needs that theywere meeting.
And it was just really unique tobe there with Carlton and his
wife Shannon, and to know thatyou know, through the number of
service projects that I've beeninvolved in with Serve the City,
that to see how it's grown over20 years was both amazing and
humbling.
SPEAKER_02 (06:54):
And there were other people there that were on the
original team that had had thisvision for service, including a
basketball player who wasplaying in Europe 20 years ago.
So fast forward, just this dreamand this willingness to just
serve people is prettyremarkable.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (07:12):
One thing I noticed on the videos was that you began
the sessions with like a guidedmeditation.
Yes.
Is that a new thing?
Like it was so cool because as Iwas watching the video, I was
just kind of skimming throughit, like lining it up, and then
I was like, what is he doing?
And then I just was sort ofsitting there for a moment, just
kind of like doing it.
Almost I was just like pulledin, like the trance of it.
(07:34):
Like, I'm like, oh, I bet youthis is a really helpful way to
start a session.
Like, is that do you do thatoften, or is this a unique
thing?
SPEAKER_00 (07:43):
We have a client that starts every one of their
sessions with a mindfulnesspractice, and so we participate
in that and we do lead some ofthose for that client.
Oh, yeah.
My mindset was this people quiteliterally had arrived the
morning of the conference fromplaces like India and Pakistan
(08:05):
and Sri Lanka and South Africa,the Gold Coast of Australia and
all over Europe and the WestCoast of the United States.
And some people were fighting inMinneapolis, and some people,
you know, had visa issues andtravel challenges.
So my mindset was this how canwe come together as a collective
(08:26):
of global individuals and centerourselves and just be able to
give ourselves a gift, and thatgift is a moment of stillness
and silence.
Because you you know, Nathan,international travel is hectic,
it's stressful, it's anxietyfilled, there's a lot of
movement, a lot of noise.
And I thought, let's just take afew moments, give ourselves a
(08:48):
gift of being still and quiet.
And we know that when you have alarge group of people that
enters into a state of beingstill and quiet with open hands
and they begin to breathetogether, it's just something
magical because I didn't askpeople to breathe in unison, but
they all were, which I thoughtwas going to happen anyways, and
(09:10):
you could actually hear theinhales and the exhales of this
global community.
It was profound.
That's cool.
That's cool.
SPEAKER_02 (09:18):
And and we had interpreters, so there were some
volunteer interpreters that weretranslating into French, and
there were French speakingcountries from Africa
represented as well as Belgiumand France, of course.
And and so they were doinginterpretation, and it was like
the the museum interpretationwhere you they would put in
(09:41):
headphones and like the littleearpiece, yeah.
Yeah.
And I had told the interpreters,uh, they're like, we you know,
we'll follow along, and theywere incredible.
And I just said during thisportion, we're it's it's gonna
feel quiet, and so just youknow, cue it that this is just
our a time that um that we'regonna you know center together.
(10:06):
And that's great.
SPEAKER_00 (10:07):
Yeah, it was powerful.
And what I was surprised by ishow many people came up to me in
the next two days and talkedabout that moment and how much
it meant to them and how theythey were feeling certain
feelings or what their mind wasdoing.
Um and then to to end it withyou know thanking their neighbor
for coming to the conference, Ithink was quite special too.
SPEAKER_01 (10:28):
Well, like I said, it was it just took me off
guard.
I was just like kind of suckedinto this video.
I was like, oh wait, and it'slike took a moment and it was it
was really uh so thank you,Brian.
Thank you.
Yes.
Um I want to talk about yourkeynote a little bit.
Unfolded, which is based on yourbook.
SPEAKER_03 (10:43):
Yep.
SPEAKER_01 (10:43):
The transformative power of serving.
Uh what what maybe this is awhole talk, but what what
parallels are there between actsof service, service projects,
whatever you want to call it,and really good effective
leadership?
Like what's the connectionthere?
SPEAKER_02 (10:58):
There's nothing that transforms you more than serving
or being served.
Yeah.
And there are just lessons thatyou learn in the process of
rolling up your sleeves.
There are things that you learnwhen you're at a s in a state of
need and need to receive.
One of the things that Brian andI were talking about as we were
even preparing for thisconference was so many of our
(11:21):
examples of leadership andlessons learned in leadership
are rooted in our service.
So whether it was working withthe university students in
Juneau, Alaska, whether it wasin other service opportunities,
volunteer opportunities, there'sjust been uh uh well, Nathan, I
(11:43):
even talked about the our timetogether in Queens.
I heard that.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_01 (11:49):
Yeah, the the inhaler.
I did watch that part too.
Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_02 (11:52):
Yes.
So so you can vouch that it wasan actual story.
Oh yeah.
Uh you were there.
And uh so so one thing, onething led to another, and and we
just harnessed some of thestories that that yes are
leadership lessons, but lessonsthat that are from our lived
experience that speak to thetransformative power of serving.
SPEAKER_00 (12:17):
And so part of the objective for our keynote, and
like we've mentioned before onon the podcast, we don't do a
keynote where we speak for 30,60, or 80 minutes.
We do a keynote experience wherewe're doing little keynote
vignettes for five to sevenminutes, and then the group
breaks up in the into smallergroups and talk.
And the reason why that wasimportant is because we know
(12:38):
that many of these leaders hadnot been in the same room with
people from differentcontinents.
We wanted to give the countryleaders a chance to reflect on
moments when they were servingand to remember times when they
were served, and then toreimagine what it might be like
(13:01):
to serve in new ways and justlike to give this these leaders
moments just for themselves,because I I know that many of
these people are so busycoordinating these national
efforts that they rarely spendtime pausing to remind
themselves of what serving meansto them, how serving has
(13:21):
unfolded and taught them lessonsabout who they are and how
they've reshaped even theserving experience where more
people's needs can be met.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_02 (13:30):
And what started as one event in Brussels 20 years
ago, now like the the bounces ofthe of all the acts of kindness.
SPEAKER_00 (13:41):
The statistic that they were sharing was that there
were 3.5 million volunteer hoursthat were given in 2024,
impacting more than 10 millionlives.
SPEAKER_01 (13:52):
That's right.
That's globally, obviously.
SPEAKER_00 (13:53):
In yep, in one year.
SPEAKER_01 (13:55):
Yeah, that idea of kindness or the serve the city
motto philosophy, whatever, justlike many, many people doing
small things together can make abig difference.
I'm wondering if you can talk alittle bit about like how how do
leaders use that samephilosophy, like I guess to
cultivate a culture of kindnessand collaboration and shared
purpose on their teens, becauseI would imagine that that would
(14:19):
lead to a lot more productivity,a lot better bottom lines, etc.
etc.
Like what's what's the uhtranslation you've just talked
about translation, uh, from thatcontext to a more kind of
businessy world?
SPEAKER_02 (14:35):
Well, I don't know if it's even translation because
there's a lot of people in thebusinessy world that are leading
these volunteer efforts.
So there are there are paidthere are paid workers as well
as there are many volunteers,and they have jobs and PhDs and
are literal world changers.
(14:55):
And some work in the parliament,some work for the UN, and and I
so I think the translation isthere there are obviously a lot
of organizations that reallybelieve in the power of service.
In particular, some of thesponsors of this event included
Toyota and UPS, and theircompanies were founded by people
(15:19):
who serve and who believed inmaking a better place for humans
to exist.
And so I don't I don't know ifthere is a translation.
I just think it is a almostemerging, emerging.
Shannon, one of the kind ofco-founders, I guess, as well,
she is married to Carlton, andshe always likes to say that uh
(15:43):
people that serve with Serve theCity are hope artists.
And uh right, and it's soinspirational to think about in
the times of uncertainty andchaos, like what do you do?
Well, pay it forward.
Well, you know, offer offer thatsame help to someone that can
(16:05):
afford your services.
So being around people that werereally others focused was
important, and our challenge wasdon't don't forget to to care
for yourself and note the needsthat you have yourself.
SPEAKER_00 (16:21):
I had the opportunity to have lunch with
the European director of theToyota Mobility Foundation, and
we spent the entire time talkingabout how important service is
within the business context.
And this is how the conversationunfolded is we talked about how
service opportunities createthis unique experience where
(16:41):
people begin to learn how theycan actually care for someone in
need by you know not only beingin an environment where serving
is an option, but in how theyeven prepare to show up.
Because sometimes in thebusiness context, we don't
really prepare ourselves toserve the colleagues that we're
working with.
So when we go outside theorganization and serve people
(17:03):
that are in need, we create thisconnection with one's capacity
for compassion and care forsomeone else.
And through the demonstration ofcompassion and care for a
stranger, we can then bereminded of how we can
demonstrate similar compassionand care towards those that we
work with.
(17:24):
Often within a business context,through the experiences that
teams have, we become guardedand maybe more protected with
the ones that we're workingwith.
And those are actually thepeople that may need our care
and compassion the most, isthose that we understand the
most in the business context.
So this gentleman and I talkedabout all the reasons why teams,
(17:46):
through the act of serving, cannot only better understand
individual care in capacity, butalso how they can serve one
another.
SPEAKER_01 (17:54):
I like that.
I think there's something aboutjust doing something like you
know, service project orsomething like that together
outside of you know the quoteunquote office that gives you a
whole different perhaps level ofunderstanding or insight in into
someone that uh that you workwith, and that in and of itself
(18:14):
can be you know a powerful, apowerful lesson.
You guys did a breakout sessionon change, challenge,
uncertainty, all words that I'mcompletely unfamiliar with.
Um I would love it if you couldtell me uh what that was about
and maybe even just like theadvice that you gave to some
(18:36):
leaders trying to navigate someof those some of those hot words
on their teams and theirorganizations.
Like just talk a little bit.
Give us a give us a little tasteof what uh people took away from
that session.
SPEAKER_00 (18:49):
The objective of our breakout session was to
recognize that right now all ofus feel overwhelmed by
uncertainty.
We have uncertainty on manydifferent levels, and it seems
like every resource that we useto get our news or recreation or
just updates on things is filledwith negativity, negative
(19:11):
messages, and we just feel thatthis uncertainty in our social
and political world isoverwhelming.
And people feel paralyzed bythat.
And what we wanted to do in thissession was to recognize that
there's uncertainty all aroundus, but that there's also a
certainty within us that willhelp us navigate whatever
(19:32):
uncertainties that we're facing.
And the way that we approachthis is we want to remind people
that throughout our entirelives, we faced challenges every
day or each week, challengesthat have been met by our own
capacity that we have within us.
And we've done thatsuccessfully.
(19:52):
And we've also wanted people torecognize that throughout their
lives, they've also faced changewhere they had to learn
something new, change a newdirection, and that through
reminding ourselves that we'venavigated challenge and we've
gone through changes, that whenwe face uncertainty, sometimes
the best way to begin tonavigate uncertainty is to
accept the challenge in themoment or to redirect and pursue
(20:15):
change.
SPEAKER_02 (20:16):
One of the beautiful things that we learned as they
were sharing their experiencesis the supportive family and
loved ones that help themcontinue to push through in hard
times.
And to hear that thread and thatcommonality once again across
continents, um, in completelydifferent uh climates and
(20:42):
cultures in different cities,uh, was just really encouraging.
There were so many, so manysimilar messages with just a
different different flavor ordifferent accent.
SPEAKER_00 (20:56):
And one of the unique things that happened was
because the breakout followedour our keynote, we were able to
use one of the dominantmetaphors of our keynote, and
that is we are each a map, andwe wanted to use that map
metaphor with our uh breakoutsession in about uncertainty
because we asked people to thinkof their unfolded map and to
(21:19):
think about like reading the mapand to name or to put your
finger on the places where youfaced challenges.
Who was there?
What was around you?
What was the year?
What was that challenge like?
Then when we got to the changesection, we wanted to remind
people that change is seasonal,but where on your map did you
see change?
And people were able to use thatmetaphor of map to be able to
(21:40):
say, This change happened here,and it was at this intersection
in my life in 2000.
2007 that I had to face this oneexperience.
And so that metaphor playedthrough to this breakout session
on uncertainty.
That's great.
SPEAKER_02 (21:56):
As I was teeing up this session, Unfolded, How to
Approach Challenge, Change, andUncertainty.
I realized there are many waysto approach it.
And sometimes it's like blah.
SPEAKER_03 (22:07):
Yeah.
Yeah.
SPEAKER_02 (22:09):
And I think they were there and they were
assuming, I was hoping that theywere assuming that this wasn't a
lesson in how to freak out more,but actually how to calm down a
little bit.
Freak out so much.
Exactly.
Exactly.
And oftentimes when when youhave servant leaders that are
making worldwide impacts intheir city, and they they come
(22:34):
to a session like this to getsome maybe tips and tricks about
how to help this person and thenwhat can I grab and take back to
my context?
And oh, how how could I plug inthis nugget here or there?
Instead, we flipped the script abit and started to ask them
about some of their needs whenit comes to these topics.
(22:57):
And not just their needs, wetalked about their perspectives
when they're facing challenge,change, or uncertainty that
sometimes people look for thepeople first or they look for
the places and they want toorientate to uh their
surroundings or they're lookingat the process.
And we take differentperspectives when it comes to
(23:19):
some of these, some of thesetopics.
And then as we opened up uhdifferent discussion groups, the
the learning happened whenpeople were sharing their lived
experience about how they howthey have navigated these things
very successfully.
SPEAKER_01 (23:36):
You know, as you guys were talking about change,
uncertainty, challenge, and alsomentioned that this is the 20th
year, how how do you with aespecially with a volunteer
organization what what whatcould you summarize or offer our
listeners about how do yousustain something for that long?
(23:57):
Like is it such a compellingvision that that Carlton has?
Is it you know what is it orwhat can we take away from that?
SPEAKER_02 (24:08):
There is something about how the Carlton deal
communicates that is clear andrepeatable.
So over the years, and they wererecounting this as well, that
over the years there has been,you know, what is serve the
city?
Well, it's a serving revolution.
Even I can remember that.
You know, it's well, what iswhat is serve the city then?
(24:31):
And cross the line.
And there there was another um,yeah, you said you say that
cross the line one.
SPEAKER_00 (24:37):
What what Carlton and the movement has done is
they've created these phrases,these phrases that are
pocketable, they're memorable,they're repeatable by people.
And in one of the main sessions,they were talking about all
these different phrases.
So um one is a servingrevolution, the other is cross
the line, and that cross theline um was a story about how
(25:01):
there are lines in every city.
On one line is the affluent, andon the other side are those in
poverty.
And are we willing to cross theline?
Um, there's an another uhphrase, we know them by their
need, can we know them by theirname?
Oftentimes people in in need areknown by, oh, the the person
that that's begging for money bythe corner next to the
(25:25):
convenience store.
Well, we we know their need andwhat they're doing, but do we
know them by their name?
Um small acts of service, likethese are all different like
phrases that are easy tounderstand and and to repeat.
And what Carlton is doing is heis he has a vision, and the way
that Carlton communicates thevision ignites something within
(25:47):
individuals that then allows orempowers them to pursue their
vision for serving other peoplewherever they are in the world.
SPEAKER_02 (25:58):
And I think it's a DNA that has been multiplied and
uh and it's contagious.
So one of the sessions that wesat in on as well was one where
you know uh the service projectstarted in Brussels, but then it
went to Geneva, Switzerland, andthen someone in Switzerland
picked it up and then took it tothe Philippines, and then
(26:19):
someone from Amsterdam inspiredsomeone in Australia.
And so the contagious the thecontagious nature of this
movement is what actually makesit stick.
And some of these um thesephrases or these call to actions
or these memor memorable andpocketable uh phrases are truly
(26:43):
translatable across the globebecause it is grounding into
human need and uh like theresponse of kindness.
And um yeah, then they collectstories.
SPEAKER_01 (26:59):
So if Carlton left, would it survive, do you think?
I think so.
SPEAKER_02 (27:04):
Right now, right now it is it is steamrolling.
It's steamrolling because it'sit's so embedded in the DNA, and
I think that's that's thepowerful nature of you know,
there's not just these citygroups, there are it's the Serve
the City International.
And so there are some peoplelooking at the at the much
(27:25):
bigger picture and the ways thatthey're partnering with um big
corporations and other peoplethat are just trying to make a
difference as well.
It's just it's almost ano-brainer.
They they won the NGO of theyear in Europe, awarded by the
European Union.
Um a couple a couple years in arow.
(27:46):
I can't remember what years itwas exactly, but and so they're
they're recognized.
And uh the sort of the city logois uh is a hand, a hand print,
and then inside the hand is umlike the skyline of a city.
And and so to see those handsand to see the cities and um see
(28:07):
people wearing their shirts fromtheir cities in their languages
in different colors.
SPEAKER_00 (28:13):
Each city has its own color.
So that's so cool.
SPEAKER_02 (28:16):
It's power, it's it's powerful, and and you feel
like you're a part of something,yet you are distinct.
SPEAKER_01 (28:21):
Huh.
I just interviewed Deb Dixon,who wrote the foreword to
unfolded.
And one of her big thingstalking about is like, how do I
create a leadership team thatwill thrive after I'm gone?
Yeah.
And all that you've describedseems like Carlton has done
that, and this this isn't uh uha movement based on like a
(28:41):
personality, but I have amission and kind of the shared
uh shared philosophy of of doinggood and showing kindness and
and all of that.
SPEAKER_02 (28:49):
So And several countries in Africa now where
Serve the City is, and someonestood up from Africa and just
said it's gonna be in it Ialmost claimed it.
Like Serve the City is gonna bein every country in Africa by
such and such date.
Like 2030.
Wow.
And and which is like a rightaround the corner.
SPEAKER_00 (29:12):
It is it's into 2025 now.
They got four years.
Good good luck.
But that's their vision.
SPEAKER_02 (29:17):
So it's not just I I loved because they were honoring
Carlton and Shannon, thisfounding couple.
However, they were honoring thepeople that are keeping it
alive, and they were honoring umthis guy, Jeremy, and his team
uh who created an app calledServe Now, where people, people,
(29:37):
and it's it's in three differentcities, but in Brussels it is
for sure.
Uh, where you can go on andyou're like, oh, well, you know,
it's low commitment.
Uh I have two hours on Saturday.
Uh I'll click here.
And you can try it.
If you don't like it, you can,you know, or you can just go
back every every single time.
And they they've now providedthe app open source.
(30:01):
So other organizations want touse something like this, and
they were clocking around ahundred and forty thousand
volunteer hours that were thathappened through through the
app.
SPEAKER_01 (30:15):
Um so anyway.
Yeah, I'm looking at the maphere.
There's a chapter in Virginia.
SPEAKER_03 (30:22):
Yes.
SPEAKER_01 (30:23):
But nowhere else in the United States.
That's that's interesting, andmaybe a conversation for another
time.
But uh to kind of wrap up here,I I'm curious if you there's one
takeaway or something that youhope our listeners will
remember.
I don't even know, about maybethe connection between serving
others, leading well, building aculture where people uh can
(30:46):
serve and thrive, and maybe it'sjust a summary of what we've
already talked about.
But I'm I'm curious if there'skind of one tuck takeaway.
We'll put the the romantic musicunderneath or inspiring music.
We'll put their inspiring musicunderneath whatever you're
saying here to really make thispoint hit home and go in
(31:09):
preparation for this time inBrussels.
SPEAKER_02 (31:13):
Uh Brian and I were sitting in a cafe in Paris, and
we didn't want to be jet-laggedas we came to the conference, so
we spent spent a little time inthe city of lights and sitting
in a cafe, we we kind of pennedthis uh this quote together that
that served to frame frame it.
(31:34):
So, Brian, why don't you readit?
SPEAKER_00 (31:35):
When we serve with open hands, we create a space
for something to land.
Part of the inspiration of thatquote came from the type of
preparation people need to do toshow up ready to serve.
Oftentimes we need to set thingsdown that would preoccupy our
(31:57):
attention.
Maybe we need to open up ourhearts in a different way and
actually release one thing topick up something else.
And to pick up something elsecould be a paintbrush and a can
of paint.
To pick up something else couldbe, you know, to assemble um
some type of food to distributeto people that are in in need.
(32:18):
It could be to pick up umrecycled bricks to build
something in a building wherepeople are going to be living.
So it's a it's this mindset andthis symbolism that for me to
serve, I need to prepare and torelease and to be ready to
receive.
SPEAKER_02 (32:39):
In short, in short, our hands need to be unfolded.
SPEAKER_01 (32:47):
Thank you for listening to the Leadership
Vision Podcast, our show helpingyou build positive team culture.
If you found value from thisepisode or any of our other
materials, we would appreciateit if you follow us on the
social medias.
If you followed us on subscribeto our podcast on Spotify, on
Apple Podcasts, wherever you getyour great podcasts.
(33:09):
And please join our free emailnewsletter.
There's a link in the shownotes.
You can click that link to getmore information about us or
just visit us on the web atleadershipvisionconsulting.com.
My name is Nathan Freeberg.
I'm Linda Schuberg.
And I'm Brian Schuberg.
And on behalf of our entireteam, thanks for listening.
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