The Power of Mottos

I never thought much about mottos until I started at my current position a number of years ago. Early on, our founder gave our peace and dialogue institute the above guidances. Then I noticed that a school I support in Boston, Fenway High School, has these really concise, on point, and cool mottos: "Work hard. Be yourself. Do the right thing." And then I remembered that I have always focused on a slogan for my own work as an education writer: "To inform and inspire." 

Now that I think about it, it should actually go: "To inform, inspire, and provoke." That last part is a tricky proposition, but an essential one. We all need our assumptions challenged on a regular basis. The key is to do this without tearing down too much or discouraging people. To do this well is a core educational aspiration. Buddhists call this skillful means. A closely related educational principle is to "meet people where they are." This means that information, inspiration, and provocation must be calibrated based on awareness of an individual's (or group's) character, mindset, and experience to maximize the potential for growth.