To Act With Resilience
This week features four poems with author commentary on what develops resiliency as a way of life, both personally and in our role as leaders. Enjoy reading excerpts from "Night Weavers" by Dr. Melvin Dowdy — his collection of collected poems published in November 2020 — and hearing his commentary on ideas of building resilience, understanding, and choice.
Meet the Faculty
Presented by Melvin D Dowdy
Dr. Melvin Dowdy
Executive Education Programme Faculty, Licensed Clinical Psychologist, Ph.D., M.Div., M.A.
Dr. Melvin Dowdy is a longstanding partner of the Mendoza Business School’s Executive Education Center at Notre Dame. Dowdy has more than 32 years of experience in executive coaching, organizational consultation, and academic instruction. He has research and extensive professional experience in the area of organizational ethics and has focused his work on building organizational environments that support ethical integrity. He has held teaching positions at Virginia Commonwealth University, Virginia Union University, and Neumann University, as well as The Virginia Institute of Pastoral Care. He holds a B.A. degree from North Carolina Wesleyan, an M.Div. from Duke Divinity School, a Ph.D. in Counseling Psychology from Duke University Graduate School, and an M.A. degree in Clinical Ethics from University of Virginia. He has coached senior leaders from a wide range of industries, including clients from Fortune 500 companies, family-owned businesses, political and educational leaders, law firms, and medical practices.
Dowdy reconnected with Kylemore in October of 2016 when he was asked to facilitate the centre’s inaugural Executive Leadership program, finding again that the monastery, the landscape, and Irish culture were a perfect context for teaching leadership that develops from “the-inside-out.” Dowdy’s book of poems, “Night Weavers,” was published in November 2020.
Additional Resources
Presented by Melvin D Dowdy
- Buy the full collection of poems in “Night Weavers” by Dr. Melvin Dowdy here.
- Enjoy the second of four recipe videos from the Kylemore Global Centre’s kitchen with Chef David Harrison. Watch the video and read the recipe: Chef David’s Simple Moules Marinière (Mussels)
The Actions Necessary to Practice and Build Resiliency
Presented by Melvin D Dowdy
Dr. Dowdy reads his first poem selection, “While She Slept,” and discusses the topic of the actions necessary to practice and build resiliency –– namely, awareness, openness, and active engagement.
The Transcendent Self
Presented by Melvin D Dowdy
Dr. Dowdy reads his second poem selection, “Fierce Life,” which highlights the importance of the transcendent self that forms a lens through which we understand our belonging and our participation in the vast consciousness connecting all of us.
Choice as Compared to Decision
Presented by Melvin D Dowdy
Dr. Dowdy reads his third poem selection, “The Door,” which focuses on choice as compared to decision. To live resiliently, we choose to embrace what has ultimate value to a life well-lived, to stay committed to those values, and therefore to constantly make choices with integrity. As Augustine said, “Every choice is a renunciation.”
View the Event
Presented by Lisa Caulfield
Subscribe to the ThinkND podcast on Apple, Spotify, or Google.
Featured Speakers:
- Dr. Melvin Dowdy, Executive Education Programme Faculty, Licensed Clinical Psychologist, Ph.D., M.Div., M.A., Mendoza Business School’s Executive Education Center at Notre Dame
- Lisa Caulfield, Director of the Global Centre at Kylemore
Prepare for Next Week
Presented by Lisa Caulfield
- “Remote Working in Ireland” article by Professor Alma McCarthy, Professor Alan Ahearne, Dr Katerina Bohle-Carbonnell, Tomás Ó Síocháin (WDC), Deirdre Frost (WDC)