Perseverance

In this 2026 conversation with Justine Willis Toms, Wheatley draws on a Hopi prophecy of "letting go of the shore" and explores how to persevere through grief, chaos, and civilizational collapse. She discusses "dwelling mind", greenwashing, bearing witness, groundedness, and hope as commitment rather than certainty of outcome.

Margaret J Wheatley, EdD is an internationally acclaimed writer, speaker, and teacher. She began caring about the world's peoples in 1966 as a Peace Corps volunteer in postwar Korea. She is cofounder and President Emerita of The Berkana Institute, a charitable foundation that works with people around the world to strengthen their communities using the wisdom and wealth already present in their people, traditions, and environment. She is a guide in leading people back to understanding who we are as humans, being able to create the conditions for our basic qualities of generosity, contribution, community, and love. She is a grand contributor in creating an Island of Sanity in the midst of wildly disruptive seas. Her books include:

Leadership and the New Science (Berrett-Kohler 1998)

Perseverance: A Companion for the Journey (revised) (Berrett-Kohler 2026)

Turning To One Another: Simple Conversations to Restore Hope in the Future (Berrett-Kohler 2009)

So Far from Home: Lost and Found In Our Brave New World (Barrett-Kohler 2012)

Who Do We Choose To Be: Facing Reality, Claiming Leadership, Restoring Sanity (Berrett-Kohler 2017)

Restoring Sanity: Practices to Awaken Generosity, Creativity & Kindness in Ourselves and Our Organizations (Berrett Kohler 2024)

Opening to the World As It Is: Poems of Experience (Berkana Publications 2024)

Interview Date: 9/4/2026 Tags: Margaret Wheatley, perseverance, resilience, chaos and uncertainty, civilizational collapse, Hopi prophecy, dwelling mind, greenwashing, bearing witness, groundedness, faith, hope, Warriors for the Human Spirit, spiritual traditions, leadership, Buddhism, Personal Transformation