Week 2: Chapter 1 — Endings Are Normal and Necessary

1.Cloud uses the rose pruning image in depth here: a master gardener cuts off buds that are alive and blooming — not because they are bad, but because they are consuming resources that could fuel a better bloom. How does this challenge the idea that we should only end things that are 'bad'?

2.Cloud makes the point that the rosebush has a 'season' — a fixed window of time and energy — and that failing to prune means settling for many mediocre blooms instead of a few excellent ones. How does the concept of limited seasons apply to your own energy, time, or capacity right now?

3.Cloud argues that businesses, relationships, and personal lives all have a similar structure: things that once worked can become the very obstacles to what needs to happen next. Can you think of a success in your past that is now functioning as a barrier to future growth?