Group
One-to-one
Long-range goals
Design
Effective plan
Needs met
Stop
Observe
Unify vision
Lead
The Wheel
Tuesday, 26 April 2011
Wednesday, 20 April 2011
The Cloud of Unknowing part iii
Had a fairly coincidence filled evening. Forgot gym bag when taking daughter out to class so went to library instead. Looked around audiobooks and then cd's. Saw Gorillaz album 'Plastic Beach' and thought I would get it as I had seen something on tv last night about them. Turned it over to read the back and saw that track 15 was 'Cloud of Unknowing'. Also picked up Stephen Fry's audiobook of 'Hippopotamus' and Paul Mckenna's 'I Can Make You Happy'. I pulled up outside a house (number 43) across from place to pick up daughter and looked at the album artwork inside the cd booklet.
The red book in his hand is 'The Old Man and The Sea', which I bought on holiday on a whim and finished reading just the other day. On another page in the booklet, the phrase 'the molecules of'' features prominently as a collaged piece of text. This made me think of another book 'The Molecules of Emotion' by Dr Candace Pert which I have on my bookshelf and found quite a profound book. Actually in thinking about it, I used a technique I first read in this book in my meditation today. It involves imagining that your brain at the crown of your head is amassing a huge store of endorphins and then at the count of 5 releasing them. This produces a powerful surge of endorphins everytime I do it - it is marvellous. I also am listening to her meditative audio cd that I bought just last week called 'Psychosomatic Wellness'. Anyway, I opened Paul Mckenna's book to have a quick read as I waited to pick up my daughter and within 2 pages he had mentioned Dr Candace Pert and her book The Molecules of Emotion.
In my mind this is a sign that I will be well and not to freak about about the number 43. But that's another story
The red book in his hand is 'The Old Man and The Sea', which I bought on holiday on a whim and finished reading just the other day. On another page in the booklet, the phrase 'the molecules of'' features prominently as a collaged piece of text. This made me think of another book 'The Molecules of Emotion' by Dr Candace Pert which I have on my bookshelf and found quite a profound book. Actually in thinking about it, I used a technique I first read in this book in my meditation today. It involves imagining that your brain at the crown of your head is amassing a huge store of endorphins and then at the count of 5 releasing them. This produces a powerful surge of endorphins everytime I do it - it is marvellous. I also am listening to her meditative audio cd that I bought just last week called 'Psychosomatic Wellness'. Anyway, I opened Paul Mckenna's book to have a quick read as I waited to pick up my daughter and within 2 pages he had mentioned Dr Candace Pert and her book The Molecules of Emotion.
In my mind this is a sign that I will be well and not to freak about about the number 43. But that's another story
The Eyes are the Window to the Soul
Where did the concept of the eyes being the window of the soul come from?
'An answer to the question (posted on http://answers.yahoo.com)
The mind's eye, the third eye, the single eye, all-seeing eye, Eye of Ra (Horus), etc. all refer to "clarity of vision" or discernment, a psychological state, meaning you are not at the mercy of ego illusions about Self and reality, i.e. are not delusional.
Rather than a window TO the soul, it is a window OF the observing soul/being.'
Is interesting especially as I have been hearing all this on The Mythology of Ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, Greece and Rome. (2hrs 55 mins in and we are still in Egypt)
'An answer to the question (posted on http://answers.yahoo.com)
The mind's eye, the third eye, the single eye, all-seeing eye, Eye of Ra (Horus), etc. all refer to "clarity of vision" or discernment, a psychological state, meaning you are not at the mercy of ego illusions about Self and reality, i.e. are not delusional.
Rather than a window TO the soul, it is a window OF the observing soul/being.'
Is interesting especially as I have been hearing all this on The Mythology of Ancient Egypt, Mesopotamia, Greece and Rome. (2hrs 55 mins in and we are still in Egypt)
Left: Distinct contraction furrows (marked '3') - a sign of the person being neurotic. Right: Numerous 'crypts' lines going away from the iris (marked '1') - this signifies a warm-hearted and trustworthy person
Creating Space
I think the answer is creating space. Space between thoughts, space between actions, space between stimulus and reaction, space between words, sentences, space between recieving and sending emails, space between being asked something and responding, space to allow other people to consider their thoughts, space for others to respond, space to allow a deeper level of creativity to be accessed, space to be....
space....
space....
space....
space....
space....
space....
Tuesday, 19 April 2011
One Simple Question
I think I can distill it all down to one question:
What do you love doing?
Its a simple question that is the type of thing someone would say in everyday conversation. But I think it may a gateway into something quite profound. Ask it to yourself.
What do I love doing?
Pause now and answer the question.
What was your answer?
Its a transformative question, designed to take someone to the very heart of what it is they value in life, what they are passionate about and what helps them become present in the moment.
My answer to this question might be:
I love searching for the essence of what it means to be alive, experiencing the present moment in a profoundly present way, creating from that source of connection to deeper awareness, playing with images and concepts that ultimately add something to the world and somehow capture the core of what I enjoy in life.
I love helping others in the same search, finding ways to guide them to the present moment through their own passion, connectedness to and motivation for what they are doing.
I love sharing the present moment with those close to me, and to those I know less, well, to people I've just met.
In essence I want to be fully present, using creativity to discover something beautiful and somehow true and to help others find and engage in the activities that help them be fully present in the moment.
I was having tutorials with 3 students today and they felt a little perfunctory. I was aware that I wasn't being very stimulating or even welcoming. I wasn't really in the moment, just quite aware that they were looking a little like they would rather be somewhere else. In each case, the mood changed fairly dramatically when I asked them 'What do you love doing?'. In each case it opened up a new level of engagement and a much higher level discussion. I was no longer delivering and directing content, but rather, allowing the space for the student to tap into what was really valuable for them.
I have seen many students struggle with motivation, focus and self-direction and I think this is part of the problem. It may be that it has many facets. The student isn't engaged because: -
earth - they are too anxious they won't be good enough to do what they love doing
water - they are frustrated because present circumstances won't allow them to do what they love doing
air - they are confused because they have lost touch with or haven't discovered what they love doing
fire - they have the opportunity to do what they love doing but it's not going as well as they had hoped
belonging - they aren't in the right group to do what they love doing
relationships - they can't share what they love doing with others
quality - they don't know the value of what they love doing
creativity - they don't know how to do what they love doing
planning - they haven't got the resources they need to do what they love doing
contribution - they don't see how they can contribute anything meaningful to other by doing what they love doing
What do you love doing?
Its a simple question that is the type of thing someone would say in everyday conversation. But I think it may a gateway into something quite profound. Ask it to yourself.
What do I love doing?
Pause now and answer the question.
What was your answer?
Its a transformative question, designed to take someone to the very heart of what it is they value in life, what they are passionate about and what helps them become present in the moment.
My answer to this question might be:
I love searching for the essence of what it means to be alive, experiencing the present moment in a profoundly present way, creating from that source of connection to deeper awareness, playing with images and concepts that ultimately add something to the world and somehow capture the core of what I enjoy in life.
I love helping others in the same search, finding ways to guide them to the present moment through their own passion, connectedness to and motivation for what they are doing.
I love sharing the present moment with those close to me, and to those I know less, well, to people I've just met.
In essence I want to be fully present, using creativity to discover something beautiful and somehow true and to help others find and engage in the activities that help them be fully present in the moment.
I was having tutorials with 3 students today and they felt a little perfunctory. I was aware that I wasn't being very stimulating or even welcoming. I wasn't really in the moment, just quite aware that they were looking a little like they would rather be somewhere else. In each case, the mood changed fairly dramatically when I asked them 'What do you love doing?'. In each case it opened up a new level of engagement and a much higher level discussion. I was no longer delivering and directing content, but rather, allowing the space for the student to tap into what was really valuable for them.
I have seen many students struggle with motivation, focus and self-direction and I think this is part of the problem. It may be that it has many facets. The student isn't engaged because: -
earth - they are too anxious they won't be good enough to do what they love doing
water - they are frustrated because present circumstances won't allow them to do what they love doing
air - they are confused because they have lost touch with or haven't discovered what they love doing
fire - they have the opportunity to do what they love doing but it's not going as well as they had hoped
belonging - they aren't in the right group to do what they love doing
relationships - they can't share what they love doing with others
quality - they don't know the value of what they love doing
creativity - they don't know how to do what they love doing
planning - they haven't got the resources they need to do what they love doing
contribution - they don't see how they can contribute anything meaningful to other by doing what they love doing
The Platonic Solids and the Four Elements
I've just discovered that the Platonic solids were equated with the 4 elements (the elusive 5th also being included) and that this was recorded at least a thousand years before Plato.
Thursday, 14 April 2011
The Wheel
The Inner Wheel
The Red section represents Belonging
The Orange section represents Relationships
The Yellow section represents Quality
The Green section represents Creativity
The Blue section represents Planning
The Purple section represents Contribution
The Outer Wheel - the 4 Elements
The three horizontal lines represent Earth which is centre (empty mind or stopping the mind)
The three wavy lines represent Water which is flow (presence or observing)
The circle represents Air which is freedom (direction)
The triangle represents Fire which is passion (action)
The notion is that excellence, or the Golden Soul is practicing the 4 Elements in each of the six areas of the Inner Wheel.
Wednesday, 13 April 2011
SODA in everyday situations
I often get quite verbally animated at meetings, even those I don't initially think I have much to say at. This leads me to sometimes feel I haven't really made my point well or have pushed it so much people have been confused or lost interest. I'm going to try SODA at a meeting I'm about to go to. one where I am likely to have a lot I want to say. SODA should allow me to be economic and effective.
Stop thinking
Observe reality
Direct focus
Act positively
I could also add that when I Act I should consider
Simplicity - don't say too much
Percieved Self-interest - make it interesting/beneficial
Inconguity - say it in a new way
Confidence - say it with enthusiasm and conviction
Empathy - gauge listeners readiness and reaction
By that time the meeting will be finished
Stop thinking
Observe reality
Direct focus
Act positively
I could also add that when I Act I should consider
Simplicity - don't say too much
Percieved Self-interest - make it interesting/beneficial
Inconguity - say it in a new way
Confidence - say it with enthusiasm and conviction
Empathy - gauge listeners readiness and reaction
By that time the meeting will be finished
IF
| IF you can keep your head when all about you Are losing theirs and blaming it on you, If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you, But make allowance for their doubting too; If you can wait and not be tired by waiting, Or being lied about, don't deal in lies, Or being hated, don't give way to hating, And yet don't look too good, nor talk too wise: If you can dream - and not make dreams your master; If you can think - and not make thoughts your aim; If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster And treat those two impostors just the same; If you can bear to hear the truth you've spoken Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools, Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken, And stoop and build 'em up with worn-out tools: If you can make one heap of all your winnings And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss, And lose, and start again at your beginnings And never breathe a word about your loss; If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew To serve your turn long after they are gone, And so hold on when there is nothing in you Except the Will which says to them: 'Hold on!' If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue, ' Or walk with Kings - nor lose the common touch, if neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you, If all men count with you, but none too much; If you can fill the unforgiving minute With sixty seconds' worth of distance run, Yours is the Earth and everything that's in it, And - which is more - you'll be a Man, my son! Rudyard Kipling |
Tuesday, 12 April 2011
The Cloud of Unknowing reprise
SPICE
In the book Flipnosis, Kevin Dutton talks about the science of split second persuasion. I need to think about this in communicating my ideas when I am able to.
Simplicity - it has to be simple, straightforward and not put people off by being overly confusing or complex
Perceived Self-Interest - it has to be of immediate value to the reader to connect with them personally
Incongruous - it has to be original and shift peoples' expectations and perspectives
Confidence - it has to be told with confidence and a recognition of its value
Empathy - it has to recognise and be empathetic to a diverse range of people and their experiences. It can't be too critical, but compassionate
Simplicity - it has to be simple, straightforward and not put people off by being overly confusing or complex
Perceived Self-Interest - it has to be of immediate value to the reader to connect with them personally
Incongruous - it has to be original and shift peoples' expectations and perspectives
Confidence - it has to be told with confidence and a recognition of its value
Empathy - it has to recognise and be empathetic to a diverse range of people and their experiences. It can't be too critical, but compassionate
SODA
The four elements:
Earth: - Stop (thinking, habitual response)
Water: - Observe (become fully present - pay attention to what is happening)
Air: - Direct (focus attention on a positive way forward)
Fire: - Act (take action confidently to move forward)
This new acronym SODA doesn't say anything in itself, but it helps me remember the key things easily. Stopping thought is the most difficult as we are often tied up in thinking about the past or future. Being present in the moment requires the attention of our consciousness, but this is different from thinking. If we can Stop thinking, we avoid rushing to habitual responses. This makes it possible to Observe what is actually going on in the here and now and not what we worry or hope is going on. Stopping our thinking helps us remove the filters to our experiences and engages our full present awareness on gathering information without judging it. Directing our focus is the next stage. Once we are truly experiencing what is, we are in a position to find a positive way forward. This process is not passive in that we have a responsibility for what the future becomes. We can't control others, merely what we do and say. The key is to be able to Direct our words and actions towards a positive aim, or at least in a positive direction. Once we know what is a positive way forward, we can begin to Act. At this stage we take responsibility for moving the situation in a positive direction. We cannot guarantee that our actions will produce the results we want or expect, but we can take responsibility for wholeheartedly doing what we think is 'right' at that time for those circumstances. Success lies in being present enough to actually experience what is happening and not rely on our mental construct of it (or at least have a more objective view than we might otherwise have had). With this clarity combined with the clarity of a positive way forward, should allow us to be confident that we are doing or saying what we can to contribute positively to life. After acting we need to go back to the start and Stop our thinking, Observe the effect of our actions, Direct our focus and Act having learned from our first trial. This process should continue indefinately until it becomes the new habit.
Earth: - Stop (thinking, habitual response)
Water: - Observe (become fully present - pay attention to what is happening)
Air: - Direct (focus attention on a positive way forward)
Fire: - Act (take action confidently to move forward)
This new acronym SODA doesn't say anything in itself, but it helps me remember the key things easily. Stopping thought is the most difficult as we are often tied up in thinking about the past or future. Being present in the moment requires the attention of our consciousness, but this is different from thinking. If we can Stop thinking, we avoid rushing to habitual responses. This makes it possible to Observe what is actually going on in the here and now and not what we worry or hope is going on. Stopping our thinking helps us remove the filters to our experiences and engages our full present awareness on gathering information without judging it. Directing our focus is the next stage. Once we are truly experiencing what is, we are in a position to find a positive way forward. This process is not passive in that we have a responsibility for what the future becomes. We can't control others, merely what we do and say. The key is to be able to Direct our words and actions towards a positive aim, or at least in a positive direction. Once we know what is a positive way forward, we can begin to Act. At this stage we take responsibility for moving the situation in a positive direction. We cannot guarantee that our actions will produce the results we want or expect, but we can take responsibility for wholeheartedly doing what we think is 'right' at that time for those circumstances. Success lies in being present enough to actually experience what is happening and not rely on our mental construct of it (or at least have a more objective view than we might otherwise have had). With this clarity combined with the clarity of a positive way forward, should allow us to be confident that we are doing or saying what we can to contribute positively to life. After acting we need to go back to the start and Stop our thinking, Observe the effect of our actions, Direct our focus and Act having learned from our first trial. This process should continue indefinately until it becomes the new habit.
Monday, 11 April 2011
You Are Here
Back from a holiday on the west coast. Bought 'You Are Here' by Thich Nhat Hahn and found this mantra:
I have arrived, I am home
In the here and in the now
I am solid, I am free
In the ultimate I dwell
I would like to change this - to the detriment of the prose but to make it more specific to me
I have arrived, I am home
In the here and in the now
I am centred, flowing, free and passionate
In the ultimate I dwell
Friday, 1 April 2011
Soul-Centric
Just watching a programme called 'The Beauty of Diagrams'. The topic was Copernicus's heliocentric (sun) universe which was in opposition to Ptolemy's Geocentric (earth) universe. It made me think about the two opposing forces of what takes you to the Golden Soul and what takes you away from it.
The Egocentric Universe has the individual at the centre, with everyone and everything else circulating around that individual. The Soulcentric universe, I propose, has the notion that at a deeper level within us we are all part of the same consciousness, interconnected at the quantum level. Picture two waves on the ocean - we are both a single wave and we are part of the same ocean.
The two models of life are radically different. I would argue that the Soulcentric universe, where I consider myself part of something greater and with a responsibility to add value to the lives of others, is ultimately more successful and fulfilling that the Egocentric universe where I serve myself only. I would offer that the people who have the most difficulty in dealing with life are the ones who hold the Egocentric model to be true.
The Egocentric Universe has the individual at the centre, with everyone and everything else circulating around that individual. The Soulcentric universe, I propose, has the notion that at a deeper level within us we are all part of the same consciousness, interconnected at the quantum level. Picture two waves on the ocean - we are both a single wave and we are part of the same ocean.
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