Is it possible to rise above and not be defined or limited by our lived experience, to go beyond our thought patterns and tune in to the universe of which we are a part? To have a belief system not derived from our own experience we need to separate ourselves from what has happened to us and realise that we are more than and separate from our conscious reality. We can observe ourselves, what happens to us, our reactions to events and the drivers of these reactions. To be in the world but not of the world.
Not to avoid your fears but to actively seek them out, shine a light on them, embrace them, take them on, feel the pain, understand the source of them and overcome them. No longer be subservient to your fears. Freedom is not a place or a situation. It is a frame of mind.
Humans can and do cope with all sorts of stressors. However many of us do have an Achilles heel. What are the situations that really get your goat? Why is this the case? Usually it is something from your past. You have had a bad experience and don’t want to repeat it. These situations colour and skew our perceptions and can cause irrational behaviours. Keeping alive this warped view of reality can keep us from living normally and being our true selves. We need to understand that the paradigm changing situation was not typical and should not be allowed to influence our behaviours and decision making.
What are the drivers of your daily life? Are you using a lot of energy trying to keep some of your deepest fears at bay by controlling things? If so, you are attempting to do the impossible and will ultimately fail. This type of behaviour is characterised by opting out of many of the experiences that life has to offer. Life is often paradoxical and uncertain defying all attempts at control. We need to meet it with an open and authentic attitude.
Believe that past experience has no bearing on current events unless we bring it to them. Why do we sometimes keep the past alive? That was then and this is now. Stay aligned with true principles and you cannot fail to grow and prosper in all the ways that count. The nature of our existence in this guise is too ephemeral to be sidetracked by the unimportant.
The recurring thoughts, the voices in our heads, where do they come from whose voices are they? Recognise them for what they are. We are more than our thoughts and our programming. Pay attention to your emotions. They point out things that we may not intellectually understand as of yet. For instance how you really feel about people or a situation.
We have to believe it’s possible to get past this stuff because it is. You don’t run away from it because that doesn’t work. It’s one of life’s paradoxes the way out is in. Have the experience don’t avoid it, even if it horrifies you, for as long as it takes to bring it to a conclusion. Closure only comes when we have the experience however painful it may be.
In the film Fight Club facing your fears and avoiding comfortable distractions was espoused by on side of the split personality of Tyler Durden “You’re not your job. You’re not how much money you have in the bank. You’re not the car you drive. You’re not the contents of your wallet. You’re not your fucking khakis. You’re the all-singing, all-dancing crap of the world”. So get real and start living like you were created to do. As you walk through the shadow of the valley of death no evil shall you fear for thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory.
On the vast scale of the universe with its infinite space-time our little problems don’t amount to a hill of beans. Tune into this reality of which you are an integral part and put things into perspective and keep them there. Come out of your cave, create the light and travel into it.
The perpetrators of the destruction of the world trade centre twin towers and the murder of 3,000 people on the 9th of November 2001 in New York sought by this dastardly act to strike at the heart of capitalism and thereby bring it down like a house of cards.
Little did they know that the system was already sowing the seeds of its own destruction. The financial crisis that has crippled the financial system began when sub prime loans began to be securitised (converted into stocks and shares). This divorced the broker from the ultimate lender so all the brokers had to worry about was achieving their commissions, not whether the loans were sound or not.
This economic system was characterised by special interests, the hypocrisy of high deficits, cheap available credit and spiraling asset prices while a lot of production was migrating to low wage economies in the east.
This flawed system has been propped for some time by tinkering with interest rates and complex financial instruments and derivatives. However the inevitable cannot be staved off indefinitely. The longer this goes on for the greater the correction will be. This is what is happening in late 2008. A major correction is now taking place. Many financial institutions have been left holding the baby of a myriad of bad and dubious debts. Consequently those institutions with cash reserves are holding on to them as loaning it to other financial institutions is now high risk. Capital is becoming less liquid and without access to capital, banks that don’t have a deposit base are in trouble and businesses and the economy cannot continue to grow.
Cybernetic systems are intelligent control systems. An example would be the way an oven keeps its temperature within a set range. When the temperature rises to the top of this range a negative feedback mechanism is initiated and the oven switches off. When the temperature drops to the bottom of this range a positive feedback mechanism is initiated and the oven switches on again. In this way control is maintained. When this control system begins to break down the temperature of the oven extends beyond the specified range for short periods. This can be caused when the initiation of the control mechanism is slow to operate and the oven overheats. This overheating damages the control mechanism further and prevents it from working thereby causing even more overheating. This positive feedback loop ultimately causes meltdown.
The financial control system was the risk analysis that preceded lending decisions. When the ultimate holder of this lending was divorced from the lending decision the control mechanism breaks down. Securitisation and selling on of mortgages facilitated this separation. The volatility that comes with a lack of control and precedes a crash has entered the financial system. The value of stocks and shares are fluctuating wildly. Share prices going up or down tens of percentage points daily are commonplace with whole markets shifting by ten percent. Casualties are mounting up and the whole landscape looks like the aftermath of a war. More money has to be borrowed from banks with dubious balance sheet assets to shore up these bad loans. The positive feedback loop is in operation and the whole financial system may well collapse.
There is a shift in global economic power taking place and many of the basket case western banks may be taken over by the growing economies of the east. As Bob Dylan sings the times they are a changin’.
The question is what to do about it? Do we have to face the fact that the deregulated capitalist system is flawed and has to be rescued from time to time by citizens? Will we ever trust wall street again? Do we let capitalism function with survival of the fittest, red in tooth and claw, or seek to save it, by bailing it out using tax payers money and in doing so destroy it? Tax payers could possibly ultimately profit from this as they are buying debts for fifty cents on the dollar. It is often said that the market is always right; maybe the house of representatives was also right in this case, with its initial response by turning down the $700 billion bail out request.
On a Thursday in early August 2008 I left the midlands of Ireland to go on a bike trip. My steed was a 2004 Honda Deauville, a 650 cc shaft driven V twin. This is not a very fancy motorcycle but is ultra reliable with lots of packing spaces and is comfortable over long distances. I would suggest using the higher fairing windscreen though as there can be constant wind pressure on the head area.
Got to Dublin ferry port in plenty of time for the 2:30 pm sailing to Hollyhead in west Wales. It had been a very wet summer in Ireland so I thought I would keep heading south until it got warmer.
On arrival in Wales I drove to Liverpool in the pouring rain. Most of Britain was suffering from the same climate as Ireland. There is a diagonal line that crosses Western Europe the position of which varies from year to year. Above this line the weather is mostly unsettled and colder while below in is settled and warmer. This year it has stayed near the south east coast of Britain.
I decided to keep going and got a little bit towards Birmingham on the M6 and camped in the services area off the motorway with trucks pulling in and out all night. Next morning got up at dawn and got a gross breakfast in McDonald’s and headed south. By 9 am I am circa 75 miles from London and it is still lashing rain. Got on to the M25 around London and later crossed the Thames Bridge up into the sky. By lunchtime I am at a services area near Maidstone in Kent and the first bit of sun I’ve seen. At 4 pm I am waiting to get on the channel tunnel train. There is a British couple with an immaculate Honda Goldwing with every possible accessory and all sorts of exotic machinery here. It is warm now and I am for the first time in a T shirt. I travelled across to Calais on the train lashing rain again, soaked again, lost count of the number of times that this has happened on this trip.
70 miles down the A 16 motorway to the Baie de Somme motorway service area, the site of the battle of the Somme where my granddad fought in the trenches in World War 1. This innovative, environmentally friendly area has some pleasant surprises in store for you… duck and fish ponds surround its elegant wood and glass buildings, overlooking vistas typical of the Baie de Somme. I camped there and explored this site the next morning. I had forgotten how beautiful France can be and how civilized.
It is dry and sunny for the first time since leaving Ireland so I travelled into the centre of Amiens to experience a new French city. Nice easy going town with river fishing, street markets and classic architecture. Amiens cathedral a world heritage site is the tallest of the large classic gothic churches of the 13th century and is the largest in France of its kind. The detail all over this building left me awestruck.
I travelled onwards across northern France towards the West and then crossed an impressive bridge The Pont de Normandy, over the Seine estuary.
France is well served with motorways some of which are tolled. This makes it possible to maintain a high average speed. So it was onwards towards Rouen across Normandy towards Rennes. My family name is Reynolds and we originally came to Ireland in the Norman invasions in the twelfth century, so in a way it was like coming home. However mistakenly, the Normans were believed to be of French origin but, more correctly, they were Vikings. These Vikings landed in the Orkneys and Northern Scotland about the year 870 A.D. and they invaded France about 911 A.D.
I travelled onwards down the West coast of France Nantes, La Rochelle and Bordeaux 150 - 170 miles (up to 300 km) between petrol refills. I covered a lot of miles quickly because I was on a mission to try and come to terms with events that had occurred more than 40 years earlier. I was heading for the Pyrenees on a voyage of self discovery. Relentlessly onwards towards the city of Pau off motorways for the first time passing lots of foie gras specialists and beautiful French forested countryside. From here through narrow urban streets towoards the Catholic shrine of Lourdes at the foot of the Pyrenees. Following the claims that there were apparitions Our Lady of Lourdes to Bernadette Soubirous in 1858, Lourdes has developed into a major place of Christian pilgrimage.
My reason for going there was to visit my mother. In 1964 she was 39 years old and suffering from Leukemia a cancer of the blood or bone marrow. Being a devout catholic she travelled to Lourdes with my dad in the hope of being cured. She did not make it and was laid to rest in the Irish section of the cemetry in Lourdes. My dad boarded the plane to return home to Ireland alone. An American guy felt sorry for him and gave him a bottle of whiskey, half of which he consumed on the journey back. He returned home alone to raise five young children and our lives were never quite the same again.
I did the shrine thing, the grotto and marveled at the large trout in the river. In the afternoon I made it to the grave and was completely overcome with emotion and a total mess for about twenty minutes. I talked to my mom, told her about my life, wished for something (that subsequently happened) and forgave her for one bad early memory I had. She couldn’t have chosen a more beautiful spot to be laid to rest underneath the beautiful Pyrenees.
I travelled onwards towards Beziers where my son was working as a chef at a holiday resort near Valras Plage spent some time with him and then headed up through the mountain range towards Clermont Ferrand through beautiful sweeping bends and wonderful scenery.
Then I travelled onwards to Brittany to visit my sister who was holidaying there. Next day I got the ferry from Cherburg to Rosslare overnight and drove home.
There is something about travelling alone on a motorcycle. Its just you and the open road and if you are camping you don’t have a lot of human interaction. There are no distractions like radio, TV or internet so you have loads of time to think and review your life, something spiritual happens in the most unlikely places. In the modern world many holidays are planned in great detail and packaged up so that there are no surprises. Many people like to have all of their ducks in line. This approach is anathema to me. I believe a holiday should be and adventure, a voyage of self discovery, you interacting with the environment to take you somewhere you are only dimly aware of. Whatever does this for you be it motorcycling, skiing, hang gliding…have an adventure that is yours alone and don’t be paraded around on a tour bus like livestock. The planet is our playground, our educator, our responsibility and our life.
In the film Contact the relationship between science and religion is explored.
Jodie Foster plays the manically driven, ruthlessly logical scientific researcher searching for extra terrestrial life by wrangling time on some of the world’s largest radio telescopes. However her driven nature, as is often the case, is partly as a result of a troubled childhood. She is really searching for answers having lost both of her parents to illness early in her life. An early interest, shared with her father, in amateur radio leads her to believe that the answers are out there and she is relentless in pursuit of this perceived truth.
Matthew McConaughey on the other hand is spiritually aware and writes about the impact of science and technology on our lives. He asks are we happier because of developments of science and technology or do we feel more alone. He is also searching for truth through spiritual discovery.
The interaction between these two characters provides the love interest and the film culminates with the scientist having a spiritual experience that cannot be scientifically verified as some of the evidence is suppressed. A leap of faith is required to trust our own experience over the scientifically verifiable.
In the modern world it is easy to assume that we know more than we do. As Sir Isaac Newton 1642-1727 famously observed after a lifetime of ground breaking scientific discovery “I seem to myself like a child playing on the sea shore, and picking up here and there a curious shell or pretty pebble, while the boundless ocean of truth lies undiscovered before me.”
The Scientific Method
The method is designed for discerning the truth from delusions. The process is to observe some aspect of the universe, form a tentative hypothesis consistent with the observation, use it to make predictions and test them with experiments or further observations and modify the hypothesis in the light of your results. Repeat until there are no discrepancies between theory and experiment and/or observation. When consistency is obtained the hypothesis becomes a theory and provides a coherent set of propositions which explain a class of phenomena. A theory is then a framework within which observations are explained and predictions are made.
The modern world displays many of the benefits of scientific endeavour in healthcare, construction, farming, transport, technology and communications. The marvellous inventions that we enjoy were made possible through the application of scientific rigour. Understanding our environment enables us to manipulate it for our benefit. Science attempts to explain the nature of things and ultimately the nature of our existence.
However like most areas of human endeavour science has its limitations. Science hits its limitations at the quantum physics level where consciousness determines the reality as per the Schrodinger’s cat experiment. Science helps us to determine the laws of nature and to put them to use. Science describes reality rather than creates it. The creation process is human endeavour putting scientific insights to use. Science is the how but not the why. So where is the initiator of the creation, growth and diversity of the universe? All things are encompassed by the creative process including ourselves. Consciousness creates the reality, science describes it. Science reveals the nature of creation, and the beauty of God.
The source of creation permeates all things and we are subliminally aware of this. Indeed we are participants in this creation and are co-creators ourselves. With this power comes responsibility. We are responsible for what we create. This is where religion comes in urging us to create good and wholesome realities by fostering and understanding of our true nature as spiritual beings. We are transient in this world and can never really own anything, merely controlling things for a while. Religion urges us to appreciate our true natures and the nature of the universe and to live our lives accordingly.
Belief in religious dogmas can be scientifically derided as being limiting, false or improvable. However the problem is that religious principles when applied often result to happier and more fulfilled lives and functioning communities. Followers of the religion of 7th day Adventism live between five and ten years longer than fellow citizens, partly explained by the fact that they don’t drink or smoke, and many are vegetarians, as this lifestyle is promoted by the church. Even those church members that do not adhere to these practices also live longer. Churchgoers have significantly lower levels of stress hormones enabling them to better cope with life’s stresses. Connection to a higher power and a close religious community helps one to keep these stresses in perspective. So maybe religious practice is just a bunch of rules that make sense for living based on tried and tested principles and no more than that or maybe they transcend the limitations of time and space and enable us to experience a higher power and consciousness.
The definition of creativity is the ability to transcend traditional ideas, rules, patterns, relationships, or the like, and to create meaningful new ideas, forms, methods, interpretations with originality, progressiveness or imagination. Creativity can help us to survive by being adaptable and is a strategic asset. Creativity can arise from internal characteristics of non conformity and external associations or interests. Adaption often involves finding a niche within environmental constraints and innovation of an existing idea, product or process. Person, press, process and product describe the elements of the creative endeavour. Routine thinking involves using mostly logic to solve issues within existing paradigms while creative thinkCultural blockers can be taboos, behavioural norms, favouring logic over creativity, perceptual filters based on belief systems and experiential or dogmatic issues. Emotional blockers sometimes have to do with fear of failure, ridicule or ambiguity, biases and rushing to judgement. The ideal environment is safe, not too autocratic without sanctions and free from distractions with social support structures. Make the environment and social interaction conducive to creativity. Previously successful methodology may not be appropriate in this instance. A mix of left and right brain thinking may be required along with sufficient rigour and openness to new ideas. Preferred cognitive style is better if balanced. We need to constantly challenge our perceptions by being aware of their limitations and experiment with looking at problems from other perspectives. Failure to correctly identify the underlying problem or the necessary information required to solve it by using unsubstantiated assumptions, viewing the problem too personally, narrowly or broadly or missing inputs.
Creative Problem Solving
When we observe others doing things that we would like to do but are currently unable to do the reason is that they know things that we don’t know or perceive the situation differently. This causes them to look at the problem in a different way. If we knew what they know then we could do it too. Creative problem solving entails defining the underlying problem and moving from the current situation to the desired one by applying the necessary skills and generating ideas.
Perspectives come in various forms on complexity that can be cognitively thought of as rungs on a ladder. Depending on what you are trying to do there is a right position to be on the ladder. Down in the detail or up in the clouds. In the detail solutions are limited to the activities within the paradigm. At higher levels a broader set of paradigms and alternatives can be considered.
Knowledge builds on knowledge in the way that the foundations of a building support its upper levels. There are levels of thinking that we can be unaware of depending on our stage of development. As Donald Rumsfeld famously said “Reports that say that something hasn’t happened are always interesting to me, because as we know, there are known known’s; there are things we know we know. We also know there are known unknowns; that is to say we know there are some things we do not know. But there are also unknown unknowns — the ones we don’t know we don’t know.”
Types of Problems
Solving structured problems can be like solving puzzles. Semi structured problems can have complex or ambiguous elements. Some problems are novel, complex and ambiguous. The technique used can depend on the nature of the problem.
Techniques
There are various creative problem solving techniques and it is important to know when and how to use each of them. Problems can be converted into opportunities with a change of perspective. This can be a form of entrepreneurial thinking. It sometimes can be a requirement to find potential problems with an intended course of action. Teams can be effective at solving problems and team building is important in this regard.
One problem solving technique is simply trial and error. Another is to experiment by changing make one change at a time and observing the results. A third is to break the overall problem into sub problems and deal with each sub problem in turn. Start with the end in mind. Apply experience, skills and knowledge by facilitating and harnessing the power of teams face to face or across the internet. Some groups will have their limitations on these areas.
Mind maps can be used to graphically illustrate aspects of the problem. Begin by writing down the issue and drawing a circle around it. Next identify feeds into, causes or aspects of the issue and circle them. Identify the linkages between the issue and sub issues. Different colours can be used for clarity on overlapping issues. This technique is aligned with how our mind works as we often think in pictures and link things together a bit like hyperlinks on the internet.
Brainstorming is suitable for groups. It is initially very broad and nothing is ruled out as groupthink needs to be avoided. A variation called brain writing may further help to reduce this tendency. A further is for each participant to come up with their own ideas in advance and the group reviews collectively and selects the best ideas. Clustering, gates with associated ground rules and weightings. Use of gut feel can help to incorporate some unconscious or unarticulated inputs.
Lateral thinking as defined by Edward de Bono has to do with stretching the paradigm. There are many ways to skin a cat. Reversals can involve thinking about trying to do the opposite of the required outcome in order to yield insights into it. If parking space is the problem we could think about how to eliminate existing space to gain insights. Can we go some way to achieving the impossible? Random stimuli can promote creativity so we need to be open to new experiences. Use of analogies and metaphors can bring seemingly unrelated wisdom to bear on problems.
We all have a learned set way of viewing the world. Part of the creative process is changing this view. Brainstorming is likely to encourage the participants to produce paradigm preserving output, object stimulation is likely to produce paradigm stretching output, and rich pictures tends to produce paradigm breaking output. We can divide the techniques into problem analysis and redefinition, idea generation, idea evaluation and selection, and implementation. We can describe a number of thinking operations involved in problem solving and learning wishing, retrieving, imaging, comparing, transforming and storing. The process can be supported by electronic meeting and decision support systems provided they are user friendly and integrated with our norms.
Planning
Create models to aid understanding, search for examples of similar problems and solutions, work back from the desired end state or simplify by breaking the problem down into its component parts. Use analogies or stimuli to look at the problem from a different perspective. Mind maps can help to define the problem. There may be multiple possible solutions to be evaluated and optimised. SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, realistic and time bound) methodology can be used to keep the problem resolution on track. Divergent followed by convergent thinking initially broadens the idea, search, pays with them and then narrows to the most promising practical ideas.
Teams
Cohesiveness, shared goals, roles need to be considered to ensure the effectiveness of teams. At best groups should be sized optimally and bring more skills, experience and diversity to bear on the problem being reviewed. At worst they can be taken over by the more vocal or dominant members and lead to groupthink where some inputs are not sought or heard. Studies have shown that individuals working separately generate more and more creative ideas. The ideal situation therefore is to combine individual creativity and group effectiveness. Group work should be structured so that the group is inclusive, ideas are captured, consolidated, reviewed and evaluated only the end of this process. A good mix of team roles and personality types tailored to the task at hand as defined by Belbin and others will help to ensure good group dynamics and effectiveness. Roles such as idea generator, resource investigator, monitor evaluator, coordinator, completer finisher, team worker and specialist should be present.
Inputs need to be right such as group composition in terms of skills, diversity and structure with role and goal clarity; behavioural norms, tasks definition and leadership; resources such as training, technical, consultancy and experience. Processes should be able to cope with task complexity, environmental risk and interdependence. Open communication, supportiveness, conflict resolution, strategic options, weighting of individual input and boundary management should be in evidence. Outputs that result from having these things in place lead to satisfactory group effectiveness and performance. Laddering techniques can be used so that the group grows in size as the decision making process progresses. Group decisional, communication, interpersonal and technological characteristics can have strong impacts on outcomes. Teams also need to maintain focus by minimising external distractions and defining the process and output criteria.
Meeting process, team structure, team dynamics and trust with an acceptable, impartial, mediating and strong communicating styles facilitator to help to keep the process on track. Facilitators can do a lot of the preparation work in advance of group meetings. Pre session and post session planning can ensure that there are clear objectives agreed with the sponsor, momentum and smooth operation. Timetables, attendees and terms of reference can be set out in advance. Problem behaviours can be identified during and post session and be addressed accordingly.
Smaller groups promote more in depth analysis while larger groups cover broader areas. For a group to be effective it must be supported by organisational structures and members must commit to the process, be motivated, rewarded, have the necessary skills and use the appropriate tools.
Implementing
Without proper execution great ideas will come to nothing. Anticipate resistance review concerns an incorporate them if valid or develop a plan to circumvent them. Trials can be used to validate assumptions and iron out bugs.
In the film Anger Management starring Jack Nicholson, Adam Sandler and Marisa Tomei a mild-mannered businessman after a misunderstanding regarding some in-flight headphones, is ordered into an anger management therapy programme by the court judge. In this often funny film inward directed anger is described as something that will ultimately seek release sometimes with devastating consequences as happens with mass murders.
Anger is a natural emotion that readies us to address a perceived threat. Deep and persistent anger can arise from repressed emotions. If a person wants to be a master of their own destiny but represses their desires because they allow the desires of others to take precedence and if this situation is allowed to continue for a long time then it can result in deep and persistent anger.
Anger can be turned inwards or outwards. Outward directed anger causes arguments, disputes and can sometimes cause fall outs between people. In its milder forms it is good for venting frustrations and perhaps clearing the air. Inward directed anger causes the bearer to become increasingly frustrated over time and may transfer to outward directed anger suddenly and ferociously. If this does not happen then internally held anger will ultimately destroy the bearer.
Why do we sometimes persist with untenable situations? Perhaps we cannot see a way out and need help in this regard. Is it sometimes down to our own insecurity, fear of the unknown or fear of going against the crowd? Maybe it is based on some early ideas planted in our minds of scarcity, imagined or real dangers, strong reactions to challenges to authority or maybe some situations are just not that clear cut and we feel that tradeoffs have to be made. Whatever the reason we need to either get past it or learn to live with the ambiguity for a while and then get past it.
It really comes down to our perception of reality. If we consider our daily interactions to be all that there is then we can be totally consumed by them and at the mercy of the prevailing wisdom. However if we view it as a microcosm that can be changed, influenced or exited then the picture is very different. We create our own realities so we should not subsequently complain about them. If our realities are wrong it is because we are inauthentic and not aware of or aligned with our true nature when creating them. We have created this reality so if we don’t like it we should scrap it and create another one. If the law of attraction is correct we have to consciously stop creating this reality and begin to create the desired one.
Testing is a methodology that can be used for those of us who are sceptical about the law of attraction. Pick your worst and most deep rooted fear and face it on order to change your perception of it. Three things can happen here. One as you go deeper into this you get nervous and ultimately lack the courage to face your fears. You back off and come away with your fears reinforced. Two you crash and burn. This outcome is not very likely or three you crash and burn to some extent but survive and come out the other side. To move on from the third possibility has a lot to do with our perception of what has occurred. Sure it has been a painful experience, one you might well want to avoid in the future. Choosing this interpretation causes a reversion to option one and your fears are reinforced. Another interpretation could be, hey you didn’t die and what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. The latter interpretation enables you to move on from here and get past the blocker on the basis that though the experience was unpleasant your very worst fears were not realised and were shown to be unfounded. Theoretical pursuits are fine as an aid to understanding but it is in the doing of a thing that we really learn. We have to literally crash through the barriers and escape into the greater freedom outside.
Sometimes anger can result from a feeling of powerlessness. When we bend our will to the will of others do we kill part of ourselves? In the modern world is it necessary to do this in order to conform to societal norms in jobs and social situations? Perhaps we can we best serve others by being who we truly are. After all if we are not our authentic selves what do we have to offer others? Anyway we can never really control others and if we try to do so we will ultimately be disappointed. If you accept the premise that we are all connected to one consciousness then to be angry towards another is the same as self directed anger and just as damaging. We can only seek to control our own actions and our own emotions to some degree and be aware of the intrinsic power we do have as human beings. Others cannot really cause us to feel anger we choose to feel it ourselves. If you are allowing something or someone to cause you to feel angry you have two options, one get as far away from them or it as fast as possible, or two change your attitude.
We humans often like to feel that we are in control. Random events conspire to show us that this is not the case. Natural disasters, extreme weather, freak accidents, untimely deaths and illnesses are notoriously difficult to predict and to take account of when planning. These events serve as a reminder to us of our true nature and the transient and vulnerable nature of our existence. Living every day with this awareness alters some of our goals and priorities.
The illusion of control extends to many areas. Take climate change as an example. There have always been periods of dramatic climate change long before the industrial revolution and the consequent pumping of gases into the atmosphere. Ice Ages, periods in Earth’s history when sea ice or glaciers have covered a significant portion of the planet’s surface and significant cooling of the atmosphere has occurred frequently interspersed with warmer periods. Earth has existed for about 4.5 billion years. During that time it has experienced several ice ages, each lasting tens of millions of years. The total of these episodes may account for as much as 15 to 20 percent of the planet’s history. The icy cover has ranged from about 10 percent to about 30 percent of the entire surface of the planet. The most recent ice age, the Pleistocene epoch lasted from about 1.6 million years to 10,000 years before present. During that time at least 20 glaciations, or periods when the ice cover increased, occurred. Each of these periods was followed by an inter glaciations, or a period when the ice cover shrank. The most recent glaciations lasted from about 115,000 years ago to 10,000 years ago. The climate during that time was much different from what it is today, with temperatures on the continents as much as 15° C (27° F) colder. In areas that are currently occupied by subtropical deserts, cooler and wetter climates caused large lakes to form from increased rainfall and glacial runoff. The past 10,000 years have been part of a relatively warm interglacial period. However, the presence of massive continental ice sheets on Greenland and Antarctica, along with numerous smaller glaciers in mountainous regions throughout the world, indicates that Earth is still in the grip of an ice age.
Gaia the Greek goddess represents mother earth that brings fourth and sustains our existence. James Lovelock an independent scientist and author is known for proposing the Gaia hypothesis in which he postulates that the Earth functions as a kind of super organism. The Gaia hypothesis is an ecological hypothesis that proposes that living and nonliving parts of the earth are a complex interacting system that can be thought of as a single organism. This hypothesis postulates that all living things have a regulatory effect on the Earth’s environment. Effectively it is postulated that there is a control mechanism in operation to keep the Earths temperature regulated by the complex interactions of sea, atmospheric cloud cover and composition along with life itself and its impact on the environment. This is similar to our own temperature control mechanism when we shiver when cold to warm us up and sweat when warm to cool us down. This is a cybernetic type system as when the temperature of an oven is maintained between two values. If the temperature drops below the lower values it switches on and if it rises above the higher one it switches off.
Despite the ice ages the Earth temperature has remained remarkably constant over eons of time. The world has been around for an unimaginably long time and has always had dramatic climate change, has always supported life and is not likely to end any time soon. Irrational fears about the end of the world send us running into the arms of those that would save us, if that is their real agenda. I am not saying that we shouldn’t take reasonable steps to preserve and enhance the environment but don’t give control of you life over to those that are promoting doomsday scenarios if you don’t. Hard won freedoms and common sense must prevail. Stop worrying, live consciously and enjoy it!
The important thing about money is to figure out how it works then money can be a slave to you rather than you being a slave to it. The capitalist system, that has engulfed most of the world’s economic systems at this stage, is based on the premise that money generates more money. The cycle is investment - return - more investment. This is the happy situation where money is working for you rather than the other way round. How do you get into this game if you are not already in it? Well capital takes various forms. There is financial, human, skill based, time based, technological, physical, social, knowledge and many other types of capital that can be leveraged and put to work.
First we need to figure out what capital you have got however small as little acorns grow into gigantic oak trees over time as each year’s layer of growth builds on the previous one. Similarly investment growth will be exponential if returns are reinvested so that the returns are generating further returns.
Next is that resources of whatever type should be moved from out of areas of lower yield and into areas of higher yield. This could simply mean using your time more productively. Look at thr time return ratio and spend your time on the activities that generate the highest returns. This is in fact the definition of entrepreneurial behavior. If cash is generated on a fixed per hour basis for doing work then the hours available place an upper ceiling on your cash generation potential. However investments that produce income not linked to your time or passive income have no such limitation. The only rule is that the application of resources must generate returns greater than the inflation rate. When you have identified a vehicle to achieve this, returns can be leveraged if they exceed the cost of capital or interest charged on borrowings. In this scenario the limitations on returns are access to capital and scalability. So don’t waste your capital, keep your expenses low and look for opportunities that can be easily scaled up. Risks must also be factored in and hedged where possible.
You also need to look at your current lifestyle as resources dedicated to the maintenance of it detract from exponential investment potential. There is a building phase and we can only reap what we sow, but do this correctly and you will not work for money it will work for you. Secondly the more unencumbered you are the lower your requirement to earn to support yourself and the sooner paid work will be optional. At this stage you effectiveness can be maximized. This helps to provide the motivation to continue through difficult periods.
Then we come to what I call cross functional pollination and this is when you are really humming. In this situation you income streams are feeding into, out of and supporting each other. This makes the growth curve even steeper. For this to work well the investment and business models need to be scalable and as light a touch as possible. Services like direct labor have limits on scalability or rapid cost increases. When you reach this point give something back because when you are creating value it comes back to you in capital in the broadest sense.
What is it about being competent about something that makes us feel good? Part of it may be that it is an immediate and visible example of mind over matter or put another way an example of creating our own reality. This gives us a feeling of power and control in a life where as part of the human condition we can often feel powerless due to the finite nature of our existence in this form and the seemingly random events that happen to us all. To be competent in an area sets us apart and allows us to demonstrate our skills. Skills are valued as a means to getting things done. They are often in demand and provided in exchange for monetary reward. Extreme competence is often very much admired as many others aspire to it. This admiration can boost our self esteem providing another feel good factor associated with competence. Likeminded people will have rapport around an area of competence that they enjoy such as hang gliding or playing music, often forming clubs or associations providing them with a sense of insider belonging and camaraderie.
Through these outlets learning takes place and a shared understanding develops. In depth understanding in the area of competence can lead to more general insights as no one area of knowledge and understanding has a monopoly on wisdom. Universal truths become evident in diverse areas of study. In Robert M. Pirsig’s book Zen and the art of Motorcycle Maintenance the limits of mechanical logic and the relationship between it and intangible experience is explored among many other things. A motorcycle engine is a mechanical construct that converts the chemical energy contained in gasoline and air into the kinetic energy of motion based on the laws of physics. However the experience of travelling through sweeping bends in the Rockies on a summer’s day propelled by a v twin engine motorcycle may display some nuances about that engine that seem to transcend the limitations of a mechanical construct? The experience of it is a combination of conscious observation and abstract mechanics that combine to form something new as with Schrödinger’s cat experiment where consciousness changes reality itself. In the zone of competence the engine blends with the rider and the motorcycle becomes a celebration of roads.
By really looking at and glimpsing the nature of the smallest and simplest of things we can begin to appreciate the nature of larger and more complex things as well. One of the reasons that we are here must be to experience the nature of this reality by being a living part of it testing it and ourselves to create something new that enhances our understanding and development. Humanity is differentiated from the rest of the animal world primarily by the complexity and pervasiveness of its constructs. All things that can thus be imagined become possible. Through competence we come to know ourselves and our environment and to experience and develop them in the fullest possible ways.
What causes a human being to self destruct? It has got to be down to our mindset or how we look at things. Something the individual cannot cope with due to their particular view of the world. We are attempting to look at our worst fears here. The impacts of our worst fears have got to be more imagined than real as they are different for each individual. These deeply held beliefs can limit us by holding us back, cause us to behave in certain ways or cause us to crash and burn.
How can we face these fears and therefore rise above them? Some form of courageous introspection would be required to shine a light into these areas and drag them out for critical analysis. We would need to understand the issue, our relationship to it and how this has developed in order to be more rational about it. One argument that supports some form of spiritual belief is that negative thoughts damage the holder of them far more than the individuals or systems that these thoughts are directed at. The bearers of such thoughts can literally self destruct. Consequently confronting negative or limiting beliefs is not just desirable but necessary both for survival and growth. In a very real sense it sets us free. However let us not underestimate the difficulty of this task or the rewards derived from carrying it out. We need to expose our vulnerable underbelly and trust that the world will support us for a while. When we have experienced this we will finally understand how irrational our fears really were.
The Nature of our Existence
A lot of human anxiety has to do with carryovers from the past or fears about the future. The ability to live in the now is sometimes not realized due to these concerns. We sometimes live with the illusion of control and when this illusion is shattered by small or dramatic changes we can urgently seek to regain it. Ultimately we don’t have the control that we thought we had. So how can we direct our lives? It is not what happens to us as we cannot control this, it is how we react to and deal with what happens to us. In a way this realization sets us free as unburdened with the past and unconcerned about the future we can do what feels right in the current moments. We can experience these moments to the fullest extent and take part in the miracle of creation itself.
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