Today Daniel and I cancelled our satellite TV package. We noticed this fall that: When we’re tired after work, we often plop down onto the couch and mindlessly watch TV for no other reason than that it’s the easiest thing to do. Sometimes for hours. We don’t even like the programming on about 190 of the 200 channels, and we spend a ridiculous amount of time … [Read More]
This post is for my friend Ali who asks questions that keep me young at heart. Today Ali asked “Does familiarity decrease the generated happiness?” [within a group] I’d like to start by saying that I have zero interest in putting up barriers to human happiness. So if you disagree with what I say here, please be happy about it. I will be. An easy … [Read More]
So my dear friend Diane just got the job of her dreams. Literally. She’s been having vivid dreams about it since the day she realized she might actually have a shot at getting it. I’m thrilled for her. It fills me with joy that she’s moving in the direction of her passion and her heart and her truest self—to the point that tears of joy … [Read More]
My self-organizing groups help me practice moving through and letting go of fear, and my self-organizing community pulls and pushes me through fears to get an even broader and deeper perspective on them. As we pass through these fears together, the fears that don’t matter cease to exist and the fears that do matter have become valuable teachers and tools.
Thanks to Doug Nathan for pulling these experiences out before my eyes where I could see them, and thanks to my community for teaching me that no matter what I say as an individual, that I’ll be supported and loved. Consciously studying my own and close others’ self-organizing groups has changed me and just keeps on changing me. One of the biggest, scary-to-say-out-loud changes for … [Read More]
You asked me “Also, have you seen “evil” self-organizing groups?” From my perspective, evil is a word that belongs in the hands of someone far, far wiser than me. I’m not qualified to use it to describe living beings. No living being I personally know fits that description. Self-org groups have taught me that it’s pointless to negatively judge distant others, because I’ll never have the full story. Today, for me, evil self-organizing groups don’t exist, because for me self-organizing groups are self-aware groups of people surprised and delighted by what they become and do together. For me, these groups are an “us” that we’re only just beginning to recognize.
Continuing from Sustaining a self-reflection practice in a chaotic world (1 of 2) … 7. What gets in the way of sustaining your practice? Most days, nothing. Some days, I do. On those days, I’ve learned to reach out to self-organizing group members until I’m back on track. 8. How does your professional self-reflection practice support your personal practice and vice versa? Learning and experimenting … [Read More]
One of my self-organizing groups (Doug Nathan of conflictmatters plus Neil Baker of Neil Baker Coaching and Consulting plus me) is creating a proposal this week to speak at a national conference next spring. One hour into our first discussion, we decided to talk as a panel about something we’re all doing right now but hadn’t entirely noticed until we came together: namely, sustaining a … [Read More]
How many days each year are you angry? I’m not talking about clearly warranted in-the-moment anger—the kind that causes you to shriek out loudly to stop a young child from running out into busy traffic (followed by a mini lecture about the dangers of running into traffic while your hearts are still pumping hard from the life-or-death scare). Or the kind that causes your whole … [Read More]
Some of the things I learned this week thanks to my self-organizing groups: Chaos and order are both within us, and both ok. It’s in our nature to be chaotic, silly, ridiculous, and huge risk-takers. Within these groups, I can accept chaos as rewarding and even fun. Yet it’s also in our nature to appreciate order and structure and to minimize or avoid risk. Within … [Read More]
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