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Workshop Announcement "Balanced Structure, Dynamic Movement, Endless Flow"   The heartfelt expression of thoughts, emotions, and actions   Washington D.C.: October 31 - November 2, 2003 This workshop will offer you significant value if... You desire a deeper sense of calmness and meaning in your life. You seek a heartfelt understanding of who you really are, once you take away the stories about your life. You are a therapist, coach, social worker, physical therapist, or bodyworker, looking to add to your current professional skills. You want to help others live a more fulfilling life. Learn how to identify and shift the somatic underpinnings of limiting beliefs, health concerns, and debilitating habits. Please click on the title to find out more.

1. Starting Line

Recently I was on vacation in the States with my wife and daughter and a Japanese family with two children. The English ability of the three children from Japan was limited to say the least.

We were staying at a large hotel that had an artificial beach leading into a wading pond. There were numerous other children present, from numerous other cultures. A couple of Chinese children, several Germans, two Spanish, and a quartet of French. Watching these kids get together to play, with very little in the way of a common language was a beautiful sight to behold.

At first young kids are often not all that dissimilar from young puppies sniffing each other to get a sense of who is who and what is what. During the sniffing out phase each kid tends to play only with their own toys. Then it soon becomes apparent that a lot more fun can be had if everyone has the option to play with everything. Exactly how this idea gets communicated I am not sure, but soon each kid is freely contributing the toys they brought to the pool, and trying out other gear they haven't seen before.

The next stage in this creative process of community building is when the kids spontaneously decide to create their own environment. Quite often this involves "a force larger than man" that needs to be overcome. In this instance the kids decided that I was a beached whale that needed to be returned back to the ocean/wading pool. The process they used to move me is most likely quite similar to the process that the ancient Egyptians used when moving the large stones necessary to build the pyramids.

Why is it that children are so naturally creative and that during their play they love to create and then overcome huge obstacles? I ask this question, but I guess what I am really asking is why these same qualities of exploration, a willingness to face the unknown and the passion to overcome adversity, seem to have evaporated for so many adults. I am also wondering why we don't develop a system for adults working together that mimics what children do naturally. Diplomats could learn a LOT from watching a children's play group form.

All of life is a creative act. This creativity is not a quality or "thing" that resides more in some people than in others, and it is not an act that requires logic or struggle. Creativity is immanent in every living system. Creativity is part of the glue that connects one thought to another, one individual human being to another. Creativity is immanent in the not thinking "Group Mind" of every adaptive system, be it a forest, urban sprawl, or a group of children suddenly thrown together at a resort hotel.

If indeed we did evolve from apes into human beings, then it is a safe bet that the creative act of evolution was not carried out only after numerous brainstorming sessions facilitated by highly paid ape consultants. It is my guess that apes would have preferred to stay as apes. Or is it just human beings that seem to want to stay the same as they are now?

2. Main course:
Group Mind, Creativity, and Innovation

Below I offer you a framework to help you organize the natural emergence of creativity when working as part of a group or system. The group you belong to can be your family, your classmates, the company you work for, or your local parent-teachers association. You can of course also adapt this framework to aid you when working on your own. All it will take is a little creativity!

I feel a little guilty in presenting this model of creativity, because for the most part I "got it" while being trundled down to the ocean by the kids. I hope you will not find what I write "childish."

1. Set aside the time and space to have creative conversations.
It is helpful to have the sense of having "enough time" when engaged in creativity. Set aside enough time for each brainstorming session, so that you do not feel rushed. It is also important to have a sense of being in a special setting. A magical space where people do not feel buffeted by their usual every day circumstances. A place where you are not constrained by the laws of gravity, profit, or what is and isn't considered possible.

2. Welcome diversity and eccentricity.
Skillful leaders that facilitate the flow of creativity, avoid direct attempts to tell people what is right and wrong, and what is good or bad. Instead, they artfully encourage the group to keep moving, while maintaining a spirited state of mindful spontaneity. All the while being sensitive to the thoughts, feelings, and reactions of the entire group.

Skillful leaders appreciate different opinions and teach processes and ways of approaching challenges that generate diverse and eccentric ways of perceiving and acting.

3. Create the space and support, for a creative "Group Mind" to emerge.
In putting together a complicated jigsaw puzzle, you will have been frustrated by looking at a particular piece and having no idea what part of the total image the piece relates to. You have no idea where the piece fits, and you might even wonder if extra pieces of the puzzle might have been included in the box by mistake. Each member of every brainstorming group sits with pieces of the puzzle in their possession, while having little if any idea as to how such pieces might possibly relate to the puzzle as a whole.

When all members of a group feel fully respected and safe, they will willingly offer up their seemingly unrelated fragments of thoughts, feelings, and dreams. People need to be appreciated for adding to the discussion, regardless of the eventual value their input might have. It often takes a "bad" idea to spark a "good" idea. It is only as the various pieces are laid down on the table, and the process of "success and error" is encouraged and supported (a better descriptive phrase than "trial and error") that a creative Group Mind, coherence, and viable solutions will begin to emerge.

4. Encourage Quantity rather than Quality. "Only say Yes."
Almost all initial attempts at creativity are flawed in some fundamental way. This is just the way it needs to be. Initially, we need to encourage quantity of ouput with little regard for quality of output. Nothing is more lethal to a creative outflow of ideas, than people feeling they should only offer up high quality well thought out proposals. "You have to be wrong before you can be right!"

5. "Only don't know"
The "area" of what you don't know is much bigger than the area that you do know. Successful brainstorming involves being comfortable with the fact that you currently don't know the answer or solution you are searching for. Or perhaps it is best to say that you don't yet know that you know the solution. You can maintain a comfortable sense of not knowing, by feeling confident that you do have the capacity to discover a solution given enough time, input, and support.

6. You can't get there from here.
Creativity is not a linear process. You cannot get to the solution you desire by traveling down the same paths of logic that got you to where you are right now. The solution already exists, but you won't find it if you start out from where you are. Let go of trying to solve a problem by maintaining a sense of curiosity, playfulness, and awe. You will need to wander a bit before you find your way.

7. Be specific
Don't choose a generic topic like "Motivation" or "Happiness." Choose instead a specific situation that you would like to work with. A situation that usually has a time and a place, and perhaps other people, that you can clearly relate to. For instance, "Motivated to get up out of bed in the morning" will tend to get you much better results that just picking the topic of motivation in general.

8. Find the metaphor that fits and you will soon find your solution.
If you take your "problem" and place it in a different context, you will see that what you have is a solution. Brainstorming, innovation, and dreaming, are all metaphorical processes. A metaphor relates two seemingly different situations in a way that makes the similarities strikingly apparent. You can find the answer to your current "problem" by discovering that the solution already exists in another context.

9. Embody the physiology of creativity.
Stress and insecurity invariably lead to tense muscles, "tunnel vision", and a lack of sufficient oxygen intake. Confidence in one's creativity invariably leads to relaxed muscles, enhanced peripheral vision, and increased oxygen flow. In order to be creative, you need to embody the physiology of creativity. Relax your muscles, move freely and easily, widen your mental and visual perspective, and breathe freely and easily.

10. Creativity works in the reverse direction of life itself.
When being creative we will do well to travel into the future and envision our dream in completion, and then work backwards to see how we got there.

3. Practice

Assume for the time being, that you come from Mars, or some other distant place, and that you know nothing at all about life on earth. You are given a long winded explanation about how to discern what is man made and what is natural. You say that you feel like you have some reasonable idea as to which is meant to be which.

You are then shown a conch shell and some children's "Silly Putty" and asked which one has been created by the intelligence of man and which one has been created by the intelligence of evolution.
Which one will you say is which? Why?

Which one will you say is which when shown a brand new Sony robot and a seventy year old human being? Why?

Which one will you say is which when you listen to the sounds of a thunderstorm and the sounds of a heavy metal music group from the 60's? Why?

You will be taken to a wildlife area to watch a lion hunt, kill, and eat his prey. Afterwards you will be taken to a war torn area where you will watch human beings kill each other. Which scene will you say is natural? Why?

4. Links

http://www.waystowellnessforwomen.com/

Living Life the Way of Women - A Weekly Boston Meditation Gathering near the Longwood Harvard Medical Area at the Boston Shambhala Center. Do you have a special time each week where you can gather with other women?

Why not set aside 2 hours each week, for a special time in the company of other women to join in calming and meditative energy to reflect and find your way through the labyrinth of today's life by creating a pathway of simplicity for wellness.

This group is facilitated by a friend of Seishindo, Lavinia (Zahava) Weissman.

5. Suggested Books and Music

Book: "Action Theater - The Improvisation of Presence"
by Ruth Zaporah
This lady is very talented and very creative. The book has some wonderful ideas and some fantastic exercises. It is great book for anyone who teaches workshops and wants to learn how to be more improvisational in nature, and how to develop PRESENCE. It is a great book for anyone who would like to explore the processes of improvisation and creativity.

CD: Boys Air Choir "Requiem" or "Bluebird"
This boys choir from England is sublime. Their music is lilting and beautiful.

6. Endnote and Invitation

Two issues ago I asked people what they notice when they come to visit in the States. Here are some of the replies I received:

1) Food portions as well as the size of the average American keep getting bigger and bigger.
2) The size "small" does not exist in North America in regard to food. Never order a "large" anything when it comes to food.
3) Ordering a coffee has become a very complicated experience. There is no such thing as just a regular coffee anymore. Coffee is now latte, served MANY different ways and in many different sizes, and with all sorts of different stuff squirted into it out of numerous bottles. You order from one person, you pay another and you have go around a counter to pick up your coffee never completely understanding if what you ordered in the first place is what you really wanted and if what you get is really what you ordered. Oh well! It all tastes the same anyway.
4) On the other hand, clothing keeps getting sized more and more generously. When I lived in the States I wore a size 12. I now wear anywhere from a 4 to an 8 depending upon the maker, yet I my body shape is still the same as it was back then. Hmmmmmm... I wonder if this has anything to do with the fact that Americans are in denial over point 1) above.
5) America is a lot cleaner and safer than it was 25 years ago. New York is actually a great city, run very efficiently by friendly people.
6) New York is becoming more and more Spanish. I actually bought some running shoes for my daughter in a store where only one employee spoke some English.
7) The best places to eat "normal" and healthy meals are in Japanese restaurants. And yes, when we asked someone if this was a typical Japanese meal, the person replied that he didn't know because he was from Vietnam!
8) Foreign tourists visiting America soon fall into the food obsession trap, just like the natives! Lots of Luck!
9) People are tolerant of a lot of environmental noise. The air conditioning can make a lot of noise, they don't seem to care.
10) People's buying decisions are very driven by the "good deal" or I must have this special gadget. They don't really ask themselves what they really need.
11) There seems to be a high tolerance towards lousy craftsmanship in building construction. I mean look at the average paint job, the installation of electrical outlets, the fitting of doors or windows. The quality of US building construction is poor compared with many other European countries.
12) Which reminds me, why is "Made in Europe" such a sales argument in infomercials over here, while "Made in America" is often a quality statement in Europe? I mean there are good and bad products on both side of the Atlantic.

* * *

I have lived in Spain for the last 15 years.
When I came back, I noticed many things. Some of the more obvious and easy to put into language are:

1. Many many events, feelings, human circumstances are now called "disorders" or "syndromes".
2. There are so many flavors of specific consumer items like potato chips, yogurt, cookies, ice-cream, etc, that it seems like the "original" flavor is now being re-marketed as having the "pure" qualities of the past, it seems almost "nostalgic" in nature. Lays is longing for its simple, innocent past?
3. Many people have allot of money and even more people have very little money.
4. A great percentage of the population drives a large, or very large car.
5. Prime time newscasters use (much more than I remember) colloquial language, slang, and incorrect sentence structures in their news reports.
6. A good number of cities in the US have majority populations that are not Caucasian, but they are still referred to as "minorities".

On a personal note, when I go into a supermarket, I am always so overwhelmed by the number of items available and of the number of items one has to select from for just one genre of food. I think it would do well to have a little counseling service in the supermarket. 15 minutes of calm talk, of active listening would be just the thing to help me get back out there and select the exact barbeque sauce that I need.

Great newsletter,
thanks,

Jenifer J.
Washington DC

* * *

Thanks to those who sent in their thoughts. Your active participation is always appreciated. And yes, it is interesting to experience how each culture adapts to life differently. As a Japanese friend once told me, "All marriages are bi-cultural. Especially when we marry someone from the same culture, because at such times we are expecting more similarity that we find. Marrying someone is similar to moving to an unknown foreign country. Adjusting to the changes in culture takes a while."

7. Copyright

Unless otherwise attributed, all material for the newsletter "Pure Heart, Simple Mind"(tm) is written and edited by Charlie Badenhop ©. All rights reserved.

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