Perspectivism.

Perspectivism is the philosophical view that all perception and ideation takes place from a particular perspective. (Wikipedia)

It’s a perspective that keeps the community from being imprisoned by the hubris of intellectual arrogance. It validates the value of seeing our stories through new lenses, telling them in new ways.

Denying joy is the ultimate betrayal of our essential nature. It doesn’t matter what our excuses are. They are all logical, and worthless.

What if we embraced joy with arms of wind, heart of fire, depth of earth, resilience of water?

Forgetting or repressing one’s heartfelt dreams in the interest of
complying with social expectations or cultural norms banishes and damages the soul. Remembering the dreams of the soul soothes us deeply, and reminds us of our sense of purpose and of that which creates meaning in one’s life.

Cleveland area based coach and author, Herb Stevenson

Ed Morrison, June Holley, Valdis Krebs, and I finished a 2-day workshop today where we introduced new models and cultures of economic development to a group of leaders from several midwest and southern states and regions.

The premise is that relationships are the new wealth that will inspire well-being in communities and regions. Many ah-ha’s as we introduced new language, principles, and tools - all supporting organic and self-organizing growth. Very exicitng stuff and an honor to be a part of a team of international thought leaders.

One of the most creative folk artists, Christine Kane, on her process from her website that now features a beautiful blog:

Every time I sit down to write, I’m amazed at how mysterious the whole process still is and how new it always feels. Inspiration is different every time. I do know that I need to read fiction, see paintings and pottery, be out in the woods, laugh a lot, and have a lot of quiet time. Somehow that inspires me, but I can’t exactly define how. I’m at my best when I feel like a well-rounded happy human, not when I’m all curled up inside trying to figure things out.

The headline story in this morning’s NY Times is about the massive trend of schools cutting back on and in some cases banning social sciences, the hard sciences, and the arts in order to achieve reading and math scores.

This is the next generation of employees, parents, community members, and leaders who will be able to read and count but not think analytically, creatively, or socially.

It’s an amazing lack of understanding of how much reading and math there can be in any rich area of whole-brain learning. Something to protest with innovation.

The natural is right
The easy is right
To be yourself is right
To be yourself is all you can really be
Anything else is to go astray.

Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh

I like the role of art, music, literature, poetry, and film as helping us see the world and ourselves in new ways. For this reason, we never have too much of them.

One of the most energizing ways to engage and unleash imaginations is with reflections on what if.

How it works: Think of some seemingly improbable or impossible outcome you’d love to see in your world. Then ask “What if …?” that were possible. What if it were possible for this to occur? What would the world be like? What would that enable us to experience beyond that?

It’s a great way to liberate thinking to dreams worthy of passion.

There is a qualitative difference between naming something a “boundary” and a “barrier.” Boundary implies a space we can go beyond.

What are your life’s boundaries? And what new opportunities and possibilities exist beyond these boundaries?