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NEWSLETTER VOLUME 5, #2

Ideas for people pursuing an empowered life,


CONTENT

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A "LESSON FROM THE JUNGLE..."(Top) 

Deep wisdom for leaders

There is a worldwide paradigm-shift underway and it leads to the emergence of a « creative class » says Richard Florida in his book "The Rise Of The Creative Class". In it, he weaves a fascinating story backed by a great deal of research.  Tracing a fundamental theme: a host of seemingly unrelated changes in American society are linked, his research showcases the role of creativity and innovation in the economy, and their growing importance.

In the world's leading economies, the « creative class » now makes up more than 30% of the workforce. Florida says the choices this new class of people is making has a huge economic impact and, in the immediate-future, as they network more extensively, they will redefine significant aspects of life - like how the workplace is organized, what companies prosper or go bankrupt, and even what cities thrive or fail.

Some pundits see this emerging creative class as an answer to a need : self-empowerment BEFORE our self-destructive habits push us too far.  Others see Nature at work: Our competitive gene pool and survival of the wisest.  Still others posit metaphysical and spiritual explanations.  From whatever causative force though, the phenomenon is growing and its power will be addressed.

Okay - no one wants to be left behind - let's agree.  So what considerations separate the creative class of thinkers from ordinary folks?  Well I know this: Leaders of creative of thought have greater facility dealing with the unknown, and with change.  They are more comfortable with unknown quantities, challenge them more often, and force them to become known. I'll add this:  No one really knows much for sure about the future, and we are never really sure about outcomes. And so creative leaders learn to deal with change.  

Creative people shift into new possibilibities without ever being sure they'll pan out or succeed.  They require no certainity that the future they are proposing will be better - instead they are motivated by an assuredness that the present isn't good enough.  They want to add new value to it.

Of course innate curiosity and hard work are a big help, but creative people succeed by dealing with 6 principles of cognition that most folks don't know about. 

They are:

  1. The mind is a self-organized and closed loop system.  It is impossible to arrive at a conclusion about something outside the loop by the reasoning process inside the loop.
  2. The solution to a problem cannot be found at the same level of realization as the problem.  If the solution to a problem was where the problem is, the problem could not be.  Problem and solution are perfect contradictions as in [(+1) + (-1) = 0].  The mind examining a problem must change in order to solve it.
  3. We have both physical and psychological needs to solve all our problems and thereby we must learn to creatively change our mind.
  4. Motivation can be described as the inner drive to satisfy our needs.
  5. A need satisfied is no longer a motivator.
  6. A need unsatisfied is a negative motivator.

Think of motivation in terms of other root words like motor and motive and you'll soon see how the inner-drive works.  As we identify a need, we can then move boldly into the future to satisfy it. 

In changing times, there's real power to be gained from learning how to deal with uncertainty.  Join «creative class» and learn to change the future.

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AN EMPOWERING TECHNIQUE, TOOL OR EXERCISE (Top) 

Strategic thinking is a behavioral technique that will guide you in shaping new input into creative ideas. In my book SELF-Empowerment :How and why to invest in your creative capital, I describe how I used this tool in a magical operation in Costa Rica. 

It's based on the natural working of the brain and involves 5 steps: seek out new information, treat it on both conscious and subconscious levels for deep insight, analyze it to provoke creative breakthroughs, implement the fruit of that labor, adjusting it in real-world conditions, and communicate its intent to others.  Check out the rules by clicking here.

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OUR FEATURED COSTA RICA TOUR (Top) 

Now consider "HOW TO BUILD HIGH PERFORMANCE TEAMS" as the agenda for your own team-building week.  Experience 7 wondrous days and nights, 6 outstanding adventures, 6 important Lessons from the jungle and more than a dozen empowering tools and techniques.  This adventure is made wondrous by its expert animation and top facilitators.  To find out more, click here.

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WEB LINKS TO HELP YOU WORK AND PLAY (Top) 

The hottest trend on the net these days is blogging - i.e. writing a web log.  Blogging is shaping up to be one of the most important developments in media. For millions of people, blogging is their first opportunity to report and comment on matters of importance to them, without having to go through journalists, editors and other gatekeepers - so says the Global, a blog for Communication professionals and PR folks.

If you want to learn more about BLOGS, click here.  The terms and definitions that define blogging are here: and instructions on how to create your own are here. Of course there are political blogs of every stripe - so click onto a directory. For a wider range of web log topics, try comedy blogs and sports blogs. How about a movie blog or a travel blog or a fashion blog.  There are even sex blogs and religious blogs.  Have some blogging good fun.

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SOME INSPIRING QUOTATIONS (Top)   

"Challenging the meaning of life is the truest expression of the state of being human." Viktor Frankl

"The most complicated achievements of thought are impossible without the assistance of consciousness." Sigmund Freud

"Strength of mind requires exercise, not rest." Alexander Pope

"God gives every bird its food, but he does not throw it into the nest." Josiah Gilbert Holland

"Grief is the agony of a moment; the indulgence in grief, the blunder of a life." Benjamin Disraeli

"He possess dominion over himself, and is happy, who can everyday say: 'I have lived'." Horace

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A BIT OF A GIGGLE (Top) 

Once, a long time ago in mid-America, a man and his son were going to the market with their mule. As they walked along by its side, a farmer passed them and said: "You are rather foolish to walk beside that beast for what is a mule about except to be ridden on?"

So the man put the boy on the donkey and they continued on their way.  Soon enough though, they passed a group of church-going men, one of whom said: "See that lazy youngster, he lets his father walk while he rides that mule."

So the man ordered his boy to get off, and got on himself. But they hadn't gone far when they passed two old women, one of whom said to the other: "Shame on that lazy lout to let his poor little son trudge along."

Well, the man didn't know what to do, but at last he lifted the lad up behind him on the mule.  By now, they had neared the town and passers-by began to jeer and point at them.  So the father stopped and asked what they were scoffing at.  And the city-folk said: "Aren't you ashamed of yourself for overloading that poor mule with you and your hulking son?"

Both the man and the boy got off and tried to think about what they should do.  They thought and thought till at last they got an idea.  They cut down a pole, tied the mule's legs together, slipped the pole between them and then raised it, pulling the mule off his feet, and proceeded to carry him, upside down, on their shoulders. 

They walked along - rather nonchalantly in single file - with the mule strung upside down between them.  They continued in spite of the ass's loud protests and the peals of laughter they heard from all who saw them. Finally, just as they reached the bridge closest to the market, the mule got one of his legs loose, kicked out in protest, caused the boy to drop his end of the pole, whereupon the father also dropped his and the mule scampered to be free. 

In the resulting chaos, ass still now on the ground, struggling to get up, it staggered over to the side of the bridge and, his fore-legs still loosely strung together, tripped, fell over the edge into the river and promptly drowned.

"That will teach you both a bit about life!" said an old man who'd followed them the whole way and had seen it all: "Try to please everyone and you'll please no one at all.  Not even the sorriest ass"


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