Wednesday, December 31, 2008

RCG Reinvents Itself - Again

In the spirit of continuous change and transformation, the Radical Change Group is reinventing itself once again. In an attempt to capture our founding principles and communicate our values and contributions, we have created a short video. Feel free to re-post this video elsewhere – help us spread the word! And also, let us know what you think.

Have a great day, and a Happy New Year!

Artists of Life - Do Your Own Thinking - LIVE EXPERIENTIALLY AND EXPERIMENTALLY

Do Your own thinking. This seems to be the “crux of the matter” no matter what the approach you take to change work, be at the personal, inter personal or organizational/social level

BUCKY ON DOING YOUR OWN THINKING – FROM THE MAN WHO WANTED TO UNDERSTAND AND LIVE THE PRINCIPLES OF THE UNIVERSE

LEARY ON THINK FOR YOURSELF – FROM THE MAN WHO QUESTIONED AND CHALLENGED/CHANGED AUTHORITIES ALL THE WAY

BHAGWAD GITA/HINDUISM ON THINKING FOR YOURSELF, GO BEYOND THE VEDAS AND FOLLOW YOUR OWN TRUTH

It is amazing, that at the end of the day, the way out of of the problem is acutually to turn inward, inward deeper still.
All theory, all ideas, all beliefs just become “limitations to be overcome” and the path to oneself is “via negativa” by dropping away the adopted ideas, beliefs, and theory. This in so many ways is the birth of an artist, an artist in and of life. Not an easy path, not a path understood even by most, and definitely not a path walked by many. The path is filled with blood, sweat and tears, and yet at the end is the rapture and peace. So why does one need or why is one called to do one’s own thinking? Why is one called to become an “artist of life”… this I believe is a good question, a question for us to explore, a question perhaps to hold in one’s consciousness deeply and see what emerges, and see if and how it moves you.

We have been studying some of the paratheatre process inspired by Jerzy Growtowski and would like to end with his words in this short write up

“Why do we sacrifice so much energy to our art? Not in order to teach others but to learn with them what our existence, our organism, our personal and unrepeatable experience have to give us; to learn to break down the barriers which surround us and to free ourselves from the breaks which hold us back, from the lies about ourselves which we manufacture daily for ourselves and for others; to destroy the limitations caused by our ignorance and lack of courage; in short, to fill the emptiness in us: to fulfill ourselves. Art is neither a state of the soul (in the sense of some extraordinary, unpredictable moment of inspiration) nor a state of man (in the sense of a profession or social function). Art is a ripening, an evolution, an uplifting which enables us to emerge from darkness into a blaze of light.

We fight then to discover, to experience the truth about ourselves; to tear away the masks behind which we hide daily. We see theatre – especially in its palpable, carnal aspect – as a place of provocation, a challenge the actor sets himself and also, indirectly, other people. Theatre only has a meaning if it allows us to transcend our stereotyped vision, our conventional feelings and customs, our standards of judgment – not just for the sake of doing so, but so that we may experience what is real and, having already given up all daily escapes and pretenses, in a state of complete defenselessness unveil, give, discover ourselves. In this way – through shock, through the shudder which causes us to drop our dally masks and mannerisms – we are able, without hiding anything, to entrust ourselves to something we cannot name but in which live Eros and Charitas.”

, , , , ,

Tuesday, December 30, 2008

Grail Meaning and Legend - LEADING SYMBOLIC LIVES

Everyone of us who has gone down the path of exploring mythology, be it personal or transpersonal we have run into the encounter with the grail legends. These stories of the lives of knights and their quest are deeply embedded into our personal and collective psyche.

These two videos are by far the coolest and easiest introduction to the legend of th grail. Watch them, perhaps a few things will become even more clear and inspire you to explore mythology and the “path to personal transformation” even more closely.

Should you enjoy these videos, click on the link below for audio recordings of Joseph Campbell discussing the grail legends and links to our various podcasts on the mythology with paul rebillot

TALKS BY JOSEPH CAMPBELL ON THE GRAIL LEGEND

Joseph Campbell http://www.futurehi.net/media.html

* Joseph Campbell – The Grail Legends (4/82) – 1A.mp3 (17.9mb)
* Joseph Campbell – The Grail Legends (4/82) – 1B.mp3 (17.7mb)
* Joseph Campbell – The Grail Legends (4/82) – 2A.mp3 (17.7mb)
* Joseph Campbell – The Grail Legends (4/82) – 2B.mp3 (17.3mb)
* Joseph Campbell – The Grail Legends (4/82) – 3A.mp3 (18.2mb)
* Joseph Campbell – The Grail Legends (4/82) – 3B.mp3 (18.2mb)

TO LISTEN TO OUR PODCASTS ON MYTHOLOGY WITH PAUL REBILLOT VISIT
https://www.radicalchangegroup.com/podcasts/categories/mythos/

08/3/08 #45 Embodied Mythology Series 06: The Lover’s Journey with Paul Re… by RCG
07/27/08 #44 Embodied Mythology Series 05: The Lover’s Journey with Paul Re… by RCG
06/22/08 #40 Embodied Mythology Series 04: The Hero’s Journey with Paul Reb… by RCG
05/11/08 #34 Embodied Mythology Series 03: The Healing Theatre-2 with Paul Rebillot by RCG
05/4/08 #33 Embodied Mythology Series 02 – The Healing Theatre with Paul Rebillot by RCG
11/25/07 #13 Embodied Mythology series 01 – Stories of Our Lives by RCG

UNTIL NEXT TIME, LIVE MYTHICALLY AND FULLY SYMBOLIC LIVES

, , , , , , ,

Eye accesing cues video ..

Eye Accessing Cues

This is an interesting video which will explain how eye accessing cues work. This is a good visual representation of each of us access various faculties of our brain in order.

Eye accessing cues are one fo the first things we went aha over when we did get our “traditional nlp” training. Thi is a good into to it before getting into the more fun part of sub modalaties. For info/podcast on submodalaties refer to our podcast from 11/4/07. The link to it is below
https://www.radicalchangegroup.com/podcasts/categories/mind/nlp/page/2/#show-55

A submodality in neuro-linguistic programming is a distinction of form or structure (rather than content) within a sensory representational system. Submodalities refers to the subjective structural subdivisions within a given representational system. For example, in visual terms, common distinctions include: brightness, degree of colour (saturation), size, distance, sharpness, focus, and so on; in auditory: loudness, pitch, tonal range, distance, clarity, timbre, and so on (Wikipedia)

* Definitions of modalities and submodalities
* Hypnotic induction – finding The Goal of Your Life, and exploring submodalities in the process (Visual, Auditory, Kinesthetic)
* Amplifying the submodalities of the life goal
* Explanation of the process and submodalities
o Control knobs for the submodalities
o Being the DJ of your life – what resonates the most with you
* What is real, and what is imaginary?
* Why visualization doesn’t work

, , , , , , ,

Monday, December 29, 2008

How mirror neurons allow us to learn and socialize by going through the motions in the head (12/23/2008)

Check the podcast on rapport where we have discussed these points and the role of mirror neurons.

How mirror neurons allow us to learn and socialize by going through the motions in the head (12/23/2008)

How mirror neurons allow us to learn and socialize by going through the motions in the head (12/23/2008)
Tags:
neurons, learning

The old adage that we can only learn how to do something by trying it ourselves may have to be revised in the light of recent discoveries in neuroscience. It turns out that humans, primates, some birds, and possibly other higher animals have mirror neurons that fire in the same pattern whether performing or just observing a task. These mirror neurons clearly play an important role in learning motor tasks involving hand eye coordination, and possibly also acquisition of language skills, as well as being required for social skills, but the exact processes involved are only just being discovered. In particular the relationship between mirror neural networks and social cognitive tasks has been unclear, and greater knowledge of it could shed light on problems such as autism that may arise when this process goes wrong.

This emerging field of mirror neurons in social cognition was discussed at a recent workshop organized by the European Science Foundation (ESF), which laid the ground for the first common research network dedicated to this fast emerging field, within the EU’s 7th Research Framework Programme running until 2013.

The role of mirror neurons at all levels of social interaction is even greater than had been realized, according to convenor of the ESF conference Riccardo Viale, president of Rosselli Foundation in Turin, Italy and professor of Cognitive Science (University of Milan). “Most of the speakers highlighted how the mirror mechanism is crucial for both more basic forms of emotional recognition and also higher aspects of empathy,” said Viale.

, ,

Sunday, December 28, 2008

What I got out of “Outliers” by Malcolm Gladwell

Three factors are essential for successful actualization of a genius:

  • Innate talent (genetical, governed by the threshold principle)
  • Legacy (the cultural and family heritage passed on from ancestors)
  • Opportunity (being in the right place, at the right time, – largely a matter of “luck”)

Also, (and this is key) the process of actualization is unstable. In the sense that two individuals starting with very similar innate talent & legacy, will diverge due to the “best get better opportunities” rule and to the “10,000 hours to expert” rule.

Ok. So where does this leave us, adults, who want to continue actualizatio of our own genius? It seems that all three factors are beyond our control and influence…

And this is where I take a non-traditional view. All three factors can be brought under our influence at any stage in life. The how will take a whole book to map out, so here are just a few brush strokes to start the map:

  • Innate talent consists of genetical (or early childhood, – which for our purposes is the same thing) potential and the fulfillment of that potential through life experience. What I have noticed is that a lot (if not most) adults’ potential has been barely fulfilled. Most types of intelligence (mental, social, emotional, physical) can be substantially improved through training.
  • Legacy is fixed only for kids. As adults we are free to enter the environments that carry different and necessary for us legacy. The institution of mentor/apprentice does exactly that.
  • “Opportunity is random” belief is based on Newtonian model of distinct object/observer Universe. A more accurate quantum model says that our intent can influence what opportunities are offered to us throughout life. Or in the words of Oogway from Kung Fu Panda: “There are no accidents.” 

Sunday, December 21, 2008

Announcements & Call To Participate

As the holiday season approaches here in the United States – as well as in many other parts of the World – we are pausing our regular stream of weekly podcasts for this period, and will resume again on the second Sunday of January, 2009 – that is on January 11th.

Over a year ago, we have launched the Radical Change Group with the the Gift Economy in mind, the idea that the Universe is a friendly and abundant place, and that the givers get, because what goes around, comes around.

In the last year, we have been working hard on bringing the talks and information as a gift to the world. Many amazing things have happened through that work, many doors have opened to us that we didn’t even know were there.

The focus of our podcasts have expanded to many fields like martial arts, mythology, adaptive intelligences (also known as Spiral Dynamics), the 8 circuit brain model, voice, dance, business, not to mention some advanced NLP topics. Many wonderful people have come and had great conversations with us – sensei Sastri, Paul Rebillot, Antero Alli, Paul Kordis, Marshall Thurber, David Neenan, Maniko, and Kathy Altman, to mention just those whose talks we have already released. We have learned a great deal ourselves in the process, and we hope you have enjoyed listening and learning with us as well.

In the next year, the year 2009, we are going to expand not only the range of topics, but also the range of projects we are involved in – and go well beyond the podcasts. We are starting this now with a new addition to our website – the Radical Projects section, where we’ve listed the first couple of projects we would like to announce at this time. Some of the gifts that we have received from the many people we’ve met this year were the recordings of various lectures and seminars of the great thinkers of the 20th century, that previously were not released or not widely available to the public. Two of these recordings we are going to restore, convert into the modern audio/video formats, and prepare for release to the world.

One is the audio recordings of Joseph Campbell – the renowned mythologist, together with Richard Roberts – a writer and a long-time friend of Joseph Campbell, who has produced and preserved these recordings – teaching what they called “The Third Model of the Universe” in a series of workshops in 1973-74 time period. These rare recordings have never been released to the public, and we hope that bringing these recording to life will help shed the light to what otherwise might have been lost to the world at large.

Another piece is the 20 hours of video recording of Buckminster Fuller – a true renaissance man, the Leonardo da Vinci of the 20th century – explaining everything he knew in a week-long meeting of late summer 1981, less than two years before his death. These recordings also have not been widely available to the public, and were preserved as a private collection of Marshall Thurber.

These and other projects, as well as our continuing stream of podcasts, will require much of our resources – both in terms of time and money – and if you have enjoyed the gifts of RCG in the last 16 months – this is your opportunity to join us in the spirit of the gift economy, and consider now giving us a gift of support for these and other projects. Please visit our website at RadicalChangeGroup.com and make a donation to support one or more of our Radical Projects, or volunteer to help us in any other way. We thank you for your continued participation as a listener, and appreciate any of your help – be it your feedback, spreading the word about our work, or supporting us with a donation. Thank you!

We are wishing you Merry Christmas and a happy New Year – Happy Holidays and see you again in 2009!

[techtags: gift economy, holiday, podcasts, Universe, abundance]

Sunday, December 14, 2008

#64 Swimming with Dolphins - The Inter-Dependence - conversations withPaul Kordis, part 4

We are continuing our conversations with Dr. Paul Kordis. Paul has been researching writing, and speaking to groups for over 20 years about the processes of profound change. He is a globally traveled speaker and seminar leader on futuristic, human development, change and other topics. He received his Ph.D. degree (with honors) in human capital and economic development from Colorado State University in May, 2008.

His 1,500-page dissertation is entitled “The Superhighway to Serfdom: How False-Social-Norms Marketing is Hijacking the American Dream.” He is a co-author (with Dudley Lynch) of the books The Strategy of the Dolphin: Scoring a Win in a Chaotic World, which has become a best seller, and Code of the Monarch: A Guide to the Real Global Business Revolution. He is also the author (with his wife, Susan) of the book Name Your Passion: A User’s Guide to Finding Your Personal Purpose.

Today’s conversation touches upon the following topics:

  • Wave 4 – relationships and inter-dependency
    • Wave 5 will be about spiritual and ethical
  • On “normal” distribution and the Gini coefficient
    • Mutation – punctuated evolution
    • Our society is far from “normal”
    • Changes the entire economics
  • Leveling the playfield
  • Revamping Economics
    • Rather than predicting, the economists should give us goals
    • Normal distribution of wealth could be one measure / goal
    • Cybernetic loop between me and the environment; continuous feedback-correction mechanism
    • Quality of the feedback
    • European Union is investing in the future by sacrificing something now. In the US, we are sacrificing the future to maintain (not even improve) our current level.

[techtags: Paul Kordis, Dolphins, Economics, Gini Coefficient, Inter-Dependency, Waves of Change, Generosity, Purpose, Passion, Globalization, Localization, NLP]

Sunday, December 7, 2008

#63 The 5Rhythms: an Organic Map of Life - Dancing with Kathy Altman,part 4


We are continuing our series on the practice of 5Rhythms – a moving meditation, a dance without steps; a practice introduced in the early 1970s by Gabrielle Roth. We invite you for an insightful conversation with a long-time 5Rhythms practitioner, Kathy Altman.

As Co-Director of The Moving Center School, Kathy was the first person asked to help Gabrielle bring her work out into the world. Over the past 20 years Kathy’s teaching has brought thousands of people back to the joy of their own, original movement. Using dance as the medium, Kathy illuminates for her students “as on the dance floor, so in life”. She is devoted to inspiring people to live the teachings of presence, patience and practice long after the music ends.

In this episode, we touch upon the following topics:

  • Cosmology of the psyche
    • Maps – body, cycles, mirrors
  • Personal experiences with 5Rhythms
  • Systems theory
  • Contact Improv
  • Trynig 5Rhythms – Why not?

[techtags: 5Rhythms, Kathy Altman, Gabrielle Roth]

Thursday, December 4, 2008

Iodized Salt: The Cheapest Way to Make a Big Difference

Raising the World’s I.Q” (New York Times, Dec 4 2008)

…Almost one-third of the world’s people don’t get enough iodine from food and water. The result in extreme cases is large goiters that swell their necks, or other obvious impairments such as dwarfism or cretinism. But far more common is mental slowness…

One of the attractions is that a campaign to iodize salt costs only 2 cents to 3 cents per person reached per year

[techtags: Iodized salt, IQ, developing countries, charity, humanitarian aid]