What if the things that make life meaningful, happy, and healthy could provide critical support for people living with dementia and those who love them?

What if creativity, compassion, spiritual intelligence and other elements of the cloud graphic above represent proven ways to transform serious dementia problem?

What if we act as if people with dementia still are filled with love and light, even when we don’t yet know how to connect with or support those gifts?

All these “what if’s” are true for my husband John and me. He lives and thrives with Lewy Body dementia. I get support that helps me love him and my life more every year.  

John’s and my relationship grows more satisfying every day, even when it’s tough. While that’s not at all unusual given the company we keep, too many people in our situation don’t know the options we’ve found.  Hence, this newsletter.

Millions of us around the world are creating and sharing wise, often fun, ways to thrive while handling the challenges of dementia.

I call this movement “dementia wisdom” because that’s the simplest way I know that combines the work and hopes of individuals and groups we’re blessed to know. The name came intuitively.  Its many meanings are revealed through caring actions that mimic those of the civil rights, women’s, human potential,  and other movements:

1. Dare to go beyond the status quo to find better ways to handle your challenges and build your dreams.
2. Research what others have discovered, and create your own solutions and inspiration.
3. Hang out with others who care about your challenge and hold similar dreams.
4. Work together!
5. Witness, encourage, and support each other. 
6. Watch the wisdom and joy grow as you repeat all these steps.

The Dementia Wisdom Word Cloud graphic shows many modalities, mindsets and actions that can help you develop and apply more wisdom.

Mindfulness and other forms of meditation or contemplative practices help us observe and clarify our thoughts without getting caught up in them. In the process, stress and confusion can transform into peacefulness.

In a state of peace, curiosity and creativity come alive, and you may gain the strength you need to let go of our culture’s obsession on hopes of a quick fix to any challenge.

As you embrace the unknown, spiritual and emotional intelligence can come alive, helping you find deeper solutions to what you can change and make peace with what you can’t.

We may not be able to cure dementia, but we definitely can significantly lessen its impact through wise, caring action.

In Keep Sharp: Build a Better Brain at Any Age, neurosurgeon and CNN’s Chief Medical Correspondent Sanjay Gupta, MD says that the conversation about dementia is focusing more now on how we can “reshape the experience …showing those with dementia and their caregivers that it is possible to live well with the disease.” (p.222)

Dr. Gupta reports that a bigger focus on early intervention and healthy lifestyle choices could delay or reduce the severity of dementia symptoms. (p. 223). About our favorite resource, Dementia Action Alliance (daanow.org) (p.247), he wrote, “Some community members feel that life is actually better after their diagnosis because it opens doors and creates new opportunities.” 

Amen!  Here are just a few of our highlights from being involved in DAA:

• I’ve learned how to be a more relaxed, better care partner, in large part from listening to what people living with dementia have to say.
• We’ve both told medical students during discussions led by Dr. Susan Weir what we want future doctors to know about our situation and needs.
• Other participants have witnessed our pain, blessed our dreams, and sat with us through heartbreak.
• We get tips our neurologist doesn’t know or doesn’t have time to tell us. We share poetry that deepens our questions and leads us into guidance.
• Through Dementia Mentors (dementiamentors.org), which we discovered through DAA, John has a new buddy who totally gets his particular type of dementia and how to deal with it, including a movie recommendation!

Want to tap more of your dementia wisdom?

Look at the list of elements in the Dementia Wisdom wordcloud graphic.  Which elements are you already implementing?  Which are you drawn to investigate?

Feel free to comment below.  Note that all comments may be edited for clarity and brevity.  Your name and contact information will not show up in whatever is published on this blog unless you give express permission.  

Don’t forget to subscribe to this blog by clicking the blue bar at the top of this post!  Know that we will NEVER sell or give away your contact information or spam you. 

For focused, specific help to meet your unique needs dreams, write contact@everydaygenius.info and ask to set up a time to explore how I can help you. 

Surprising blessings of many kinds to you, Pat Sullivan

The post DEMENTIA WISDOM: An Overview of Exciting Possibilities first appeared on Everyday Genius.

Almost two years into my husband John’s diagnosis of dementia, likely Alzheimer’s, our lives are richer and happier, and some aspects of his dementia have improved.

How could that be when even early-stage dementia can be marked by confusion and the heartbreaking loss of shared memories and dreams? 

How could that be when my workload steadily increases to handle daily tasks he can no longer do?

And how could that be when neither of us is a smile-away-the-tears, always think positive type?

We’re happier because of commitments we made long ago: 

• • Make the most of whatever life we’ve still got together. 
  • Be grateful for what we’ve got, then research and work for what we need or want. 
  • Bless ourselves and our work by aiming always to see each other as we are (not how we wish or fear the other to be); call forth the best for each other; and do the best we can for each other and ourselves.

We’re grateful for our well-coordinated medical team at Kaiser Oakland which includes a neurologist who is also an osteopath, our two primary care doctors, Kaiser’s physical therapy department, and the sleep center.

We also depend on a growing wealth of non-medical body, mind, creative, and spiritual resources. Recently, we joined an online pilot group for people living with dementia and their caregivers based on Mindfulness Meditation and Feldenkrais Somatic Exercises. 

In addition, while attending a Dementia Action Alliance Meeting, we learned how Tai chi can support memory and cognitive issues. Starting this week, low-cost in-person classes are re-opening in our area, and that’s probably true also for Tai chi classes at senior centers and other venues elsewhere. 

Why is this so exciting to us? According to the US National Library of Medicine, Tai chi can help improve “global cognitive functions, visuospatial skills, semantic memory, verbal learning/memory, and self-perception of memory” in people with early stage dementia. 

Every week we participate in arts and spiritual practices that enrich our memory, cognition and joy of life, especially improvisational theater, drawing, daily gratitude practices, and constantly finding ways to serve others.

Nothing makes me happier than finding and sharing innovations and connections to help others handle tough problems and build heartfelt dreams.

Here are some topics we will cover in Dementia Wisdom in the coming months: 

• Attitudes, beliefs, and practices that help us and others thrive while living with or caregiving dementia.
• Breaking, rarely reported news from medical, creative, and other fields.
• Connections to people, organizations, and movements that can inspire and effectively support you to overcome your unique memory and cognitive challenges.
• How the arts can support and delight you, even if you’re sure you have no creative talents.
• How to erase stigma or shame about dementia with help from amazing allies.
• How to get help when you can’t afford it.
• How to trade the belief that dementia dooms you to a tragic and hopeless life for a new vision that we can help each other thrive as well and as long as possible.

John Sullivan’s Dementia Commitment and Blessing

I have no idea how long I have to live,
how long I can recognize people I love,
or how long I can do other things that matter to me. 

I will not worry about that. 
Instead, I commit to giving my best to every moment, 
to live more purposefully and joyously for as long as is possible.

May you also find and live your best vision for thriving
for the rest of your life –whatever your challenges or dreams.

To receive posts of Dementia Wisdom every week beginning August 18, please click here. Know that we will never spam you or sell your information.

Want my focused attention and creativity to help you thrive with your memory and cognitive issues?   Whether you are a person living with dementia, a care partner, or a specialist in the field, I’d love to share the benefits of my decades as a self-help writer and researcher, trouble shooter, spiritual teacher, paralegal, and now care partner the past 13 years.  For a free consult, call me at call 510-530-0284 or write  pat@everydaygenius.info. Best to you, Pat Sullivan

All contents are copyright 2021 by Pat McHenry Sullivan, all rights reserved.

Photo by our late friend Pakvillai Sudhaswin. Though taken before John’s journey with dementia began, it beautifully shows how we experience life now!  

This newsletter is intended for inspiration and information only, not to diagnose or treat any type of illness or malady.  Please consult with your healthcare providers before applying any of the resources that are reported here. 

The post How John and I Thrive While Living with His Dementia first appeared on Everyday Genius.

Throughout life Einstein was playful, a quality that’s only recently been recognized as a treasure, not something childish to be trained out of us so we can become capable adults.  He obviously never lost his genius-level ability to think of many possibilities in any situation — a trait which Einstein shared with 98% of young children but only 2% of adults. 

Needed: a new picture of genius

Einstein’s life and work demonstrate a plethora of skills, abilities and attitudes that can be cultivated by ordinary humans, including persistence, integrity, strategic planning, intuition, and courage — all of which contributed to his great work. And all of which are available to us.

But current images of genius don’t resonate with rapidly evolving research about the natural genius in all of us and its potential to enrich all our life and work. As our images of genius catch up this expanding new paradigm about genius, the word cloud here may give you some hints about the brilliant treasures you might find in your own body, mind and spirit.

Genius starts with what comes naturally.

 Notice the words in the smallest type including imagination, awareness emotions, intuition, persistence, hope, and open-mindedness. Notice the words that hint of a love of surprise and hunger for learning

These are just a few of the raw elements of genius that spilled out of your DNA when you were young.  

Don’t believe these gifts are elements of genius? Then re-read the quote by Einstein above. Better yet, study his life and see what you can learn from his model.   

Genius grows with experience.

Once you childhood brain has matured, you can develop grownup elements of genius to help you make the most of your natural gifts. As shown in the medium-sized words in the cloud, these powers include full creativity, what you learn from experience, problem-solving and visioning skills, guidance practices, craftsmanship, planning skills, and discernment.  

Not shown, because my word cloud program only allows single words, are spiritual, emotional, and logical intelligence. Also you can learn to 1) assess which elements of genius are alive in you and which you gave up as you grew up and 2) reawaken hidden or forgotten inner treasures and cultivate them.

Genius is as ordinary as it can be miraculous.

Like love, genius can enrich your life and work in small, often overlooked ways and in big, dramatic ones. As suggested by the largest words, genius is meant to be used every day in all we do.  

Genius expresses integrity in all its meanings — being whole, authentic, true to ourselves and on the level with others. It’s naturally purposeful and innovative, and it constantly reminds us to slow down and remember wisdom we may have forgotten.

Genius can bring joy to any challenge or dream, even when times are tough. In fact, our genius loves a problem to be solved or a mystery that calls for exploration.

Insights from your genius can come alive anytime, anywhere.

Rene Marsh of Alameda, CA reports that taking her dogs for a walk is a primary way to know and live her gifts. Being in beautiful nature melts her stress and inspires new hope. The playfulness of the dogs makes her laugh, which liberates her potential for new visions.

Some of my most life-changing insights have come while I was busy doing something else.

Taking a shower to clear brain fog led to my call to study the genius potential in all of us. While walking up a mountain in Scotland in the early 1970’s, an inner voice gave surprising, right-on career advice. Looking into the eyes of John Sullivan the night I met him 37 years ago led to my trustworthy inner voice saying, “This is who you’ve been seeking. Relax and enjoy.” Many later inner voices have guided me through innumerable challenges, including the inevitable conflicts that happen when two very imperfect people dare to love each other.

How do you experience your genius?

How would you draw or describe it?

Where and how do you most easily experience it?

What information and inspiration would help you rediscover and cultivate your best gifts?

Your comments are welcome. Until we meet again through this blog, many blessings for your ordinary, wonderful life and your potential to make it richer, more meaningful every moment.

The post How Can You Picture the Genius In All of Us? first appeared on Everyday Genius.

Your creative, visionary self requires juicy, specific details, but most people over the age of five can’t easily imagine exactly what they want.

Yet most people can easily describe what they don’t want … like how awful it would be to be helpless in a hospital bed while others decide your fate. Because there’s such a common fear that others will make wrong decisions for you, the advance health care directive was invented.

When my husband and I created our directive, we went way beyond deciding  who can sign papers for us when we’re out of it.  We created a powerful support system that helps us in sickness and in health.

Revisiting an image of being helpless in a hospital bed recently clarified some things that are important for our lives. As I tell the story, I hope you see how you can apply the process to yourself.

For a Great Vision for Your Life, Face Your Worst Fear

For my husband, the hospital bed conjures up pictures of being unable to communicate.  Flipping this around, he affirmed a basic vision, “Throughout my life, I hear, speak, talk and write well.”

Fleshing this out, he affirmed how much communication in many forms matters to him.  “I want frequent, meaningful contact with friends and family.  I want to finish my fantasy about Blackfire the cat wizard, publish it, and write many more fun and informative pieces.”

Looking at what he needs to make this vision real, he sees both the need for better writing support (a writers’ group, perhaps?) and for ways to keep his brain as sharp as possible as he ages.  That led to discovering, among other things, the exciting work of Norman Doidge, M.D., author of The Brain that Changes Itself and The Brain’s Way of Healing.   As we watched these and other pieces about the brain’s plasticity, both of us got more hopeful.  Now our ideas are spinning about how we can find the best ways to help ourselves and others become and remain brain-sharp.  Is a book on how to fight for our brains in the offing?  Stay tuned.

From a Yucky Picture to a New Vision for Rich Life

 While imagining myself stuck in a hospital bed, this image popped up:  “I’m at the mercy of someone else’s ideas of what I should eat and when.  That means over-cooked, under-seasoned meat and veggies served with white bread and lime gelatin. All on someone else’s timetable.”

Flipping this image and fleshing it out led to:  “Good food I love that is well cooked is a primary value for me.  To have this the rest of my life, I have to do everything I can to protect my health and to build up more financial reserves so I can always afford the organic fruits and vegetables, the antibiotic-free poultry and fish I love insetting I love. Paris again and Tuscany are high on my venue list.

“Being with friends around the dinner table is also a primary value to me. I can’t remember why we stopped the tradition of Sunday dinner with friends years ago, but it is time to bring it back.  Also, I want monthly trips to different types of restaurants, starting with the paella restaurant near Jack London Square that catered an event I loved.  Also, I want to learn how to cook Indian and Ethiopian foods well.  Oh, and having more pantry space and a much bigger kitchen, so I can store and use that humongous stainless steel roaster I was given …”

Those visions are already being set in motion.  I’ve found it’s a lot easier to eat healthily today when I envision eating and sharing food I love for the rest of my life than it is to follow a diet because I have to keep down the blood sugar.  Yeah, I know the numbers on the meter are vital, but they are not nearly as motivating as the picture of choosing healthy, yummy foods for life rather than ever being stuck with overdone, boring hospital food.

What’s Your Vision for Any Part of a Better Life?

 The formula is simple:

1. Start with a dreaded or fearful image that bothers you. If you can’t think of any, try this:  I’ll end up broke and in the street.
2. Flip that image around to specific positives.  I will always have plenty of resources to pay my mortgage or rent, pay all bills, continue learning and growing throughout life, eat out often with good friends, go to Tuscany or other places special twice a year, donate 10% of my income to causes that matter, and leave a legacy of money and creative works.

Keep getting more specific and real. Run the numbers so you know what you need, but also look for options.  Do you really want to stay in your house all your life, or might co-housing be better?  Can you let go any expenses or are there things you really want to buy?  What elements need to be in place to fulfill your vision?

For more tips, see “Reality vs. Vision:  What if There’s a Huge Gap Between Current Reality and Visions of a Richer Future? “

The very best to you and your visions, Pat

The post Need a Compelling Vision? Start with the Anti-Vision first appeared on Everyday Genius.

You probably have lost access to much of the brilliance you had when you were a child. Numerous tests show that 90-98% of children register genius level abilities to think of many possibilities. Only 2% of adults are so smart.

I’ve not found statistics on the loss of access to curiosity, intuition, instincts, sensory awareness, awe, playfulness and other gifts so potent I call them elements of genius. But hundreds of interviews with adults have shown that even if we can’t remember enjoying these gifts or know how to use them now, we can see them in young children.

Why call childhood brilliance “elements of genius?”

Childhood brilliance certainly doesn’t fit current definitions of genius as super-IQ or stratospheric expression of talents.

Ancient definitions of genius and cutting edge wisdom give a better picture of our potential. My husband’s beloved Latin dictionary (1996 version) by John Traupman, Ph.D. defines genius as three things we could interpret today as 1) trustworthy guidance; 2) natural appetites and inclinations that came in our DNA, and 3) our talents.

Here’s how it works. Curiosity, our senses and other forms of natural brilliance constantly gather information which our internal guidance system uses to guide us to our best life and work. Talents are engaged and stretched in every stage of the process.

Genius Benefit 1 — Trustworthy Guidance

The ancients saw guidance as coming from a “guardian spirit,” the muse, or sometimes the genie. Today, we have a myriad of ways to be guided to live our best lives and do our best work.

Michael Meade says that everyone has innate genius, which is about “each person’s unique way of perceiving the world and unusual way of expressing themselves in it. There can be no end to the shapes and sizes of human genius. When it comes to personal genius, the point is not to compare oneself with others as much as to find the unique form and shape that genius takes in one’s own soul.”

43 years of working with human potential have shown me how many of us were trained out of our best ways to perceive the world and express ourselves, particularly after we went to school, our brain developed, and we learned how to compare ourselves and come up lacking.

Genius Benefit 2: Trustworthy Information from Multiple Sources.

The ancients’ second definition of genius was the “personification of natural appetites, natural inclinations.” This I see as the elements of genius or natural genius.

Buckminster Fuller wrote over 30 years ago that, “Children are interested in everything and are forever embarrassing their specialized parents by the wholeness of their interests. Children demonstrate right from the beginning that their genes are organized to help them to apprehend, comprehend, coordinate, and employ—in all directions. …

“Every child is born a genius, but is swiftly degeniused by unwitting humans and/or physically unfavorable environmental factors.”

Without the information that comes only from our best innate gifts, it’s practically impossible to envision and create adult life and work full of integrity, purpose and joy. That means it’s impossible to recognize or create trustworthy guidance.  No wonder so many of us get stuck in unimaginative, same-old, limited non-solutions to pressing problems!

Genius Benefit 3: Talents

One of the most beloved promoters of talents is Barbara Sher, author of I Could Do Anything If I Only Knew What It Was and other best-sellers. She says, “What you love is what you’re gifted at. Your talent is coded into your genes … The only way to feel satisfied is to listen to your own nature; in other words, to do what you were born to do.”

Sher teaches that you can always ally with others who have talents you lack. She’s adamant that you don’t have to be already good at something to have a talent, though she is also very practical and realistic. She tells of a self-professed lousy singer whose dream was to sing opera. By daring to play with this dream, Sher’s client discovered her truer passion for turning friends and others on to her love of opera. That’s so doable!

The more I study the elements of genius, the more I see those also as talents. Say you have a talent for composing music which didn’t explode out of your DNA when you were very young. Instead, composing music comes from the interplay over time of talents for listening, imagination, self-expression and all the ways we discover, “I love and am fascinated by this” versus, “I am bored by that.” All the white the inner guide is inspiring, motivating and guiding you to follow your fascinations in spite of others’ negative comments.

Why You May Have Lost Your Genius

Everyone’s story is unique, but here are some common themes:

• Others thought they knew best who you are and what you are called to do with your one precious life
• It was too dangerous (or at least felt too dangerous) to listen to your inner voice and express yourself when you were young.
• You got too wrapped up in the challenges and demands of growing up to protect and grow up your gifts.
• The playground, school and other group settings were sources of competition and humiliation, so you withdrew or did your best to fit in, no matter the cost.
• You were not taught to discover many ways to receive inspiration or focus a compelling vision to meet any problem.
• You didn’t learn basic design or planning skills so you could bring your ideas into concrete form.

The result now: you block, distort or ignore inspiration and information that could be really useful. You get stuck in same-old supposed solutions. You don’t do your best thinking and you don’t get your best results.

Miss Your Lost Genius?

Fortunately, it’s surprisingly easy and delightful to bring back lost childhood brilliance. Future posts will offer many ideas.

Now, please explore the resources section of www.geniusagain.com, particularly the FAQS, tips on how to find visions for your life and work, and visioning lessons from the multi-talented Nobel Peace Prize winner Albert Schweitzer.

Comments and ideas are welcome. What’s now missing for you? How have you lost those gifts? How have you kept alive or reclaimed other gifts? What advice do you have for others?

About the art:  thanks to Andrea, on a Creative Commons license.

The post Lost Your Genius? first appeared on Everyday Genius.

The time to answer these questions is NOW, while you’re still in your right mind.

The Advance Health Care Directive: a Work of Genius That Could Save Your Life or Make It Worth Living

You’ve probably heard about Advance Care Directives, legal documents which you sign (while you are healthy) that allow a family member or other friend to speak for you when you can’t speak for yourself.  Like after an accident or in a very serious illness.

Your doctor, insurance provider, or a state office can give you a great directive that meets the requirements of your state. In addition, go to Kaiser Permanente and search the site for “Advance Care Directive Forms.”  On the search results page, select  “Northern California” on the left. This should take you to CA_advance_directive_forms.pdf.

Pages 12-14 help you determine exactly what choices you want made for you, including when life is no longer worth living, and how you want your spiritual needs met. This is a brilliant addition to any legal directive in any state.

Do Your Directive Now, and Do It Right!

Filling out the paperwork isn’t hard, and in most (if not all states), you usually don’t need an attorney if you can find the right form and fill it out correctly. When in doubt, always consult an attorney!

The big problem is to get past emotional or spiritual issues and make the right choices:

1. Who can you count on when you need them? Your spouse or sister might be the logical agents, but can you count on them to a) remember where they put a copy of your directive; b) stay calm enough in an emergency; and c) stand up as necessary on your behalf as they work with the medical system?
2. Exactly what do you want done? It’s terribly scary to face the fact that at least once in your life you will need someone to be there for you when you can’t speak for yourself.  But if you don’t make these choices now, someone else may make the wrong choices later.
3. What do you do with the directive once you’ve completed it? First, give copies to those who will stand up for you, to your medical practitioners and your attorney.  If you’re a Kaiser patient, the medical secretaries will scan your directive into your records.  (For more about what to do with your directive, see an upcoming post.)

Resisting Doing Your Directive?  Here’s Help!

It’s always easier to get emotionally loaded or spiritual issues handled well if you have the support of a trusted friend, clergy and/or attorney.  Recently, my husband and I found that doing an Advance Health Care Directive with friends can be an amazing catalyst for a richer life, individually and together.

By request, I’ve created a new workshop on Advance Health Care Directives for those who live in the SF Bay Area.  Also by request, I will be scheduling a teleseminar/webinar soon. In the meantime, add your questions and comments below. As always, many blessings,

Pat McHenry Sullivan

copyright 2012 by Pat McHenry Sullivan, t/a Visionary Resources

The post Who Speaks For You When You Can’t Speak for Yourself? first appeared on Everyday Genius.

Think of it:  there you are, divested of your usual social masks, so you’re not worrying so much about what others think.  You’re just focused on coming clean.

You’re probably more present, more attuned to your senses.  All you have to do is stay alert enough not to fall, then stand there and enjoy the fruits of others’ genius (thank you to all you inventors of plumbing, heating and great showerheads!).

As the hot water pours over your head, mental cobwebs get cleared away.  Whatever tension you normally carry in your shoulders and neck lets go.  Without thinking about it, great ideas can flow naturally, almost as easily as the water flows over your head.

It’s Harder to Block Great Ideas When You’re Naked and Vulnerable

As mindfulness practitioners know, most of us keep our minds so overloaded with chatter that we can’t notice or hear the quieter, more solid wisdom that’s always available to guide our minds.

Then there all the psychological and spiritual issues that block the reception of potential visions.  Fear is probably the best known visionary inhibitor but pride and self-will are equally potent.  So are belief systems, idealized self images and all the other things you may carry around with you, without even noticing it.

Take those off, and you become mentally, spiritually and emotionally “naked.”  In such a state, you’re better able to receive new ideas.  Or even old ideas that you’ve been ignoring.

 How to Be “Naked” When Fully Clothed And Out in the World

A huge barrier to vision is the common tendency in our culture to rush decisions, as if not knowing the answer to something is weak.  In truth, we’re strongest spiritually and emotionally if we can also be vulnerable and open to help from others.

That’s why all great spiritual and therapeutic traditions require us to be naked emotionally and spiritually to ourselves, and often with others.  Indeed, one of the most powerful preludes to great wisdom is the spiritual practice of what St. John of the Cross called the dark night of the soul.

In this practice, we dare to go beyond all we know, or think we know, into the darkness of not knowing.  Here, we’re like travelers who have gone far enough from a city not to hear its noise, not even to see the afterglow of its lights.  Once we get attuned to the darkness, we can see more stars, more faint lights in the distance, and even the light of our own hearts.

Being naked out in the world doesn’t mean spilling all your beans to another.  But it does mean being bare of illusions or pretenses or beliefs that keep you from being fully present to yourself and the world around you.  Naked this way, you’re more attuned to what’s true about you and the world.  In this state, you’re more relaxed, better able to notice what calls you for work, for business, for service, and even for just having a great day today.

How Do You Get “Naked” So You Can Invite a Vision?

Do you actually hit the shower sometimes just to clear your head?  Do you meditate?  Do you have a spiritual director or friend who helps you strip away your pretenses and illusions so you can come clean to your true self?

Does a walk, or dancing or hanging out with a two-year-0ld help you get out of your own stuff so you’re more receptive to new perspectives?

Feel free to share your comments below.

As always, many blessings to you,

Pat McHenry Sullivan

The post For a Breakthrough Vision, Get Naked first appeared on Everyday Genius.

Prime example:  the whole US Congress and our often spineless president, who have managed to lock us into a totally non-visionary plan aimed at avoiding default that in truth seems to make no-one but cable news pundits happy.  And for these pundits the only happiness lies in the fodder it gives them for more ongoing commentary.

Now I know the Congress isn’t totally to blame for this mess.  We’re all part of the culture that demands quick fixes and is addicted to fear, unfounded reporting, and blame.  We’re all at least partially the creators of an economy that puts our undiscerning trust into things like forever increasing housing prices and the big gambling casino masquerading as the stock market instead of finding a better way to discern what’s truly valuable.

Pride, Self-will and Fear Prevent Us From Having a Great Government

And we’re all part of an electorate who are anything but the visionaries we were born to be when it comes to electing our officials.  Instead of carefully assessing who gets our vote, we tend to make unstudied decisions based on our biases and a whole lot of emotional/spiritual distortions caused by pride, self-will and fear.

According to the Pathwork almost all human failings come from the innumerable manifestations of these three faults.  Each is a distortion of something wonderful about being human.  Each can readily be seen in politics, though it’s usually easier to see it in the “other side” than in our own.

Pride distorts our true self-esteem and self-respect into idealized self-images or beliefs “that we are better than others so we have a right to our self-importance and specialness.  … The antidotes to pride are honest self-confrontation and humble self-acceptance out of which real self-esteem comes.”

“Self-will says we must get what we want when we want it, thereby justifying our egotism: ‘I want what I want when I want it’. Self-will is distinct from free will, which is simply the capacity of the entity to choose, to direct, to activate. Self-will occurs when free will is used in the service of the little self, the limited ego consciousness, in an attempt to control others and life.”

Fear distorts the brilliant instincts and information systems that warn us of potential danger.  Fear instead comes from attitudes that say, “‘I will not trust’, and often also ‘if I am not special, or do not get my way, then something terrible will happen’. Fear both supports and results from the attitudes of pride and self-will. Fear keeps us restricted within the narrow boundaries of the little ego-self. The attitude of fear often makes us justify negative thoughts and acts which we never face directly because we are lost in the disorientation caused by fear.”

(The preceding quotes were taken from notes from the Pathwork in Texas on “Facing the Lower Self,” Chapter 6 of The Undefended Self by Susan Thesenga

Yes, I know it’s fun to assess all the fear, pride and self-will in various “them” categories.  A more productive path is to look at our own stuff, so we can see how it’s blocking our clear sight of what is, our tremendous possibilities to imagine something better, and our ability to discern the difference between truth and illusion.  The better we do this, the easier it is to work with others who also get stuck in their own pride, self-will and fear.

Without Vision, The US Wouldn’t Even Be Here

So much US history is truly visionary.  The dreams of freedom from a motley crew of scattered ordinary people led first to the vision of freedom from colonialism, then the creation of a constitution and bill of rights that can still work today.  Over the decades, various individuals and groups have faced down various manifestations of pride, self-will and fear — like racism, a hurting environment or massive impoverishment — and created visionary approaches to big problems by bringing out the best that is in us.

We very much need such visionary leadership now. Especially now, in the wake of the debt agreement that sets us up for so much ongoing disagreement.  Especially now, when we are so divided, so overwhelmed by information and so starved for due diligence or the quiet time we need to discern either what we truly need as a country or how to get it.

I know it’s not easy to create a vision, but we can do it.   The first step I’d like all Congresspeople to take is to kneel by the Washington National Cathedral’s statuette of Abraham Lincoln kneeling in prayer.  Like all of you, he needed guidance to deal with a country at odds with itself.  And like I know many of you have found, as Lincoln did, “I have often been driven to my knees by the knowledge that I had no place else to go.”’’  You can see the photo of Lincoln kneeling here.

In fact the sculptor of this statuette, Herbert S. Houck, was the grandson of a man who saw Lincoln kneeling in the woods just before delivering the Gettysburg Address. Notice how this only 38” high statuette manages to portray strength, courage and a lot of humility.  We need that from our leaders.

Please, dear Congress, President and other leaders, go past your own belief systems, to what Meister Eckhart calls “the god beyond God,” to the truth that is bigger than any pride, self-will or fear, so we imperfect people can work better together.

Please, help us break free of the crippling idealized self images like America First of “Greatest Country in the World, Always!” Help us see our true gifts so that we can not just deal with the challenges of economy, but find our rightful, humble, truly self-respecting country among other great countries.

Please.  Please be the best self we elected you to be so you can help call out the best in us.

And thank you for being willing to be out there in the public eye, daring to take on the challenges.  Let us know how we can help you.

Comments are welcome.  Many blessings as always, Pat McHenry Sullivan

The post If Congress Were the Visionaries We Need Them To Be first appeared on Everyday Genius.

Want Economic Turnaround?  Create It!  Wall Street is too untrustworthy.  Government is too partisan, and media are too obsessed with who’s sleeping with whom to envision an economy that works for all.  Fortunately, fellow citizens are creating a variety of breakthrough ways to create a better economy. 

Some trends you might want to join:  

• Liberate your perspective so you make your wisest decisions around earning, spending and investing money. Top books in this field are Barbara Stanny’s Overcoming Underearning and Geneen Roth’s new Lost and Found: Unexpected Revelations About Food and Money.  Both offer powerful stories plus loads of tips and food for your creative mind.
• Create community around money issues.  Check out the free literature and connections to meetings (some by telephone) for Underearners Anonymous. Create book group that uses Stanny’s or Roth’s books to deal with current challenges around money.  Add reflection time to generate new visions that are anchored in your best values.
• Share!  Sharing reduces costs, builds community and supports the environment.  For inspiration, information and a good laugh, check out the website of the Sustainable Economies Law Center.
• Spend and invest locally.  BALLE, the Business Alliance for Local Living Economies is your best starting place for information on cutting-edge ways that people are rebuilding local economies that are more sustainable and socially responsible.  With local spending and investing, more money stays in the community, creating more jobs.
• Learn more about current reality, then dream big.  A great starting place is “Vision: As the American Capitalist Economy Craters, Promising Alternatives Emerge.” It includes ways to think about “an economy that is increasingly green and socially responsible, and one that is based on rethinking the nature of ownership and the growth paradigm that guides conventional policies.”

Got ideas?  Stories and tips to share?  Send them to pat@visionary-resources.com and we’ll share them.

The post Without vision, we perish first appeared on Everyday Genius.

Look no further for inspiration and guidance than the mockingbird, an ordinary looking grey bird with white wingtips who can shift tunes at the rate of about eight a minute.

With Its Ever-changing Repertoire, the Mockingbird Is a Great Role Model for Human Creativity

Some mockingbird tunes are imitations of other birdsongs, or riffs and variations on them.  Mockingbirds typically mix these usually pleasant tunes with imitations of less pleasant neighborhood events, like cat fights or ambulance sirens. Some tunes seem to be each mockingbird’s own inventions, for the sheer joy of it.

Mockingbirds have been known to sing for hours.  Many bounce up and down as they sing from the highest local treetop or TV antenna, thus projecting their music throughout the neighborhood.  Their ability to sing so continuously once royally bothered Thomas Jefferson, who thanks to a lousy mattress and a really great mockingbird outside his window throughout a night, slept little one night.

Unlike Mockingbirds, Most Of Us Have Learned To Repress Our Creativity, Not Use It

Though humans are born with the potential to be far more creative than mockingbirds, the high creativity that bubbles in us as five-year-olds is mostly repressed by the end of second grade.  One of the easiest ways to recover that creativity and develop it is to imitate the mockingbird:

1.      Temporarily suspend all judgment, premature practicality and other human habits that kill imagination.

2.      Dare to try something new at least once a day.

3.      Get around and notice what others are doing.  Then comment to yourself through writing, dance, art, etc.

4.      When you like something, copy it shamelessly unless it is copyright or patented.

5.      Feel free to mix, match and alter what you learn from others.

6.      Give your imagination time to play without focus, so it is free to generate possibilities for your consideration.

7.      Learn to tolerate dissonance and ambiguity, to weave harsh challenges into sweet thoughts to create a rich and satisfying symphony.

8.      Express yourself with exuberance and joy … forever.

Imagination is Just One of Many Creative and Visionary Potentials.

Whatever you imagine as a possibility will need to be fully fleshed out so it can become a true vision.  It will need grounding in reality and a lot of careful research before you can discern whether a new idea is likely to work or not.

In coming posts, we’ll explore other visionary potentials and how you can engage them.  In the meantime, have fun imitating the mockingbird’s prolific creativity!

As always, many blessings for your life and work, Pat McHenry Sullivan

Note:  this post was originally written as “The Mockingbird Solution To Almost Any Problem” in 1994 by Pat McHenry Sullivan.   Your comments are welcome below!

copyright 2011 by Pat McHenry Sullivan, t/a Visionary Resources

The post The Mockingbird Solution to Blocked Creativity first appeared on Everyday Genius.