Meg Wheatley, Women and Leadership

Last night, I joined about 150 other women to hear Meg Wheatley on her “Women’s Leadership Revival Tour”.

I like that woman. Long an admirer of her work, I experienced her to be very awake and highly contagious! She’s smart, insightful and courageous. She’s also obviously deeply caring and compassionate. Although brief, her presentation offered up a simple yet practical four-step process to making a difference in your/our/his/her world.

(You may recall that Meg Wheatley wrote ‘Leadership and the New Science” some time ago. This ground-breaking piece of work was the first public conversation to connect the new science with the naturally-occurring unfolding of organic living systems called ‘organizations’. You can visit www.berkana.org to find out more about what they’re up to and keep tabs on the traveling leadership road show.)

However, the entire event left me agitated in some way. I went home and was awake much of the night, finding myself holding my breath... feeling like I had indigestion without having eaten anything. As a metaphor, I wondered: what, about all of this, am I having trouble digesting?

It was not until an hour ago (some 16 hours later – it seems I’m slow to metabolize! J) that thoughts streamed through my awareness with sufficient density for me to notice. Now that I have, I share them with you to digest for yourselves.

Two HUGE things come to mind, both of which are connected to a statement that Meg made early on in her presentation. She told of having traveled to some far-off country (Africa, I think) with a group of women and on her day of arrival, voiced to one of the local women that this traveling group was one of ‘tired women’. She then went on to speak of how this local women opened her speech with a reference to wondering what Western women (Ww) had to be tired about.

At first blush, there is an obvious, instant recognition that says, compared to so many other women around the world, Ww have it pretty good. So, what’s to complain about?

I have mixed feelings about that one because on one hand, I believe it to be true. And, on the other, I know that millions of Ww live lives of terror and brutality; live lives wondering how they will protect and feed their children. Question of scale, perhaps? Likely so and yet I cannot dismiss the thought.

I am also very mindful that this same group of Ww (of which I am obviously one) also hold in our hands – now, more than at any other time in the history we recall and now, in larger numbers than ever before – the potential to change the world. Not because it’s our responsibility or obligation or job, but because we can.

Meg states that it’s up to us. I agree with that and I’m discovering that I hold the ‘how’ of it differently.

Think of it this way. If you’re sitting in a chair and decide to get up, the initial movement forward and up demands intention and attention. As your body moves forward with a relatively easy effort, you reach the critical point where weight must be shifted and lifted up and out to allow you to stand. (I’m sure that the physics behind all of this would make for an interesting metaphor for global transformation and evolution of consciousness! But I digress….)

Think of going from the chair to a standing position as an act of ‘evolution by intention’. Meaning, I’m not leaving the chair because it’s on fire, I’m leaving it because I have the desire to stand up. To go from the chair to the standing position requires a coordinated, sustained effort of keeping my attention on my desire (to stand) and not on where my ass is. Doing so will allow lift to occur and stabilization to be the end result. Tada! Standing tall and steady on two feet – bum out of the chair.

I believe that Ww are the fulcrum for and are essential to that lift. The dictionary defines ‘fulcrum’ as “the point or support on which a lever pivots; an agent through which vital powers are exercised”. I think that’s who and what we are.

During her presentation, Meg spoke to (my words, not hers) following the Signal of who you are. Listen for what beckons to you and allow yourself to be guided by your own compelling interest - your own inner truth - no matter what others may think or the shambles that logic may make of your intention. Stay with what moves inside you, and engage!

Today, from the catalyst that is Meg to the completion of the ‘digestion’ process of this energy/information that has kept me up all night, I am clear that my call is to engage with Western women and to help them awaken beyond our collective coma of ‘this isn’t so bad so lets not rock the boat… and besides, it’s not my problem”. At this time in our history, things are not good and are getting worse. It is bad… and its bad everywhere, including our own backyards.

And therein lies the paradox for me. As much as I believe that all is not a bed of roses for Ww, I still believe us to be the ones that can engage with the greatest of combined forces of intention and attention. We just need to wake up first!

Much of what Meg spoke about were examples of activities taking place at what would be – in the language of Logical Levels of Thinking – low level interventions at the Environment/Behaviour/Capability levels. From these, Beliefs/Values/Attitudes are challenged and can cause (usually temporary) shifts to occur. What Logical Levels also tells us is that if we want to accelerate a process, we engage from higher order thinking, down. When things shift at higher orders of thinking, change occurs instantly and without effort at the lower levels of thinking.

We have reached a point in history where we’re creating new problems at a faster rate than we’re solving the ones we’ve already got! What this causes me to pay attention to is that if we were to create a shift at a higher order of thinking, we would spend much less time making corrections at lower levels of thinking, where the results manifest in a physical world.

What this means is that if we want accelerated change, we must accelerate the rate at which we shift the very consciousness that allows us to create and manifest our lives. We must redefine who we are, what we are and how we have the intention of moving through the world (Evolution by Intention™). The quantum sciences offer us more than enough information to allow us to rediscover what we are, how we function and what we are capable of. Yet, none of this seems to have yet penetrated the deep and intense coma that shrouds us in the illusion of being helpless and hopeless.

As much as I like what Meg is saying and doing, I am very clear that it is not going to happen fast enough. A couple of years ago at an IONS conference, Peter Russell spoke to the focus of research attention of IONS for the next 10 years. And that was a) to accelerate the rate of evolution of consciousness, and b) to facilitate access to this acceleration by the masses. We already have what we need to accomplish both of these, resting seemingly undisturbed in an intellectual appreciation of quantum biology that seems disinterested in what it means to live it! We continue to stand in our humanity to consider that we are spiritual beings having a human experience. Quantum biology and all that it offers up for us to experience, invites us to switch sides – and to view our humanity from the immensity of our ‘energetic’ potential. Spirit in tissue knows no helplessness.

One last thought: as much as last night was about the women, I continue to wonder… where are the men? During the recent Huna Retreat at Oceanstone, I expressed my interest in publishing a second volume of the ‘Sekhmet Rising’ book – a volume of stories by men who have decloaked and are willing to open themselves to the world. I also indicated my belief that I would be hard-pressed to find 17 men who would be willing to engage at the level of depth of disclosure and revelation that women seem more attracted to do. I would like to be proven to be wrong about this one.

In the Declaration of Evolution by Intention, I speak to the importance of ‘…the call to women to lead and engage with men differently; and the invitation to men to relax into a different way of moving through the world’. I continue to believe that men are caught in an inter-generational spiral of mindless responses. They are beginning to notice that these do not serve them AND they have no idea how to stop the spiral. So, in that way, I add my own voice to that of Meg Wheatley and declare that it is up to us…it is up to the women…to awaken to new ways to create our world.

I stand with Meg in the call to women to ENGAGE!; to awaken to, trust and move from that deep, inner truth that we all know and often choose to ignore. For me, it’s not about fixing the world we’ve got – it’s about creating the one we want.

Breathing is good…..

Therapy for infants?

I did it again. Just when I thought I was getting over myself, I made the mistake of picking up today’s edition of The Ottawa Citize”. In the front section (always where you’ll find the most irritating, annoying and frightening events of the world!) is a piece called “Tots on the couch” – declaring that ‘Children as young as a few months are being taken for psychotherapy as OLGA CRAIG and PHILIP SHERWELL discover in London and New York.”

My initial reaction? If the kids could vote in any of it, I’m sure they’d be opting for their parents to be ‘therapized’ – while they find something fun and entertaining to do!

Here’s what is very clear to me. Anyone who thinks this is a useful thing to do is not familiar with Bruce Lipton’s work, particularly his pre-natal findings and the impact of DNA on framing our humanity to match a pre-conceived (by our parents) expectation of context. Add to that a recent quote by Queen Silvia of Sweden during a recent visit to Montreal, saying that children are the often-neglected victims of conjugal violence: “I think it’s only lately that we really realize what it means for a child to be present, to listen and to see when their mother is being attacked and assaulted.” What goes on in their lives, matters.

All meaning is context dependent – and that includes the meaning that our children attribute to themselves, their world and their ability to move through their world. Long before they have language, their little bodies are accessing, storing, retrieving and transmitting vast amounts of information that you and I might call sensory grounded. Things like sounds and images; like sensations of the tissue of the body or ‘vibrations’ – a word often used when others do not capture the essence of an experience. How they are touched and spoken to; how ‘relationships’ are unfolding around them, with their accompanying sounds and vibrations – all of these matter. All, energy and information moving through the incredible bioprocessor that these infants are.

It may well be that the bioprocessor of an infant is even more sensitive, since s/he has not yet learned how NOT to see and NOT to hear and NOT to feel. Vast amounts of information, without the buffer of language. Truly, a recipe for acute and accurate sensory ‘truths’.

Our children are profoundly shaped by their parents and the environments their parents create for them. Why? Because they have no choice. It’s really tough to get your own place and leave home when you’re two! They are physically and emotionally at the mercy of the people who are their ‘keepers’. And, if the world we’ve created is any accurate measure, their keepers are quite likely nuts in their own, unique way!

Children (and the younger, the more acutely) reflect their environments. They are massive, exquisite, sentient beings of energy and information, perpetually in flow and boundless in their willingness and ability to engage their world….until it becomes too painful for them to do so.

I wonder what kind of a world we might shape if we were to begin to notice what our children do and how they do it, not with labels and diagnoses but with interest and curiosity and wonder: what are they telling us about ourselves? What are they telling us about the people they are spending time with, and the environments they find themselves in? How are they sending us signals about how we – as those with the ability to respond – are shaping their world and either enhancing or limiting their ability to engage and move through it?

Fifteen years ago, I decided that it made no sense to engage with children without first engaging with their parents. Over my 25 years of doing this, I have met way too many people who, well into their 40’s and 50’s, still carry the mark of their having been parented and their early environments. I am no longer astounded by the things that parents do to their children and the ability of those children to carry this forward into their lives – often living limited or secret lives of their own – until it can no longer be contained.

We could learn much from our children if we chose to listen. Rather than seek to have them ‘fixed’ or ‘reprogrammed’, we may do well to see them as the mirrors of ourselves that they become. Only then can we recognize our critical role and engage differently.

My last thought about ‘Tots on the couch’… Just how ridiculous are we willing to become?

Breathing is good……

Where are the men?

I think I’m going to give up listening to talk radio. Not only is it hard to hum along, it leaves me wondering…..what the hell are we doing?????

Today, my little rant is courtesy of the CBC and today’s program on the sale of human beings. Particularly women and children are being ‘trafficked’ for the sex trade – and Canada has a less-than-stellar record in doing anything about it

However, I digress, because what really caught my attention was the part about women and children being sold for the ‘sex’ trade. I don’t know about you, but when people are being ‘sold’ into the ‘industry’, that’s not the sex trade – that’s the rape trade.

Women and children forced into sexual activity against their will is not sex, its rape. And it’s not about sexual gratification, or sexual pleasure, it’s about power and control. It’s about ownership. It’s about slavery. And I believe it’s about the consumers of this ‘service’ trying to make themselves feel better about their own dead souls by sucking the life out of what we know is innocence in the midst of decay.

And so, given that the vast majority of consumers of this particular service just happen to be men, I find myself wondering: where are the OTHER men???? Where are the men who are outraged by this behaviour of men? Why can we not hear the sounds of the men who will not/do not stand idly by while such activity is taking place?

I’m not talking about men needing to carry placards deriding this obscene activity (although that too, would at least be a sign of life!). I’m talking about the average, every-day guy (our fathers and brothers and spouses and sons; the men who are our colleagues at work and our clients; the men who build our houses and schools and churches) who seem to be oblivious to the horrifying and terrifying behaviours of ‘their kind’ – and seem to pretend that it’s not there.

Like those men who don’t find rape jokes funny but chuckle anyway just so that they don’t stand out. Or those men who don’t find them funny and don’t laugh, yet also don’t speak up and express their differing view – perhaps something as profound and complex as: I see no humour in that.

I’m talking about creating a result that produces a culture – in our lifetime – where the disdain of men toward other men on ‘manhood’ or ‘manliness’ becomes a far more powerful force in shaping culture than any legislation could ever be. A culture where it is no longer the job of women to rage against men for such things, but for men to shape themselves differently because they choose to do so.

Like child abuse is not the problem of the child, it’s the problem of the (usually) adult, so this trafficking is not the problem of the women and children being assaulted – it’s a problem of the men who feed off it to satiate themselves. And no matter how many times they feed, it will never gratify the hunger inside themselves to feel alive and connected. It will never be enough for them to feel good about who they are and the lives they have created for themselves.

Women and children bear the brunt of the brutality of some few men. And they are few, compared to the vast and silent majority of men who do not agree, do not engage and – unfortunately – do not denounce the behaviours of ‘their own kind’. As long as honourable men look away or remain silent, women and children will continue to be raped, beaten, tortured, humiliated, denigrated and dehumanized. And we don’t need to look to foreign countries and ‘exotic’ cultures; we need only be willing to look next door…or sometimes, our own homes. We need only look only into the reflection of our eyes in the mirror and wonder how what we’re NOT doing is contributing to it all.

I continue to know that what is required is not a shift at the level of environment/behaviour but one that occurs at the level of Identity….a shift that redefines what it is to be ‘manly’. I am reminded again of that recent story about the apes (see earlier post); of the eradication of aggression in one generation when the adult males were killed off by a virus and the young males were raised by the remaining females in the community. Aggression disappeared. What this tells my simple mind is that ‘manly’ aggression is a learned behaviour…an acquired ‘skill’, if you will…handed down from one generation of men to the next; taught from father to son, and on into the next generations. When and how does it stop?

I know…I know…it’s not nice to say these things. It’s also not politically correct or cautious to say such things. After all, this is a huge problem and one that has been around for centuries. So call me an optimist! And maybe my optimism lies in my experience in working with men over the last 15 years. I can’t think of a single one who would not be filled with shame, quickly followed by a growing sense of anger, at these behaviours of men. What I see is missing is the willingness and ability to believe that they…each individual, single male…can make any difference. And, a belief that in doing so, they themselves will not be harmed by other men.

It may well be that the call to women to lead and to engage with men differently will include being willing to hold up a mirror for them, to themselves. It may require that we become willing not to complain and to rage against but to be willing to define what’s there so that it may be seen through different eyes. Perhaps if men (a generalization) were to become willing to say out loud what they already know deep inside themselves; if they were to become willing to stop silencing themselves at the risk of standing out, or being different, or being called the derisive names and/or possibly assaulted by their own, maybe. just maybe…it would eventually become NOT manly to behave in these very ways. I figure if the apes can do it in one generation, why can’t we?

One last thought: are you ever curious about where the men come from who go to ‘exotic’ places like Thailand, Costa Rica and other places to rape the children there? I sometimes wonder what their wives and children are up to while they’re gone….

Breathing is good....

White Feather: Where spirit touches tissue

Last week, I got a note from someone who was profoundly awakened by the process of putting her attention at the base of her spine…what I’ve created as the ‘White Feather’ meditation (for lack of any other recognized language). It keeps drifting in and out of my awareness, so I’m beginning to pay attention and have decided to share it here.

We spend so much of our lives drifting around the outside of our body, when power resides in integrating into and engaging from within our body. This idea that Spirit touches tissue at the base of the spine…the idea that we do not find our ‘god’ out and up, but down and in... has changed lives – easily, effortlessly and profoundly. When 'Spirit' touches and infuses tissue with its presence, I discover myself to be the godforce that I already am. There really is nothing to work at when we have found our way 'home'.

I share this in the event that it can make a difference.

Q: “This idea of "putting your attention at the base of your spine" is so effective that I wonder where or how it originated. I have been a student of Qi gong and yoga for many years where the focus is on the dahn tien /dahn jon or 2nd chakra. When putting my attention at the base of my spine, I am grounded and in my body so much quicker. I was just curious to get more information. How did you discover this valuable link to healing?”


L: It is amazing, isn't it! I discovered the power of this long ago and, as is the case in most magical things, quite by accident. In a moment of complete surrender, I found myself called deep into my body by some kind of 'attractor'. Call it a voice... call it a vibration... call it whatever nominalization will help you make sense of it... and I just allowed myself to be led. For me, it was the moment that my intellect surrendered to the body and trusted my body to lead. The body cannot lead us if we're not in it.

As much as I know that this approach is unique and profoundly
different from what is taught around the world, I am mindful that I
did not find it - it found me. And I believe it unfolded that way
because in that moment, I was willing to be found. For a brief
nanosecond, I was completely willing to let go of 'knowing' anything, and found myself claimed by my own genius. Know what I mean? It leaves me wondering sometimes...how often does our commitment to what we know keep us small and ignorant?

I believe that the base of the spine is the point where Spirit touches
tissue. Here's the short version: When you consider that how we
begin life in the physical world is through the joining of two (sperm
and egg) and in the moment of their union, they are transformed into a
single 'one'...that is then enlivened by an 'animating force' (back to two - matter and energy) ..that is the one that then divides and becomes two....etc) that becomes one - a single human being. And yet, it all began at that point of matter and animating force - or tissue infused with 'spirit'. In the mystical world, dense matter is 'the bottom', with energy/animating force it's enlivening presence. It must always begin at the bottom because it is where we find ourselves in the world of matter.

In my way of moving through the world, Spirit is not found by going up
and out (as we are very much taught to do...to leave our bodies and
seek elsewhere...to look outside of ourselves for the animating force
of the universe) but my moving deeply down and in. When conscious
awareness/focused attention/awakened essence rests at the base of the
spine (and it is indeed, a choice), physical changes occur in the
body. One of these is activation of the parasympathetic nervous
system response - and in that state, we cannot feel fear.

When we do not feel fear, we become more willing to consider all other things. Our bodies expand...our minds expand...our potential expands...and what makes it 'real' or practical or functional in a physical world is that we are IN the body and not separate from it. Another way to say it is that in the moment that I step into the godforce that I AM, what is there for me to fear when I know that it is all me?

It is indeed, a powerful process. I appreciate the ease with which you have made it your own and have welcomed it into your life. And, as in all things, there is always more!

Breathing is good…..

Emerging Expressions of Leadership in Organic Collectives...by women

I continue to have ‘stuff’ (technical term!) roll around inside me re these notions of emerging expressions of leadership by women. Notions of recognizing that ‘leadership’ is not an action - it's a result. Ideas that press for a recognition that before women will be willing to decloak on the genius that is unique to them and engage their world accordingly, the space of ‘acceptability’ (read ‘safety’) to ways unique to women will first have to expand.

What does all that mean? I’m not sure that I even know. What I do know is that the way women move through the world publicly and the way that they move through their world privately, are not the same thing.

During the Huna Retreat this past week-end, the pieces were far more evident to me than they have been for some time. There are very definite ingredients that are essential to a new recipe for moving through the world differently and for creating a different world, with ‘leadership’ as the ultimate result. These essential ingredients include:

* a more inviting and powerful context for accelerated evolution – a more inviting and provocative destination than the one we are all familiar with – that will become a context for something other than what we’re already getting. If all meaning is context dependent, this is a critical part of the process;

* a recognition of what we are (quantum biological processors), of what we’re processing (signals) and how we actually work (organic intelligence as well as a guiding intelligence); and

* a willingness to surrender to the inevitable uncertainty and indefinable quality that is the essential nature of ‘the future’. The future cannot be managed or planned. Doing so demands that we look back to and rely on the past. The future can only be manifested through who we are. Change who we are and our future changes accordingly. This can only occur if/when we come to trust something other than our intellect; and something other than external referencing.

What this calls up for me is the combination of:

* the context is ‘Evolution by Intention™’ – an awakened, mindful ‘seeing’ that offers a set of beliefs/values/attitudes and a language that allows us to turn our back to history and focus our attention more directly and clearly on choosing who we become;

* the essence of who we are is a Quantum Biological Human™, engaging through Signals Dancing™ for a moment-to-moment, perpetually ongoing unfolding of who we are capable of becoming; and

* the Three Selves of Huna, with the signal of the Higher Self communicating directly with the Lower Self….and in that signal is the Emerging Future we seek. The trick is: do we recognize it for what it is? Are we afraid of it? Can we allow it to be in flow and do nothing as it does? If so, in that moment we have chosen to move away from external referencing (i.e. outside anything…outside experts, authority, knowledge; demands/expectations/requirements/ etc., all of which are constructs of the past) and have chosen to recognize, invite and allow a powerful source of internal referencing that brings with it the potential for something other than what we already have.

All of these combined produce an experience and a result that I hold as ‘leadership’... an experience of a unique, brand-new (not recycled or inherited) expression of Authentic Self that has, until that moment, never existed and cannot exist outside of this experience.

Women instinctively know this experience. Is is like gestation and birth. We have no idea what will be created - only that creation will occur. And we trust that process. It is one that bypasses knowledge and the intellect and moves directly from the impulse/intuition of the body and its attending wisdom. However, in any other process than pregnancy, we often either deny this to ourselves and others, or we seek to find ways to take this experience and make it ‘acceptable’ or palatable to others by masking it in the language and the details of that which is familiar. In that moment, much of its power for acceleration and expansion is surrendered to the status quo and incremental change.

Once I’ve completed the second edition of Fully Alive, my next book will be that of ‘Awakening to the Godforce Within’ – integrating the quantum perspective with the wisdom of the ancient Hawaiians and Huna – as a way for us to awaken to who and what we already are. To me, it’s not about finding or discovering – it’s about remembering.

We are a world and a people in trouble. That’s not news. But maybe this is: A shift in global consciousness will not come at the level of the collective. It will come at the level of the individual and, from there, will ‘infect’ and redesign the collective. So, you see....it's not up to anyone but me.

Breathing is good……

Executing the Future

Phonological ambiguity has always captured my interest. In this case, what does 'executing' mean? Will this 'executing' of the future bring something to an end? Or will it engage the beginning?

These thoughts are on my mind as I return from three days at Oceanstone, at the Huna Retreat. I am experiencing an ever-increasing clarity of the connection between Huna, Evolution by Intention (TM) and this notion of Emerging Futures (TM) . Everything is connected to everything else.

I am also gaining more and more clarity on what Huna means to me (personally) and where my attraction lies. It is not in the details of the rituals or techniques of Huna - it is in what I hold to be its greatest gifts: the Three Selves, the Aloha Spirit and breath. All of these, experienced in the context of Evolution by Intention and The CODE Model(TM), RESULTS in an experience of Emerging Futures .

I am feeling significant pressure in my body to complete my 'Huna' book. In truth, it is becoming much more a book about Huna as a gateway or stargate to not just discovering the godforce that we are, but to engaging from that godforce.

When spirit (Huna) combines with science (The CODE Model), magic happens. Manifestation Spirals....Emerging Futures....and so much more! My mind races and my body tries to keep up! Seems my fingers will not move across the keys fast enough to capture the ideas as they flood my being. In those moments, I think 'VOICE!". There will be so much more that will come through voice. The recordings capture the ideas at the Huna Retreats. Perhaps it's becoming time to make parts of these available.

I know that my future lies in the ongoing exploration and integration (what other word might fit here?) of :
* Who we are = spirit having a human experience, and
* What we are = quantum biological processors, and
* How we are = a never-ending dance of Signals Dancing(TM)

Our future - as a species and as a planet - depends on our ability to grasp these notions, translate them into how we engage and live them.

During the Huna Retreat, I found these words coming out of my mouth: 'executing the future'. That can be taken at least two ways. How it unfolds is up to each of us.

Reader comments and Ray's arrival

Strange…..

My intention in starting this blog was to create space – big space, safe space - within which to engage new thinking about leadership/leading/leaders, among other things. For some strange reason, I’ve been getting emails from folks saying that they can’t seem to post comments.

Hmmm… (she says, pondering her holodeck) isn’t that interesting! My intention is to invite others to engage with me and yet, it seems difficult for comments to be received!

So, with my limited knowledge in this learning-as-I-go process, it may be helpful to note that:

I have chosen to limit comments to those who are registered with blogger.com. What that means is that before you can post to this site, you must first create an account with Blogger.com and log in. Once you’ve done that, you should be able to comment to your heart’s content.
I’ve made this decision because I am seeking mindful and awakened engagement. I have no interest in spam (who does?!?!?!) and I have no interest in anonymous comments. I DO have an interest in engaging fully with those who are willing to be present, be visible and claim the truth of their own experience.

One of the emails that I got today was from Ray Landry, a person for whom I have much respect. Because I feel that his perspective is important, I’m choosing to enter his comments below until we can figure out how to make posting your comments an easier task.

Ray has a blog of his own (which I will post here when I get the details from him) and has written the following comments in his blog, of his read of these postings:

“As always, I am moved by your genius, and your willingness to step into your truth and share what becomes clear for you, through each moment you put your thoughts into these fonts on the "page".
The conversation around "leadership" through the Choice Points newsletter and recent blog moves through me as a rumbling of possibility and truth. And, having the experience of being "male", a man, I find myself fully immersed in the unsettling state (more rumblings) of knowing that my experience of leadership and leading as I have witnessed them so far in my life just don't work for me at all, either! Yet, in the unfolding of my experience with most of the men and women I know, I have not yet been able to find a space comfortable enough for me to feel able to "let go" and flow out of the "competitive and controlling nature" of that "nominalization" that is "leadership", and into something else.

The phrase "relax into a new way of being" (as it relates to men - Choice Points, 2006), definitely feels like the direction I must focus on to allow for something new, different, than what I am used to. There has never been an instant of "relaxing" in my experience of leading or demonstrating leadership. It seems to always be about holding on tightly and controlling all the parameters I can; and I trust that most men would have a similar experience.
There is a knowing, now, in the depth of my being, that holding on to what is, will almost never get me to what can be, and that change and possibility can only come from choosing, moment to moment, to stand in the truth of my experience, and choosing again, in those moments of clarity, to allow for the unfolding of that truth. Where my experience of leaders, leadership, and leading is one of seeing "men" in various positions, talk about "blazing a trail", "punching through", "capitalizing", "winning", "getting the edge", I suspect that "relaxing into a new way of being" will be an unfamiliar place for many to stand, as it is for me; yet, I too, believe that the continued repetition of the habitual, will only give us more of what we've got or worse!
Although I am not sure how all this will unfold for me, I have a sense that it is only in my intention to create more space for myself that I can allow for others to see what becomes possible for them; and in so "being", allowing for much more than was offered up to me in the first place!?
RAY”

As I read Ray’s thoughts, I was very aware of the compassion that I carry for men. I have sons who are no longer boys and not quite men. As I watch them move through their world, I am mindful that the context that has already been laid down for them by the history of their culture – and I mean, the culture of being human which is global – my heart aches for the small box into which they are repeatedly and intensely encouraged to fold themselves into in order to ‘pass muster’. I bear witness to their daily determination to be themselves – whatever that happens to be in this moment – and ensure that the choice to choose remains a constant in their lives. Even in my deep love and admiration for them, I am not blind to their turmoil about it all, regardless of how unwilling they are to surrender the truth of who they are.

It is not easy to be a man. So much of who you are lives buried deep beneath a mix of expectations and bravado. Expectations you never wanted; and bravado that you rely on to cloak your disinterest and fatigue with it all. You fool no one – especially yourself.

I believe that ‘..the call to women to lead and co-create with men differently; and the invitation to men to relax into new ways of being” is a place to start. It is not an answer, it’s an invitation. It is not a command performance – for women or men – it is an opportunity to discover more about ourselves and each other, without the concrete of our histories getting in the way. I sincerely do believe that although history may be interesting, it has no place in the design and manifestation of our future by intention.

Thanks, Ray, for stepping up to the plate…and into the game.

Breathing is good……

Decloaking in Ottawa - Quaking in Hawaii

It’s been a busy week-end. And given my belief that my life is a holodeck, I am paying attention to what I have manifested and how it all links together.

This week-end I had the honour of being part of not one but two ‘unveilings’ of contributing authors to the Sekhmet Rising book project. Unlike book signings or readings, these are opportunities created by the contributing author to reveal herself to the people in her community, in a way that is meaningful to her.

Both Noreen Mejias and Dominique Dennery created their distinct unveilings in ways that were most gratifying for them. I was invited to be part of these processes and given ample time to speak to the intention of the Sekhmet Rising book project (and you can be sure that I had a lot to say!) and to the impact of the book on those who are choosing to engage it. As different as each of these experiences was in terms of context and physical environment, the result was the same: women decloaked and open to the world – living expressions of the potential that we all carry.

What struck me at both events was how quickly and easily strangers connected to each other; how shamelessly and effortlessly the conversations moved quickly from the weather, the latest movie and other trivial notions to sharing deeply personal and meaningful moments with each other. It was profoundly gratifying to me not only to witness this but to be part of this living tapestry of potential – of this moment of Evolution by Intention™ as these women stood in the ‘now’ and spoke out loud their desires to ‘become’.

As this was unfolding for me, half way around the world (it sure feels that way on the flight!), the Big Island of Hawaii was experiencing an earthquake that registered 6.6. Less than four weeks ago I was on the Big Island, staying in the village where the brunt of the shock was felt. During my stay, I was very mindful of frequent and persistent ‘rumblings’ or vibrations under my feet. Nothing distinct, nothing that caused any movement of anything on the surface of the ground, and yet very definitely there.

As I now consider all of these events, I am mindful of the metaphors of the ‘rumblings’ and the ‘quaking’; mindful of the notions of persistence and not visible ‘above ground’. I am mindful of this language that reveals to me the sense that although it may not yet be visible publicly – ‘above ground’ – there is huge movement occurring. There is even the notion of a ‘silent’ earthquake…one that does not register on ‘traditional’ sensing instruments and yet can be catastrophic in its impact. As I write these words, I become aware of what I experience as an acceleration and intensification of the movement of women. It feels like some kind of coagulation, letting us know that we are unique and, in that uniqueness, we are not alone.

On the holodeck of my experience, I am beginning to manifest physical expressions (effects) that are reflections of non-physical awakenings (causes). Particularly Kona…particularly the Big Island….these are places so familiar to me; places that I have always experienced as inviting and welcoming. And yet, as I consider this last trip, now followed by an earthquake; and as I consider the one before with such a precarious landing in the middle of a huge storm (that mysteriously disappeared the moment the wheels touched down), I find myself wondering: is it time? It is time for me to let go of the familiar, no matter how welcoming or inviting it has been for me in the past? For me the message is clear: I can let go, or I can watch it shake and tremble and remove itself from my grip!

And I also wonder: what am I holding on to that no longer serves me? What do I have my fingers wrapped around – perhaps even the death-grip of habit or fear – that I may not yet have noticed and once observed, may lead me to discover that I know even less HOW to let go of?

It took courage for both Noreen and Dominique to do what they did. What did they have to let go of in order to be able to manifest those events on their holodeck? And in that letting go, what did they discover about themselves that paved the way for others to also discover about themselves?

For me, this is ‘leadership’. It is the leadership of women…the kind of experience where ‘leadership’ is a result (it’s a noun and not a verb); the kind of intention fulfillment that comes from being true to yourself and engaging only because it holds deep, personal meaning for you. I believe that when we find the courage within ourselves to live this way, magic happens! And the world opens to new possibilities.

This notion of emerging expressions of women that create ‘ leadership’ as a result is something to pay attention to. Women are losing interest in ‘doing ‘leadership the way men have done it – not because there’s anything wrong or bad with men but because our current interpretation of leadership is killing us. Women know it and they are refusing to play.

We need a new game. We need new players. And perhaps more than anything, we need a new reason to want to play. If we don’t find it, define it, design it and engage, we’ll just keep doing what we’re doing and get more of what we’ve got.

Breathing is good…..

Awake and ready to engage!

Another glorious day of spending time in conversation with women. One I have known for a long time; the other two are new to me. As we engaged, it became clear to me that we will come to know each other much better.

I see it in all of them – this immense desire to live fully and engage meaningfully. As I listen to them speak, behind their words I hear a rhythm….a heartbeat…that is the strength of their will to reclaim themselves and their intention to share that with others. In their conversation, I hear nothing of ‘rescue’ and am mindful only of their sense of themselves and their desire to show up for their own lives. Lives lived fully, not lives left unattended, languishing and regretted.

For one, perhaps even an urgency to awaken….claim…engage…and live large!

Evolution by Intention….Emerging Futures….those words float through my awareness as I listen to them speak. Theirs are not futures that are built around plans and fueled by targets and deadlines – theirs are futures that emerge and unfold, one breath to the next, as they connect to and trust the truth of their experience; as they come to relax into and stop fighting what moves through the very tissue of their being.

Common to them all is the expression “I have no idea where it’s taking me – I just know that I need to do it.” And as they engage, the next step unfolds…and then the next…and the next. More than once, I heard each of them marvel at their own discoveries and evolution, no one more surprised than each of them! As I listened, it felt like Christmas morning, unwrapping presents and filled with the delight of the unexpected and unrequested. Life unfolding….surprising…preparing for the next wave.

Leadership….futures emerging….is this what woman bring to the party so easily? Their willingness AND ability to let go…to relax into their own uncertainty and hold it as a sacred part of their being? Is that how I live my own life?

One reader sent me a note from yesterday’s posting. “This is my life and you can’t have it!” rang powerfully true for her. As I read her words, I wondered….where inside of me is the voice that she is? And I become curious about engaging my life MORE fully…MORE present and connected and awake! The question comes to mind: does it get any better than this? And I smile because indeed, I know that it does.

As I slowly turn my gaze to focus more on the evolution of women – myself as a woman, and those women who come into my life – I marvel at how effortless it is for me to see their magnificence. I see their talent and their unique gifts. I hear behind their words what is not yet spoken. I feel what moves inside them, in the dark places where they have not – yet – dared to look. And I know, without exception, the power of each of them and that the world…that we, each of us….needs.

Each and every one of them is a messenger, bringing her unique thread of awakened consciousness to the tapestry of the world to be created. Each a creator in her own right, co-creating with others to increase the intensity and the density of the flow of life.

I’m up for that and I am now seeking those women who are seeking to awaken to themselves – and get on with it!

Breathing is good…..

I am woman - hear me whine!

Apart from my own up-close-and-personal 56-years of being a woman, my life is full of women. All shapes and sizes; all forms and levels of education and development; from every color of the rainbow. And what I know, beyond a whisper of a doubt, is how powerful we are!

Including myself, I don’t know any women who are NOT powerful! Over the last 25+ years, I’ve worked with women who have expressed, endured and endeavored in ways that I can only aspire to at some point in my own evolution. With this kind of strength and courage; with this kind of presence and potential, why on earth do we have to whine????

Think of it, for a moment. Don’t bother thinking about your life – just think about today. Reflect on your recent emails, or phone calls, or conversations with family/friends/colleagues. Listen to the sound of your own voice, the stories you tell, the words you use and wonder….who was that person???

I, for one, am finished with being nice about this. Finished with being kind and understanding and patient – as I watch powerful women flush themselves, yet one more time, down the proverbial porcelain tube of their own potential.

I’m tired of listening to women make other women victims. “Oh, poor thing….you won’t believe what so-and-so did to her…or said to her….or (fill in the blank)!” Poor thing….she can’t handle it/manage it/deal with it/ fix it/stop it. Do we ever stop to consider how insulting and debasing that is? To be presumed to be helpless and powerless and without impact in our lives – as if we are nothing more than pawns on someone else’s chessboard. How insulting is that!

And we think we’re being kind or caring or supportive when we do that. If you really want to be supportive, start asking some powerful questions! Questions like: how did you manage to create this on your holodeck/in your life? What is there for you to learn about yourself from this experience? How does this unfolding experience serve you? What does being ‘a victim’ allow you to not disclose/reveal about yourself?

When I listen to a woman whine about another woman’s life, I ask some of those questions. Questions like: what does so-and-so’s life say about your own? What is there about this that is a reflection of you? What does paying attention to so-and-so’s life allow you not to notice about your own? What makes focusing on so-and-so’s life (over which you have no control/effect/impact) so much more attractive to you than attending to your own?

And, truth be told, the questions aren’t that much different when I hear a woman whine about her own life! Whose life ever got better from whining?

Whining is something we do to talk ourselves into believing that we’re doing something useful.

Whining is what we do when we’re not willing to say:

“This is my life and you can’t have it!”

“Sad as it may be, I’m willing to walk away from you rather than become smaller than who I am so that I can stay. “

“I am no longer willing to be less than who I can be so that you can feel better about being less than who you can be.

“I’ve changed my mind! I don’t want to do this anymore – just because I don’t want to do this anymore!”

Whining is what we do when we’re not willing to be seen/heard/experienced to be responsible for:

· choosing to leave because staying no longer sources us. Instead, we make sure that someone else makes it necessary for us to go and takes the heat.

· taking care of ourselves and leaving others behind. Instead, we stay and become the martyr or the savior – becoming small and bent in the process.

· moving forward and engaging our own lives, knowing that doing so will upset/irritate/annoy others. Instead, we linger much longer than will sustain life for us or the people with whom we engage.

Women all over the world, from one breath to the next, allow themselves to be less than who they are. They stay silent when they have something meaningful to say. They stay invisible when the pressure in their body is propelling them to engage. They apologize for who they are rather than face the displeasure of another.

Over and over again – day after day – we pretend to be who we’re not so that others might be thrown off the scent and discover who we really are! We stand back and hold back the power of our own thoughts rather than face those who might disagree or dismiss or ridicule what we offer. We slide back into the shadows rather than stand tall and declare that another’s inability to see and/or recognize the value of what we bring may have more to do with the veils that blind them that it does with the relevance of our offering.

It is difficult for others to see and hear when they insist on covering their eyes and putting blunt objects in their ears!

We have spent generations and decades of our existence being kind, and understanding, and patient – working at and trying to be inclusive and considerate – making room for others to be with us, to come with us, to keep pace with us. After all, isn’t that what women are supposed to do? And in that process, we find ourselves wondering: “Will I survive?” as we slip under yet another wave of our own self-denial and call it an act of nobility.

Enough! Enough with the silencing…the apologies….the invisibility…the whining! Enough with the self-deprecation and perpetual-understudy way of living! Is it not time for us all to reveal ourselves to be the Masters of our own lives that we already are? When do we cease to be the apprentice and become the Magician!

Women of the world: stop whining! Stop whining and start claiming…and stating…and revealing…and declaring…and decloaking! It is long overdue for us to engage! Long overdue for us to uncurl and stand tall; for us to allow the full measure and force of our genius to unfurl and billow in the winds of change. It is time for us to take our place at the table and stop whining because no one will invite us. Perhaps, even more, it is time for us to notice that the table is already our own.

Women whine because we’re pissed! We’re pissed at the degree to which we allow ourselves to become irrelevant in our own lives – and then say ‘thank you’ for the privilege of being marginalized and overlooked. We’re pissed at the degree to which we slip so easily into the shadows without the smallest of protests to make it clear that we will not go gently into our own invisibility. And we’re pissed because we already know it’s up to us – and we resent it.

Kofi Annan, Director General, United Nations has said that the future of the world depends on women. We already know that. What we now need to pay attention to is what is it going to take for us to get out of our own way?

From my 56 years of being a woman and my 25+ years of working with women, I know nothing if I don’t know this: women are powerful! We are aware, astute, sentient, intuitive, insightful and visionary. We have what it takes – and we hate ourselves when we slither into the shadows rather than hold our ground.

I, for one, am also done with that!

Breathing is good…..

If credentials aren't enough....are we?

I’m feeling agitated today. I’ve come to learn over the years that this state of agitation – of body and mind – is often the precursor to some new insight…to some startling change in how I experience myself and subsequently, how I move through my world.

I’ve also learned over the years that there is nothing for me to do about this, or with this, other than to wait for myself to be found. And so, while I wait, I muse…..

Just left lunch with my friend, Dominique. As a contributing author to the Sekhmet Rising book, Dominique is about to create what we are lovingly calling an ‘unveiling’. Yes, there are books for sale; and yes, there are people signing books – and that’s not really what any of it is about.

It’s about coming out of the closet on trusting that who we are is enough. It’s about being willing to be seen and heard, not for what we have to say but for who we are. It’s about standing naked, without props or script, and engaging – in real life and real time – from both the deep and the shallow ends of the pool that we are.

An unveiling is also about recognizing that we can do it alone, if we so choose, we can ask for what we want. We can invite into our lives the people who feed us…who source and nurture us….without fear of being punished in some way for NOT inviting those who don’t.

It’s about being clear on what WE want; letting ourselves know it, first, inside – where we live; and then allowing the voice inside of us to match the voice outside of us, and speak the truth of our desires and intentions without the fear of disapproval stopping us before we even begin.

Are we enough, in the splendor of our uncertainty and vulnerability and hesitation? Are we enough, knowing our deep and increasingly powerful need to move forward and yet, having not a clue where to put down our foot for the next step? Are we enough, in recognizing our need to change our mind, to not choose until it feels right to do so, and in allowing ourselves to pause…and wait…until we FEEL like it?

Today is a day of my own pondering ‘Am I enough?’ Is it enough that I inhale and exhale and choose to live my life in a way that is meaningful to me – even if it means nothing to anyone else?

I take a breath…..I invite that breath to awaken and open and loosen my being….I wait, as the long, slow, deep exhale brings my attention to the base of my spine….and I know – without doubt, without hesitation, without fear – that I AM indeed, enough.

And so are you.

Breathing is good……

Credentials aren't enough!

I’m noticing how every day brings with it yet another insight or enquiry into my own thoughts about women and leadership. Such an awareness continues to demonstrate to me how my life is indeed, unfolding on the holodeck I design; and how my (now) much larger and more intense intention is calling to itself moments of opportunity for discovery.

Take today’s unfolding. Lunch with my dear friend Noreen and one of her colleagues caused me to begin to notice what I think is going to be a critical aspect of this conversation on women and leadership. The conversation is about the relationship between education and leadership. I do not dispute the need for the kind of education that comes from formal schooling. What I am suggesting is that it is not enough.

In this moment (and this will be a much larger, longer and on-going conversation), the ideas or notions or perceptions of ‘leadership’ lead us to believe that leadership is the domain of the few, and following the leader is the responsibility of the many. Most of us will live lives of followers while few of us will become those being followed.

The kind of leadership I’m talking about is very different from this. I believe that each of us must become the leader in the living of our own, meaningful life. I believe that as each of us discovers that which is meaningful and authentic to the uniqueness of who we are; and as we become willing to decloak and come out of hiding to engage our lives this way, ‘leadership’ will be the result that we can calibrate for. This invites us to begin to get curious and wonder: what is it that is going on when I feel that I am in the presence of leadership? How do I know when I am being/experiencing ‘leader’? What is the essence of my experience (what is happening inside myself) when I am drawn to an experience of ‘leadership’ – my own or that of someone else?

The education of women (and men, for that matter) cannot be limited to a deep concern about content knowledge and credentials that will invite us into a status-quo world. I believe that as women, we must both discover and share with others what it takes for us to be willing to differentiate…to be seen and heard for that for which we are unique… and create a world that we personally, individually and uniquely hold as meaningful and worthwhile.

As we move into the 21st Century, the ‘leadership’ models of the industrial age will not serve us as we enter more provocatively into the Age of Awakening. Leadership cannot continue to be the domain of the few. It must become the way of the masses….like breathing in and breathing out. Each of us must discover within ourselves, what is required in order for us to invite the essential nature of our Being – the essential force of who we are – to begin to manifest itself in our daily lives and in so doing, design a new world.

There is an acceleration occurring in the world with regard to all that is and is not working. We are past the point of being able to sit on the sidelines and watch the game unfold. We are running out of time to recognize that we ARE the game!

Breathing is good…..

Willing and able to lead?

This ‘women and leadership’ conversation continues to roll around in my own thoughts, as well as appear regularly in my conversations with other women. What this tells me is that I’m on the right track, for my own evolution. Also, it seems that (given it’s a holographic universe) when I evolve, so do all those with whom I come in contact. Funny, that…..

The question is not so much ‘What does it take for women to lead?” and is much more one of ‘What does it take for women TO BE WILLING to lead?”. Those are not the same thing. The ‘willingness’ aspect is a critical one.

I don’t think there is any question that women are able to lead. (Have you tried being a mother lately????) In all of my 20+ years of working with women, I have been stunned by the degree of courage and strength that it takes for some of these women to continue living their lives. For example, it takes great strength and courage for a woman to get up every day and face a violent partner. And imagine what her life could become if she were to take that same degree of courage and strength and redirect it….and create something else. Considering the impact that would have on her life and the lives of her children, would that qualify as leadership?

So, for me, it’s never been about whether women are able – it’s always been about whether or not they are willing to be seen.

Are we willing to have what we really think become public? Are we willing to have our view of the world be tabled to be considered by others? Are we willing to begin to be living expressions of what holds meaning for us…when we believe that so many around us do NOT share our view of what is and – more! – what can be?

Willingness without the ability to deliver is not useful. I can want to fly myself to Hawaii but if I have no ability to do so (no technical skills, no training, etc), I create danger for myself. Conversely, I may have the skills to do so and my fear of water may make me unwilling to fly over the Pacific. Again, a combination that will not likely get me to Hawaii on my own!

Willingness AND ability are required – both present at the same time. When it comes to ‘leading/leadership’ (both nominalizations), I’m not so sure that women are willing to engage. Doing so would require that they be seen and heard; that their world view becomes public to some degree (even if only to their family – and that can be a big surprise!) and be held up to being dismissed, ridiculed and perhaps for some, even punished.

Leadership has a price – either way. There’s a price if we step up to the plate, and there’s a price if we don’t. Either way, it’s called ‘the quality of your life’. How do you like it so far?

Each of us lives our own life at varying degrees of intensity of expression. For some of us, passion is a frightening thing! It is a force that propels us into action, and has been known to get us into trouble when we least expected it. For others, passion is the essential nature of who we are, and to engage life without it leaves us wondering…why bother? Each of us has a force that moves inside us that calls us into action in some way. The problem (as I see it) is never about which is the best force, or the right force or the most productive force, it’s always about whether or not we pay attention to the call of that force that lives inside us – that is unique to us - and engage!

In the last 24 hours, I’ve had three distinct conversations with women who happen to show up in my life. In my first conversation, a woman who touches the lives of many, has chosen to be a stay-at-home, full-time Mom and recognizes this, in her world, as leadership. (I say ‘in her world’ because there are those who would not share this view.) For me, the interesting line of enquiry is not whether this meets the external standard for leadership, but much more about: what motivates her to call this leadership? Is it that she’s doing the ‘right’ thing in accordance with some moral code….or is it leadership because inside her, the force that drives her authentic and unique expression says “Stay home!”. Pure and simple. Which one it is will (I believe) determine her result.

Conversation Number 2: a woman who has a huge impact on the lives of other women recognizes that she moves through her world differently from one of her colleagues, who also has a huge impact on others. The question was then one of: is it useful for her to compare herself to the other? In my world, both are willing to step into leadership – and HOW they do that has variations in intensity. Their results will be tied to their willingness to be true to themselves – and engage the force as it is meaningful in their own lives.

And finally, conversation Number 3: a woman who LOVES the deep end of the pool! This woman is not a strong swimmer – this woman is amphibious! For her to NOT be in the deep end of the pool leaves her with a huge, unaddressed, unengaged force moving through her body. In our conversation, it became clear to her that if she does not honour the intensity of that force that moves inside her, she will become unwell – of body, mind and/or spirit.

Leadership is not about the force – it’s about whether or not we can recognize, claim and OWN the force that is the UNIQUE expression of who we are….and become a living expression of that force, right here….right now….in the moment. When we do this, we become a living expression of and permission for others to do the same. In that moment, we become leaders not of any particular way of moving through the world, but leaders for replicating how to discover meaningful lives and live them. Perhaps living a meaningful life would be a novel approach for us all……

One final thought: when it comes to being both willing and able to lead, if not me, then who? If not now, then when? How many of us are still waiting for the right time to begin living a meaningful life – and it never comes?

Breathing is good……

Standing Alone - a scarey place to be

I continue to let ideas roll around inside me. Perhaps less ‘ideas’ and much more a seemingly random stream of thoughts about what I want to create here - in this space that opens around this blog.

I am very mindful that what I flow into this Space will indeed, manifest my reality. I am also mindful that manifestation is a spiral, and at the end of its completion if what I want is ponies, I need to be mindful not to produce lizards!

I am genuinely curious about what it will take for women (to be willing) to lead! I am also mindful that in that curiosity, I do not have the answer. I’m not even sure I’m looking for an answer as much as I’m looking to discover other women who are actually awake to the potential of that question.

What does it take for women (to be willing) to lead? Do we need to explore how we define ‘lead’ and redefine it? Are the existing notions of ‘lead/leader/leadership’ anything that women are enthused about? Are women attracted to the experiences (and the results!) that these notions have birthed?

How do women perceive themselves as ‘leaders’? What goes on inside women when they assume the identity of ‘leader’? How much of them actually continues to be present; and how much of the truth of who they are must be pressed aside in order for them to ‘lead’?

Men and women are different biologically. How different are men and women in their expressions of leadership? And in this question, I am not thinking about behaviours; I’m thinking about intentions and results. How are the intentions different for women when they consider leadership?

Do women consider what they value to be worthwhile? Do they consider their intentions to be welcomed in a public forum? Or do women think one way – and live another!

Musings all – and critical nonetheless.

Take my friend, Eva Marsh . I got an email from her a couple of days ago, in which she wrote:

“Cancer patient (told he was dying last March) is comfortable and holding his own, and NOT progressing (body doesn't stand still, so if he's not progressing ...) docs amazed ...

After 3 sessions since June, woman in wheelchair 10 years, now able to stand and move to toilet, and back to chair .. arms strong enough to wheel herself around house ... hands better coordinated ... feeds self ... can grab, lift items ...
and SHE KNOWS she is in recovery and will be mobile. “

To me, this is leadership! Here is a woman who is living proof of a very different way to come face-to-face with her diagnosis and experience of MS. Her approach is hugely confrontational with ‘traditional’ medical-model approaches to treating MS. Her perspective is neither welcomed by nor encouraged by the existing ‘powers that be’ in the allopathic medical system. And yet, despite it all (and some of these are pretty potent forces!), Eva stays true to herself.

From where I stand, Eva trusts the truth of her own experience. She is willing to stand (very much) alone – AND be public about it! Not only does her experience matter, it guides her choices. And in addition to her own self-recovery, she is willing to share that experience with others, in very public ways. In the world through which Eva moves, this can often be met with ridicule and rejection – and yet, she persists.

To me, THIS is leadership! To me, Eva is a living example of what I refer to in the Declaration of Evolution by Intention….of redefining our humanity and recognizing and reclaiming the much greater truth of our own potential.

What does it take for Eva to be both willing and able to ENGAGE her world so differently? And what might happen in our world if more of us could/would?

I often find myself wondering: just today, how many women have silenced themselves yet one more time?

Breathing is good…..