BeautyDialogues

In Dresden, Seeped in Beauty

I'm in Dresden with World Café friends, helping to design a very unusual event that will be held later this year here in Europe. I'll write more about this as it evolves but right now I just wanted to share some of the beauty that my host and friend here in Dresden has created. Sabine Soeder is not only ravishingly lovely but everything that comes from her is Beauty. She and the extremely talented and SMART Chris Chopyak are visually recording our conversations as we/they speak and it is absolutely catalytic having these images to reflect our collective meaning-making AS IT IS HAPPENING.

Sabine's husband Ulrich led us in an exercise this morning where we went inside and listened for the form that could represent what we were feeling emerging in ourselves. When we'd translated that form into a physical gesture/movement, someone suggested we then make an image of what we were noticing to show to each other. The tree above was Sabine's.

Reaching for the New

One of the most prevalent concerns I come across with new blogging clients, especially those who are starting to blog as part of a business strategy, is anxiety about their writing "voice".

Many feel a strong taboo - for whatever reason - against revealing too much of themselves, they aren't sure about sharing their most closely held dreams and hopes for themselves, their work, and the world. Instead, they imagine they need a standard "professional" tone to give them a voice they can feel comfortable with and others will recognize. In other words, at that moment of truth they look to the conventional rather than braving the step out of the box to find their own voice. Unfortunately, nothing could be more misguided.

Now I'm not saying there aren't occasions in which that standard professional persona might be exactly what is called for, but one of the great opportunities opened up by this era of social media and blogging is transparency; we get to see each other as we are - I begin to learn what it's really like to be you, and glimpse what you see and what you dream of. Not to mention the slightly unintuitive marketing truth that the more specific and unique your "brand", the easier YOUR people can find you.

My whole blogging experience is an example of going out on that particular limb. When I first started writing about my ideas for a more "human", nature-connected and sensory-based online experience, I felt pretty out there. I wasn't sure anyone would understand or take me seriously, and in the beginning I wasn't even sure what I meant by it myself, but it was a road I just had to follow. Now I have at least two paid projects going that are expanding my ability to develop exactly that niche, clients who wouldn't have known about my particular passion if I hadn't "put it out there".

So I keep telling my fledgling bloggers to brave their dreams and dare to be exactly who they are. If enough of us do so it just might change not only our own work, but what it means to be a professional.

Happy Easter all you Peeps

It's a little strange posting something so completely silly but somehow this image totally cracked me up - the juxtaposition of the hard guy gansta-rapper and the fluffy little baby chick.

Anyway, Happy Easter, Peeps. I'm off on a rare holiday adventure with my sweetie and my camera ... last seen heading towards Point Reyes. :-)

My New Avatar

I've been working with Kara Brown on an avatar for my social networking sites, and am pleased to show you the jewel she came up with...  and share what a wonderful experience it's been working with her on this project.

First she looked at my other avatars, which were mostly photographic, and then we talked about who I am and what I want to say about myself in this medium. She was totally open to my thoughts and feedback, and really heard the essence of my message.

I love what she did with the background, indicating a magical web of connection and inspiration, a green web that connects us to each other and to the natural world.

If you'd like your own, completely customized avatar, or have other illustration needs that could use her playful impressionistic style, give Tara a call! She's talented, intuitive, reasonably priced and I can't recommend her enough.

Our Luminous Ground

You may remember a project I mentioned in a post written last October, on the Powers of Place - well, I'm pleased to say I'm now the point person for creating the online communications for the whole project - stay tuned for more about that - but for now I'm excited to announce the launch of Our Luminous Ground.

Our Luminous Ground is a spin-off from the main project and it's been a joint effort coming from myself, Ria Baeck, Sheryl Erickson, and Karen Speerstra (a celebrated writer who has been the main author of this blog).

Luminous Ground is a WONDERFUL journey into the pattern language of sacred lanscapes all over the earth and I want to invite you who find the earth sacred and/or have something to share about your own experience with power spots around the world to come check it out, subscribe, and contribute.

My Kind of Leader

I've been engaged in a seven-month leadership journey process called the "Heart of Leadership", offered by my friends FireHawk Hulin and Pele Rouge Chadima of Resonance, in partnership with Heartland.

One of our first assignments was to write a letter from the vantage point of having finished the course and achieved all our goals, and this is a 3.5 minute video I made from that letter. It tells not only what kind of a leader I want to be, but why.

Snow and Pattern Language

I've been in Eugene Oregon for the last week or so, answering an invitation by the extraordinary Tree Bressen who'd asked me to join her and a dozen others to explore the idea of pattern language in group process arts. Given my work with the World Cafe, which is based on the pattern language of its seven design principles, and the pattern language project I'm involved in with the Power of Place Collaborative, the invitation was definitely intriguing.

My personal interest in the subject goes beyond the specifics of group process arts, in that I'm looking for a pattern language for catalyzing collective transformation online. I'd hoped we would touch on that as well, given the presence of the inspired visionary Tom Atlee and the 3-4 other folks who also work online - John Abbe, Kaliya Hamlin, Bill Aal & John Kelly. Obviously I didn't read the invitation closely enough, since that didn't happen, but I wasn't disappointed (and I haven't given up on the idea of a pattern language for collective transformation either).

As it turned out, the idea of actually coming up with a pattern language for the process arts was far too ambitious for even a full week together, but it was well worth our time to learn what we did about the process of co-evolving the beginnings of a pattern language for this field. There is ongoing work being done to collaboratively evolve the project and share it with others, so stay tuned for more.

One of the most exciting parts of the journey, however, was the snowstorm that came in with me - four inches the night I arrived - and stayed the whole week, turning the roads into an ice rink and the scenery into a winter wonderland. The snow-covered lawns and trees were exquisite, so pristine and lovely in the mornings and glistening with drama in the evenings next to the Christmas lights of the houses. All this snow was a totally unexpected and unusual occurrence for the Oregonians, and an especially delightful treat for this California girl.

My Life is Ace

I've been working with amazing musician and intuitive Shaina Noll on a number of projects, including her blog which will be launched in the new year. Among her many talents, Shaina offers Tarot readings over the phone and after an incredible reading she did for me earlier this year, I wanted more.

When we first started working together Shaina had sent me one of her Life Path Profiles to introduce me to this part of her work, and my profile said that this year is a very important one for me, a once in a lifetime opportunity. Since it is about to be over (on my birthday - January 31st - make a note! :-), I wanted to see whether there was anything I should be doing to take full advantage of this unique moment in time.

Our session only lasted half an hour, but it seemed timeless and I felt I had received everything I needed. The two cards I drew - one for what I had already gained in this powerful year, and the other for what opportunities might still lie before me, were absolutely perfect and Shaina's interpretation answered my questions completely.

The first card I drew was the Ace of Cups. Aces represent a pinnacle of development in the specific area of their suit, in this case cups, which represents love and relationship. If you've ever seen this card, you'll know that its archetypal image of a fountain of water overflowing the bounds of an elegant chalice is a joyful sight to behold. And it spoke so beautifully to this last year, in which I have been granted so many of my heart's desires.

Here are my notes from this part of the reading with Shaina:
The Ace of Cups has to do with deep love and appreciation of yourself. It fills your heart with the sense of self-esteem, self-honoring. Aces are the tools of the Magician card, and as such what one expresses in the world can become a blessing to others (this is my deepest wish fulfilled). In terms of the question, cups being the suit of love, drawing the ace would say that the core blessing has to do with my capacity to be a channel for a clear and loving energy. This is something that I have now and will be enriched over time.

The next card, answering my question "What's the core opportunity from now through the end of this cycle?" was the Ace of Swords. The Ace of Swords is a powerful-looking card with a mighty sword held directly upwards, cutting through a layer of clouds into a crown of brilliant light. The suit of swords corresponds to mind, and in my case its potential for achievement would most likely be in the sphere of writing and communication.

Here are my notes from this part of the reading:
Inspired Communication penetrating the clouds into the realm of spirit. The capacity is to be an inspired channel for the clearest possible energy. This ace is a card of the mind, and offers the opportunity to open my capacity for language even wider. To open my mind to a realm of communication that is more significant than any I have achieved before. It suggests an element of ease, where things just come naturally. It augurs a time when I can ask for support & guidance from Spirit, and receive it directly.

There was more, about the family of cards that support these two and how they work, but the gist was that these two aces offer an increased capacity for a clear heart and open mind to come together and communicate in a unique and powerful way.

This made me very excited, because I am going to be working on a series of videos for the World Café throughout this next month. Video is a medium I have little experience in but a strong intuition about, so I can't wait to see what comes out of me!

But mostly I wanted to share this because I think Shaina is amazing and I wanted you to know about her, in case you too would like to explore one of these incredible readings with her. (If that sounds like something you or someone you love would like, use this address to contact her: insights@shainanoll.com)

Conversation & Business

I just read a post by blogger /consultant Chris Brogan on Cafe-Shaped Conversations, where he explores how social media allows small intimate conversations and how that might or might not be what corporations are interested in, and when they are, how that might not be such a great idea for the rest of us.

As Community Tech Steward of the World Café, I  know that conversation about things that matter is not just a marketing strategy, but one of the keys to human survival. It is in large part conversation (on a number of levels) that will carry us through the formidable global challenges that stand before us now. And online communication tools will no doubt make a key contribution to how we have those conversations.

How exciting it will be to have a President who really understands the power of the individual voice ... I can't wait to see how Obama's presidency will effect participatory citizenship and this whole area. Online interaction needs to become a cultural meme that goes beyond digital natives and "geeky types" like me if it is to fulfill its potential.

But back to business, what Brogan and the World Café are calling Café Conversations (small intimate interactions that can connect with and feed into larger collective awareness) are important to large and small companies for many reasons beyond product sales and marketing.

Conversation is now becoming recognized as a core business competency and World Cafés are hosted in corporations just as often as they are with health and educational institutions, government, neighborhood groups, and anywhere else that conversation can increase communication, address challenges or help build a sense of community. It's only a matter of time until many of these conversations are happening online.

You've probably noticed that more and more conferences are moving to an interactive model, based on small group conversation. Increasingly, conference organizers are realizing that attendees are tired of "talking heads". There is so much more to be gained by an approach that calls on the collective intelligence gathered in the room, and engages everyone in a conversation where the "experts" and those in the audience (who are often equally as knowledgeable) are on a par.

So what I'm saying is that there's an analogy here that expands the power of conversation and online communications way out beyond marketing and product sales for businesses, and it's still just beginning.

Mindful Wandering

One of my favorite thinkers/bloggers out there, Dave Pollard, recently shared his association between "slow blogging" as defined by Barbara Ganley and what his friend Chris Lott calls "mindful wandering". Here's an excerpt from Dave's post:

"The idea is to see blogging, which is really just a new way of recording your thoughts in a diary, as a meditative practice, taking the time to ponder the meaning of what you're reading, thinking and writing, letting your mind meander in thoughtful and creative ways to "make sense" of it."

The photo above was taken by FireHawk Hulin of his wife Pele Rouge and I, taking a break from an informal writing retreat we set up with each other to do just that.

It was exquisite, and I can't imagine anything better than to spend more time exactly like this... Walking, looking with fresh eyes at what is around me; seeing the juxtapositions of line and light and color and following them with my camera - like a dream or a story without words.

It's such a pleasure to let my thoughts wander over the things I've seen or read or heard recently and listen for the patterns I sense emerging between them; to what is becoming clearer, or where new questions are surfacing. I crave conversation about these things with other thinking, aware, sensitive people, and I love the experience, the artful practice, of composing something tangible - a blog post, a story or poem, a finished photograph, a video or slideshow - from these elements.

I recently advised one of my clients to make reflective writing part of her daily practice, even if what she writes doesn't always make it to a blog post. Simply to take an hour every morning, or every evening, and contemplate what has meaning in this moment, or reflect on what carried energy in this day.

I can't wait to see what comes of this from and for her.
Hmmmm. Maybe it's time I listened to my own advice. :-)