Last week, I wrote about PhilosophersNotes, a great new resource an old friend told me that I would love. He was right!
The work was created by Brian Johnson, who calls himself a lover of wisdom (aka a “Philosopher”) and a passionate student of life. On his website, he explains that he is committed to inspiring and empowering millions of people to live their greatest lives as he studies, embodies and shares the universal truths of optimal living.I don't know the guy (yet), but I think we have a lot in common.
In the first three months of 2010, Common Ground's social justice/positive change mission will have me working on the road 77 out of 90 days. I'll be in Bolivia and Afghanistan and half a dozen states in the U.S. One of the things that I have come to know about me, is that I need daily practices in my life in order to maintain my health and peace of mind. Here's how I define that
DAILY PRACTICE: A quick little thing that I can do every day to maintain the balance in my life.
A quick (20 minutes max) little thing (e.g., writing a thank you note or sweeping the sidewalk, not getting married or earning a degree) that I can do every day to maintain the balance (the relationship between my work and my life, who I am to other people and who I am inside, and who I want to be in relation to what I need to do) in my life.
I have to admit, I could have been better at this in 2009. So, without beating myself up too much, I'm gonna do better this year!
In addition to working even harder to strengthen and nurture my relationships with family and friends and live a healthier life, I am going to participate in the PhilosophersNotes Challenge (You can also click here to read what you're sent after you sign-up).
For me, the Challenge represents a daily practice that is all about slowing down, cultivating curiosity, learning something new, and practicing the balance that I know I need in order to grow in my passion and commitment to social justice.
For the skeptics out there, I understand that this particular daily practice is like reading the CliffsNotes versions of these great authors' brilliant works. The point (for me) is not finding a shortcut to the learning—it's about the ritual, the self-discovery, and cultivating my curiosity. It isn't replacing the other reading that i do at all. In fact, I'll bet I read more books this year than I have since college!
Everyday, I'll listen to the audio version of the PhilosophersNotes summary and I'll read the PDF. I'll also write a post for the blog, uploading them whenever I have internet access (in some of the places I'll be, this might not be possible everyday).
The posts I write will focus on the things that mess with my head a little bit or those things that cause me to react out loud with an A-Ha, Uh-Oh, or Oh-No! I'll specifically reflect on the ideas that disrupt what I think I know about myself, my community, or the world. Let's define these ideas this way:
DISRUPTIVE THOUGHT: An idea that causes you to have a visceral reaction and forces you to pause and consider what it means in the context of your life.
An idea that causes you (your mind, heart, body or spirit) to have a visceral reaction (something intuitive, instinctive, or emotional that manifests itself through a physical reaction—a gasp, a shudder or a laugh) and forces you to pause (an idea that jars you enough to stop what you're doing) and consider what it means in the context of your life (what does this mean for me, right now).
I like having these kind of moments. They remind me to live life on the edge of my comfort zone.
Cool? That's my plan. I'd love to hear what you think about all of this—especially how I'm defining and using the ideas of "Daily Practice" and "Disruptive Thoughts." I imagine these ideas will really be influencing the work I do with all of Common Ground's clients. Your help will be appreciated.
