Leadership

I was dialoguing with members of a "systems thinking" group who it seems are all left-brained, mechanical-universe thinkers who believe that there's no metaphysical dimension to life. It's all just physical stuff.

So I wondered, how do you offer a bit of a 'chink' in their thinking, beyond the Proofs of the Impossibility of Physical Movement1 as I've previously explained to them?

So I wrote the following. Maybe it'll help some, maybe not.

When we reflect on the number of people (more usually women1 ) who believe in Astrology, as well as those who believe in various other 'ologies' we can be reasonably confident that there's an underlying shared trait or need -- the need to belong, and to categorise people.

Personality tests (e.g. DISC, or Myers-Briggs) are widely (if not almost universally) used to help decide who's suited to particular roles in businesses and organisations.

So when a friend started extolling the great relevance and benefit of understanding the Enneagram (a process of grouping people into one of nine types, or 'tribes'), I decided to look deeper into this particular habit.

Driving along with a friend recently I remarked I'm beginning to realise that genuinely spiritual people are those who use their intuitive abilities for the good of society: "social entrepreneurs" -- those who actually build or create something new and of value to all.

The rest can meditate and talk and 'bliss out' until the cows come home, but for me, those who actually do things, invent things or invent new ways of doing things, or who bring new awareness, ideas and insights to society are authentically spiritual.

In chatting with various people in recent times about matters philosophical, I've heard it said on a few occasions, "well you know, there's nothing new under the Sun".

That 'throw away line' telegraphs a deep misunderstanding about life, and about the immensely creative and regenerating nature of it.

Not only, I say in response to such comments, are there things that are entirely new, but when we create something genuinely new, the whole of creation in effect is looking on and amazed in wonderment: "wow, look at that, that's entirely, completely and uniquely NEW!"

The current hung-parliament situation in Australia is a wonderful catalyst for reflection on the deeper rhythms and energies of life. The fact that there have been similar hung-parliaments in the democracies of U.K and Canada is also a telling indicator of deep changes in the psyches of people around the world.

One of the ongoing issues we can observe and experience in life is the repeated 'war of the sexes'.

We see it so many different forms .. of left-wing and right-wing politicians1 arguing over the virtues of privatisation of public infrastructure, nasty divorce settlements, inequality of pay for men and women, lower life expectancy for men and particularly black or indigenous men, and so on.

It seems to me however that the ongoing issues surrounding sexual harmony is one of the most important for the majority of the populace.

As explained, the failure to understand the nature of 'masculine' and 'feminine' results in "immensely destructive" behaviours, both personally and socially.

While reading an article on the current controversy in Australia over a proposed new mining tax, it occurred to me how much we are swayed by local interest groups, at the expense of our own long-term wellbeing.

Blindspots in our awareness can have devastating effects upon our lives. Blindspots can be bad for business, health and personal wellbeing.

• Business and Finance - The recent Global Financial Crisis was a blindspot that caused havoc for millions. In business, blindspots are commonly known as inefficiencies, poor employee morale, or unproductive investments that can end in bankruptcy.
• Wellbeing and relationships - Research reveals that the majority of relationship breakups are initiated by women, and that men usually don't see them coming. Many men report being caught off-guard and left feeling bereft and suicidal. "In a study of 4000 suicides ... 70 per cent were caused by relationship breakups. Men were more likely to commit suicide than women by a factor of nine to one."1
• Health - Cancers, and other illnesses are example of blindspots in our awareness that can lead to physical impairment and death.
• Accident and injury-  With the latest research from the field of quantum physics, we can appreciate and learn to use the deeper interconnections of events, both good and bad. That is, we can learn to check for the ubiquitous (albeit subtle) nonlocal2 signals that can help us avoid danger, accident and injury.

By their very nature, blindspots are difficult to spot - hence the name. But as the world recently witnessed, their effects are highly visible and almost impossible to ignore. Blindspots can remain blind to us on approach, but prove devistating on arrival.

In my previous article, "Calling Gurus to Account" I mentioned a blind-spot that affects all of us. I inferred that sometimes we get carried away with the idea of possibility and endless happiness, forgetting about those we may leave behind.

That blind-spot sees us ignoring the systems and communities that support us. It's the community and technical infrastructure that enables us to achieve our goals – imagine being dropped into war-torn Somalia, without cells phones, money or an embassy to hide in. What things might we expect to 'attract' in that environment?

Those who do our plumbing, our carpentry, cooking and care-taking all play a vital role in each of us achieving our dreams.

It's the integration and marriage of dreams, desires and potentials with the inherent limitations of systems that is my primary work as a belief doctor. My work involves understanding and explaining how this integration is ignored or denied. It's this lack of integration of supportive systems with individual desires and potentials that is the primary cause of the growing epidemic of depression in the world today. It's people's expectations exceeding the capacity of the present community to support individual dreams and aspirations that causes the upset.