Story Telling in Business

Monday, April 25, 2022

NEAR AND FAR

“(Astronomer Sir William) Herschel removed the speckled tent-roof from the world and exposed the immeasurable deeps of space, dim-flecked with fleets of colossal suns sailing their billion-leagued remoteness” - Mark Twain

The Reality of Isolation, Separation, Connection?

Dire Strait’s Mark Knopfler explains that their song So Far Away is about distances that have opened up between people, separated families and loved ones. Telephone (or these days, Internet) relationships were seen by him to be a joke because “they can’t work in the long term”.

An African refugee in Sweden, in Henning Mankell’s novel The Shadow Girls: “As long as she kept her eyes closed she could imagine that she was still back in the village by the cold, clear river that spilled down the side of the mountain. But as soon as she opened her eyes she was thrown out into an empty ad unfathomable world, one in which nothing of her past remained except disjointed images of her escape”. (Mankell, H. 2012)

Our dog Popcorn was badly abused, injured and abandoned as a pup. She is now settled in and is friendly to everyone. She tries always to be close to and rest her paw or head on one of us, a sort of dog-attachment-complex. And she definitely shows separation - anxiety if she is left behind when both Lynette and I go out.

Distance may be real or imagined, physical, relational, social, spiritual. All of these dimensions have manifested as we’ve seen the manipulation of information to create division and polarisation, connections between people broken. My co-authored, soon to be released booklet on using story-bridging to build bridges and not walls aims at teaching a process that fosters proximity instead of distance. The serious harm caused by a Draconian political imposition of masks and social distancing regulations without any valid scientific basis, in order to ‘combat’ the ‘pandemic’ prevents the closeness and touch that humans so need. It’s in our DNA. (Williams, G. 2020)

In South Africa, shamefully, the government excels at building walls and creating distance and enmity between racial and ethnic groups, in the process doing huge social and economic harm. After over a quarter of a century in power they are ratcheting up the legislation of quotas in business, sports, schooling, university and other arenas! A newly released article by former CEO of the Institute of Race Relations in South Africa, John Kane-Berman, addresses a March 2022 paper by our Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) - a government/ statutory research agency that “advances social sciences and humanities for public use”. Their paper promotes a “view that the more a school’s racial demographics deviated from the demographic make-up of the country’s population, the more “segregated” it was. On this yardstick, even former white schools that were now predominantly black African were still “segregated”, as the desired norm for white pupils was 3.8% (their share of the total school-going population). Any excess was a case of the “hoarding of educational opportunities by the white minority and other socio-economically advantaged groups”. Kane-Berman relates a number of other shocking narratives about this sort of control of ‘overrepresentation’ - including how in 1930s Germany there was a concern about overrepresentation of Jews in schools and universities. (Kane-Berman, J. 2022) We know how those concerns played out.

Starkly contrast (in quantum physics) David Bohm’s understanding of an unbroken connection between any element of the universe and every other element over space and time (an implicate order) “… two subatomic particles that have once interacted can instantaneously ‘respond to each other's motions thousands of years later when they are light-years apart’" (The Cosmic Plenum) A whole different concept of space and time distance.

What is real for you when it comes to this question of distance or proximity?

Spectra along which we see meaning and make choices?

So near and yet so far. A pipped-on-the-post photo finish. A miss is as good as a mile. A near-death experience. Last minute goals, tries, falls or runs that win or lose sporting matches, a war that seems distant and then imminent... Or the difference between real, perceived, imagined, desired “close to” or “far from”. Considerations compounded and complicated by interconnected Physical, Intellectual, Emotional, Social and Spiritual spectra.

A lesson that comes to us from the diversity arena is that construal level theory, a largely ignored experiential/ behavioural difference between people – where differences manifest in how individuals relate to time and space and psychological-distance gaps arise:

temporal distance (past present or future focus),
social distance (connection push or pull),
spatial distance (physical location from face to face, next door, faraway places, ‘boardroom and garden’ situations,
experiential distance (reality, perception, sensation, imagination, dreams, reverie).

We could add more: emotional closeness to our possessions, positions, means of power, religion, friends and family... separating and distancing resulting from language - diversity and babbling… Overcoming these gaps and enabling belonging requires us to become far more prosocial, and are complicated and magnified these days by misinformation, division, new existential threats, fragmentation and severed connections on many fronts.

My perception of the importance of nature and beauty within nature has changed recently since moving from city to village. My awareness has been raised by ‘in your face’ nearby surrounding mountains, much starker season changes, and the obvious closeness of farm workers to the land… And I sometimes think that cities can act as magnets for the concentration of dangers, power, wrongdoing – result in more anonymity and social distance - are places where things spread more quickly and widely (disease, anarchy, plundering...) - and the country seems relatively free of these things and dynamics

A number of recent conversations have highlighted how some people are shifting their thinking regarding their career prospects in this ‘pandemic’ era. Some see benefits of being in the eye, space, ear, touching distance of others (especially bosses and opinion leaders) in a physical workplace. They see working from home as a distinct disadvantage. Others have polar-opposite perceptions. (Both schools would do well to note that being closer to nature and outdoors is beneficial to physical, emotional, mental, social and spiritual health. Being in nature helps relieve stress, gain perspective, counter brain fog, feel more human and alive)

In a parable loved by Polish-born philosopher Arthur Schopenhauer and also Sigmund Freud (Austrian founder of psychoanalysis), in ice-cold weather some porcupines huddle together and strive to get close to each other to keep warm. But they also have to be far enough away from each other so that they don’t prick each other.

Austrian - Jewish philosopher Martin Buber pointed out the challenge of living not only next to others (nebeneinander) but with each other (miteinander). (Which incidentally raises the question of who we are when we’re alone). (Stan, C.M. 2020)

Sharyn Cooke and Bert Kling (in an Ed McBain mystery novel) who have big differences on a number of diversity spectra, work at having a close, relaxed, honest and loving relationship. Kling “described intimacy as a ‘shlep’, a Yiddish word that actually meant ‘to carry, or pull, or drag, or lag behind’ but which he took to mean ‘a long haul’ as in the expression ‘Man, that was a shlep and a half!’”. Sharyn has two pillows made. One white on black and the other black on white. They read:

“Share

Help

Love

Encourage

Protect”.

Not a bad acronym for relationships. Here is a relational- closeness exercise for you:

Decide where on the circles of connection you want to place the most important people in your life (past, present and future):

First, put a name to each of the pictures below:

(Add workplace colleagues, subordinates, contacts, spiritual relationships if you wish. I have known people to include God in the exercise they do and often this is because of some sort of disaster that has occurred. When disaster strikes people either curse or call on God, whose relationship positioning changes - in their perspective).

Then think about why you placed these people where you have on the circles diagram. What are the elements that have made for good or bad, close or distant relationships and connections? What has been your 'complicity' in making them work or fail? What values have determined your placement of each person?

And then, answer ‘Where to now?’ Think about where on your circles you would want these relationships to be in future. Which relationships do you wish to deepen or to cool? And what is your plan (thinking, feeling, acting) in each case?

(This might mean writing a letter to a relative or child you have lost touch with, making a point of going for a walk with a subordinate who you have been taking for granted, inviting a colleague to breakfast, allocating less time to unnecessary meetings, email and social media chat groups and narcissistic conversationalists – and more time to forging meaningful one on one connections chosen by you, finding out more about another’s expertise, interests and cultural rules-of-engagement, deciding to forge a strategic connection that will be good for cooperative business, examining your own hesitancies, fears, stereotyping .... )

Collective Aspects of Distance and Proximity?

The collective behaviour of a crowd is said to be contagious, even hypnotic and thus able to overcome individual independence and self-control, so the individual adopts the (closely-knitted) crowd’s behaviour instead of being driven by his/her own values, constraints and taking of responsibility.

Closely related to this is the group pathology called ‘fragmentation of conscious’ (which usually applies to more drastic, extreme behaviour – as in times of war, but can be read into the positions adopted by big pharma employees, health workers, politicians and others during the ‘pandemic’).

In his book People of the Lie, M.Scott Peck relays the My Lai incident in South Vietnam in 1968, where members of the United States Army killed 500 to 600 unarmed villagers. Years later, he was appointed by the Army Surgeon General as chairman of a committee given the task of making recommendations about undertaking psychological research–to understand and help prevent such incidents in future. The committee’s recommendations were rejected for fear of embarrassing the status quo. The organisation, the US Army, protected itself. Scott Peck explains lucidly that group pathology was at play even though each killing was an individual act. He points out that different levels, as well as different departments within a hierarchy, can experience a ‘fragmentation of conscience’, especially under conditions of stress. This ‘fragmentation of conscience’ may be motivated by fear and self-preservation and the group thinking can result in:

avoiding taking responsibility for what the wider organisation is doing
blaming other departments, or overall policies, or ‘management’ for what is happening (Scott Peck, M. 1998)

On the other hand, convergence theory says that like-minded individuals coming together will inform and direct crowd behaviour.

It’s a sort of chicken and egg situation – what occurs first (the individual or crowd status) may not be relevant. In both positive and negative developments. And as individuals form crowds, new behaviour norms may emerge.

I’ve come to believe that coherent small - groups (for example in the social construct of circles) have the highest chance of becoming a force for wide change as the results and energy within their circle radiates or ripples outwards. Being closer to a small community is one way of being a force for good in our broken world.

Simultaneous Proximity and Distance?

Clown fish always remain completely separate from the anemone, but a mucus on their skin prevents them being affected by the anemone’s poison. Being close physically they are protected from predators, feed off anemone food. The anemone is kept clean as the clown fish remove and eat parasites.

Team members at work may not like each other, may not be close to each other, but by not distancing themselves are able to jointly get results to mutual benefit – as is the case of a machine gunner and ammunition belt feeder who together face a common enemy.

Relational/ ego boundaries although variable, are necessary in all relationships – close or distant.

The Art of Life?

Accomplished mathematician Michael (from the Hebrew ‘who is like God’ or ‘gift from God') Behrens (of medieval origin - comprised of ‘bear’ plus ‘resilient’ plus ‘strong and brave’) lives in the Hawaiian jungle.

What ideas do you glean from his story (The Art of Life) with regard to distance and proximity (place, things, people, nature, being…)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7gUh8j5ui0o

For many it may be the realisation that much of what we might wish to be in terms of living a simple, purer life could be (to borrow from the Roger Daltry song) Just A Dream Away. And for some it may come down to that line from a challenging hymn that flies in the face of Arthur Scopenhauer’s thinking: “Nearer my God to thee” no matter what?

References

Cosmic Plenim, The Bohm’s Gnosis: The Implicate Order

http://www.bizint.com/stoa_del_sol/plenum/plenum_3.html

Hamilton, Rebecca (2015) Bridging Psychological distance March 2015 HBR https://hbr.org/2015/03/bridging-psychological-distance?cm_sp=Magazine%20Archive-_-Links---current%20Issue

Kane – Berman, John (2022) The anti-semitic origins of diversity and racial “representation” Daily Friend 25 April, 2022 https://dailyfriend.co.za/2022/04/25/the-anti-semitic-origins-of-diversity-and-racial-representation/

Mankell, Henning (2012) The Shadow Girls Harvill Secker, London

Scott Peck, Morgan M.D. (1998) People of the Lie: the hope for healing human evil Touchstone

Stan, Corina M. (2020) Philosophies of Distance and Proximity: Who Are We When We’re Alone? July 9th, 2020 https://lithub.com/philosophies-of-distance-and-proximity-who-are-we-when-were-alone/

Williams, Graham (2020) Are we losing touch? Storytelling in Business Blog, 15th July, 2020

http://storytellinginbusiness.blogspot.com/2020/07/touch.html

Friday, April 1, 2022

YOU GOTTA HAVE HOPE (AND HELP)

File:2013 Rainbow over Washfold.jpg In the public domain (Wikipedia Commons Images)

THERE IS SOME DANGER IN UNBRIDLED POSITIVE THINKING

We tend to magnify threats and to underestimate our coping mechanisms, resources, ability to innovate when faced with obstacles, and our ability to see opportunity in crises. So, we need to balance our proclivity for negativity with a habitual leaning towards positivity – and see both the stars and the bars as we look at a reality beyond our confined space and place, and reframe our thoughts accordingly. But not to the point that we wear rose-tinted glasses no matter what the circumstances. A healthy, realistic balance should be maintained.

Positive psychology which can be traced to the likes of Lao Tzu, Buddha and in modern times to William James - and developed or punted by Abraham Maslow, Norman Vincent Peale, Martin Seligman and others - has become very popular. Positivity is a factor in a number of resilience models and has become a desirable leadership and life-style trait.

At the intersection of psychology and theology we have seen misunderstandings, and the adoption of dangerously applied misinterpretations such as ‘the law of attraction’ – a magical direction of one’s thoughts to manifest what one desires, that is, to bring about a self-serving outcome. Worse still, is to try and foist ‘positive thinking’ on others. For example, it is not helpful but potentially harmful to tell someone who is suffering from depression (an illness, not a poor choice) to ‘think more positively’. (Andrée-Ann Labranche, a doctoral student in psychology, describes this as “emotional invalidation” which “involves ignoring, denying, criticizing or rejecting another person’s feelings”. Undermining their right to have, understand, accept, validate, own and work through their own feelings and behaviours. Her research shows that it is harmful to invalidate another’s emotions, and likely to invoke depressive symptoms or exacerbate existing depression, especially if this is done repeatedly.

(https://theconversation.com/toxic-positivity-why-it-is-important-to-live-with-negative-emotions-166008)

Emotional invalidation takes away hope.

Blind optimism, irrational faith in positive thinking needs to be tempered, or it leads quickly to unwarranted belief in self (My will be done, not thine or yours).

In seeking balance, we should heed what German psychologist and philosopher Erich Fromm said, that (extreme or ‘toxic’) optimists and pessimists are both lazy opt-outs. Nothing needs to be done, they imply or believe – either because all will be fine, or because nothing can be done. So, “Optimism is an alienated form of faith, pessimism an alienated form of despair… To have faith means to dare, to think the unthinkable, yet to act within the limits of the realistically possible”.

HOPE

And false or wrongly placed hope leads nowhere. A key bridge to acceptance of and working towards a future that is meant to be, is well-founded hope.

Fromm once more: “Hope is a decisive element in any attempt to bring about social change in the direction of greater aliveness, awareness, and reason. But the nature of hope is often misunderstood and confused with attitudes that have nothing to do with hope and in fact are the very opposite”.

The mystery of hope placed in a divine Creator plays a wonderful role in sound mind-positioning, and in the generation of effective, empowered action arising out of facing situations and threats realistically. Out of this process something beautiful emerges from the dark (as a lotus flower rises out of murky depths).

HOPEFUL LEADERSHIP

I love Winston Churchill’s balanced acknowledgement of a dire threat as well as his encouragement of a determined response during the early part of World War II, after the fall of France: “It would be foolish to disguise the gravity of the hour. It would be still more foolish to lose heart and courage... In that supreme emergency we shall not hesitate to take every step - even the most drastic - to call forth from our people the last ounce and inch of effort of what they are capable … (and drawing on an injunction from a book of the Apocrypha that is echoed in The Lord’s Prayer) … As the Will of God is in Heaven, even so let it be”

HELP

Having lived in Rawsonville in the Cape for 4 months now, I’ve been able to observe a small -town culture of inquisitiveness about others, sometimes leading to a helping hand and at other times to critique but without getting involved, and using the excuse, ‘I’m minding my own business’. (This doesn’t exclude gossiping though: starting fires and spreading the flames without helping). At least there is more involvement here than one typically finds in cities.

Of course, ‘helping’ when it is not required or desired by the object of that help is usually not helpful. Even parents seeing their adult children going wrong, making mistakes, approaching disaster and hurt, may need to hold back and patiently wait with 'the bandages and ointment' until asked to help.

And when asked for help it’s best to weigh up the provision of our help on the asker’s best interests. (‘Yes’ isn’t always the best answer)

Nor is it helpful to tell anyone who is suffering or in difficulty simply to ‘think positive’. That’s an implied judgement that changes nothing except impose guilt or a feeling of inadequacy. But kindling hope in a realistically understood situation is helpful. Especially in this crisis-laden age of every ‘man’ for himself. And this kindling of hope may also kindle felt - love, and healing.

Helping instead of crossing to the other side of the street is what we could be more ready, willing and able to do.

Most times the situations in which we may be in a position to give or receive help and hope is when we are off-line, away from isolating technology, and not distanced from others. In such a social context we are far more able to be open and available to sounder sensing, engaging, and responding. Neurosurgeon Ian Weinberg puts it this way:

“I would suggest that it is long overdue that we re-connect and re-engage in the flesh and with the natural environment so that we ensure a continual flow of healthy authenticity into our existence. This I believe is our birth-right and the solution to many of the current emerging maladies of mind and body”.

Let’s get out there, be of help, spread hope.

Friday, March 25, 2022

BRAIN FOG

BRAIN FOG: A mental illness crisis is looming as millions of people worldwide are surrounded by death and disease and forced into isolation, poverty and anxiety by the pandemic of COVID-19, United Nations health experts said on Thursday 14th May, 2020

Versions of The Scream (1893). Norwegian artist Edvard Munch

INTRODUCTION

A very real, creeping, cancerous, insidious dystopia, accompanied by financial pressures, isolation, related stress and anxiety is yielding a symptom that has been termed ‘brain fog’, and may well lead to burnout or suicidal tendencies. It is becoming widespread. It is occurring as puppet governments and 'expedient' business continue to apply senseless covid-19 regulations, impositions, threats, fear- mongering and division. A division that polarizes, suppresses empathy, unleashes naming and blaming, anger, even hate towards others.

“The term (brain fog) is used to describe the feeling of disorientation, or difficulty thinking and concentrating. Sufferers feel mentally sluggish and struggle to recall things. And being mentally slower than normal has an impact on everyday life, increasing feelings of anxiety and depression”. (Ebrahim, Z. 2022)

Millions suffer needlessly from mental fatigue, memory problems, becoming easily distracted, and having difficulty concentrating, solving problems or making plans and decisions. A state that leads to us becoming insensitive to the feelings and viewpoints of others (an insiduous form of distancing). Brain fog is now endemic.

Although it might take time before comprehensive research into covid-19 brain fog yields answers as to how to combat it, common-sense indicates that it has major, negative impacts on our ability to think and respond clearly in everyday life, on our learning capacity, and on our relationships. Brain fog directly harms our mental, physical and social well-being.

HOW SERIOUS IS IT?

Stress, dystopia, anxiety, depression, and eventual burnout and suicide are so deeply interconnected that it is sometimes difficult to separate one from another. Brain fog can accompany them all.

Indications are that the symptom, left untreated, can cause serious suffering. Last year KPMG research revealed that “… 94% of workers are stressed. While this isn’t surprising – Oracle concluded 2020 was the most stressful year ever - people are now at breaking point. Some 78% believe the coronavirus pandemic has severely affected their mental health; 40% are making more flawed decisions, and 90% conclude that newfound work-related stress affects their home lives. The culmination of which is causing unprecedented levels of depression (up 53%), anxiety (up 55%), and even PTSD (up 32%), which is further exacerbated by a growing backlash against employee surveillance”. (Laker, B. 2021)

(Those who work from home also feel stressed and disoriented – although the causative factors may differ).

Pieper calls burnout “a condition of the soul”. (Pieper, J. 1963) (It happens when we find ourselves in a wilderness bereft of resources, clear thinking, good feelings, love and comfort. We are lost and powerless).

WHAT DO WE EXPERIENCE? WHAT ARE THE SIGNS?

Our poor people!

Biological, psychological, and social systems interconnect. As do different aspects of our lives – work, play, home. Attempted compartmentalisation doesn’t help!

What adds to our dystopia and stress are general stressors such as uncertainty overwhelm, containment of freedoms and previously-taken-for-granted rights, the physical and psychological impacts of mask wearing, unnatural social distancing and isolation, feelings of being constantly watched and monitored, coping with conflicting messages and information, constant fatigue (physical and mental), and deliberate division by the ‘powers-that-be’

("Collective fear stimulates herd instinct and tends to produce ferocity toward those who are not regarded as members of the herd" - Bertrand Russell)

Without realizing it our anxieties increase, our ‘fuses shorten’ and tempers fuel further division and polarization, more concentration lapses occur. We feel listless, unmotivated, deep down angry and sad - without knowing why …

HOW SUSCEPTABLE ARE WE?

Very.

Given what we are actually contending with we should be surprised if we DON’T have stress and brain fog, and we are NOT approaching burnout!

In many cases we are:

Working much longer hours from home than we did at work in the old days – certainly spending too much time on our computers and cell phones
Less in touch with the informal grapevine at work and unsure about how we are doing or what might happen
Still conditioned to being perfect or excellent but nowadays far less able to measure our performance (or how it is seen by others)
At the office, shop, factory we are having to deal with new protocols, different issues, shifted relationships, ethical disconnection from our employers
In fear for our careers, finances, families - We sense a ‘sword of Damacles’ always hanging over our heads
Dealing with our changing perceptions of life, family, work – and perhaps seeking different work or a new company to work for …
Thrown by how covid regulations have disrupted or restricted our hobbies, pastimes, interests, social lives, worldviews …
Coping with how our proximity and involvement with different family members and friends has dramatically changed – and with loss of loved ones, freedoms, pastimes, and a sense of well-being
More aware that ‘big brother’ (government, institution, corporation) is watching us (on and offline)
Aware of the growing number of issues increasingly separating us from others, and the growing number of events (resource shortages, responses to mandates and pending or threatened legislation, war …) posing threats to our existence
Wearing masks which may have physical effects that translate into some brain fog symptoms
In need of a caring, touchable, trusted support person or group

In certain countries, the collapse or decline of economies, sudden and unnecessary increased in poverty, tearing of the social fabric, and failure of infrastructure - has brought us to the brink of anarchy - which of course does little to reduce stress, disorientation, fear, numbness, brain fog …

On a broader front it is becoming increasingly clear that the self-appointed “elite” who are assuming control (Schwab and his minions, the WHO, Gates, Musk, Big Pharma and others), is moving to become the centralised arbiter and point for managing all “health” matters (regulations, restrictions, digitisation and data base records of individual’s medical and immunisation status, etc. etc.) as a wedge to ruling over and exploiting every aspect of our lives (for our benefit! The biggest lie ever by these people of the lie)

In South Africa we’ve experienced massive state capture, which pales into insignificance alongside the world - capture and rule that we’re about to see. We are in for a helluva ride and a huge spiritual battle.

Perhaps in these circumstances, people are more prone to overwork as a means of ‘escape’, and potential workaholics are even more prone to addiction, and more likely to suffer from burnout?

This work addiction behaviour scale was developed by clinical psychologist Dr Cecilie Andreassen and her University of Bergen team. (Further addiction behaviour scales have been developed at Bergen, including ones addressing social media usage and compulsive shopping. You may wish to Google these for your own edification).

The brain fog pandemic is in its infancy and will grow quickly and exponentially.

WHAT CAN WE DO TO AVOID OR OVERCOME STRESS, LIFT BRAIN FOG?

Under so much pressure, insecurity, uncertainty and weariness, how do we continue to be possibilists, empathise with others, reimagine a wonderful new future and work towards a meaningful purpose, develop a growth mindset? Are such attitudes and characteristics all ‘pie in the sky’ now?

What to do?

Recognise the 'Whole Person'. We could begin by recognising that the physical, mental, social and spiritual are connected. Having a headache can be frustrating and annoying, lead to short temper, trigger an argument that affects a relationship and results in guilt, that weighs heavily on us and our state of being, on our ability to be grateful and responsive … and so on …

David Bohm, quantum physicist, recognised this non-dual aspect of mind, body, spirit.

The physical, emotional and spiritual together drive purpose, beliefs, values and the attaining of meaning. (Bohm, D. 1987)

Focus our learning and other activities. We could, when waking up and educating others or learning ourselves, not to overload but choose rather to focus and to learn in small manageable chunks. Prioritising and managing our energy is critical these days. Put less emphasis on content and on how to impart that content – and put more effort into understanding the learner’s state, needs and limits as the start point for our educating. We could employ self-regulating mechanisms such as self-led small group circles. We could fathom how to best leverage and combine wisdom and learning and fun, and how to best facilitate memory and recall - in short parables, imagery, metaphor, games, analogy …?

And we could move more learning experiences into a nature environment.

Develop personal hardiness. We could make a firm choice to improve our own bouncebackability, our stress coping resources, our brain fog management – so that we respond better to change and pressure challenges, feel more comfortable in a more stressful world and become better able to manage ourselves, build resilience and speak out against the tyranny that is happening, participate on our own chosen terms.

At the end of this newsletter for you to visit at your leisure is a series of articles that throw light on different aspects of a well=proven, down-to-earth model for coping with change and stress, becoming more resilient:

The model addresses the whole person – physical, intellectual, emotional, social and spiritual. A start to becoming mindfully aware of serving these parts are covered in my accompanying 9M checklist:

Swop technology for nature and contemplation. We could spend less time on our computers and mobile phones and more time in nature, exercising and enjoying pastimes with friends. We could prioritise. And we could combat isolation and induce relaxation, calm, focus and well-being through meditation and its fruits.

In the experience of Archbishop Rowan Williams the spiritual is the most important part we need to serve: “Contemplation is the only ultimate answer to the unreal and insane world that our financial systems and our advertising culture and our chaotic and unexamined emotions encourage us to inhabit. To learn contemplative practice is to learn what we need so as to live truthfully and honestly and lovingly. It is a deeply revolutionary matter”. (Williams, R. 2012)

Surely, in a time of lies and deception where one cannot trust a wealthy (self-appointed) ‘elite’, power- holders, vested interest businesses, big pharma, politicians, big tech and the media – and where every piece of information must be fact-checked - not by big-tech but by ourselves – we simply have to learn to rely on our intuition, our conscience …. Contemplation becomes a valuable vehicle for us to go deeper, reach out to where we can source truth and meaning, discover and begin to know the unknowable, develop the highest virtues. How we tap into the cloud of unknowing to find truth and comfort is of course a personal journey.

So,

something that stood out for me when putting this article together is the thought that if we acknowledge and understand, if we make the effort to discover resources and become disciplined in developing our resilience during troubled times (doing the ‘little things’ outlined above), if we seek deep knowing, if we give love to others - we become survivors not sinkers, and our brain fog begins to lift. We become more effective. Think more clearly. Respond more appropriately to others. As poet Emily Dickinson puts it: “We grow accustomed to the Dark”. And thus we become more able to combat the dark, be a better force for good, for love, position ourselves to win the war.

Do your own contemplation, draw up your own checklist of things to do, then introduce them into your life, look after your contentedness and become a contemplative in action..

RESOURCES FOR Dystopia, Stress, Brain Fog:

For a confidential assessment of your personal hardiness quotient, contact centserv@iafrica.com

REFERENCES

Bohm, David (1987) Unfolding Meaning: a weekend of dialogue with David Bohm Routledge

Ebrahim, Zakiyah (2022) Hope for Covid long haulers with brain fog as researchers identify potential treatment Health 24 24th February, 2022

https://www.news24.com/health24/medical/infectious-diseases/coronavirus/long-covid/hope-for-covid-long-haulers-with-brain-fog-as-researchers-identify-potential-treatment-20220224-2

Fredriksen, Wenche (2019) RISING FROM THE ASHES - A story about burnout and the way back to life

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/rising-from-ashes-story-burnout-way-back-life-wenche-fredriksen/

Laker, Benjamin (2021) 94% Of Workers Are Stressed: KPMG Research Reveals Covid-19’s Lingering Effects On Employees Forbes. 4th May, 2021

https://www.forbes.com/sites/benjaminlaker/2021/05/04/the-future-world-of-work-is-fascinating-reveals-new-research-from-kpmg/?sh=78ccb7c26865

Pieper, Josef (1963) Leisure - The Basis of Culture Pantheon Books Inc, Random House

Williams, Archbishop Rowan (2012) Address to the Synod of Bishops in Rome on October 10, 2012 cited by Richard Rohr (Richard Rohr’s Meditation: Contemplation and Action Monday, August 17, 2015)