The first program I offered during 1999 was called “Living with Intent”. It took place over a period of three months. The twenty participants all used the experiential activities and insights to bring about changes in their own lives. Some of them started incorporating the material in their own coaching services.
The programs were offered under the brand “PossibilitySpace” and held twice a year. It always concluded with a weekend retreat where all the work was integrated in a fun and experiential setting.
The content and approaches evolved over the next five years as my interest and knowledge grew from my investigations into different traditions and teachings. The last course was called “The Butterfly in the Eye of the Storm” where participants learnt about dealing with uncertainty, non-linearity and how to manage and also lead others in times of turbulence.
As the feedback from participants was so positive and I noticed the life changes that they embarked upon once they completed the programs, I started investigating how to adapt the approach to make it more available in particular for corporate leadership development.
I am a strong believer in academic and scientific thought. Academic engagement is not only about the content, but also about mastering concepts, integrating these and developing new models and knowledge. Intellectual rigour enables us to continue to independently examine theories and models in particular to determine their shortcomings, strengths and also to accept when they are debunked by new facts and findings.
The following academic programs form the foundations for miPATH:
MSc in Leadership and Innovation
During 2001 and 2002 I studied towards a Masters in the Science of Innovation and Leadership, completing modules such as strategic thinking, chaos theory, complex theory, systems thinking, fuzzy logic, alternative economic models and knowledge-value creation. The program was also enriched by strategy and organizational development theories and practices as well as 21st century leadership theory and models.
I found these theories naturally fit into my worldviews and my ideas about the practices in how to thrive when you frame reality as non-linear, relatively unpredictable and filled with diverse models, including economic, social and environmental value and values. As a consequence I devoted significant time and effort to grasp these concepts which resulted in obtaining academic distinctions for most of the program modules.
From this my passion for the role of social collaboration technology and new models of economic value was born, in particular how this will shape our minds, behavior and impact on the future of our world. One of my projects was to develop an internet presence which I called “PossibilitySpace” – it aimed at connecting incubators with organizations that wanted access to new innovators and their ideas.
M Phil Personal and Professional Leadership
The second stream of informed academic knowledge is from the domain of Personal and Professional Leadership, a program offered at masters degree and doctoral level at the University of Johannesburg and which I completed with distinction.
The program taught me how to develop a logical structure to human potential development, as well as integrate diverse knowledge in the field of human development and personal transformation. Unique attributes of the program, still the only of its kind in the world, qualifies participants to design and facilitate personal, interpersonal and professional leadership development for individuals and groups.
It has a strong emphasis on combining leadership and human development theory with practice.
The founder of the program, Prof Dawie Smith, describes it on his website The EPL Way as follows:
“The Philosophy of the approach:
Functional Existential Science:
The EPL Way is an existential science, i.e. focusing on the problems and challenges of life. It is a science of the mind, body and spirit. It is also a science of emotional intelligence, of effective relating and of career fulfilment. In its endeavour to self discovery, The EPL Way carves away the non-essentials from who you really are and introduces you to your authentic self and brings harmony, clarity and awareness.
Holistic Perspective:
The EPL Way studies people in their totality, addressing all spheres of one’s life. It enables a better understanding of oneself, and as a consequence, of others. Through this deeper self-insight, one will begin to cultivate a life that is in harmony with one’s true being.
Vision:
It is the vision of The EPL Way to make people conscious, to light their flame of awareness, and to help people become the best they can be. The EPL Way endeavours to enable and facilitate you as a person on the exciting journey of self-discovery, the journey of finding who and what you really are, what you stand for and what legacy you wish to leave behind every day of your life.”
Some of the human development theories that are included in the program include logo therapy, cognitive behavioral psychology, integrated wellness combining traditional medical treatment with validated alternative forms of therapy, such as healthy food and spiritual activities.
Contemplative practices are technologies of mind that cultivate eudaemonic wellbeing and optimal of potential through transformation of mind states. (Defiition: MaRi Eagar) Eudaemonic wellbeing is about happiness, contentment and living a fulfilling life.
My search for happiness started over twenty years ago. During this journey I studied with a variety of spiritual teachers, shamans, personal growth facilitators and wisdom holders. I covered traditions as diverse as Andean, Zen Buddhist philosophy and psychology, Tibetan Buddhism including the Bonpo tradition, Taosim, Yoga, European ancient wisdom traditions as well as African healing and spirituality.
I also did deep work in popular self-improvement programs, in particular psycho-cybernetics, which forms the foundation for gurus such as Tony Robbins and Peter Senge. This included qualifying as a hypnotherapist and also doing Neuro-Linguistic Programming.
Other healing practices include traditional Thai massage, Indian Head massage and holistic wellness massage therapies, as well as Reiki and Metamorphasis. These are all body practices and techniques to assist the body and mind to relax and become more alert.
Of great value was my discovery of Tara-Rokpa therapy developed by Akong Rinpoche, a great Tiberan healer and meditation master. He elegantly consolidated a variety of healing practices into a simple and effective therapy technique using art, relaxation, writing and massage as core techniques towards personal transformation. Tara-Rokpa therapy focuses strongly on not only fixing problems, but building solutions that act as a preventative barrier to future mishaps.
After spending so many years studying these different practices and teachings, my masters degree research focused on the application of contemplative practice in Personal, Interpersonal and Professional Leadership Development. The project explored the field of contemplative practices to determine an application within the terrain of personal, interpersonal and professional leadership. The research concluded that contemplative practice promote enhancement in all life domains and has a potential value for use by leadership development practitioners as well as direct application in leadership development programs.
It also highlighted the fact that the vast majority of personal growth approaches with a “one recipe for all” is inadequate to address the variety of temperaments, capabilities and lifestyles of the diverse human beings that we are.
I was able to interpret the principles and foundations of contemplative practices across diverse traditions and distilled these into the “Stopping and Seeing Training” that I offer. Armed with this knowledge after completing the program, participants can easily select the most appropriate development paths and approaches that work for them.
When you start the journey of personal transformation and leadership development, you will eventually come to the realization that change only takes place when the mind can be changed and transformed. This is why Mind, Consciousness, Neurosciences and Brain-based disciplines have been studied by humans ever since we started gazing at the stars and pondered our existence.
During the miPATH program participants will learn and practice “Technologies of Self” where we uncover not only what “mind” is, but also investigate the research and implications of research in the field of neurosciences, neuroleadership, consciousness and brain based models of change. For example, we examine how changes in diet can change thought patterns, which affect decision making and therefore the actions that follow from there.
Despite the fact that it is considered a “new form of psychology”, strengths-based development has been applied by indigenous and spiritual traditions for thousands of years.
The idea of studying human excellence, in particular when people exceed during difficult times or against all odds, and then to develop theories and models that others can apply to improve their lives is extremely important in the world of austerity, increased speed and information overload. At the heart of this approach is meaningful living, having a passion and unique personal purpose and reason for existence.
Strengths-based leadership also involves working beyond talents into building internal and external resources that provide for sustainable competitive advantages. Resilience, happiness, effective decision making and meaningful living and working are all included in this field.
The fact that neuroplasticity now indicates we can create new neuropaths, combined with the knowledge from positive psychology and other strengths-based approaches, form a powerful combination in achieving rapid personal transformation in a time where people need high impact programs.
I was trained in classical music and dance for over fifteen years and I continue to find inspiration in the principles and philosophies used for musical and classical dance training.
Both disciplines combine theory and practice. Yet most importantly is the fact that art cannot be transmitted via the intellect, but through active involvement until the particular piece of dance technique or choreography or music is fully integrated within the performer so that they can express it in their own unique way. Music and dance are also full of metaphors and connect us to whole brain thinking, where we combine visuals, sounds, sensations to elicit and build a particular state of mind.
The structured training and discipline it requires provides for ultimate freedom to express oneself uniquely in a way that you communicate effectively with your environment.
Art continues to remind me that personal growth and leadership development is a practice and skill that can be taught, and mastered.
There is, in the world of art, no short cut to mastery and no “day of arrival” as it is continous journey of joy and personal expression.
I am very interested in practical philosophy. I enjoy and continue to read the work of different philosophers as it not only stimulates critical thinking and of course brain health, but their ability to articulate in a logical manner their perspectives and framing of the world continues to inspire me.
My core interest is the convergence of technology, the brain, human thinking and how we are shaped by technology and shape technology at the same time. This includes researching ideas such as “Hyper-reality”.
