The physicist Arthur Zajonc says that our culture needs the artist’s cognitive capacities. But what ARE those cognitive capacities? Perhaps those capacities include the artist’s willingness to be confused, welcoming any unlikely connection that shows up. Perhaps it’s his or her sensitivity to nuance and qualities of beauty that others miss. Perhaps artists are more [ Read more … ]
thinking
It’s a myth that complex problems require complex solutions.
It’s a myth that complex problems require complex solutions. The more complex we get, the more we’re in our heads. The more time we spend in our heads, the more we’re focusing on the problem and making it worse. Our thinking cycles around, it goes in loops. So when you’re confused or need a solution, [ Read more … ]
Our psyches operate by engaging with images.
Images are the psyche’s preferred way of operating. Whether we’re aware of it or not, our brains don’t think without images. The original and basic unit of mental activity is the image. Images are our native language. Clients come to me feeling blocked or stuck, but when they connect with the images that lay underneath [ Read more … ]
Creating space for Spirit to speak
I have studied learning and creativity for thirty years. We humans think from our egos and we create from our egos. It’s all about “me me me.” Even people who are social activists often come from a place of “what can I do? I need to do more. I need to help.” Because of this [ Read more … ]
Metaphor allows us to notice and follow divine guidance
When I spent 7 years getting a PhD at the University of Chicago, I over-used the analytical part of my thinking brain. The sight of words on a page made me nauseous. Our heart learns in a much different way. Our heart doesn’t learning by stuffing information. Heart learning isn’t about quantity. It’s about quality. [ Read more … ]