integralMENTORS Series Papers

‘What Do You Think!’

Worlds of Praxis

Worlds of Inclusion

Worlds of Action

August - September 2012

integralMENTORS

‘What Do You Think!’ - Series

Papers

August 2012 -

integralMENTORS

Lines of development discussion paper [031]

“…. the idea is that all the various approaches and theories and practices have something important to tell us, but none of them probably has the whole truth in all its details. So each approach is true but partial, and the trick is then to figure out how all of these true but partial truths fit together.” Ken Wilber

In our mainstream development work in countries like Bhutan, Egypt, Nepal, Rwanda, Syria and South Africa amongst others, we have found that certain aspects of the AQAL model don't hold up to practical experience.

This brief paper discusses the difference between two types of developmental lines - transformational and translatative.

Many lines work perfectly as described in the AQAL model but others do not.

The ones with which we have no problems are the obviously vertical developmental lines. Such as: Piaget’s 'Cognitive' line, Graves’s 'Value' line, Gebser’s 'World View' line, the Loevinger/Cook-Greuter/Torbert’s 'Self-Identity' Line, Kegan’s ‘Consciousness’ line, Maslow’s 'Needs' line, and Kohlberg 'Moral' line are the obvious ones.

These lines we call Lines of Being.

Lines which do not seem to follow vertical development, but are bunched with them in the AQAL model, are most of Howard Gardner's multiple intelligences and in fact many other lines we will discuss later.

These lines seem to develop in a horizontal manner - that is they are not of themselves transformative but translational - meaning that at any development level these areas can develop significantly without necessarily increasing/producing transformation. In a way this is similar to the Wilber/Combs Matrix. Diagrammatically they extend horizontally from whatever level/stage the individual is centred (SoG). Excellence in these areas is not especially dependent on vertical Stage development.

These lines include - physical, kinaesthetic, music, art, language, etc., etc.. They do not contribute to the ‘Centre of Gravity’ (Altitude) on the individual’s polygraph, though often they can assist in individual development in other vertical Structure-Stages.

The first diagram shows the possible ‘levels’ of excellence for say three individuals at very different Structure-Stages (Development levels) for example in area the physical development. Excellence is not Structure-Stage dependent.

The second diagram is for music and shows possible development of excellence or lack of at any Structure-Stage. Though the interpretation of the level of excellence at each of the Structure-Stages would be probably be very different.

These lines we call Lines of Doing.

That is: Lines of Doing are not dependent on Lines of Being but they can certainly have an effect on their development and visa versa.

Not "Who's right and who's wrong?" but "How can they all be right?" How can they all fit together into one rainbow coalition? So that's why I both accept these positions but also attempt to transcend them, or "put them in their place," as you say.” Wilber

integralMENTORS

We Space! – or the Power of We? discussion paper [032]

“adequate interpretation demands same-depth translation. If one holon attempts to interpret a holon of greater depth, something will definitely get lost in the translation.” Ken Wilber

As the integral ‘space’ matures a little, people are beginning to discover that there is more to Integral than simply interior personal development in the Upper Right quadrant - but that maybe there needs also be some ownership of the ‘We’ space of the ‘Lower Right’ quadrant.

In time it will be realised that there is more complexity and that all ‘space’ will need to be owned and honoured. (Or in the current buzz word – occupied). But more on that later.

So - ‘We’ space.

There are so many ways to define this ‘We’ space. Ken Wilber in Kosmic Karma (section C) writes about it as Solidarity.

“Solidarity in general simply means a shared horizon (or shared inside-interiors, first-person plural “we”). Vertical solidarity means that two or more holons share a similar depth in the AQAL ocean: in order for mutual understanding to occur, holons must be surfing similar developmental waves. Holons at different depths can develop various types of understanding of each other (as we will see), but in order for that understanding to be authentically mutual, similar-depth resonance, or vertical solidarity, must be a part of the intersubjective fabric. Horizontal solidarity refers to the varieties of solidarity occurring at any given depth.

“Genuinely mutual understanding therefore demands the presence of both vertical solidarity (or shared depth) and horizontal solidarity (or shared horizons). In the AQAL matrix of primordial perspectives, we need to share not only perspectives but the same height or depth of those perspectives, or again, there is no phenomenological space in which we can collide.

“When both shared depth and shared horizons are present, we can speak of adequate resonance (or genuinely overlapping intersubjectivity). Unless otherwise stated, henceforth by cultural solidarity—or simply solidarity—we will mean adequate resonance, or the presence of both vertical and horizontal solidarity. In order for you and I to be able to evoke an understanding of each other’s interiors, the tokens (or signifiers) that we exchange must be anchored not only in a horizontal cultural context (shared horizons), but in a vertical developmental depth that allows a corresponding phenomenal world (or signified) to be called forth.

“All the way up, all the way down. Two or more holons can communicate if and only if they share some slice, however small, of cultural solidarity (in both vertical and horizontal dimensions)—if, in other words, there is some sort of adequate resonance.”

Another definition is that of Terri O’Fallon (see http://integralleadershipreview.com/5242-feature-article-leadership-and-the-interpenetration-of-structure-and-state-stages-a-subjective-expose). She defines the ‘We’ space as the shared space between the Self-line of development (following Structure-Stages) and the State-Stages ‘line’ (?). It is a much more narrowly defined ‘We’ space that Wilber’s one above.

But there are many other ways of packaging the ‘We’ space - some a lot more granular than these two (including a more 4 dimensional ‘space’ that tetra-meshes). The point of any attempt to create a ‘We’ space is as much about who you are going to exclude as about who is included.

Who is included or excluded will not only be determined by the explicit set of rules applied but also all the implicit structures, cultures, behaviours and beliefs that permeate the group from its initial seeding.

So it is more likely that we will have a network of ‘We’ and ‘I’ spaces that more fully cover the ground than a single ‘We-Place’ for all. This is a healthy way to proceed as it allows for more differences, disagreements, growth and creativity.

So be careful what (and how you) join – it will in the end determine what you become – remember that the way cannot be known by one reason alone!

It is therefore important to listen carefully to the language used – both spoken and written. Try to determine what is held objectively and what subjectively in the Kegan sense and then determine for oneself how broad or big the ‘We’ Kosmos is.

integralMENTORS

Embedding and Tetra-Meshing Activities in Context - discussion paper [033]

“….the importance of the self as the navigator of the great River of Life should not be overlooked. It appears that the self is not a monolithic entity but rather a society of selves with a center of gravity, which acts to bind the multiple waves, states, streams, and realms into something of a unified organization; the disruption of this organization, at any of its general stages, can result in pathology”. Wilber

From the early days of AQAL there has been a parallel development of Integral Transformative Practice(ITP) followed by the more nuanced Integral Life Practice (ILP).

Initially ITP was seen as the integrating element that would hold all the other integral pieces together (these being – integral psychology, integral art, integral education, integral health, integral etc., etc. – the list is endless)1

One problem that seems to keep appearing in the integral community is how often these practices are not embedded in practitioners’ lives but exist separately, alongside ‘real’ life. This type of approach means that individuals will get better and better at each of the practices chosen (translating – higher degrees of horizontal excellence) but not really tetra-meshing or embedding them in their day-to-day life. This of course is also an issue in non-integrally informed practices as well.

Any practice (ILP or not) that is not embedded in one’s total being will not be transformational. Excellence will no doubt improve considerably but a transformed ‘Holon’ will not be the outcome.

Looking at the diagram above - individuals who do not embed their practices in their day-to-day actions will remain at the ‘Altitude’ they were when they started to practice but will move horizontally - albeit with improved excellence. Those who are able to ‘live’ their practices will be able to slowly work their way through the transformative process.

A lot can be learnt about ‘Integral’ in a short time - the rest has to be lived! The living provides the context – the surface structure in the ‘Hori-zones’.

Transformation is not about the talk and praxis - but the walk and praxis.

Context is key in transformation of translation. Transformation recognises this and works with it to provide ‘real’ learning. Translation usually does not notice the place of ‘Context’ (with a capital C) in the process,

Higher levels of development do not tend to emerge unless the ‘Context’ is there to bring forth the need for understanding and working with greater complexity. Practices of themselves (ILP or not) cannot provide this context and thus if ‘Context’ is not present higher stages of development will not emerge. Meditation of itself won’t do it, spiritual practices of themselves won’t do it, physical experiences in themselves won’t do it, etc.. So no appropriate Context no transformation but plenty of translation is possible. Clare Graves in his ‘Value’ line of development always included the Context as the other half of the developmental process. This dynamic tends to get lost in the rush to ‘Enlightenment’ (evolutionary or not).

When practices become embodied they are no longer individual practices - the dissociated pieces re-integrate at a higher stage and the process of transformation starts all over again.

The Never Ending Quest "At each stage of human existence the adult man is off on his quest of his holy grail, the way of life he seeks by which to live. At his first level he is on a quest for automatic physiological satisfaction. At the second level he seeks a safe mode of living, and this is followed in turn, by a search for heroic status, for power and glory, by a search for ultimate peace; a search for material pleasure, a search for affectionate relations, a search for respect of self, and a search for peace in an incomprehensible world. And, when he finds he will not find that peace, he will be off on his ninth level quest. As he sets off on each quest, he believes he will find the answer to his existence. Yet, much to his surprise and much to his dismay, he finds at every stage that the solution to existence is not the solution he has come to find. Every stage he reaches leaves him disconcerted and perplexed. It is simply that as he solves one set of human problems he finds a new set in their place. The quest he finds is never ending." -- Dr. Clare W. Graves

As stated earlier you can learn a lot about ‘Integral’ in a short time - the rest has to be lived in a ‘Context’ of sufficient or appropriate complexity! And then over time this too should be transcended and included.

1 See “Trying to be integral in practice” Paul J van Schaik (2003) on www.integralwithoutborders/resources

integralMENTORS

Age and Development - discussion paper [034]

“The importance of the self as the navigator of the great River of Life should not be overlooked. It appears that the self is not a monolithic entity but rather a society of selves with a center of gravity, which acts to bind the multiple waves, states, streams, and realms into something of a unified organization; the disruption of this organization, at any of its general stages, can result in pathology.” Ken Wilber.

How do age and development interact?

Time between Structure-Stages -10,000 hours (say at 20hrs per week) about 10 years! Anecdotal evidence says minimum of 5 years but not sure if this is just wishful thinking.

Its not so much age as length of praxis in development together with substantial spiritual, cultural (and multi-cultural), behavioural, and system experience. As well as a full and eventful life (that is - fullness and freedom). So age itself does not constitute a key in transformative growth, as may people plateau at different stages and then hopefully carry on with health translational growth, but it is a prerequisite for higher stages of development able to stabilise at higher centres of gravity. Once an individual has plateaued at any given level there is still the possibility that a new transformative growth period will start when/if conditions and context are right.

Transformation seems to occur in fits and starts with sometimes longer periods of translational growth or consolidation before the next transformative growth period starts. Very often when a person has mastered a developmental level there is no incentive to continue the movement up the development structure stages.

There has, and always will be a rush of the young and ambitious to achieve the highest level of development possible in the shortest possible time. (Many of us have been ‘there’). But there are physical and spiritual limitations to this rush. The rush also limits the lessons possible (to be learned) on the path that come from experience in each of the structure-stages of development. There is so much to learn at each level and if rushed through many uncompleted aspects of the development process are left to be resolved later as shadow or neurosis.

Different structure-stages are needed for development at different ages. What makes for a healthy society is the understanding of the need for the complete interplay of the various ‘age-stages’ of humankind. Each age/generation developing to the potential at that age-stage in a healthy manner. In Gravian terms there is a need for each of the searches to be in play at any time period.

The Never Ending Quest "At each stage of human existence the adult ‘man’ is off on his quest of his holy grail, the way of life he seeks by which to live. At his first level he is on a quest for automatic physiological satisfaction. At the second level he seeks a safe mode of living, and this is followed in turn, by a search for heroic status, for power and glory, by a search for ultimate peace; a search for material pleasure, a search for affectionate relations, a search for respect of self, and a search for peace in an incomprehensible world. And, when he finds he will not find that peace, he will be off on his ninth level quest. As he sets off on each quest, he believes he will find the answer to his existence. Yet, much to his surprise and much to his dismay, he finds at every stage that the solution to existence is not the solution he has come to find. Every stage he reaches leaves him disconcerted and perplexed. It is simply that as he solves one set of human problems he finds a new set in their place. The quest he finds is never ending." -- Dr. Clare W. Graves

What we have now are an awful lot of people who are cognitively at Teal or Turquoise but whose Centre of Gravity is really at Green or at the Green/Orange interface (using all these terms rather loosely).

So a lot of theoria but little idea of how to put it into praxis in the ‘real; world. Or a lot of ‘Talk’ without the ability to do the ‘Walk’. In Ox herding picture parlance still at picture 5 or 6.

So going back to language - if the ‘Talk’ of the praxis is certain and positive the ‘Walk’ will most likely be poor but if the ‘Talk’ is light, flexible and constructively negative it is possible that the praxis may just be useful. If it always goes right it is just not being reported seriously. If the ‘Talk’ is too dominated by any one quadrant including the UL it is once again just ‘Talk’.

This brings us back to age and development. Too quick and it tends to develop only in the Cognitive line – important but not sufficient. So it is important to pace ones development with the other important lines and enjoy the experience of each structure-stage. Many of these have actually to be lived and not just practised in an ILP.

As an individual starts the climb into life’s mysteries the pull of the existing context/culture/common mode of discourse makes the first stages easier to master but above this level becomes much harder and will only fully develop if conditions are favourable and will take much longer on the average.

Words of consolidation (Plateaued) - sometimes integration and transformation -sometimes blocks: certainty, expert, teachers, guru, pundit –.. Problems: blocks, end of learning, coach, mentor, international acclaimed, academic (in any or all quadrants), myth of the given

Words of transformation or dissociation: growth, flexibility, emergent, guide, mentor, creative, innovation, etc.. (in any or all quadrants), Kosmic address

“In finding the world as we do, we forget all we did to find it as such, and when we are reminded of it in retracing our steps back to indicators, we find little more than a mirror-to-mirror image of ourselves and the world. In contrast with what is commonly assumed, a description, when carefully inspected, reveals the properties of the observer. We observers, distinguish ourselves precisely by distinguishing what we apparently are not, the world." Spencer Brown

Zones – a deep understanding of the surface structure that go with the deep structures in differing contexts.

integralMENTORS

Zones# and Development - discussion paper [035]

“In finding the world as we do, we forget all we did to find it as such, and when we are reminded of it in retracing our steps back to indicators, we find little more than a mirror-to-mirror image of ourselves and the world. In contrast with what is commonly assumed, a description, when carefully inspected, reveals the properties of the observer. We observers, distinguish ourselves precisely by distinguishing what we apparently are not, the world." Spencer Brown

Zones# importance to Praxis

The reason Zones# are so important to developmental praxis is that they cover such a vast area of the issues and this is intensified even more when combined with developmental Structure-Stages/Levels.

integralMENTORS works with Zones# in a fairly unique way which has proved to be very useful in the understanding of the context or the big picture of the area being worked.

In this approach the Interior Zones# 1, 3, 5 & 7 (i.e. the view from the inside) are the surface structure and the Exterior Zones# 2, 4, 6,& 8 (i.e. the view from the outside) are the deep structure. If you look closely at AQAL Integral Theory you will see that this use is not unjustified. (for an awful lot more detail on all this see Wilber’s Kosmic Karma and Creativity unpublished C, D, (E, F) – the last 2 parts are still incomplete)

When looking at so many ‘theoretical’ analyses of international situations these always tend to be broken down in terms of deep structure ie. Zones#2, 4, 6, & 8. This, though of academic interest, is usually far from the ‘truth’ or of any real help in getting to a full understanding of the situation.

One cannot make a meaningful analysis without a decent understanding of the surface structures (Zones# 1, 3, 5, & 7) and in order to do this one needs to have been extensively ‘on the ground’ gaining first hand experience in all persons (1-2-3).

It is the combination of the view from 20,000 metres and 2 metres - with much of the bits in between that make an understanding usefully workable. That means, if there is to be practical ‘real-world’ assistance, that is more that a academic statement, there must be time spent on the ground as well as in the air. (See Morality of Altitude below)

Any quadrant analysis in international development, without including structure-stages and Zones# is of little use in praxis though may sound good as broad generalisations for donors and others. Without the inclusion of at least these two the analysis with an undeclared Kosmic Address slips quickly in to the Myth of the Given.

One of the biggest failings of integral practice, as it migrates to other countries and cultures, is to misunderstand the importance of surface structure (Zones#1,3,5,&8) as being equally crucial as the more obvious understanding of the deep structures (Zones# 2,4,6,&8). It is the reason why academic understanding, without being well grounded country/culture-specific understanding only produces bland hyperbole or sometimes even dangerous misunderstandings.

It is also the reason why, when looking at ‘teachers’, trainers, coaches etc. it is important that they a) have extensive practical experience in their field and b) have extensive experience of the culture (LL & LR) etc. of the country/people in which they are going to operate. It does not work to parachute people without these two prerequisites into a ‘live’ program or project. For this reason iMENTORS always tries to pair a national consultant with an international consultant, thus between the two many more bases are covered or to put another way - there are more dots to connect by their combined experiences.

Morality of Altitude* Morality of Altitude or the Certainty of Altitude or the Safety of Altitude:

The morality of altitude was a concept by pilots and aircrew during WW2. The concept being that at altitude of say 10,000 to 15,000 feet or more the morality of bombing people below was more easy to justify. While on the ground where people including children were dying, no such certainty or safety was possible. It is a thought to bear in mind by integral practitioners when working with ideas at 50,000 feet or with higher developmental altitudes. The issue is to avoid this - bringing detachment and thus indifference or arrogance - but to work towards non-attachment and thus compassion – for many it is not always easy to see the difference.

The morality of altitude also gives rise the difference between theoria in praxis as against praxis in theoria. The first works with the theoria at the ‘coal face’ the other often looks at praxis from 50,000 feet. This is why so often there is a difference in view between the integral practitioner and the integral academic.

theoria in praxis: The map (theoria) is continually tested and modified or nuanced by praxis – the feedback loops are strong.

praxis in theoria: Praxis is filtered by theoria (the map) – praxis tends to be forced into the map – the feedback loops are less strong.

"Creativity is just connecting dots. When you ask creative people how they did something, they feel a little guilty because they didn't really do it, they just saw something. It seemed obvious to them after a while. That's because they were able to connect experiences they've had and synthesize new ideas… Unfortunately, that's a rare commodity. A lot of people haven't had very diverse experiences. So they don't have enough dots to connect, and they end up with very linear solutions..." - Steve Jobs

*Source: IntegralMENTORS Newsletter 14 August 2009

Zones# and Development*

*Source integralMENTORS 2008

integralMENTORS ‘U’ Process and Development - discussion paper [036]

Anne Caspari - augMentor @ integralMENTORS and Integral Strategist

“adequate interpretation demands same-depth translation. If one holon attempts to interpret a holon of greater depth, something will definitely get lost in the translation.” Ken Wilber

Mapping Transformation

In international development we see it more and more the need for leaders to play a new game. It is ironic that our best whole systems thinkers are becoming ever more frustrated at the lack of visible change in response to knowledge and evidence about growing threats to sustainability. The problem is, that while many experts and change agents are getting tied of ‘banging their heads against the same old walls’ in the exterior quadrants (UR & LR), the dynamics and mechanisms of how to go about genuine transformation are still not widely understood.

Transformations that respond to adaptive challenges involve a fundamental shift in perspective and ‘meaning making’, that is a process that deconstructs the current ‘meaning making’ system thus, enabling a shift to a different level of consciousness. Only then is it possible to perceive, find or create new answers that contribute to a new ‘reality’. To identify such critical leverage points, leaders need to recognize the interdependency between their inner and their outer world. In other words, it is the natural reflexive dynamics between interior and exterior realities that enable one to successfully create changes, whether individually or collectively.

Transformation – as opposed to incremental change - requires a true shift in the structure of consciousness one operates from. The general ‘architecture of transformation’ connects the movement through the U (Scharmer1) with AQAL in what could be described as a multi-faceted and pluri-dimensional shift:

a) An individual process of dis-identification with a behaviour (UR) to its “source code” “UL” (for example recognizing a behavioural pattern and going “inside” to identify and owning a shadow, releasing it and changing behaviour)

b) A shift from the UR gross state (observable behaviour pattern) to accessing subtle or even causal states in the upper left and back to UR on a different level of perception (Scharmer’s U-Process).

c) Dis-Identifications happening on sliding scale from micro ‘aha’ moments to bigger, life changing experiences, to shifting perspectives on perspectives on a meta-level (from ‘looking through’ to ‘looking at’ - R Kegan). This can eventually lead to a vertical transformation towards more complex levels/later stage action logics.

d) Once these shifts are re-iterated, consistently practiced, in a collective with a shared vision, scaled and imbued with power, collective transformation becomes possible and whole systems can indeed be shifted. (The fuzziness and pitfalls to this process will be described a future discussion paper.)

An Integral ‘U’ Process Scharmer describes this “U shaped” movement from the recognition and subsequent deconstruction of current perceived realities, the little death at the ‘bottom of the U’ when going from knowing to not knowing towards the new territory of prototyping of new realities beautifully.

Scharmer does not explicitly take into account developmental aspects in his processes and tools. U-Processes should be conceived and managed in accordance to the action logic of the people the program addresses.

Otherwise it will prove counterproductive, triggering stage related resistances (e.g. blue allergies to green ‘co-over-sharing’, reds refusal to go internal reflective). Also, people leading such processes should have a decade or two of real ‘walk the talk’ hands-on experience with transformation.

In many countries we work in, individual resistances and collective shadows that show up during transformative processes are generally a matter of life and death and will be touched or triggered (Syria, South Africa, Egypt, Indonesia etc.). Or as Bill O’Brien notes, “the success of an intervention depends on the interior condition of the intervener”.

"We move from part to whole and back again, and in that dance of comprehension, in that amazing circle of understanding, we come alive to meaning, to value, and to vision: the very circle of understanding guides our way, weaving together the pieces, healing the fractures, mending the torn and tortured fragments, lighting the way ahead -- this extraordinary movement from part to whole and back again, with healing the hallmark of each and every step, and grace the tender reward." Ken Wilber.

1 (Scharmer 2009; Scharmer, Senge et al. 2004)

integralMENTORS

Connecting the Dots - discussion paper [037]

“For every hundred students there are a thousand teachers, and nobody listens to divine dharma. For every village there are 10 masters, and the number of tantric assistances is unaccountable” from a 840 AC (1,200 years ago) quote in “Tibet - A History” by Sam van Schaik (Yale University Press 2011)

Its interesting that in this period we seem to have a similar situation to that of the quote above. Everybody with a little knowledge or aha! experience is suddenly a teacher or a coach and anybody who has done a little research or a PhD is an instant expert. People think that what they have experienced is what everybody should experience - or that once they have seen the ‘light’ this ‘light’ is the same for everybody. Unfortunately history shows that this is not the case.

Buddhist philosophy states that there are 84,000 paths to enlightenment – implying that each person’s path is fairly unique. It is important to realise this if one is to become more than a ‘spiritual’ tourist or instant teacher – going from one ‘Master’ to another each time getting a quick fix that dissipates after a while – it is important to plot ones own path, do the work and think for oneself. To much reliance over time on a teacher/guru/coach/mentor will only hold one back. This clinging to a ‘guru’ as hero is due to one’s inability to fully transcend and include earlier levels of development – the ‘hero quest’ stills remains too strong.

Where does this take us if we are trying to build a more healthy society/world – unfortunately not very far.

It comes back to the analogy of ‘connecting the dots’. Without sufficient dots in ones life to connect (no matter how big individual dots may be) what is one offering in training/expertise to the larger community? It is here that we need to be ‘realistic’ - you get from these situations what you can take with you. It is just as important to study your own response to the situation. Your Kosmic Address will determine how you ‘see’ or ‘learn’ so this is as pertinent to the Kosmic Address of those who propose to teach you. Kosmic address has a dot factor as depth and breadth are key.

This kind of depth of experience can sometimes be achieved by groups of individuals but for this to be ‘effective’ the individuals must have at least a sufficient depth and breadth of both interior and exterior experiences. (‘I’, ‘We’ and ‘It’). This is because it is impossible to embed theories, teachings, trainings, coaching or mentoring without there being a real entry into praxis. This praxis cannot in the long run be ‘practicing’ or ‘training’ praxis but must be real praxis of life.

We therefore have to move beyond talking meaningless injunctions to a position of taking responsibility for our own path through life as life. Treating all others’ ideas, interpretations, insights, etc. lightly - as stepping stones on our journey of magic and mystery. It can only be a truly fulfilling journey if it is your own – not piggy-backed on others.

We shall not cease from exploration - And the end of all our exploring - Will be to arrive where we started - And know the place for the first time. T. S. Eliot,

The oft given advice from the American scene is that you don’t have to travel overseas – usually meaning Asia - for your journey to ‘enlightenment’ but you can find all you need at home. Unfortunately this is totally missing the point. In the past these travels were so much more than just to meet a teacher, a Master and get teachings, it was about being immersed in another culture in another worldview. About stepping out of the familiar, about different smells, tastes, sights, sounds. Of course you can get teachings at ‘home’ but that’s all! After extensive travel, study, and ‘work’ hopefully we return ‘home’ a very different person. With much more breadth and depth (more dots) - but don’t expect this to happen from a few weeks or months it takes time and struggle.

On the early part of our journey we will of course think we understand everything, will have seen the imperfections of others, have found the perfect teacher, the ‘one’ truth, however integral. But in time we will come to realise the meaning of what Ken Wilber meant when he wrote“...the integral vision will come upon you slowly, but surely, carefully but fiercely, deliberately but radiantly, so that you and I will find ourselves sharing in the same circle of understanding, .... dancing in the freedom of the whole, expressed in all its parts."

This circle of understanding can only be as large as our shared ‘We space’ or Solidarity the rest, no matter how much we may believe otherwise, will be lost in translation.

"The practitioner who has the greatest yearning devotion receives the greatest blessing. Even though rain falls evenly over the land, it is only where perfect seeds are properly cultivated and ready to sprout that a plant grows." Kyabje Dilgo Khyentse

Not many dots to connect

Many dots to connect – much to give and take

integralMENTORS

Dot Mapping - A ‘True’ but Partial Tool – discussion paper [038]

"……. they were able to connect experiences they've had and synthesize new ideas. …Unfortunately, that's a rare commodity. A lot of people haven't had very diverse experiences. So they don't have enough dots to connect, and they end up with very linear solutions..." - Steve Jobs

There are many true but partial tools in the ‘kitbag’ of an integral practitioner.

Many of these tools are tests for ‘systems’ to determine an individual’s supposed placement on a line of development or to asses a persons’ psychological or physical type. Many of these tools/tests are more ‘true’ than others - this will usually depend on some kind of methodological ‘truth’ test (injunction, practice, evaluation). Those that are more ‘tested’ and have a higher Kosmic Address tend to be seen as being more ‘true’ though proper use of each of these instruments will only occur if those using them understand their limitations. If not they will suffer from the ‘Myth of the Given’ by applying them as if they are ‘true’ or the ‘truth’ .

A brief example of some of the tools being used are: in the ‘lines of development’ area - IQ tests, Sentence Completion tests, Creativity Quotient tests, etc., in the ‘type’ area – pseudo psychological types enneagrams, MBRI, astrology, etc., and the many physical and behavioural types found in Chinese, Tibetan and Indian systems, etc., plus many, many more.

So now we intend to add one more – a ‘true’ but of course partial tool – the Dot-Print or dot-map. This tool will give a simple snapshot at a given time (as what it is mapping is evolutionary and does change over time) of the breadth and depth of an individual’s life development – both inner and outer.

A questionnaire is being written (to be tested) and will in time be linked to a simple software programme (similar to that of ‘Gapminder’) that will produce a visual representation using; size, colour, intensity or hue, and relationship of dots to represent an individual’s breadth and depth of ‘life’ experience. It can if used longitudinally show change over time.

This tool can be useful in determining what weight (or credibility) to give to any individual when dealing with them as either teacher/guru/ coach/ mentor/etc. or as student or a peer. It will also help in putting groups together to ensure that participants cover enough uniqueness in experience but also sufficient solidarity (or ‘We’ space) to ensure effective interaction.

Always remembering that it is a simple map, a crude representation of the territory. It helps in our understanding but is a very partial ‘truth’. As with all tools or instruments its use and interpretation is totally dependant on the Kosmic Address of the user.

The two diagrams are illustrative of individuals with very different life experiences. There is no innate value judgement between the two but depending on the relationship required one can make a judgement on which would more closely fulfil ones needs.

The first is highly educated with limited depth or breath in other areas – this may be sufficient if all you require is tutoring on your Master’s degree. The second has much more depth and on the whole breadth so, as a more comprehensive teacher, coach, guru or mentor would, probably make a better choice if the experiences match those of your requirements. Usually in life greater overall depth and breadth will ensure a more balanced response and considered judgment. (These dot-maps could also represent the change in a single individual from the age 25 to say 55 years old.)

Dot interpretation:

Size – length of experience Colour – area of experience Hue or intensity – depth of experience Relationship – type of experience Number in group – different experiences in a themes area Number as whole – breadth of experience and to a degree depth of experience Hue or intensity overall – depth of experience

“In finding the world as we do, we forget all we did to find it as such, and when we are reminded of it in retracing our steps back to indicators, we find little more than a mirror-to-mirror image of ourselves and the world. In contrast with what is commonly assumed, a description, when carefully inspected, reveals the properties of the observer. We observers, distinguish ourselves precisely by distinguishing what we apparently are not, the world." Spencer Brown

This paper is just an update on an area that we are hoping to develop more over the next year.

integralMENTORS Transformation Shift - discussion paper [039]

Anne Caspari - augMentor @ integralMENTORS and Integral Strategist

“Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results”. A. Einstein

Shifting Personal Reality

The ability to shift personal reality in one’s self and the competency to assist others with their transformation is one of the basic skills for integral mentoring of any kind. This can apply to individual work with leaders, ‘trim tabs’ and change agents, or to collective work with stakeholder groups, organizations or NGOs. The kind of assistance needed depends on many different factors, such as the unique kosmic address of everybody involved (see paper 038) and, of course, on the nature of the task ahead.

Yet despite the abundant variables, transformational change follows a very recognizable blueprint that, much like a wave, keeps its pattern integrity. We encounter this archetypal pattern everywhere, a cultural software of the human species. Its epic version is masterfully described in Joseph Campbell’s Hero’s Journey. The more post-modern version is Scharmer’s U Process for collective transformation and prototyping. The smaller day to day or moment to moment encounter with transformation, like changing a destructive habit, overcoming fear or shadow work either go unobserved or are subject to a myriad of self-help books.

Whatever the scale is, the archetypal movement remains that of a dive into interiority, the ‘small death’ (or micro-dis-identification) and the resurfacing with a different perspective. This process can take minutes, days, months, or a lifetime, and is iterative.

A typical transformational process needs basic prerequisites in order to succeed. External factors include a safe space, a method/injunction to follow, a coach or mentor, or rules. Interior conditions (interior to the person) include a willingness to re-own previously resisted or dis-associated shadow parts. It may also require the capacity to access, if just for a very short period of time, different states of consciousness. Scharmer (2009) describes the respective stations “open mind”, “open heart” and “open will”, indicating the willingness to suspend judgement, becoming vulnerable and authentic, and most of all, present. He describes this movement down the U as going from gross to subtle, and the combination of sensing and being present -“presensing”- at the bottom at the U as causal.

Source: Scharmer, www.prensencing.com

In reality, the access to these different states of consciousness is not that clear cut. The process of accessing subtle or even causal states can follow various patterns, primarily cycling between the work of shadow parts and resistances being integrated and sensations of relief along the descending arm of the U. The quality of that access and subsequently of the depth, width and nature of transformation depends on many factors, such as the altitude, meaning making system and personal integrity of the person(s) undergoing the process and on the effectiveness of the tools and methods applied.

The following diagram uses the U shape to map out some of the typical stages of a transformative process, along with the internal and external conditions that would foster a deep and successful shift in personal reality, individual or collective. In the next paper, the lateral movements and escape mechanisms that occur along the different stations will be discussed, along with the tools that could successfully counterbalance them. (for a largerversion of this diagram see page 2 on the pdf version at:

http://integralwithoutborders.org/resource/what-do-you-think-integralmentors-series-updated)

Source: A. Caspari Mindshift,www.integral-planning.com

"We’ve come to believe that the core capacity needed for accessing the field of the future is presence. We first thought of presence as being fully conscious and aware in the present moment. Then we began to appreciate presence as deep listening, of being open beyond one’s preconceptions and historical ways of making sense. We came to see the importance of letting go of old identities and the need to control and, as Salk said, making choices to serve the evolution of life. Ultimately, we came to see all these aspects of presence as leading to a state of “letting come,”of consciously participating in a larger field for change. When this happens, the field shifts, and the forces shaping a situation can shift from re-creating the past to manifesting or realizing an emerging future.” Peter Senge.

Diagrams

Source: Scharmer, www.prensencing.com

Source: A. Caspari Mindshift,www.integral-planning.com

integralMENTORS ThriveAbility - discussion paper [040]

Robin Wood - augMentor @ integralMENTORS and President of Renaissance2

“Sustainability is a new idea to many people, and many find it hard to understand. But all over the world there are people who have entered into the exercise of imagining and bringing into being a sustainable world. They see it as a world to move toward not reluctantly, but joyfully, not with a sense of sacrifice, but a sense of adventure. A sustainable world could be very much better than the one we live in today.” Donella H. Meadows

ThriveAbility- A Dynamic, Integral Way to Create a Thriving World in the 21st Century

Our planet and our species have had an increasingly rough ride in the first dozen years of the 21st century. We have belatedly woken up to the fact that we are living on borrowed time and resources, and that the reckoning for our spending spree in the second half of the 20th century is now becoming due. While sustainability advocates have been campaigning for half a century to get us to reduce our impact on our planet, they have failed to motivate the mainstream to shift their thinking and habits toward more sustainable, healthy lifestyles and policies.

There are several reasons for this, though the main one has been that environmentalism and sustainability have positioned themselves as killjoys and fanatics who care more about “nature” than they care about people. While their anger at the damage and destruction we are wreaking on our precious biosphere is understandable, it is also counterproductive. We need to move from impact reduction to thrival maximisation.

ThriveAbility is a response to the failure of sustainability to turn our ship around before we hit the iceberg. Its focus is on what motivates people to change, by providing them with a clear cut logic and set of incentives for doing so. Given that governments and NGO’s are often last in line when it comes to their ability to change, Witness the Rio+20 gridlock The focus of ThriveAbility is on innovators, entrepreneurs, businesses and enablers in governments and NGO’s who are able to work well in partnership with the business community to make things happen.

What makes ThriveAbility different? At its core, ThriveAbility brings a whole systems, integral approach to large scale change based on a synthesis of top down and bottom up ways of enabling shifts to emerge when and where they are required. Creating sustainable value through sustainable innovation requires us to:

• Recognise and align the very different value systems and priorities motivating people and organizations to move toward ThriveAbility, to create coherent, effective initiatives

• Reframe the relationship between nature, technology and human psychology so that we see ourselves in new ways and gain insights into the unique role we each play as leaders in the shift from surviving in a merely sustainable world to thriving in a flowering, global second Renaissance

• Redefine three fundamental relationships between sustainability to wellbeing, innovation to personal development, and happiness to a thriving society, within in the context of the “Thrival Equation”

• Prioritise and invest our time, energy money and resources into initiatives, projects, programs and businesses that maximise the Thrival Equation.

One of the key contributions IntegralMENTORS and its partners can make to sustainable development is to apply the Thrival Equation and its underlying principles and corollaries directly to the work being done by our members, and to firmly embed this approach into the decision-making processes of organizations and development partners everywhere.

For larger copies of these diagrams see the PDF version at http://integralwithoutborders.org/resource/what-do-you-think-integralmentors-series-updated

“Personal transformation can and does have global effects. As we go, so goes the world, for the world is us. The revolution that will save the world is ultimately a personal one”. Marianne Williamson

integralMENTORS When Reality hits, use its Force - discussion paper [041] Part A

Anne Caspari - augMentor @ integralMENTORS and Integral Strategist

“The difficulty we have in accepting responsibility for our behavior lies in the desire to avoid the pain of the consequences of that behavior” M. Scott Peck

Working with Resistance - a praxis paper. Follow the intensity of your resistance down to its source and sure enough you will find a treasure.

With transformation work, encountering and overcoming resistances is an intrinsic part of the game. In coaching and facilitating transformative change, people naturally face stages of resistance, fear and confusion. This will inevitably trigger escape and protection mechanisms of the self/Self system that come in a multitude of shapes, sizes and flavours.

Many of these take the form of well-rehearsed identities (e.g. spiritual identities, cynical attitudes, attack of coach or method, sudden shift of priorities) that are designed to ‘protect’ the coachee from the suspected pain of re-owning deeper lying disassociated parts (shadows). These defence mechanisms can easily sabotage the transformative process. In many cases, the coachee is not aware of these phenomena, but rather strongly identified with them. Kegan and Lahey (2009) define this as “Immunity to Change”, a "hidden commitment", with an underlying root cause, that competes and conflicts with a stated commitment to change. It is these hidden commitments that cause people to not change and to fail to realise their best intentions. It takes experience to spot such phenomena and to defuse or utilize any deviating construct arising in the space appropriately, in real time.

In the previous paper I listed the various stages of a typical transformative process. Now I add to that the typical resistance patterns that often correlate to the stations on the track. Fortunately, these patterns tend to have a recognizable sequence. Sources: Anne Caspari, Mindshift www.integral-planning.org

An experienced coach can identify them and knows how far or deep a group or an individual is on their way through the process and what is still ahead of them relative to their goal. The good news is that there are plenty of extremely good tools available.

Tool boxes Based on more than a decade of practical experience with coaching transformational change processes in adult development, combined with the application of integral theory on facilitating change in personal to global strategic projects, I have started to map out recognizable patterns that show up consistently as indicators of specific stages of the transformation process in individuals and groups. Resistance patterns or pathologies can of course vary in flavour and form depending on the kosmic address or altitude of the group or person in the process. If level-specific mechanisms show up, they are best addressed with tools and approaches that correspond well with that specific developmental level. Escape patterns and pathologies in different states of consciousness are harder to recognize and require, as always the full experience and presence of the coach.

These diagrams are intended to provide hands-on practical information that is hopefully useful to practitioners dealing with transformational change. I have listed a number of tools and methods that have proven appropriate and extremely useful in coaching people back on track in their movement through transformational processes.

Resistances are treasure indicators In transformation work we encounter a lot of fear and collective shadow around resistance and blocks, not just in the coachees, but also with some coaches and trainers. These tensions can and should be harvested. It requires some cleaning up and practice, like mental aikido training, to recognize obstructing, attacking or resisting forces as forces to work with and as pointers and key indicators to the most important acupuncture points for change, much like a treasure map. Furthermore, if the transformational process is designed to prototype new ideas, listening to the information sitting on resistances and fears can actually provide the breakthrough that is called for. Then, working with resistances can even be like a fun ride in a roller coaster or like a ride on a sail boat using the resistance to propel you in the direction of your conscious choice. Welcome to the world of trim tabs.

“The gap between vision and current reality is also a source of energy. If there were no gap, there would be no need for any action to move towards the vision. We call this gap creative tension.” Peter Senge

integralMENTORS When Reality hits, use its Force - discussion paper [041] Part B

Anne Caspari - augMentor @ integralMENTORS and Integral Strategist

These diagrams are to be read in conjunction with Paper 041 Part A

Sources: Anne Caspari, Mindshift www.integral-planning.org

integralMENTORS

‘Worlds of Praxis’ - Series

Papers

August 2012 -

integralMENTORS Worlds of Praxis – Working Paper [010] :: August 2012

Jock Noble - augMentor @ integralMENTORS and World Vision Australia

"Do not depend on the hope of results. . . .you may have to face the fact that your work will be apparently worthless and even achieve no result at all, if not perhaps results opposite to what you expect. As you get used to this idea, you start more and more to concentrate not on the results, but on the value, the rightness, the truth of the work itself . . . ..you gradually struggle less and less for an idea and more and more for specific people . . . .In the end, it is the reality of personal relationship that saves everything” – Thomas Merton

Quadrants and stages in use in Praxis

These diagrams give an insight into how discussions with various individuals and groups in the organisation are related to worldviews and beliefs, And are based on observations of the work of a number of organisations of varying sizes - always contextual , but here illustrated as a generality to make the point.

“The diagrams below depict the kind of levels that may be typical in each of the four quadrants for people within the named structures. The two left hand quadrants of each chart describe the worldviews of ‘me’ and ‘we’ – our group and how ‘I’ or ‘we’ see the world; and the two right hand quadrants describe ‘it’ as in, “what do I perceive is available to me” and ‘its’ being “what is available to us”.

Individual Donor As a donor, I believe that I can make a difference in the life of at least one person, I have the support of the community, and the individual resources to contribute and through iNGO a framework to provide financial support.

INGO (Headquartered in ‘developed’ country) As an individual staff I believe there is not much I can do, also our effectiveness is determined by the Country Office, but at least we can generate funds and try to disburse them effectively. The staff in our Country Offices and in the field are often non responsive and seem to be of questionable competence. I am not sure how much money donors give ends up in the field or of the results that are achieved. By and large we are all confined by our system, policies and processes which are beyond our control. Country Office There is not much I can do as an individual; I am caught between the expectations of Headquarters, the realities of the field and the confines of our systems. Our other staff feel the same. It is hard to attract and retain good staff and field staff often lack the competence to be effective and realistically trying to get outcomes from the communities we work in is very challenging even if we had the right staff. At least we have large material resources and can send money and staff to the field so all we can do is to trust the process and do what we need to, to keep our jobs. Field Office There is not much I can do as an individual; I am caught between the expectations of Headquarters staff and our own hierarchy and the confines of our system. Our other staff feel the same. Often I feel I lack the competence to know what to do so I do what I am told to do. The communities we work in are very challenging are uneducated, lazy, unmotivated and have many health and other issues, there is a lot of corruption and people often don’t know how to work together. At least we have large material resources and can send money and staff to the field so we can just trust the process and do what we need to, to keep our jobs.

Community There is a lot I could do if only I had the resources and training. Our community is the same, people are prepared to work together for a better future if they have a chance. We are not sure how the NGO operates they seem to have their own agenda but if we try to understand what they want from us then in the short term we are bound to get some resources that will help us in some way. (What is significant here is that the community is inclined to adjust its world view to align with the limited short term world view of the NGO and which reinforces the NGOs view of the limitations of the community.)

“Hope is definitely not the same thing as optimism. It is not the conviction that something will turn out well, but the certainty that something makes sense, regardless of how it turns out. In short, I think that the deepest and most important form of hope, the only one that can keep us above water and urge us to good works, and the only true source of the breathtaking dimension of the human spirit and its efforts, is something we get, as it were, from “elsewhere.” It is also this hope, above all, which gives us the strength to live and continually to try new things, even in conditions that seem hopeless as ours do, here and now’. Vaclav Havel.

*with input from Paul J van Schaik – Director iMentors

integralMENTORS

‘Worlds of Inclusion’- Series

Papers

August 2012 -

integralMENTORS Participation, Ownership and Development – Worlds of Inclusion [019]

“A human being is part of the whole call by us universe, a part limited in time and space. He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something separate from the rest, a kind of optical delusion of his consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty”. Albert Einstein

Participation/Ownership and Praxis – The many levels

So much is said about participation and ownership in international development programs, but what is really meant by this? Like everything else the meaning of participation is in the eye of the beholder. That is, the definition of participation is dependent on the Kosmic Address of the viewer.

In the international development field this usually means that however participation is defined will be determined by the dominant mode of discourse of the various groups involved. Each group having their own definition and thus having great difficulty finding a way to communicate. There is so often very little overlapping ‘We’ Space.

What is interesting in the table is that without too much effort one can easily see how participation is being defined with an understanding of all quadrants and many levels/Structure-Stages.

The table above is a simplified version of the various levels of understanding discerned in infrastructure projects in many developing countries. Another table (on the right) that is commonly used and is more mainstream is the oversimplified ‘Levels of Participation of the 'Arnstein's Ladder'’. The 'Arnstein's Ladder’ model is fairly flatland and now needs to be revised, if used, into a more integral format.

What is also interesting is that one can see all the various levels of participation at the higher Structure-Stages as individuals or groups attempt to manipulate the situation to keep it within their control. So its often also about intent as well worldview.

“Do more than belong: participate. Do more than care: help. Do more than believe: practice. Do more than be fair: be kind. Do more than forgive: forget. Do more than dream: work.” William Arthur Ward

integralMENTORS Snippable Sequences in a Morpho-Generative Process - Worlds of Inclusion: Paper [020]*

“It may even be said that we could approach a new point of view in which THE primary function of society would be understood as the function of generating a healed structure in the world through morphogenetic process – and that this primary function is to allow us - the members of society - to adjust progressively to all the small processes in such a way that individually, and together, they will more and more effectively create a living world.” C Alexander

Snippable Sequences in Development

The Snippable Sequences process is a subset of and works within the AQAL framework, having defined the areas one wants to change or transform (probably as a Morphic Field and/or innovative processes).

What is needed then is to "cut up" the original innovative process into a small set of process ‘genes’ or small sequences that work individually, and are robust enough to work in a wide variety of contexts, even when not supported by other parts of the new system.

That is - take the “whole” that is to be transformed and create a number of separate transformation/translation processes that are relatively independent of each other and can work on their own - though continuing to support the “Whole” (whole/parts).

Each Snippable Sequence should have a degree of tetra-meshing with sequences in the other quadrants in order to maximise the effect but must also be semi-autonomous so they are not reliant on any other for their success. The idea is to have a series of small wins (and also a few failures) and not just one big failure and occasionally partial success in the short-term. In simplistic terms its ‘not putting all one‘s eggs in one basket’, but of course so much more. It is especially important to ensure that the ‘theme’ – that is the ‘Morphic’ thrust/pull - is considered in all quadrants and levels and then also tetra-meshed. This meta-level activity also ensures that the defining of themes is an initiative process. It is thus also changeable throughout the implementation. (Donor agencies and most NGO’s find this very difficult to comprehend).

Experience seems to suggest that the maximum number of sequences in operation should probably not exceed 20 in order to keep the processes manageable.

These sequences are then set in motion – some will flourish, some will stagnate and others may well die. But at each step in the process they are re-examined and redesigned where needed. At each step sequences are culled as appropriate and where needed more relevant ones generated. The process is generative based on building on a series of small wins with each win helping to redefine the next steps to be taken.

Every programme is unique in that it is always contextualised at each stage of development – in all Quadrants and Levels! Lessons can be learnt but best practices can only be relevant to the current contextualized process.

In ID work these sequences would probably be a series of projects or sub-projects. They could be in one particular area such as education or health or they could be in ‘themed’ areas such as poverty reduction or child welfare. ‘Themed’ areas seem to be more promising as they are broader and can cover, on the whole, greater depth and breadth. In a practical sense the way iMentors does this, in an existing program environment, is to look at an project and decide how it can be broken down into a series of sub-projects all working to the same end but not totally reliant on each other. Once these sub-projects are identified (sequences) then it is determined, firstly, if they cover sufficient activities in each of the quadrants and then if any other sub-projects are needed to ensure a broad enough coverage. Each sub-project (sequence) is, in a sense, let loose within the overall Morphogenetic and Generative process that is the overall programme.

Careful consideration of this process will reveal how this reflects more closely how ‘life’ seems to work - and not in the way most ID programs/projects are currently designed and implemented. (Non SS programme ‘key words’ tend to be - goals, visions, determined outcomes and key indicators – even with double or triple feedback loops a linear process). Because of the degree of contextual flexibility and redundancy built into the sequential process there is robustness in the process and therefore more chance that outcomes will reflect the ‘Themed’ Morphic thrust or pull.

Far too many programmes today are designed with final specific outcomes determined and key indicators in place at the start of implementation. There are usually only a couple of stages where minor directional changes can be made during the implementation process. But because the precise ‘end product’ or outcomes have been fixed there is no place for real course change to the programme to occur during the project life. The process to get from start to finish has been defined and the outcomes have been fixed.

A true recipe for failure – and this is what one finds on the whole in the field. Most successes are PR rather than real.

So the process iMentors have adopted, where they are able, is a Morphogenetic, Generative process that progresses through the use of Snippable Sequences.

Morphogenetic and Generative process are the subject of a further paper in this series. For a detailed treatment of these processes in the built environment see the ‘The Nature of Order’ by C Alexander.

"We move from part to whole and back again, and in that dance of comprehension, in that amazing circle of understanding, we come alive to meaning, to value, and to vision: the very circle of understanding guides our way, weaving together the pieces, healing the fractures, mending the torn and tortured fragments, lighting the way ahead -- this extraordinary movement from part to whole and back again, with healing the hallmark of each and every step, and grace the tender reward." Ken Wilber.

* Re-worked from a piece in integralMENTORS Newsletter 11 May 2009