What I realized while having a discussion on this very topic was that personal branding can—and indeed must—be seen from a larger framework. This larger framework is inspired by the language of author Ken Wilber’s “big three perspectives”, the subjective, inter-subjective, and objective. Each perspective offers a different way (or angle) of viewing a particular phenomonon, in this case of “living the good life.” This model, I believe, helps us make better sense of personal branding in relationship to some other real forces in our life.

Authenticity, Popularity, & Brand

Personal branding deals almost exclusively with symbols, design, and slightly removed perception—that is to say with objective perceptions of individuals. Activists like Al Gore, artists like Madonna, and politicians like Barack Obama have strong personal brands. What’s interesting is that each of these people are symbols, more than people, and personal branding works at the level of symbology. Its aim is to turn one into a symbol, a symbol that is clearly portraying something in such a way that would have others attracted to it (or in some cases repelled). When one is working on their brand, they try and find ways to design a particular symbol of themselves that they wish to present to the world, and that symbol is to be perceived, in many cases, by folks that don’t even have a relationship to them. At least initially…

Popularity is another dimension of this puzzle, this puzzle of being and presenting oneself in the world. Popularity is an inherently inter-subjective perception, one that takes advantage of symbol but often has more to do with relationships. When you hear someone speak, have a conversation with someone, or experience something they’ve created you get a better sense of who that person is, and more importantly how you relate to them. Do you disagree with them? Do you find that they are easily likable? Do you appreciate some skill that they possess? When we relate to someone all of these things are decided almost immediately, and about the only thing that can change our mind on these viewpoints are the opinions of those closest to us. As you can see these two dimensions are almost inextricably intertwined, but I would argue that they should be distinguished as there are many examples of historic figures who come down to us almost exclusively as symbols, but who we then enter relationship with. Or vice versa, there are people we meet who we immediately like but whose branding we may have very little experience with.

This brings us to a sometimes over-looked dimension of living the good life, and that is the subjective dimension—of how one experiences themselves. Words such as passion, confidence, and authenticity come to mind when I reflect on this facet of living as a human being. Religious figures like Gandhi, Mother Theresa, and the Buddha immediately come to mind as examples of people who were powerful symbols, and who by today’s standards would probably be considered branding experts. The odd thing about them however, is that none of them had a particularly strong intention to become popular, but rather were following a unique passion or calling. We obviously can’t know their subjective experiences, but we can deduce that this internal dimension of their lives were of prime importance, as was their purpose.

Harmonizing

What I realized, after seeing these different dimensions of living the good life, is that each can be developed somewhat separately, but if they are out of balance in severe ways then one is missing out on building a truly gift-worthy brand as well as living a meaningful life.

Most criticisms of branding, I think are rightfully criticisms not of the techniques of getting oneself out there in ways where others can hear and digest their message, but are rather criticisms of using techniques or methods to try and popularize something that is vapid and devoid of true meaning. Without the subjective dimension then you have a flat and robotic attempt to share something that is superficial at best. Those who brand themselves only with financial gain in mind, but have nothing of true value to offer, come to mind as being severely out of balance in this regard.

That being said I don’t think it’s also unreasonable to question those folks who have a deep understanding of a particular field or fields of human knowledge and experience but do not consciously find ways to share it, and thus enhance other’s lives. Taken to extremes this can be the epitome of selfishness or foolishness. But when we recognize someone who has done both, who has become an authentic master, is deeply passionate about what they do, and has also found ways to brand themselves so that they can get their message out their appropriately, you see the emergence of deeply admired and generous folks.

So when we are seeking to live the good life and share it with others, all of these perspectives are important, all of these approaches valuable, but without a proper harmonization between them we either be hiding our gifts from the world or throwing out more useless crap into an atmosphere of already stifling mediocrity.

What David perhaps doesn’t realize is that being isn’t the same as inactivity (or not-doing). Rather it is the connection with a fundamental, and formless aspect, of reality. That connection can happen during relative inactivity or during the most intense activity. The sages of all of the world’s wisdom tradition have recognized this. In the Taoist tradition we see references to the phrase “effortless effort”, in the Christian tradition we see a deep concern with the integration of contemplation and action, and in the Buddhist tradition we see the activity of the Bodhisattva, who does not forsake the world for some sort of pure being, but rather commits to helping all beings realize that same being. In short, there is absolutely no contradiction between being and doing, and many people throughout the millennia have recognized this.

But let’s not be too hard on David Allen. Being isn’t his main focus, and for what he has done in the world of doing, he has helped a tremendous number of people. Some of those people (like me) have even used his system to deepen their connection with and recognition of being. Thanks David!

That being said, if David, or any other productivity nuts are reading this, I want you to know that just as there are some great methodologies to help us do, like his GTD system, there are also many great methodologies for being. Indeed, just as David suggestions systematic instructions for how to become more organized, effective, and attentive to our life’s activity, there are many systematic instructions for helping one come to find deep levels of being, of stillness, and peace, in the very midst of doing!

Meditation techniques like Vipassana, Zen, Centering Prayer, Raja Yoga (not just the physical poses but the whole system of yoga), Vedanta, Sufi meditation, etc. are all methodologies for revealing the deepest truths about who we are. This truth is not opposed to the world (as many spiritual seekers often believe) but is rather something that deeply transcends the world, while also being intimately connected with it. It is both immanent and transcendent.

When one begins to awaken to their true being, their engagement with the world can emerge from a place of much greater stillness, peace, and clarity. Certain confusions can drop away, and we are free to engage our lives with a greater sense of freedom. This can be a tremendous compliment for mastering productivity, and as far as I can tell, one without the other can actually be a great disservice to our highest potential as human beings.

The transformation try-out however is a slightly different concept, that Duff McDuffee, Ryan Oelke, and myself came up with. It’s different in that we want to constantly evolve the try-out process itself, and because we’ve added these key distinctions and suggestions when performing the 30 day try-out:

1. Keep in mind that changing a habit is often very hard work, and while the benefits are often enormous, doing so can often be massively destabilizing. Often times if you push the edge too far in transformational work, you can end up with a break down of multiple systems, instead of the breakthrough you are looking for. Because human beings are a system of many different tendencies, belief systems, habits, and so on, one major shift to an element of the system can have unforeseen impact on the system-at-large.
2. Know which habit to try and change, at what time, and in what order. Perhaps in order to make other bigger changes you need to start with the simplest one’s of all. For example, say you want to start your own business, but you are in extremely poor health and barely have the energy to maintain your current lifestyle. The 1st thing you may want to change is your energy levels, and to do something related to your health, so that you can have the energy to commit to other larger changes and goals.
3. Clear parameters and the appropriate tracking are invaluable. In order to follow through with a transformation try-out you first have to be very clear about the parameters of the change, and then need to have a reliable way to track your progress. It could be as easy as creating a small calendar on an index card and checking off each day that you perform the new action you are trying to do (or avoid a harmful action). Or it might be more elaborate, require more detailed metrics, happen over a digital medium, or have a collaborative component.
4. While you are participating in a transformation try-out it is also a good idea to keep some sort of record of the process. Keeping a journal with observations about the process, or blogging if you’d like, can help with sticking to it and also learning from the process.
5. Tell people what you are doing, and find others who can understand and support your decision. The more you talk about it, thinking about it, and reference it the easier the try-out will be.

Keep your eyes peeled for transformation try-outs from me and my friends, as we share our successes and failures, and hopefully the larger lessons that we learn along the way. We’ll be posting many of these in a blog format, and hopefully will continue to evolve the “transformation try-out” process itself.

In Part 1 I described the difference between victimhood and full responsibility, and how one can move toward full responsibility. In this post I wanted to push the envelope a little, and describe territory that I believe most self-development literature is unaware of (or even worse confuses with victimhood). This is the living understanding of integrated responsibility or what one could call cosmic responsibility.

The Synthesis of Opposites: Living in Complete Accord with the Universe

Integrated responsibility is the bringing together of the key insights from the previous two stages of responsibility. From victimhood we see the key insight that the world is a complex and sometimes uncontrollable force. From full responsibility we see that we (or the other) have a much larger part to play then we once thought, and that intention and surrender are deeply powerful forces with regards to causality.

The difference in integrated responsibility is that we don’t conceive of our “personhood” in the same way as we did prior (where the sense of a solid separate self was maintained as part of the equation). We also begin to see the deeply systemic nature of causality, and the limits of full responsibility.

Going Beyond the Self

For either victimhood or full responsibility to be maintained we have to think that there is a “self” that is at the receiving end of causality. That self is often experienced and understood as radically separate from the rest of causality (though becoming less so in full responsibility). When one begins to see through this sense of self, as ultimately existing, then the focus on self, and indeed on our always getting what we want starts to diminish radically. At this point one switches away from self-actualization, which characterizes most of the self-development literature, and moves toward self-transcendence, which tends to involve contemplation and introspection.

Systemic Thinking is Key

Another thing that can bring about the awareness of integrated responsibility is a kind of systemic thinking, in which one begins to see how systems operate, where their leverage points are and what the limitations in systemic change are. A great example of this type of thinking can be seen in “systems theory” with such thinkers as Gregory Bateson, Fritjof Capra, Ken Wilber, and Peter Senge. Our personal influence on changing things is seen in the light of larger systemic dynamics that are at play.

To get a better sense of how this might play out, think about the weather system. You may want it to rain, may do a rain dance, etc. but how much does your personal intention play in the larger confluence of wind, air pressure, humidity and competing weather patterns. Probably not that much!

Another thing I’ll mention about integrated responsibility is that one begins to have the flexibility to notice how and why their personal intentions have the results (or lack of results) that they do. One begins to appreciate the strong power of habits and forces in the universe, and develops a certain level of surrender to them. They also become more able to leverage these systems in amazing ways and can become phenomenal masters at shifting whole systems. In many ways these are the alchemists, magicians, and agents of change!

Here are some tips for how, if you are already operating from a perspective of full-responsibility, to move toward integrated responsibility:

Tips for Becoming an Agent of Change:

• Have a regular contemplative practice – Contemplative practices, from any of the wisdom traditions, provide insight into a deeper, wider perspective that is broader then your “self”. This naturally leads to integrated responsibility.
• Study thinkers who think systemically – Studying the great philosophers, thinkers, and theorists who have put forth material in a systemic way is a sure way to be challenged to think this way, and start moving into a sense of integrated responsibility. I mentioned a few earlier in the post, but there are many.
• Think about things from multiple angles – Challenge yourself to see the things that happen in your life from multiple viewpoints. For example, I recently heard that my wife and I were receiving (along with many other people in the U.S.) a rebate check for $1,200. I can view that as simply chance, can see that because we have been on top of our taxes we are receiving it, can view it as a the universe doing me a favor, can see it as a larger governmental response to the current recession, etc. There are so many ways to consider the things that happen in our lives, and by doing so we become disillusioned with any simple answers or perspectives.

When we open fully to the larger context in which life is happening, that isn’t solely reducible to my experience or my desires, then a greater level of surrender & happiness can result. The happiness isn’t one borne from getting what we want, but rather from seeing how things really are.

Much of personal development work has to do with our relationship to the world and ourselves. New challenges and opportunities are constantly arising, both internally and externally, and how we are conditioned to relate to them will largely determine the degree of peace and happiness we experience in this life.

What I’ve observed is that there appears to be three main ways that individuals can relate to the world, and that is either as victims, with full responsibility, or with integrated responsibility. The other thing I’ve observed is that this is largely a developmental process, where we move through these levels and at each new level there is a greater experience of freedom, flexibility, and happiness. In this series I’ll take you through a guided tour of each of these levels and also give you specific tips on how you move from one level to the next.

The Victim: Everybody has Got it Out for Me!

Victimhood is the predominant mode of being that we must initially fight to overcome. The world is so complex and crazy, especially when we’re younger and we’re still trying to figure things out. It’s no wonder that the first relationship one might have to that world is one of feeling victimized by it. It can feel at times that things are happening to us, that our completely outside of our control. And with that lack of control comes a phenomenal amount of fear, resentment, and anguish.

Oddly enough, sometimes the victim’s stance is take credit for something when it works out but then to feel deflated and depressed when it doesn’t. In this way they bounce between excitement and fear, being completely at the whim of outcomes. Also, they don’t really see there part in the “struggle of life”, or rather don’t see how their own beliefs and habits end up shaping their experience of life, and their participation in it. They are caught in a battle—with themselves and the conditions of their life—and it’s a Chinese knot that gets tighter with each new pull.

Full Responsibility: If It’s to Be It’s Up To…

At some point, one may realize that they are experiencing a tremendous amount of pain being the victim to conditions outside of them. If they realize this and then are exposed to the possibility that some other alternative exists, i.e. full responsibility, then there is a chance that if they have the courage to do so, they can begin to shift their relationship to life. The shift must be radical though.

Full responsibility is a movement toward beginning to think and act in the world, as if, you (or some other) are %100 responsible for what occurs in the world. Everything outside is seen as a reflection of this power, which can either be your individual power or the power of some Other (i.e. God). One’s mantra becomes, “If it’s to be it’s up to me” (or it’s up to God), and thereby begin to identify and work with the heart of the causality in the universe.

This radical movement begins to sever the victimized mentality that came before, and one now feels empowered to act in the world in whatever way they choose. This empowerment often brings with it a heightened sense of confidence and unshakeableness. No matter what happens, I can choose to relate to the situation in a fully mobile way. In this way we can begin to unwind and change the personal habits that no longer serve us, and we see that it is within our capability.

The other thing that full responsibility does, is to allow us to see the world not as a force that acts against us, but that one that works for our greatest good, either through our individual action or faith. One could argue that putting your faith in an Other (especially fully) is actually an extreme case of victimhood, but in reality it’s the opposite. When one looks for instance at the vow that Mother Theresa made—perhaps the most fully devoted woman of our times—to “Not refuse Him anything, under pain of death”. To truly fulfill this vow, and to put one’s faith in an Other fully, one has to exercise an extreme amount of self-reflection and is acting out of the same kind of responsibility that one who is seeing themselves as the source of all things is. In either case we’re dealing with some sort of ultimate power (whether it’s localized internally or externally) and that remains radically different from the stance of the victim.

Here are some tips for how, if you are operating from the role of victim, to move toward full responsibility:

Tips for Becoming Fully Responsible:

• Take the perspective that you are responsible for everything that happens - In every situation imagine what it would be like if you were ultimately responsible for everything. How does that change the situation, and the way you choose to respond in it. If for instance your partner and you get into a fight, you can ask yourself, how was I responsible for this fight? Instead of immediately blaming them, or becoming a victim, look at the ways in which you acted that helped to cause the situation. Then from there instead of perpetuating the fight, you can take responsibility for it.
• Take the perspective that a benevolent Other is responsible for everything - If you come from a background of faith, and feel a strong resonance with it’s teachings, try seeing everything that occurs in the world, including your own bad habits, as being in the hands of a benevolent being. Consider that everything that happens is for your, and others, greater welfare. Your practice then becomes to surrender fully to everything that arises, seeing that it is all an act of benevolence, even if you don’t know why, and you seek only to act in ways that in accord with this benevolence.
• Speak a language of responsibility - Notice when you say things like, “I have to…” and begin thinking, and speaking in terms of getting to do things. Also, notice how often you speak in terms of “you or they did this” and begin also speaking in terms of “I”. Instead of “She made me feel this way” one could instead say, “I choose to feel this way.” These shifts in language have a tremendous impact on our experience.
• Hang out with fully responsible people - Spend time with others who are already seeing the world this way. Find friends, mentors, and teachers who exude this degree of responsibility, and find out what makes them tick. Emulate the best parts of them, and step into greater freedom.
• Take new risks! - We’re always dealing with new challenges and opportunities, but part of what we did when were a victim was to try and isolate ourselves from those things, because they were seen not as opportunities but as threats. Now we can more fully engage with things we might not have otherwise tried, such as a new job, travel, a new skill, etc. Personal development becomes possible at this point, so give yourself to it fully!

The next post deals with yet another level of responsibility, one I’m calling integrated responsibility, and also gives tips for how to achieve it.

Productivity systems, if properly implemented, give us the opportunity not only to do more but to do it with more intelligence. Projects become manageable, goals are attainable, and our larger life purpose and vision are places we live from, not places we fantasize about. However, if used incorrectly, productivity systems also present a danger in terms of becoming unbalanced, or skewed, towards constant doing and busyness.

How can we make sure that our productivity remains in the service of our larger purpose, rather then becoming yet another distraction that clouds the mind and drains our vital energy?

about technologies of transformation, from personal productivity to personal power, mastery to meditation, self-development to self-transcendence.

Unlike other blog sites that recycle tired old aphorisms and over-generalizations, we will focus on precise, practical ways to bring about change using the richest and deepest models available, backed by real experience. We will wrestle with complex issues while keeping it simple.

Think of it as personal development 201.

Duff McDuffee, Ryan Oelke, and myself started this blog in preparation for a personal development podcast that we’re producing for Falling Fruit tv, and because all of the contributors are personal development nuts, and have been for years.

We also think that there is a unique voice missing in the personal development world, one that doesn’t rely on exaggerated claims and over-generalizations but instead utilizes context-specific precision and intelligent meaning-making to create lasting change. Join us as we explore the realms of self-actualization and self-transcendence on Precision Change and subscribe to the feed if you want to see if it fits with your interests.

A great article was published today on LifeClever about the oft mentioned claim that mastery of something takes about 10,000 hours of practice.

From what I’ve seen, this is true. This means that we are unlikely to master very many things! For it would take 5 years of 5.5 hours a day of practice, or 10 years of 2.75 hours a day of practice to master something by this formula. …

What one thing would you like to master? What is your life purpose and passion?

I left this comment: Yeah, that sounds about right. The one thing I’ve devoted the most time to (and obviously you already know this) is to formal meditation practice. From the little over 5 years practicing daily about an hour a day + the 6 1/2 months of full time practice I’d say I’ve spent about 4,000 hours meditating thus far, and I could totally see it taking near to 10,000 hours to really see having a handle on some of this stuff. That being said, it is amazing to see how hours in really do equal results out. Without getting to reductionistic about it, I do really think that looking at mastery in these terms makes anything possible, though as you mention one doesn’t have the time for everything (at least not until radical life extension becomes a reality) and so we have to narrow some of it down and go deep. Here’s to mastery!

The interview is actually quite good, and it provides a lot of clarity into Falling Fruit’s mission and vision, and why we are trying to be part of the “conscious business” movement. A question and answer from the interview on the relationship between Buddhism and Business:

You mentioned another show at Falling Fruit called Buddhist Geeks, and I know you practice Vipassana meditation. Please tell us more about Buddhism and business. Do you think that it’s possible to reconcile a Buddhist philosophy with a mentality of career success and wealth-building?

I do practice Vipassana, and the teacher in my tradition, S.N. Goenka, was a businessman before becoming a Vipassana teacher. He too wrestled with the greed and corruption in the business world, and anyone who takes Buddhist teachings seriously will have to come to their own integration.

Personally, I don’t see any inherent contradiction between career success and insight into the fundamental nature of life, if you understand the purpose of business, which I believe is to serve human needs. Now keeping that in mind, we all have a need for food, and if you habitually overeat, then you are not truly meeting your needs for nourishment and health. A certain amount of wealth will feed your own needs — happiness studies in the US have shown that after about $36,000 in income, a person is no more happy if they make more money. However, it’s hard to fund a new venture without a stockpile of extra cash! Falling Fruit was started in large part because two of our friends had access to trust funds, which helped kick off the project. The purpose of large amounts of accumulated wealth is not to overstuff yourself with luxury, but to feed new things — new businesses, new projects, and yes, to feed people too, via philanthropy and the creation of new jobs!

Plus the definition of career success seems to be changing. A lot of young people are being raised by parents who have accumulated all they ever wanted and yet are obviously unfulfilled. We don’t want to go through their suffering, so we are looking to have our cake and eat it too, to make a good living AND to live out our passions AND have 2 months off a year to meditate and do personal development AND to serve the world in the highest ways we can possibly imagine. Nothing else feels like “success” anymore.

Rock on Duff!

Brad’s argument centers on his claim that everyone is completely responsible for their own actions. This is a very enticing idea, and our system of law is based upon it to a degree, but there are exceptions. Children, for instance, are not deemed responsible for their own actions until they reach a certain age. According to the law this age is the same for everyone, but even a cursory examination of society reveals that different people develop their capacity for mental and moral reasoning at different rates. How are we to know, then, exactly when someone is capable of accepting full responsibility for their actions? Is personal responsibility simply a binary attribute that is turned off when we are born and then turned on when we become 18 years old? Alternately, does it start out at zero and then increase with the development of the individual?

I think Daniel shows a very nuanced understanding of the developmental dimension of responsibility, which in Brad’s article seems to be almost completely lacking. Of course, that it is lacking can be understood in development terms as well. Not only is there a move from being irresponsible to personally responsible (as Daniel describes above), but there is also a move from being responsible for what I do to being universally responsible. I am responsible for everything that happens in the universe, because I am that. The universal and personal and not separate, and so what I blog, what I say, what I condone, and the way I understand responsibility itself all have an important impact. Essentially, I think that is what Daniel was getting too, but that Brad may himself not be able to hear it, is itself part of the developmental issue-at-hand.