Are You on the Inside or the Outside of Jargon?
On an online network, the subject of word use became a topic of discussion. This is a worthy topic of discussion anywhere, but it seems especially important online, where the written word becomes the primary means of communication.
Several subtopics emerged in our discussion, including jargon. Jargon is a powerful time saver, if you are inside the circle of people who know its meaning. If you are outside that circle, though, the use of jargon can confuse, annoy, or exclude you. The extent this is problematic to you will depend on how much you want to be in the inner circle.
Entering any new subculture requires getting acquainted with the vernacular. Understanding acronyms, jargon, shortcuts, inside humor, and incomplete sentences are all part of getting acclimated to a subculture or inner circle. Consider the casual chatter about the Internet these days compared to, say, five years ago. Even over lunch time conversation, you will say or hear jargon like ISP, domain, spam, virtual networking, ezines, and on and on. Not that long ago, such conversations would have been very foreign.
As a consultant and coach, I find it absolutely essential to listen to the language of my clients and speak their language as much as possible. Sometimes I ask for clarification when I am unfamiliar with an expression, but often I let it go unquestioned, knowing that if it is important I will figure it out or it will come around again. By being with my clients in their vernacular, I can more easily introduce other language. I am constantly looking for how I can assist others in using language in more and more empowering ways.
Helping people to lift their consciousness through use of language is key to my work. If I let language that I think is silly (for example, “more is less”) pass without a comment, I can more easily focus on transforming language that is truly disempowering to language that creates desired change, whether the language is jargon or some other form of a shortcut or automatic response. For example, “I hate my job, I’m really stuck, everything’s going wrong. . .” are ideas that are truly disempowering and create a self-fulfilling prophecy. A more empowering idea, which is usually believable to the person expressing those ideas, is “I am ready for a job I love.”
Effective use of language clarifies meaning. When language creates confusion, not all is lost, because when confusion is out in the open, greater clarity can emerge. Language is creative. Underneath language are thoughts. Thoughts expressed in language become more tangible than thoughts unexpressed.
One of my favorite quotations of Albert Einstein expresses it so well, “If you can’t explain something simply, you don’t know enough about it.”
Jeanie Marshall is a Personal Development Consultant and Coach with Marshall House, http://www.mhmail.com She writes about personal empowerment, meditation, and effective use of language. She assists professional coaches and consultants to write at http://www.WritingByCoaches.com
Pluck it for the Bucket
Such fun I have been having with many client, filling energetic buckets with dense, yucky stuff that is either unneeded, unwanted, or destructive. It’s fun to pluck pain and heaviness out of the energy field. It’s more fun to fill the bucket with this stuff. It’s even more fun to live without this yucky stuff in the energy field! This is a very powerful process of imagery, provided the person doing it thinks it’s fun. Working with Energetic Techniques and Tools
I find that several steps are helpful when working with any energetic technique.
1. Identify High Intention. Identify a subject-relevant high intention or use the generic, all-purpose high intention: the highest good for all.
2. Honor the Divine. Honor the divine, by whatever concept or name you use: Spirit, Higher Power, Source, God, angels, higher consciousness. Without Spirit, nothing in the physical world exists.
3. Honor the Human. Honor the human experience on this magnificent earth plane. Without the Physical, Spirit is an amorphous energy.
4. Suspend Criticism. Suspend criticism and negative judgment about yourself or others. Notice such dynamics enough to recognize that they belong in the bucket.
5. Drop the ego. When the ego gets out of hand, a good place to drop it is in the bucket is a good place. The ego, of course, does have an important function for differentiation and survival. However, when you align with the divine, you only pay lip service to “highest good” when the ego tries to control the outcome.
6. Recognize the Tool. Recognize that the bucket is a tool you have created. It can be both a powerful and playful means for neutralizing violence and resentment and other toxicity. Do not give your power away to this or to any other process or tool or idea or person, but remember to use every means available to assist yourself and others.
7. Release and Trust. Release expectations, fears, and rules; trust yourself while using such processes and tools.
8. Express Thanks. Say thank you. Often. Gratitude is a powerful energy which creates more good.
Case Study
John supervises Jane in a small, family-owned business. Jane had felt she was doing a superb job; John found something to criticize in virtually all that she did. The pattern the two of them wanted to break was the passing back and forth of anger and resentment. Each tells the story with different nuances, but a deep listener can certainly hear that their two stories are the same. Here is my synthesis of their individual accounts:
John gets angry and snaps at Jane, Jane feels hurt and resentful and makes snide comments to John which makes him more angry prompting him to find more criticism with Jane to which Jane responds with deeper hurt feelings and resentment followed by striking out at John directly, indirectly, and behind his back which leads John to retaliate with… Oh, well, you get the scenario and you have probably lived the scenario, as well, with different names and reactions. Jane and John were experts at passing toxicity back and forth.
Traditional and Energetic Strategies
In my consulting practice, I advocate working with a myriad of strategies: some conventional, some unconventional. For this type of situation, some of the conventional approaches are: discussion of the issues and needs/desires for changes, commitment to a new way of being together, and letting go of the past. I consider these all valuable. However, since the patterns were well-practiced, with each benefiting enough in some way to keep the conflict alive, John and Jane would be unlikely to sustain changes just by making resolutions. Or, John and Jane might be able to act out new behavior with each other, yet re-create the old patterns with other persons. Changes made in the energy field rather than on the surface with polite words and correct behavior yield transformation.
And, indeed, John and Jane experienced deep transformation. I trained them to envision buckets in the energy field. Sturdy, galvanized buckets. Later, John’s bucket turned into a black wrought-iron urn and Jane’s turned into a beautiful painted ceramic bowl.
Now, each time either of them has a negative thought about the other, he or she places the toxic energy of the thought in the bucket. With the energy field cleared of negativity, they can talk as two responsible adults who have a shared goal to work for the same company. They continue to have difference, which is no surprise because they are very different individual, but now they have a light-filled process that works for them. They are also now more receptive to making their differences work to benefit both.
With the buckets in place and actively used by both of them, they have found it easier to communicate more honestly, refer less and less to the past, and are beginning to engage in true collaboration. The common expression to “clear the air” applies to Jane and John’s situation. In fact, the air of this whole small organization has been cleared relatively quickly.
Buckets to You!
The beauty of the energetic bucket is that it’s impersonal, sturdy, fun, cost-effective, and omnipresent. You empower it with the quality of transmuting negativity without polluting anyone. It’s required, however, that someone from the human consciousness remember to use it. So, pluck it for the bucket!
Copyright 2006 Marshall House, http://www.mhmail.com. Jeanie Marshall, Empowerment Consultant and Coach with Marshall House writes extensively on subjects related to personal development and empowerment. Discover her guided meditations at the Voice of Jeanie Marshall, http://www.jmvoice.com
Creating the Reality of Your Life
Your reality is shaped by your beliefs, thoughts, and previous experiences. Your reality is a function of your consciousness. Current experiences, of course, further shape or prove or disprove your thoughts and beliefs that redefine your reality.
I remember an incident many years ago as vividly as if it happened yesterday. A friend was quite offended when I said “We create our own reality.” I specifically used the collective “we” so she understood that I meant everyone, not just her. She defended an opposite belief; she preferred to believe that the world does things to her. I rarely argue about beliefs, so I let the difference pass.
I am grateful that I had such an experience early in my career. Since this incident, I have been more cautious about how I present this idea. It depends on your current state of consciousness as to how you are likely to view this phenomenon of creating your own reality. For example,
* If you are a person who feels like a victim, you might perceive this statement as an accusation.
* If you are a person who is overly controlling (or one who wants to take control), you might consider the statement is an invitation to manipulate the Universe.
* If you are a person who desires to accept responsibility for your life, you are likely to find this idea of creating your own reality deeply transformational. If a particular situation is a mess, the idea that you can create a new situation is empowering. So, what at first seems like “bad news” is “good news.”
Recently, I worked with a client who considered he was in a mess. Jim did not question the fact that he had created this mess, because he had already embraced the idea of creating his own reality. His questions was, “Why would I do this to myself?” I immediately responded with “I don’t think that’s a very helpful question now. Let’s look at ‘how’ rather than ‘why’ so that you can use the same strategies to help you out of the mess that got you into the mess.” Our discussion was much richer as a result of looking at “how” rather than “why.” Quickly we identified the specific thoughts and concepts that led him into the mess, and honed in on those to began his journey out of the mess.
“Why would I do this to myself” was not a wise question for Jim at that time for a very specific reason. I recognized a belief in him that I also recognize in so many people these days who embrace or try to embrace the idea of “creating your own reality.” Often packaged with this principle, unfortunately, is the belief that you do certain things to yourself so that you can learn something that you missed learning earlier.
Without a doubt, you can learn something from every situation, whether the situation is empowering or disempowering. However, I think more often it is a desire to recover as much value as possible from a mess that allows you to find meaning in a messy situation. Unfortunately, the prevailing conclusion is that the mess is required to create the learning. I know you can learn from any situation, so I encourage you to be aware of what you are learning whether you stand in a state of joy or a state of messiness.
“What thoughts put me here?” is a more valuable question than “Why would I do this to myself?” It is the thoughts (beliefs, perceptions, opinions, ideas, etc.) that create your reality. You use thoughts to create your reality, whether you are aware of the thoughts or not and whether you are aware of the process or not. So, if a certain set of thoughts got you into a mess that you do not like, then another set of thoughts can get you out of the mess. If you get hung up pondering why you are in the mess, you are likely to be in the mess longer, rarely receiving a significant return on investment of time and energy.
If you use your thoughts and beliefs as tools instead of perceiving them as facts, you bring into your conscious awareness something that is already and always working for you. Some may say thoughts work against you rather than for you, but I consider that depends on whether you are in a mess or have stepped out of one.
Thoughts and beliefs work on all levels of your consciousness. Some beliefs you are aware of enough to articulate, others you become aware of as you think or talk, if you listen to yourself. Others are inherited or cultural; many beliefs are taught as facts in school and elsewhere. It is helpful to remember for every thought that exists, its opposite or absence also exists. It can be very empowering to recognize that you choose your thoughts from among the myriad of possibilities.
The more strongly held the belief, on any level of consciousness including cultural consensus, the more likely you are to create reality that substantiates the belief. A helpful definition of a belief is a repeated thought.
Let’s go to a party… Let’s suppose you go to a party with two others: one person has a pattern of seeing what is wrong and/or missing; the other has a pattern of seeing what is right and/or wonderful. Afterward, the three of you talk about the party. As you compare notes, you begin to wonder if you all were at the same party. Yes, you were at the same party physically. No, you were not at the same party in consciousness. Each of the three of you created your own party. This is magnificently empowering.
Copyright 2006 Marshall House, http://www.mhmail.com. Jeanie Marshall, Empowerment Consultant and Coach with Marshall House writes extensively on subjects related to personal development and empowerment. Discover her guided meditations at the Voice of Jeanie Marshall, http://www.jmvoice.com
Empowerment at Work
The word “empower” has potency and strength. It’s used frequently these, some say “overused.” It’s also misused. Similar to the concept of “motivation,” the most common misuse of the idea of empowerment is that one person can empower another. Empowerment, as I use the word, is an inner-to-outer dynamic, most usefulwhen preceded by silence and awareness of inner guidance. Empowerment is not simply another way to “get” something, it’s a condition that supports you in living life fully.
Empowered Persons
Empowered persons are balanced, confident, aware, vital, caring, and ready. Those who are empowered are not depressed, confused, aggressive, divisive, or wishy washy. Of course, even empowered persons have days or moments of confusion or frustration or doubt, but the predominant expression is one of confidence and strength and consideration of themselves and others. Also, empowerment can be situational, that is to say, you may feel and be empowered in one situation but not another.
Most people, though certainly not all, like to be in the presence of those who are truly empowered because the energy in and around them is contagious and healing. Empowered persons are eager to laugh and experience the moment in a way that helps others to find their own power. When empowered persons shine their light, others can more easily find their own light. The behavior of empowered persons is often imitated, but empowerment is not just a set of actions and behavior. Actions aligned with inner knowingness and strength are necessary for true empowerment. Enlightened consciousness is the source of empowered actions rather than the other way around. Since empowered persons are powered from the inside, they carry their power with them.
As I’ve mentioned above in a positive way, let me be clear here what empowered persons don’t do: empowered persons don’t get their power from other persons. Empowered persons don’t hit or overpower or trample on others’ rights, make malicious remarks, put others down, use derogatory humor, dominate meetings, or suppress others. Empowered persons don’t give their power away to others, nor do they let others take their power (which is simply a variation on “giving away power).
To be empowered, you must release outdated beliefs, dense vibrations, repressed fears and resentments. To be empowered, you must replace disempowering beliefs with those that are empowering. To be empowered, you must be conscious of the focus of your attention, your thoughts, and your feelings. To be empowered, consider your own desires and beliefs and feelings as well as others’ desires and beliefs and feelings. To be empowered, start where you are right now without feeling wrong or believing you need to be “fixed.”
Empowered Organizations
Empowered organizations are composed of empowered persons, although it’s not necessarily true that a group of empowered persons automatically creates an empowered organization. Organizations that are truly empowered have moved out of the old paradigm of negative competition and beliefs in limitation and scarcity. Many persons, including me, like to consider the empowered organization is one that is moving or has moved into a “new paradigm.”
Empowered organizations in the new paradigm have transformed themselves so that they’re able to demonstrate such characteristics as: clear and honest communications, collaboration within and between work units (usually called teams), shared responsibility in all aspects of task and process, and delivery of high quality products and services driven by customer/client needs.
Persons in empowered organizations are likely to talk about the “joy” of work and feeling “love” for their team mates, although such words may not be expressed nor are the expression of such such words proof of empowerment.
Moving from There to Here
Most individuals agree with the desirability of concepts like “open communications,” “collaboration,” and “customer-driven” goals. However, established norms often prevent embodying the actions that bring these concepts into fruition. Distrust still prevails in many organizations, especially those faced with downsizing efforts that have been or are being carried out with brutal methods. Belief that an organization is in business for the sole purpose of earning money keeps organizations stuck in dysfunctional patterns.
It’s important to respect where an individual or organization is right now. Simply pushing a new paradigm on an old one doesn’t work. Lasting change happens from the inside out. The organizational structure of the old paradigm is linear and vertical: top-down and bottom-up. Ignoring the chain of command is an offense in many traditional organizations, reinforcing this linear approach.
As organizations downsize or otherwise change their structure, the linear and vertical movement tends to change to horizontal and circular. The old approach of looking to see what the one at the top of the organization wants shifts to looking inside to discern what serves the highest good with the help of intuition. Some of the popular names for the new organizations that are in alignment with this horizontal-circular-inward formation are: “team,” “cluster,” “learning organization,” “circles,” and “networks.”
With my window of looking at energy fields and working with energetic principles, I find the “flattening” of organizations to be exciting and forward-moving. The flattening (eliminating layers of management and other realignments) may not feel very positive when it’s happening, but the end results can be extremely positive. Out of the chaos grow the new forms and patterns of working and being together to do business. Chaos theory that has emerged over the last few years can help you to understand this act of discovery and creation of all kinds of systems.
Chaos theory also helps you to understand paradigms: old, new, and emerging. A new form or pattern or paradigm emerges when the old one no longer works. For those of you who find my definition of paradigms too simplistic, I encourage you to read one or more of the following books.
Chaos: Making a New Science by James Gleick
Future Edge: Discovering New Paradigms of Success by Joel Barker
The Fifth Discipline: The Learning Organization by Peter Senge
Managing as a Performing Art by Peter Vaill
Leadership and the New Science by Margaret J. Wheatley
Who is empowered?
You are empowered because of who you are,
not because of your relationship to others.
Empowerment comes from inside, not outside.
Guided by high intention, this power is used for the good of all.
Competition leads you to believe that resources are limited. When you turn within, you recognize that creativity is unlimited,
leading you to unlimited resources.
You compete with a belief in limited power.
You are empowered by unlimited power.
Today, help someone else to be empowered.
Such an act might help you find your own power.
Copyright 2006 Marshall House, http://www.mhmail.com. Jeanie Marshall, Empowerment Consultant and Coach with Marshall House writes extensively on subjects related to personal development and empowerment. Discover her guided meditations at the Voice of Jeanie Marshall, http://www.jmvoice.com
Energy at Work
Energy works for you, with you, in you, and as you. In fact, you are energy.
In the workplace, when you enhance your sensitivity to energy you can enhance your experience of empowerment, effectiveness, and efficiency. Energy is synonymous with movement. When energy is blocked, you are less creative and satisfied.
Energy is at work every place, not just in the workplace. Enhancing your awareness of energy assists you in every situation. As your awareness of energy increases, you find an even greater need or desire to be more aware of energy to facilitate the ever-increasing acceleration of creativity and intuition. It is exponential.
You notice energy in your own unique way. The ways available to you include: your five physical senses, your sense of balance, your intuition, and your feelings. I call these “noticing mechanisms” or “channels of perception.” As you notice these noticing mechanisms, they become more efficient and effective. As you notice energy, energy flows in the direction you notice. Your attention expands whatever you are noticing.
You are individually responsible for how you direct this flow of energy, so it is important that you focus on the areas that you consider to be worthy of your attention. What is worthy of one person’s attention is not necessarily worthy of another person’s attention. The world keeps expanding because you view, read, and interpret energy in ways that are different from others. Differences are to be celebrated, not absorbed into sameness.
Have you noticed an increase in activity and creativity in all parts of your life, with more and more of everything? You have more ideas than you can carry out. And so do others! More technology exists than most individuals can comprehend. The Internet connects people from different parts of the world in ways that are not possible through any other medium. With more and more of everything, you must be more discerning about how to invest your energy — at work, at play, at home, in the world.
Reading energy is a powerful skill for helping you to find the products or friends or ideas or travel routes or jobs that are worthy of your attention and/or are more efficient, effective, or empowering. You are reading and interpreting energy all the time, because everything is energy. If you do not think of relating to people, places, things and ideas as reading energy, just open yourself to that possibility. With awareness and practice, you can learning how to read energy more clearly.
Here is a simple approach to reading energy more clearly over time:
1. Set an intention to be more aware of energy. (For example, “I want to be more aware of energy.”)
2. Close your eyes or focus your eyes on a blank wall or paper. (You can practice best with no one around by closing your eyes; if others are present, choose a focal point that minimizes your looking for verbal clues.)
3. Listen inside yourself. (Focus the attention inside yourself for the most effective reading of energy.)
4. Notice how you feel. (Use any or any combination of your noticing mechanisms.)
5. Repeat. (The only way to become really good at reading energy is to practice, practice. practice.)
How are you going to notice and use your energy today? This week? At your next meeting? In the next hour?
Copyright ? 2006 Marshall House, http://www.mhmail.com. Jeanie Marshall, Empowerment Consultant and Coach with Marshall House writes extensively on subjects related to personal development and empowerment. Discover her guided meditations at the Voice of Jeanie Marshall, http://www.jmvoice.com