Brain Function

In my previous post, “ What Is Home ?,” I mentioned three centers of knowing as being central to being at home inside ourselves. Some of you might have been wondering what that means and how it might help you in the variety of roles you play: leader, colleague, neighbor, parent, grandparent, student. Let’s take a brief look into what three-centered knowing or three-centered awareness means and then how it might serve you. Throughout my investigations into the brain, Feldenkr

—Arnold Mindell , As noted in my previous post , Alan Briskin and I think of a “field” as a dynamic, living series of perceptible forces emanating from multiple sources inside and around us that influence how we feel, think, and behave. Field phenomena include everything from how you feel with good friends, to social customs and group norms you might take for granted, as well as  conflicts that arise among competing factions. When we think of them in this way, fields are ever

Once upon a time one of my dear friends quipped, “My body? It’s just a garage for my brain.” I chortled, recognizing my own perspective. Her name was Mary too. This was several decades ago. Now, I know better. The body is not an empty structure in which to park anything. Nor is it anything to unconsciously push around as if it were an object, subject to my demands or anyone else’s.  The Body is a living process that includes the brain and that is also intricately and utterly

In conversations, human brain function is both a blessing and a burden. Brain function is a blessing when it enables us to communicate what we think and care about and listen to the same in others. Brain function is a burden when we automatically jump to the conclusion that what others are saying or doing is a threat. These conversation exchanges are when we have “knee jerk reactions” like interrupting or criticizing them, defending ourselves, or simply checking out. Because

A note from Mary : Last Saturday night, my husband, Roger James, and I watched the last episode of HBO’s five-part mini-series “ Chernobyl .” It tells the story of the nuclear accident that occurred on April 26, 1986, in the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant in the north of the Ukrainian SSR. The accident led to the deaths of thousands and poisoned the surrounding earth for generations to come. As the last credits rolled off the screen, we sat in silence. I was on the verge of cr

The complexity of issues facing us is outstripping our ability to understand and solve them. Governmental institutions spin on gerbil wheels of outmoded, linear processes and procedures, attempting to tackle issues with multiple, inter-connected parts one part at a time. This is as true in the United States Congress as it is in state legislatures and city councils. In the world of business, economic considerations (i.e., profit), trumps all other criteria in determining whet

This entry* on attention is the final one of a five-part series on what we know about the impact of contemplative practice on the human brain and the relevance of these findings to doing meaningful work in groups. The  first  entry introduces this series and describes the impact of meditation on whether we can respond effectively to disturbing events instead of reacting to them. The  second  one investigates resilience; the  third  considers empathy and compassion; and the  f

This entry on attention is the fourth in a five-part series. The series describes what we know about the impact of contemplative practice on the human brain and the relevance of these findings to doing meaningful work in groups. The  first entry  introduces this series and describes the impact of meditation on whether we can respond effectively to disturbing events instead of reacting to them. The  second entry  investigates resilience and the  third  considers empathy and co

This entry on empathy and compassion is the third in a five-part series. The series describes what we know about the impact of contemplative practice on the human brain and the relevance of these findings to doing meaningful work in groups. The  first entry  introduces this series and describes the impact of meditation on whether we can respond effectively to disturbing events instead of reacting to them. The  second entry  investigates resilience. One of the most popular an

This entry on resilience is the second in a five-part series. The series describes what we know about the impact of contemplative practice on the human brain and the relevance of these findings to doing meaningful work in groups. The first entry  introduces this series and describes the impact of meditation on whether we can respond effectively to disturbing events instead of reacting to them. Over forty years ago, I started dabbling with meditation because I became frustra

This entry is the first in a five-part series. It will describe what we know about the impact of contemplative practice on the human brain, and the relevance of these findings to doing meaningful work in groups. For 15 years I’ve been tracking the impact of meditation on the human brain and its potential to help people be more constructive in meetings. In my work as a leader, consultant and facilitator it seems to me that the impact of fear and anger on people’s ability to i

In a recent meeting with a client Roger and one of the organization’s senior managers expressed their concerns about a direction the CEO wanted to go. The CEO had spent a lot of time thinking about this direction and was confident it was right. Because this executive has a growth mindset, however, he listened to Roger’s and the manager’s concerns and changed his mind, “I got it. I just needed to think it through again.” Had this CEO had a fixed mindset, he would have dismisse