Obama and the real change ...

Mood Uplift ... to begin this blog, here's a related link to an early video we produced for stress reduction and feeling better ... enjoy:

http://takechargeonline.com/itar.html

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Time Magazine recently ran an important if skewed article on "How Obama is using the science of change ..." It's true, Obama is very sharp when it comes to change, and how our attitudes ultimately determine everything that happens in our country. But what does this really mean?

The Time article indicated that change, from a behaviorist's point of view, is something that is manipulated by the government, to force change through 'nudging' it with behavioral tactics. 

• The article assumed that Americans won't change their attitudes on their own - but that we must have governmental manipulation. Right or wrong?
  

Perhaps realistically, a bit of both. I do support Obama's intent to use behavioral insights and techniques up to a point, in order to advance the change that Americans voted him into office to lead us toward and into ... but ultimately, be very careful here - manipulation is manipulation, whether it's on the right or the left.

•  Americans are in fact capable of consciously changing their attitudes themselves, rather than being cleverly forced into change at subliminal levels.
  

TIME MAG PLAYING DUMB

From my perspective, the cynical author of this Time article needs to to clearly cited for drawing a most unfair and noxious conclusion about the human spirit. His name is Michael Grunwald, and he ends the article on change in America by saying: 

"We need better policies, not better attitudes." 

Now that's just plain dumb. Forgive me for sounding like a pundit, but in response to such a statement, I'm a bit tiffed. 

This attitude that we don't need to change our attitudes because government can change them for is, runs directly against my life's work of providing 'awareness management' tools to help people consciously evolve their attitudes. 

Yes we can ... change our attitudes for the better. 

When used properly, consciousness-evolving tools do work. 

• What Americans need is ready universal access to the mental tools that encourage rapid conscious change. This is a wiser approach than focusing on 'enlightened' manipulative governmental policies. 

ENLIGHTENED DEMOCRACY

Policy Statement:  Rather than being cleverly nudged in healthy directions by external governmental tricks, we need to encouraged to wake up and see our choices, and trusted to make the right ones. 

• That's true democracy - being educated about our choices, and then being set free to make our own conscious steps in directions we choose.
  

The crucial issue at stake is - are we really such dumb dogs that we'll forever make the wrong choices? Or are we, right now, becoming a more awakened populace that is going to do the right thing because we ourselves have changed our attitudes for the better?

Debilitating Attitudes ... look a moment at the basic attitude the Time author is perpetrating - that left on our own, Americans will always go the easy status-quo lazy dumb way ... because we're lazy and dumb and can't be trusted to make green etc decisions on our own. 

I say - let's change that particular prevailing attitude!

• I suspect that deep-down, Obama does trust and respect the American spirit to grow, to wake up, to evolve into more sustainable attitudes. And I'm pleased that he's educated in behavioral science. I am too. 
  

But there's something beyond manipulative techniques for generating change.

Beyond manipulation of the human spirit, there's the awakening of that spirit.

We wake up when:  

     a) our comfort zone is disturbed (such as right now) 

     b) we're forced to re-evaluate the situation (as we are right now)

     c) we expand our awareness of the situation: 

     d) we see a better way ... and act on it!

INNER ACTION TIME

Every moment of every day, we're all in position to do just this - 

1:  Pause and become more aware of ourselves and our situation ... 

2:  Perceive the situation more clearly in a new light ...

3:  Choose to let go of attitudes and behaviors that don't serve us...

4:  Act in ways that expresses our new attitudes and perspectives.  

This is what we did when we threw off King George for democracy.

This is what we did when we threw off slavery.

This is what we did when we voted Barack and Michelle as our new leaders.

And so now ... what to do?

Rather than expecting our leaders to nudge us unconsciously toward change, I recommend that we actively take the big leap of responsibility (as Obama encourages us) and consciously learn how to generate our own change ... 

... and that will be change we can trust.

John Selby / with new video blogs at www.iUplift.com

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