Last week, while I was teaching at the Estes Park Institute, I had the pleasure to listen to my friend and mentor, Lee Kaiser.  Lee is a psychologist, futurist, and provocateur with a cherubic face, booming voice, and razor-sharp intellect.  I make every effort to hear him speak because I find his insights centering and stimulating.  He helps me to put life’s disruptions into perspective.  I strongly encourage you to visit his blog, Gnostic Notes. 

Gnosticism refers to knowledge, recognition, and wisdom.  In Peeling the Onion, Lee refers to gnostics as fellow mountain climbers who come from different backgrounds but are climbing the mountain together and providing assistance to fellow travelers as needed, i.e. collaborating.

In I Am Beside Myself, he postulates that most people and most organizations see themselves at the center of the universe, which leads to egocentric, self-interested approaches that facilitate exploiting others for competitive advantage, hardly a sustainable approach to differentiation and the service of others.

Lee maintains that there is no economic, social, or political solution to the current healthcare crisis.  Spirituality, based on abundance, collaboration, and sharing provides the only solution because it makes problems disappear.

I don’t expect all of you to follow Lee like the Pied Piper.  In Junk in Your Life, he maintains that we develop strength by pushing against something.  Resistance builds strength and resilience. 

In It Will Hit the Fan, he notes, “Folks you know and associate with on a regular basis may be unable to reconcile your choices with their inaccurate image of who you are. At the very least, you will be asked to justify yourself. At the worst you may be threatened and intimidated.  You should not act in a way that encourages confrontation. However, you should not back away from it either. You do not have to apologize for who you are … Give a simple answer to your accusers and get on with your life.”

“The old control game of threat, intimidation, hurt and silence will become familiar to you as you go about your world work. You have a unique destiny to pursue. Following this destiny often cuts across the vested interests of people you know, like, or love. So, you must either fold your cards or continue to play out your hand in the game of life. If you seek to maintain harmony at any cost – the cost will be your failure to progress on the pathway of Light. So, expect that sooner or later it will hit the fan and you will have to make a choice to retreat or go forward.”

What do you think:

• Do you find Lee’s writing stimulating and unsettling
• Who is at the center of your universe
• Have you found yourself confronted
• How do we move forward to improve care for our communities

As always, I welcome your thoughts.

 Kenneth H. Cohn