[Ailist] Re: Today (May 31, 2009) is the 8th annual What You Think upon Grows

[Howard Ditkoff]

Re: [Ailist] Re: Today (May 31, 2009) is the 8th annual What You Think upon GrowsThanks Bruce. That's really what I feel too. These cliches are often worthwhile when combined with others. But in isolation they're meaningless and often hopelessly oversimplified. There are many things that grow without us focusing on them and there are things we focus on our whole lives that we fail to manifest even though we might wish to. All of that is because there is a reality outside ourselves. To think our focus is the sole factor in determining what happens is extremely narcissistic indeed.

Howard
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Bruce Elkin 
  To: Howard Ditkoff ; ailist at lists.business.utah.edu 
  Sent: Sunday, May 31, 2009 11:15 PM
  Subject: Re: [Ailist] Re: Today (May 31, 2009) is the 8th annual What You Think upon Grows


    AI and many other fields promote this concept that "What You Think Upon Grows." Yet aren't many things growing precisely due to our lack of thinking about them? We don't think about genocide going on in Sudan and so allow it to grow, for example. I think these one-sided cliches are dangerous. You can get unhealthy results by overfocusing OR underfocusing on things. 

    Best,
    Howard



  Howard, all.
  I agree with you. While it's true that focusing on what we want increases our power to create it, we cannot close our eyes to what is. In creating desired results, we must focus on a clear vision of the results we want. And we must also accept and appreciate reality-as-it is (without judging it and adding emotional charge to it. The ability to hold both vision and reality in mind at the same time sets up a gap out of which a useful creative tension emerges. This creative tension provides the core energy for creation, complemented by motivation and momentum.

  It's pleasing to have a simplistic cliché such as "what you think upon grows" but as Einstein said, "A thing should be simple enough, but no simpler."  

  To create real and lasting results we need vision, reality, and action. These are the core elements that underlie all acts of creating.

  Cheers!
  Bruce
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