Welcoming Wholeness – The Magic of Multiplicity – PS101
We need one another to make sense of all that is going on around us. Finding our personal and collective wholeness contributes to our sense of belonging. In coming together, our combined intelligence, and intent for wholeness and belonging enables new wisdom and solutions to surface. In relationship with others, when we are welcomed, we taste the fullness of life.
The Literacy to strengthen our Appreciative Voice in this episode is Welcoming Wholeness – the inclusive Voice.
Global Wholeness
As humans, we are becoming more aware of our togetherness—of the relative smallness of a planet supporting 7+ billion people. Whether we want to think about it or not, what happens in one part of the globe impacts the rest of us. It’s unavoidable. We have to take our global wholeness into account. Nations and regions believe they should have a say in decisions being made on the other side of the world, on issues such as nuclear testing and the way we fish the oceans. The shift feels sudden, but as we learn more about the brain and physics, we are finding that the planet’s inhabitants have always been interconnected and interdependent.
The Micro and Macro Aspects of Wholeness
At the micro level, wholeness is about feeling whole within ourselves. We experience a deep appreciation for the importance of our own wholeness which is a caring for ourselves that is not separate from a deep caring for others. When we acknowledge we are imperfect beings, we become open to sharing our vulnerabilities. We come to recognize it’s our connection with others that helps address our need for unity, completeness, and belonging. That’s personal wholeness.
What we do as individuals impacts the whole and it works the other way round – it’s the nature of our relational world.
The micro and macro aspects of wholeness point to a wonderful quote from Jeff Foster, author and teacher on the topic of non-duality:
‘Non-duality’ is actually a translation of the Sanskrit word ‘Advaita,’ which simply means ‘not two’ and points to the essential oneness (wholeness, completeness, unity) of life, a wholeness which exists here and now, prior to any apparent separation. It’s a word that points to an intimacy, a love beyond words, right at the heart of present moment experience. It’s a word that points us back Home. And despite the compelling appearance of separation and diversity, there is only one universal essence, one reality. Oneness is all there is – and we are included.”
The Appreciative Voice Literacies Guide
Seven Literacies to living and leading in these times
A summary and infographics of all the literacies, offering a definition, a description and daily practices to amplify your appreciative voice, plus the articles and podcast episodes to explain each.
Invitation to Belonging
A feeling of welcome and belonging calls forth our best; it calls us forth in full. A true invitation to participation and collective dialogue on important issues creates trust that a group has the ability and commitment to find the way through. We find that this occurs through individual voices coming forward together.
What helps is the continual affirming invitation to soothe those initial, often unconscious fears sufficiently so that bonds begin to form and create a web of shared safety. Another great helper is to develop the ability to hold others in positive regard, and feel that same regard being extended toward ourselves as well. This regard accepts that humankind contains both light and shadow but does not confuse shadow with assumed unworthiness or humiliation. This element assumes competence, good will, strength, and willingness to contribute.
Meaningful conversations and ongoing inquiries open hearts and enable real listening. We know that careful design matters. Participatory methodologies facilitate free flowing communication and shared leadership which enable climates of trust and psychological safety. Key elements include who’s present, the reason or purpose for coming together, and defining a topic of importance to create the glue of common purpose. We love the saying, “People support what they themselves create.” We get the outcomes we design for.
Dailification: How Might We Welcome Wholeness Every Day?
At the micro level, we can accept our own wholeness – that we are complete, whole, amazing – and we can honor that everyday, knowing that fundamentally, we belong. We can practice moving from I-to-We in our way of working and being – mindful practices help.
At the macro level, in our families, communities and workplaces, we can strengthen our capacity to invite and include more voices, embracing the whole in all its multiplicity, knowing that, fundamentally, everyone connected to a particular group, belongs.
Questions we might ask as we plan for welcoming wholeness include:
- Who else will be impacted by what we think together?
- Are all the stakeholders here? If not, how will we reach them, connect to them, include them?
- How can we express the theme of our time together in a way that invites everyone’s participation?
The Continuum
We’ve begun the habit in every episode of inviting our listeners to consider where they see themselves on a continuum for each literacy.
Think: How good am I at Welcoming Wholeness in the moment? Then place yourself from 1–10 along the line. We’d love to hear what you’re thinking.
Next Time
Next time, on Appreciative Voice and Choice, we’ll focus on the literacy of Connecting the Collective, the engaging voice that focuses us on ways to live into the “we.”
Remember, it’s always your choice, to find and express your appreciative voice.
Connect with Sallie and Robyn
Sallie on LinkedIn
Robyn on LinkedIn, Twitter, Facebook, Google +, Positivity Strategist
Resources Mentioned in this Episode
From Jeff Foster on Non-Duality
The Carpenter Oak story on EnliveningEdge.org
Example of Jersey City Experiencing Wholeness and Belonging.
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