The Mega-Forces and New Pattern for Success

Phase 2 Life Intro and Stage A' - New Pattern for Success Seminar - Part 2-8

2007-04-30T23:53:38-05:00

This Post is the eighth installment of Part 2 entitled Phase 2 Life Intro and Stage A' - Part 2-8. Its materials are available to you in two ways. First, as three downloadable files - One for the edited Text material, one for the Visual material and one for Visual examples of persons, events and places that illustrate Stage A' life. Second, in the Extended Post below you can read the Text of the Phase 2 Life Intro and Stage A' - Part 2-8. section.

This Post continues to present Part 2 of the The New Pattern for Success seminar series. Part 2 is entitled Mega-Force 1 - World Human Transformation to Living System Life and Work.

You can download the Text of Phase 2 Life Intro and Stage A' - Part 2-8 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part2-8-Text-032607.pdf

You can download the Visuals of Phase 2 Life Intro and Stage A - Part 2-8 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part2-8-Vis-032607.pdf

You can download the Visual examples of persons, events and places at Stage A' -Here Download NewPatSuc-Part2-8-HPSStageExamp-032607.pdf

Click on the Continue reading link below to read the Text of Phase 2 Life Intro and Stage A' - Part 2-8 .

I look forward to your Questions, Comments and Suggestions.

John Clayton Caris

********************************

LIVING SYSTEM LIFE AND WORK -
THE NEW PATTERN FOR SUCCESS

A Series of Presentation/Discussions
To Explore Critical Issues
For Your Life and Your Business

by Dr. John Clayton Caris
Isis Institute

Part 2 - Mega-Force 1 –
World Human Transformation
to Living System Life and Work

Begin Part 2–8 – Phase 2 Life Intro and Stage A’

Phase 2 Life – Stage A’ – Living System Life and Work

We have come to our destination in this Part 2 – We are now ready to discuss the Human Psyche System stage that is driving Mega-Force 1 – The World Human Transformation – That is – Stage A’ – Living System Life and Work. We now know where it came from in the process of stage-by-stage psyche transformations through history and through each of our lives. We know it is the first stage of a whole new Phase 2 of human life that is a dramatic break from all of the six previous psyche stages of Phase 1 life.

Slide 2 – Diagram of Human Psyche System Stages

I use this diagram again to emphasize the dramatic transformation in the human psyche that comes at Phase 2 life and its first stage – Stage A’. Recall that the prime mark on the A means that A’ is the first stage of a whole new pattern of life.

The Flip-Flops of individual and then collective excesses that occurred at each Cycle throughout Phase 1 life stop. An important example is that individual/collective antagonism disappears at Stage A’. Individuals and Collectives can integrate and collaborate to become partners. Real teamwork can begin. At Stage A’ it is the natural choice people make – Not something you need to convince people to do. The psyche is now really open – It can operate as a Living System – A person’s Conscious and Unconscious can begin a collaborative partnership that has powerful effects on creating new results that go far beyond just conscious thinking. People gain the powerful insight that the Unconscious is the source for really new creations flowing into the Conscious.

Slide 3 – Phase 2 Underlying Pattern of Life - #1

Let’s look at the overall pattern of Phase 2 life relative to the Phase 1 stages we have discussed so far. Here is where Phase 1 Psyche Stage Patterns Break Down. You recall that the Phase 1 pattern at each stage is to separate life’s bi-polar opposites – To choose one pole as good and the other pole as bad – To consider the opposite poles as mutually exclusive and in conflict with each other. Recall that each stage had its own variety of individual vs. collective antagonism – Each stage had its own type of end-point goals and drive for salvation – Its own type of desired position in life to achieve, to stabilize and then protect. All of this passes away at Phase 2 life and Stage A’.

Stage A’ behavior does not focus on protecting and justifying what it now knows or believes – Its behavior is uniquely different than any previous stage because a person functioning in Stage A’ pattern actively searches for new knowledge and beliefs that negate what it now knows and believes – This is a breakthrough that has many consequences – For example, fixed End-Point Goals in life become meaningless. Life is perceived as a flowing process with short term mile-stone goals embedded in the flexible process. Also, the old conservative vs. liberal conflict now seems silly. Further practical effects for human creation and advancements, for business strategy and planning are profound.

As Phase 2 life begins, new underlying patterns emerge. The most fundamental new pattern is integrating life’s bi-polar opposites into balanced complementary pairs not separate them into Good pole vs. Bad pole. Now both poles are perceived as being mutually necessary, supporting, enabling, and collaborating with each other. The example of searching for how to negate and replace what you now know and believe is only one practical result of integrating opposites.

Let’s take other bi-polar examples to emphasize my point – Consider Order vs. Chaos or Conscious vs. Un-conscious. Recall that at Stage E these opposite poles were really mutually exclusive – It was either one or the other, because one meant the absence of the other. Then at Stage F these opposite poles were no longer mutually exclusive – They had some relative value depending on the situation, but they were not integrated into essential pairs – They were still two poles that seem to have some relative merit.

Then at Stage A’ there is a radical shift – BOTH poles become not only relatively important in life, but they become mutually essential, supporting, enabling and their balanced collaboration is a practical guide for living and working. For instance, a modern living system organization must have a balanced mix of both order and chaos to be healthy. They enable and support each other.

Also, the balanced collaboration of the Conscious and Unconscious is essential for creating new results far beyond what you can do with just conscious thinking – Either conscious thinking or unconscious imagination by Itself is horribly limited. A continuous dialog between your Conscious and Unconscious becomes possible at Stage A’. It unlocks a potent flood of innovation and creation through practicing what is called “Active Imagination” – It was discovered by Carl Jung for use in therapy, but can be directly applied in business as we have proved.

I am trying to give you insight into discontinuous human shifts between Phase 1 life and Phase 2 life. I am trying to introduce the mindset of persons and groups living in Phase 2 pattern. This is still a strange unreal world for many – In fact, probably the majority today, may consider it rather crazy. But we are not concerned with that at all. We are concerned with understanding the emerging human nature of the leading-edge persons and groups who are beginning to live the New Pattern for Success. Let’s go on.

At Stage A’ harmony of individuals and their collectives become the psychological base for organizing and operating as networks of teams. People and organizations naturally begin to use a pattern of life and work that is “Continuous Process” – It has milestone goals embedded in the process. The process becomes primary. Goals are still important. But there are no longer fixed end-point goals in life and work because there are no end-points in a continuous process – There is only the drive for continuous becoming as a human and achievement as a worker – Not some type of end-point salvation to be won.

I want to emphasize the dynamic dialog and partnership between Conscious and Unconscious and the means to begin living as a whole balanced person. These are called the Active Imagination Process and Individuation Process, both coming from the pioneering work of Carl Jung. They are critical for transforming the processes for human relationships and creating results in organizations that lead to new productivity never before even imagined. We plan further programs to enable leaders to really understand and practice them.

Slide 4 – Phase 2 Underlying Pattern of Life - #2

There are more characteristics of the overall pattern of Phase 2 life you should be aware of. Recall the unbalanced performance of both Stage E and Stage F in terms of outer world results – Western Stage E pattern is obsessed for material results at the expense of human balance and Western Stage F is obsessed with human needs at the expense of material balance. Their current mixture in business and political leadership continues to make a horrible mess of things.

The drive to achieve outer world results returns strongly at Stage A’. But it returns through totally new patterns of motivation, leadership, organization and operations with balanced concerns for human, material and whole system performance. This drive is implemented through Living System leadership and organization that I will introduce to you in a few minutes.

The primary quest at Stage A’ is for quality of life, not quantity, and for continuous process of becoming, not for end-points. An unbalanced quest for quantity, separate self-interest and fixed end-point goals are not valued. This dramatic shift in primary quest underlies why conventional motivation and reward systems are no longer working for the most highly productive people who are beginning their leap to Phase 2 life.

Personal and work relationships also undergo dramatic transitions. Person-to-person and team relationships are built upon living system interdependence that replaces BOTH Stage E linear system independent relationships and Stage F relativistic system dependent relationships. The independent self-interest drive of Stage E – The dependent group-interest of Stage F – Are both transcended. Narrow self-interest at the expense of the group and individuals – And broad group-interest and coercion at the expense of individuals – Are both seen to be unacceptable.

A person functioning in the Stage A’ pattern realizes you cannot be separate, cannot be independent, or cannot be objective – Because you are embedded in a network of relationships and process. This does not mean you cannot be an individual – Not at all. You are now an Interdependent individual. In fact you are a stronger individual than ever before because you are embedded in interdependent relationship network. This is another of the many apparent paradoxes that are the heart of living system life.

This is not crazy as it might seem. Let me give you an example – In a really good marriage, the partners can find themselves becoming stronger and more fulfilled and can help the other person be the same because they are mutually embedded in an interdependent relationship. It can work the same way for a good team, like in sports – Individual members can find themselves performing at a higher level just because they are embedded in effective interdependent relationships within the team. Both self-serving independence and weakening dependence are not of value on such teams. Networks of interdependent teams are the forefront of organization and leadership.

Living System Science is about open interdependent networks on the operating plane and their relationships to simpler interdependent networks on the underlying plane. It includes previous science as special cases. One key point is that living system science and religion are no longer separate or in conflict – They are seen as the two essential complementary poles of a pair. This is very different from conventional science – I can hear the howling screams of protest from eminent linear and relativistic scientists whenever an emerging living system scientist says things like I just said. For example – I recall hearing Dr. Rupert Sheldrake many years ago talk about his biological work on Morphic Field resonance – I remember hearing the audience groan and express disagreement with such thoughts. I refer you to Rupert’s now famous book entitled
A New Science of Life so you can make up your own mind. Also go to his great website.

Therefore, Living System Life and Work exist on more than one plane of reality – The underlying planes and their Morphic Fields are primary – This underlying simplicity governs surface complexity. I am saying that much current thinking on complexity is wrong – It assumes that because the surface operating plane of daily life is complex, the underlying plane is also complex – That is not correct.

For example – Our body is an extremely complex network of living sub-systems but its most fundamental underlying structure – its DNA – is made up of many combinations of only four specific amino acid groups – This is a powerful example of surface complexity and extreme simplicity on the underlying plane. The point is that great complexity can be generated by iterations of very simple underlying relationships. Dr. Stephen Wolfram demonstrates this in his pioneering book entitled A New Kind of Science.

The things I have been saying might seem extreme – It may be time to give you a rest with two interesting examples of Living System concepts in action – One from modern physics and the other from leadership.

Slide 5 – Bi-Polar Nature of Living System Science

Phase 2 life and science seem at first so different, hard to describe and to understand. It helps to experience them with examples. The first example is from Quantum Physics – During my days as a graduate student in particle physics at Berkeley there was for me a burning question. I did not know then that it was a question about the inherent living system bi-polarity of subatomic particles. The question was:

Is a material particle, like an electron, a Particle or a Wave?

Using linear system thinking, the approach to answering this
question is that it must be one or the other, doesn’t it? So let’s
find a way to answer which it is.

The living system science answer is:

No. It is BOTH a particle and a wave – Which nature you observe
depends upon the experiment you perform. A scientist is not a
separate, objective observer, but a participant embedded in
experiments. Matter and psyche are not separate – They Interact
with and can affect the results of experiments.

Slide 6 – Inter-Connectedness in Living System Science

Similar things apply for leadership – It is NOT About being an Objective or an Independent Decision Maker, but a Subjective Participant as leader embedded in the Living System situation.

Here is a leadership example that is about the inherent interconnections among all people according to Living System Science. The question is:

Why Do Some People Lie, Cheat and Steal?
It must be a matter of Ethics isn’t it?

The answer is:

No – It is about Inter-Connectedness, not Ethics. Why?
People who lie, cheat and steal see themselves as independent,
that they can take from others for their separate self-interest,
and that they can “Get Away With It”.

When you really know Living System Life, you realize you are connected with everything and everyone and you can’t get away with it. You cannot hide who you are and what you do. Others can feel and experience your incongruity.

Your concept of self-interest therefore transforms. It cannot be Separate Self-Interest anymore. It becomes self-interest also aligned with the interest of others and the good of the team and the company. You realize that by lying, cheating, stealing, taking advantage of others and of your system, you are just hurting yourself. You can’t get away with hurting others and gaining selfishly at the expense of others and your system. Perceptive people can see through your actions. You destroy your ability to be trusted and accepted as a Team Member. Therefore lying, cheating, stealing and other forms of corruption are about stupidity – Not ethics. I believe these new principles about what is real self-interest will have profound effect on how pay and profit sharing will be transformed.

Slide 7 – Paradigm – Stage A’

Note: Slides of Examples of Persons, Places and Events during Phase 2 Stage A’ Life are available in the file – NewPatSuc-Part2-8-HPSStageExampl-022607.pdf

Here are the paradigm details for Living System, 2nd Renaissance Man. For highly evolved persons today Stage A’ often appears in later adulthood but is now beginning to emerge earlier in some people.

As we discuss Stage A’ life, please make notes about where in your own life and work you have experienced examples of Stage A’ human nature – Family, friends, other persons, groups or organizations. Also note the effects of these experiences on you. Identifying your own personal examples of Stage A’ in parallel with my discussion will help the psyche stages to come alive for you.

It appeared about 1900 and is still emerging – Its dimensions are still being discovered – It is a work in progress – It is the most transcendent of all the stages – We know it is not only a new stage but the beginning of a whole new phase of life and work that has radically different underlying patterns.

Examples of leading-edge persons and organizations have already become World Leaders in specific areas – But Stage A’ is not yet anywhaere near dominant – The slides of Stage A’ pattern persons, that you are seeing as I talk, show only a few examples of leaders making Stage A’ pattern contributions in their areas of competency. The number of persons and organizations is growing. But public leader and organization examples are not yet significant as far as I know.

Stage A’ Thinking is in Living System patterns – Its characteristics are balanced bi-polar, network, wholeness not separate parts, collaborative, dynamic cycling in all things, whole system optimized not parts sub-optimized

The Learning Pattern is relatively complex. It centers on pattern recognition using both intuitive and rational process. To give it a name, I call it Morphic field and living system modeling learning. I emphasize the dynamic balance of insight and conscious action. The specific process for doing this type of learning is called “Active Imagination” – It involves an active search for how to replace current knowledge and beliefs without delay or regret. I will give you an outline of the Active Imagination Process in Part 4 of this series.

Its Action Basis is Living System Science. It uses what proves to be valid – What is human and material growth enabling and delivers value to the whole system, its customers and its environments.

The Stage A’ Psyche Disease seems to be Information Anxiety – The driving need to know and to be included in the information networks.

Its Psyche Pattern is named Phase 2, Stage A’

Slide 8 – Paradigm Summary – Stage A’ – Personal #1

Now let’s summarize the personal paradigm. Stage A ‘ pattern persons view themselves as bi-polar beings – inter-dependent, neither independent nor dependent, both subjective and objective, both emotional and intellectual, both intuitive and rational, both qualitative and quantitative, both human and materialist in cooperative competition with themselves and others.

Life is a process oriented quest for both inner human growth and outer world achievement – With the human pole always primary. The human drive is to achieve quality of life with adequate quantity through both team and individual achievement – Team focus is primary during collaboration – Individual focus is primary during personal work preparing for collaboration.

Stage A’ patterns for work are quite difficult, if not impossible, to implement in conventional linear organizations. There is the demand for personal choice of work – The personal conviction that your work is valuable – The freedom to do it – Participation is voluntary – and leaders and colleagues are self-chosen, open, competent and enabling in an organization that is free of hierarchy barriers to communication and free of command & control behavior. These conditions can be achieved in a Living System nodal network organization of teams that is properly led and managed.

Slide 9 – Paradigm Summary – Stage A’ – Personal #2

Other important Stage A’ personal patterns include:
Using Living System network science knowledge – Rejecting one pole fixations, doctrinaire positions, conflicting social and political ideologies and linear and reductionist models of reality. There are not many organizations yet where this pattern can be even tolerated – Much less used as the base for outstanding performance. Certainly not within political organizations as we now know them.

In addition, religion and science are inter-dependent and not doctrinaire. There is deep reverence for life and the evolving universe – There is tolerance and accepting of the foundations for all religious experience. This approach to faith appears to be a new form of Gnosticism. Gnostic means “a knower” – The drive to know is central to Stage A’

Dynamic Process Living is primary – Not end-point equilibrium seeking as was the life goal at earlier Phase 1 stages. There are no end-points in life for a Stage A’ pattern person and salvation is not an issue.

The Phase 1 Cycle 3 psyche split between Western and Oriental Man is healed – A true planetary person emerges who is not at all interested in economic, political or military conquest or dominance of another part of the world. However, it appears clear that Stage A’ man is also driven to work, or even to fight if absolutely necessary, to assure that others less evolved are not able conquer or dominate.

Slide 10 – Paradigm Summary – Stage A’ – Collective – Leadership

Now let’s outline the Stage A’ collective paradigm in two portions – Leadership and Organization. The leadership pattern is “Servant Leadership” implemented through teams led by competent enablers, not Bosses. The single person CEO at the top of a linear structured organization is replaced with an executive team at the center of a Nodal Network Business organization. I recommend the famous book entitled Servant Leadership written by Robert Greenleaf and the book that inspired him to write it – It is entitled The Journey to the East by Hermann Hesse.

Business Strategy is fundamentally transformed for Living System business and market environments and for continuous flow “Pull” operations rather than today’s conventional mass market-mass production “Push” operations. These subjects require separate programs to adequately discuss.

The principles and practices of Stage A’ pattern management turn Stage E management upside down. For example – Authority and responsibility are not Commensurate – Responsibility always is greater than authority – They are dynamic, flexible and distributed among persons in the organization depending on the specific work competency then needed. Authority and responsibility are properly defined but are not fixed or directly related to job position in a hierarchy.

The conventional command & control model for business operations is replaced with strict underlying business protocols (Morphic Fields) for business units and for the total company network of business unit nodes. These protocols are voluntarily agreed to and there is operating freedom consistent with the protocols. An example is how Dee Hock re-organized VISA using just a few underlying protocols that both guided and controlled operations in desired directions. We discuss Dee Hock and his work in Part 4.

What is coming is a new pattern of Living System Control by Underlying Protocols that has greater control strength than the previous linear Command & Control model on the operating plane with its hierarchical coercion.

Key Stage A’ leadership principles are to build teams of strong responsible inter-dependent people throughout the business network – And to keep operating decision making and results responsibility as close to the people doing the work as possible.

Slide 11 – Paradigm Summary – Stage A’ – Collective Paradigm – Organization

Stage A’ pattern organizations are dramatically different from what preceded them. They are flat Nodal Network Business organizations composed of a network of business units that are themselves networks of operating teams. This is not a fix-up of conventional hierarchies of functional operating units by such tricks as “Cross-Functional Teams”, etc. It is a fundamental transformation of organization. There is a coming realization that private organizations rather than public market organizations are better for many types of business and that the new form of US Limited Liability Company (LLC) is better than the corporation.

The “Rule of 150” is an important detail. When the number of humans in a business unit exceeds about 150, the organization spontaneously begins to lose its ability to have effective human interactions and communication. It begins to linearize into a hierarchy. An example of a leading company that has built a long lasting record of growth and profitability on living system nature and the Rule of 150 is W.L. Gore & Associates – the creators of such revolutionary products as “Gore Tex” fabrics.

Further, the Stage A’ nodal business units are also flat organizations composed of a network of smaller project teams. The “Rule of 12” is another important detail. It has been found over long experience that the most effective work teams are composed of 12 or fewer humans. A most interesting example is the US Army Special Forces Teams (the “Green Berets”) that are organized as 12 men – Five two man sub-teams for each of five operating specialties and one two man sub-team for leadership and coordination.

Living System organizations have no structure or operating barriers that can prevent spontaneous self-organization, self-repairing and self-replicating whenever and wherever the people responsible for work results find these actions are needed. In short – There is No Bureaucracy to block needed process development. Much current pay, promotion and human resources principles and administration absolutely prevent Living System action.

Customers and suppliers are integrated directly into business unit networks as partners.
Business unit networks are designed and operated for “Pull” operations based upon real dynamic customer demand – Not for mass production “Push” operations that produce to an assumed future demand. An embedded information network underlies the business based upon a Nodal Network Business segmented accounting and real cost systems, rather than overall company non-segmented accounting and standard cost systems. The systems needed for Nodal Network Business are not conventional information technology, planning and measurement systems. We will present future programs devoted to these subjects and their operation for Living System business.

As far as we know Living System leadership or organization Do Not Yet Exist in politics or public institutions in any meaningful way. When this occurs the effects will be profound. I expect this to happen first in smaller municipal units and then in regional areas rather than for national or international organizations where the entrenched power of earlier stages is strongest.

Slide 12 – Living System Nodal Network Organization

This diagram shows an example of a business group with its companies, business units and business segments organized as a Living System Nodal Network Business. So the diagram is not too complicated I have not shown the inevitable interactions among the companies, the business units and the many business segments. Beyond that I have not shown the integration of customer networks and supplier networks into the various business segment nodes.

Such a business network is planned, administered and measured using a unique type of information network based upon a new type of Isis Consulting segmented accounting system that has company, business unit and business segment structure built right into the Chart of Accounts structure. In this system the chart of accounts and the derived statements go far beyond conventional financial statements. Living System business accounting integrates the current split between financial accounting and management accounting.

Slide 13 – Living System Business Unit Organization

This diagram shows an example of the organization of a Living System business unit or business segment organization. There are five interdependent teams – An Executive team at the center and four operating teams – Three operating function teams and one business creation and development team.

The three operating function teams are responsible for the processes of the business to serve its customers in three areas

- The processes to create, develop and satisfy customer needs
- The processes to create, develop and produce products and services
that satisfy customer needs
- The processes to create, develop and operate the business infrastructure
needed to support the other business teams

It is important that the team focused upon renewing the existing business operations and creating new business segments and units is directly guided by the Executive Team and Not embedded in existing operations.

Slide 14 – Paradigm Summary – Stage A’

Let’s conclude with a paradigm summary for the newly emerging Stage A’ human in our standard format. You can easily compare it with the earlier stages to see the great transformation that is Mega-Force 1.

The best way I can define the Motivation pattern is – To become an inter-dependent person engaged in a self-chosen, self-meaningful process of growth and work as part of a competent team in an enabling environment. This means being free to accept personal responsibility for what we do and be enable to do so.

The Mission is to re-balance our Phase 1 Cycle 3 Western life and work imbalances, excesses and poor productivity so we can become more highly productive than ever before – And THIS TIME – Using humanly sound Living System practices.

Ends are no longer Valued. Why? Because there are No Living System End-Points – Only proper enduring processes are valued.

Means Valued are dramatically transformed from what are conventional. The primary means are Living System Principles and Practices – End-Point Goals are no longer Valued – Continuous Process with embedded flexible Milestone Goals is the Path.

The Stage A’ Life Theme is to live a constantly evolving process of Growth and Service – Through living and working as a whole balanced person. That is what Carl Jung defined as the process to Achieve “Individuation”.

Slide 15 – Introduction to Individuation

You might want to read a most interesting introduction to the process of Individuation written by Eric Petifor.

Conclusion

The purpose for this Part 2 of our series is to help you understand Mega-Force 1 –
The World Human Transformation to Living System Life and Work and its emerging new business leader – The Stage A’ human. I discussed:

- That the world transformation is real;
- How a Living Systems transforms;
- How the stages of the Human Psyche System evolved through history
and our life into the New Pattern for Success – Stage A’ – Living System
Life and Work;
- Why the current dominant psyche stages – Stage E and Stage F – have become inadequate foundations for effective leadership; and
- How to develop emerging leader mindset in your own life and business.

End Part 2 – 8

Cycle 3 Life - Stage F - New Pattern for Success Seminar - Part 2-7

2007-04-29T16:27:48-05:00

This Post is the seventh installment of Part 2 entitled Cycle 3 Life - Stage F -Part 2-7 Its materials are available to you in two ways. First, as three downloadable files - One for the edited Text material, one for the Visual material and one for Visual examples of persons, events and places that illustrate Stage F life. Second, in the Extended Post below you can read the Text of the Cycle 3 Life - Stage F - Part 2-7 section.

This Post continues to present Part 2 of the The New Pattern for Success seminar series. Part 2 is entitled Mega-Force 1 - World Human Transformation to Living System Life and Work.

You can download the Text of Cycle 3 Life - Stage F - Part 2-7 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part2-7-Text-032607.pdf

You can download the Visuals of Cycle 3 Life - Stage F - Part 2-7 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part2-7-Vis-032607.pdf

You can download the Visual examples of persons, events and places at Stage F -Here Download NewPatSuc-Part2-7-HPSStageExamp-032607.pdf

Click on the Continue reading link below to read the Text of Cycle 3 Life - Stage F - Part 2-7 .

I look forward to your Questions, Comments and Suggestions.

John Clayton Caris

********************************

LIVING SYSTEM LIFE AND WORK -
THE NEW PATTERN FOR SUCCESS

A Series of Presentation/Discussions
To Explore Critical Issues
For Your Life and Your Business

by Dr. John Clayton Caris
Isis Institute

Part 2 - Mega-Force 1 –
World Human Transformation
to Living System Life and Work

Begin Part 2–7 – Cycle 3 Life – Stage F

Slide 2 – Transformation to Stage F – Relativistic, Socialistic Man

Stage F is the story of the second half of Cycle 3. For the West, it could be called the “Stealth Stage” – It sneaked into influence. Its effects grew to be strong but since they appear in the outer world through the unconscious, they are not taken seriously by Stage E.

It may or may not be a stage you are yet experiencing in your personal life – But it certainly plays a role in today’s leadership crises. For example, angry crowds demonstrating at world business and financial meetings on globalization using non-violent confrontation or employees no longer motivated by end-point goals and material payoffs. Understanding what is psychologically underneath such events is off the radar-screen of Stage E pattern leadership.

Before launching into a point-by-point discussion, I feel it is helpful to paint a brief word picture of what Stage F involves. It is the beginning of the greatest psychological discontinuity in history – No wonder the world and our lives are in such upheaval.

Our human story of Human Psyche System evolution so far is cycles of unbalance – First in one direction and then its correction that ultimately leads to unbalance in the opposite direction. Stage F is more than the story of correcting Stage E excesses – It also begins the Re-Balancing of both the patterns of Western and Oriental man so the cycles of psyche Flip-Flops in life and work Can Stop at the next stage – Stage A’- Living System life.

At Stage F, Leadership and Management become profoundly psychological – New types of intellectual, professional and technical competencies are needed. Unfortunately, conventional psychology is almost totally inadequate to help leaders – But we don’t deal with that today – Our job now is to get the mindset that enables us to see what is needed.

Stage F enables the re-balancing of man by re-opening the unconscious so we can experience it in our conscious without being overwhelmed by it – As happened at early stages. Therefore, we can be consciously aware of both poles of everything in life. This is the beginning of seeing a balanced relativity of opposites – Rather than being certain that one pole, like Order, is good and the opposite pole, like Chaos, is bad – We can see that both poles are needed in some relative balance in our life and work depending on the situation.

Ah-Ha!– Here we have one of the key results of Stage F psyche that drives many leaders today almost crazy – It is the “Situational Ethic” – It is rejecting absolute Good and Bad – It is beginning to believe that what is good or bad or what is best depends upon the situation.

This viewpoint is the beginning of the end of projecting disagreement, anger, hatred and conflict out of the unconscious on to other persons and groups. The results are profound – People have less and less desire to fight. For example, there has been a continuous and significant rise in the amount of psyche disorders for U.S combat soldiers in every conflict since World War II. It was just reported to be over 30% for the Iraq situation.

Releasing into our conscious the parts of us we had previously locked in our unconscious shadow is initially frightful. At first we try to avoid it. It brings great insights but also fearful self-doubt, involuntary melancholy and even depression.

Forgive me for focusing next on male experience – I know that best. For example – The shock of realizing you no longer want to be a hard driving materialist can be profound. Some Stage F Westerners get up in the morning and wonder why they are trapped in a materialistic, end-point goal life – Wonder why they no longer look forward to daily work that has become a stressful rat-race – Why they don’t have more satisfying human relationships – Why they feel they have pursued material things to the point they have lost what is really important – Feel they must gain inner understanding and are not sure where to begin – Feel they are “losing it” as competitors.

I really want us to realize – Stage F is the shocking transformation that is the opposite of everything Stage E and also ends the underlying pattern of all previous life and work.

Both Orient and West will eventually learn that neither of its approaches, By Itself, is an answer for their future. The previously Crippled Man of the East has found he can run materialistically as fast as the West – And the previously Blind Man of the West has found he can see as spiritually as the East. But, both East and West are running into problems their Cycle 3 stages can’t solve.

Now let’s look at the details of Stage F.

Slide 3 – Stage F Paradigm – Western

Note: Slides of Examples of Persons, Places and Events during Cycle 3 Life – Stages F are available in the file – NewPatSuc-Part2-7-HPSStageExampl-022607.pdf

Western Stage F emerged from about 1750 AD to 1850 AD. It became a world leader in direct competition with Stage E after World War II, about 1950, and now appears to be peaking as Stage E is declining. This is the first time in human history that two stages have been near peak power at the same time.

As we discuss Stage F life, please make notes about where in your own life and work you have experienced examples of Stage F human nature – Family, friends, other persons, groups or organizations. Also note the effects of these experiences on you. Identifying your own personal examples of Stage F in parallel with my discussion will help the psyche stages to come alive for you.

Let’s cement its behavior pattern in your mind to contrast it with Stage E – Non-Linear, Introspective, Intuitive, Subjective, Qualitative, Relativistic, Socialistic, Emotional, Non-Competitive, Anti-Scientific, Anti-Materialist. Just exactly opposite to Stage E.

Its learning pattern is also a sharp contrast – Subjective and emotional, not objective like Stage E. It is called Experiential/Observational learning often embedded in a group process with accepting and supportive Guru-like leader(s) and members. It also breaks away from linear step-by–step learning to begin to use simple types of pattern recognition learning. The unconscious works in patterns – Not sequence like the conscious works.

Its personal basis for action is inner compulsion to find human understanding, meaning, purpose and relationship – Collectively its basis is social and political power. It is guided by the “Situational Ethic”.

Stage F psyche disease is involuntary melancholy and depression resulting in self-doubt, hopelessness, a range of dependent addictions and even suicide. It is no accident that depression is the leading mental affliction of highly evolved people today.

Paradoxically, depression can come right along with a sense of seeing things more clearly than ever before. This is baffling and painful when it comes at middle life, as it often does. It appears to be some sort of mid-age degeneracy, rather than the leap in psyche growth it really is. Some undergoing this process feel they are not understood and receive no approval from their company, associates or loved ones. This is one of the tragedies of our time. It is not middle age degeneracy at all. Some younger persons are also showing precursors of Stage F behavior. It looks like degeneration and failure to those functioning at earlier stages. But that is not true, it is an essential stage in man's evolution.

Slide 4 – Paradigm Summary – Stage F – Personal Western

This slide summarizes the Personal Paradigm. Most of it we have discussed. I want to emphasize three points to complement the slide.

First about Relativism – Recall that Stage F pattern persons no longer separate opposite poles and choose one pole as Good and banish the other pole to the unconscious as Bad or Evil. Both poles are accepted as necessary, relative, complementary parts of life. This means the separate pole focus of Phase 1 breaks down and the psyche force for flip-flopping ends.

Second about Religion – Stage F Western religion tends to be unconventional and personal – Often a mystical or occult experience searching for a direct spiritual relationship with the infinite.

Third about Salvation – It is another direct contrast with Stage E. It is sought through harmony and alignment with self, others and nature – Rather than outer mastery of nature and materialism.

Now you see the sharp personal contrasts between Cycle 3 stages – And since the peak power of Stages E and F overlap in time more closely than did earlier stages, the social and political disagreements are also sharp. You can understand why our time is so complex and the world and our lives are in such upheaval.

Slide 5 – Paradigm Summary – Stage F – Collective Western

Now we turn to the Stage F Collective Paradigm. Stage F leadership and organization are also complex – There are many versions – Not a relatively uniform pattern like the linear machine model and structure of Western Stage E. To be consistent with the “Situational Ethic”, this is what we might expect – A wide range of leadership situations and organization types to match the wide range of human needs and situations.

Stage F Leadership ranges from that for large socialistic bureaucracies – like nation states, international agencies and social service organizations – to countless small humanistic groups led by “Gurus” who are charismatic, accepting, inspiring guides who create strong emotional and dependent bonds – plus a wide range of social and non-profit organizations focused on specific causes and needs.

The range of Organization forms is equally wide – Each depending on its special situation. However, there seems to be a general principle for Stage F organizations – Their collective power attempts to dominate and control individual and private interests. There seems to be no pure Western Stage F business organizations like there are for Stage E – Organizing business does not appear as high priority to Stage F. What we see is a confused mix of Stage F paradigm characteristics added-on to the underlying Stage E paradigm.

For example – Many large corporations, educational institutions and social service organizations appear to present a surface image to customers, employees and taxpayers that is called “Social and Political Correctness” – While maintaining their underlying Stage E linear machine system core that is presented to owners, political authorities and investors. The result seems to be the attempt to humanize machine like organizations while keeping their basic linear nature. Such fix-up methods are being widely used. They are being more widely seen for what they are – Non-Authentic Shams.

Stage F patterns are not capable to replace the existing Stage E linear system business organization model – So it seems to conventional managers that the best solution is to try to add-on Stage F human concerns on top of the Stage E machine system core. Of course, the Stage E and F paradigms are not compatible – And the add-on solution is not working well at all – Because it can’t.

There appears to be a range of motivations for the Stage E and F mixture – From the sincere desire of some business leaders to really improve the organization and its service to its members and society – To the self-serving desire of other leaders to appear more acceptable to its members, its markets and its regulators.

I believe the high costs and inefficiencies of both the Stage E and Stage F collective patterns are reaching a crisis position in the Western world. They are both obsolete and lead to poor results. Just as Ervin Laszlo and others have seen – The current situation is building to a human system transition point. Neither the Stage E or F pattern by itself, or added-together, are the base for acceptable solutions for world leading business organizations.

Another dimension of the leadership crisis is that awareness is not yet well developed for the need to abandon both. For those who are aware that fix-ups within the Stage E pattern, or extensions of the Stage F pattern, will not work. Of course, to work with people and organizations to satisfy these needs is exactly why we are doing our work – The leap to Living System Life and Work is the answer – And developing the mindset required to make this leap is our first essential step. That is what we are doing in this series of discussions.

Western political leaders since World War II, with few exceptions, appear indecisive and weak. Business leaders have continuously become more unable to compete. Massive outsourcing to the Orient has become their Mantra. It appears to me that this is the biggest leadership “Copout” in history – The easy way out. They don’t know how to lead their people to success anymore. They blame it on labor costs rather than their own ineptitude. It appears that both Western political and business leaders are paralyzed in failing patterns and really running away from their massive problems. This is typical of establishment leadership during world transformation eras.

I feel that Eastern political and business leaders also are much less than prescient. They do not yet see that their so-called “materialistic miracle” is a massive bubble in disguise – Enabled and supported by the largest man made financial manipulations in world history. We do not see this whole situation as negative at all – We see it as part of the Creator’s Grand Plan for man that is needed for our evolution - We see as a great strategic opportunity for those who can understand and act on the new pattern emerging during a world transformation period.

Now let’s summarize the Stage F pattern so we can move on to the next stage and a whole new phase of human life that lies just in front of us.

Stage F has created a socialistic, relativistic society to try to correct the unbalances of the Stage E society. The former quest for independence and self-sufficiency at Stage E has been submerged by a Stage F rush to a “Generalized Dependency” on others and institutions like governments. Widespread “Drug Abuse” is only one dimension of the general dependency that is inherent in the Stage F pattern. The unraveling of this dependency is probably the largest hurdle to leap in the human transcendence out of Phase 1 life.

Slide 6 – Paradigm Summary – Stage F

Now let’s assure the Stage F paradigm is clear.

Primary Motivation in the West is to understand and find peace with our self and affiliate with others and groups in dependent relationships – Believe that subjective truth exists rather than just objective truth and discover its importance in our life.

Therefore, the Stage F Mission personally is to achieve self-understanding, inner harmony and receive guidance through participating in deeper human relationships with others and with nature. Collectively the mission is to be involved with socially and politically correct programs.

The Ends and Means Values are those needed to act on the motivation and the mission. Stage F values involve subjective and emotional reason. Stage E does not accept this as Reason or common sense either. Relativity and the “Situational Ethic” are hard for Stages C, D and E to accept. Stage E considers Stage F rejecting of materialism and linear science as denials of reality. In addition, Stage F rejecting end-point goals and accepting social measures of success has fueled bitter controversy over what are proper education and work standards. In my opinion, both Stages E and F have gone to unreasonable opposite extremes – Again, neither is an adequate basis for the future.

The Western Stage F person on his inner quest for dependency and relative values often appears lost between impotence, indecision, and depression on the one hand, and energetic, if not frantic, joining and the pursuit of humanized or social thrusts on the other hand. When Stage F appears in a person’s life, sometimes we see hard driving, materialistically successful people who suddenly walk away from their prior lives and careers without any apparent purpose or plan. This lack of direction or plan is what confuses their families, associates, and even themselves. These people need understanding and support - Because once they can transform through this period in their lives they can become greater leaders.

At the end of our discussion of Cycle 2, I asked you a question as a leader. Here I ask a similar question – Can you build and operate a world leading-edge organization today whose leadership and organization are limited to stages E and F? I do not believe you can – They are both now in terminal decline as effective foundations for effective leaders.

Slide 7 – Cycle 3 Psyche Pole Structure

This Cycle 3 Psyche Pole Structure diagram is for your reference. It shows that at Stage F the unconscious is no longer closed to communication with the conscious. The Flip-Flop pattern of all Phase 1 life is therefore broken – This is an essential precursor for the coming of Phase 2 life and its Stage A’ – Living System Life and Work – That we discuss next.

End of Part 2 – 7

Cycle 3 Life - Stage E - New Pattern for Success Seminar - Part 2-6

2007-04-27T07:57:32-05:00

This Post is the sixth installment of Part 2 entitled Cycle 3 Life - Stage E - Part 2- 6 Its materials are available to you in two ways. First, as three downloadable files - One for the edited Text material, one for the Visual material and one for Visual examples of persons, events and places that illustrate Stage E life. Second, in the Extended Post below you can read the Text of the Cycle 3 Life - Stage E - Part 2-6 section.

This Post continues to present Part 2 of the The New Pattern for Success seminar series. Part 2 is entitled Mega-Force 1 - World Human Transformation to Living System Life and Work.

You can download the Text of Cycle 3 Life - Stage E - Part 2-6 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part2-6-Text-032607.pdf

You can download the Visuals of Cycle 3 Life - Stage E - Part 2-6 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part2-6-Vis-032607.pdf

You can download the Visual examples of persons, events and places at Stage E -Here Download NewPatSuc-Part2-6-HPSStageExamp-032607.pdf

Click on the Continue reading link below to read the Text of Cycle 3 Life - Stage E - Part 2-6 .

I look forward to your Questions, Comments and Suggestions.

John Clayton Caris

********************************

LIVING SYSTEM LIFE AND WORK -
THE NEW PATTERN FOR SUCCESS

A Series of Presentation/Discussions
To Explore Critical Issues
For Your Life and Your Business

by Dr. John Clayton Caris
Isis Institute

Part 2 - Mega-Force 1 –
World Human Transformation
to Living System Life and Work

Begin Part 2 – 6 – Cycle 3 Life – Stages E & F

Slide 2– Human Psyche Stages through History – View 3

Recall this diagram of psyche stages through history showing the relative importance in world leadership for Stages E and F of Cycle 3 – the last stages of Phase I life – and the emerging Stage A’ – the first stage of a whole new Phase II of life. It shows the most complex period of history – Two transition eras back-to-back and the beginning of a third. Today both Stage E and Stage F are near peak power – Stage F peaking in power and Stage E in the process of decline while both desperately compete for dominance in world affairs today. Both are beginning to be severely challenged by a powerful new stage just emerging, Stage A' - Living System Life and Work that neither can see coming. This diagram is the background for the remainder of the Human Psyche System story we yet have to tell. But, let’s not get ahead of our story.

Now let’s move on to Cycle 3 – The story of how man transcends the absolutism of Stage D – At Stage E becomes independent, goes to materialistic excesses in the West – Then at Stage F becomes collectivist again, consciously discovers the unconscious and pursues relativism that begin to terminate all of Phase I life.

Cycle 3 is the exciting story of Modern Man – From the leap out of Medieval Stage D stagnation to today. Never before in history has so much happened in 1000 years – Never before has so much happened in the lives of leading-edge people as over the last few decades.

Slide 3 – Cycle 3 Descriptors – Western #1

Here is an Overview of Cycle 3.

At Stage E – Western man breaks the Medieval absolutist church dominated pattern and emerges as secular, independent, objective, rational and linear with a mechanistic machine-like concept of life focused on outer world material power, self-interest and worldly advancements. He lives almost totally in the conscious – He is Mental Man – Emotional energy is blocked. He seems to perform well under stress because he denies his emotions and banishes them to the unconscious – Mistakenly believing that they are controlled. He becomes a star individual performer – Apparently in command and control of everything that is Real – That is, what can be seen, measured, manipulated and controlled in the Real world of the physical senses. Being a team player is not his primary motivation. Material matters and selfish self-interest are primary – Human matters are secondary, at best. The big issue is individual independence – and the economic and political power to assure it. The results are the worldly achievements that built what is modern materialistic society.

Then, at Stage F – Western man is shocked by unexpected and unwanted eruptions of emotional energy entering his previously, totally conscious life. He emerges as dependent, subjective, intuitive and non-linear with an anti-mechanistic, social concept of life. This signals that his unconscious is opening. The previously hidden pole of life emerges into the conscious. The perceived nature of life and work begin a profound shift. The previous Good Pole vs. Bad Pole conflicts of all Previous Phase I life begin to break down. Now the Conscious must begin to try to deal simultaneously with both poles of everything. Relativity and the importance of the unconscious in life and work begin. Linear leadership/management begins its confused and tortuous transformation to relativistic/socialistic types. His previous selfish individualism really starts to bother him, but he still does not know how to deal with it.

He emerges as the mirror image opposite of Stage E – Dependent, subjective, intuitive and non-linear with an anti-material social concept of life focused on his inner world and collective political power to act on social programs. He lives with Both unconscious and conscious energies contesting for control. He does not perform well under material world stress – He no longer denies or hides stress – Why? – Because he can’t – He shows emotion and personal sensitivity because he must – His unconscious energy can no longer be blocked or banished –– It must be accepted as part of himself and dealt with.

He is not a star individual performer in worldly affairs – He appears weak and indecisive to those still dominant at Stage E. Human matters are now becoming primary, if not dominant – Material matters are now secondary, at best. Accomplishing practical results is not the highest priority. He naturally turns to group membership. The big issues are human affiliation; finding inner understanding, peace, balance and socially driven political action. These are not burning issues for most current corporations. The results of Stage F have appeared as modern relativistic, “Politically Correct” socialistic society.

Many mid-age Western leaders are now in this traumatic transition from Stage E to Stage F without being aware of what is happening to them. Some seem almost locked within the transition. They feel and behave “stuck”. They experience their previous materialist drive decreasing and their inner search for human meaning increasing. It can scare the hell out of them – Some deny it to themselves. Others find themselves involved in various inner growth movements and/or protest groups. Still others keep the same outward appearances but are suffering inner turmoil that at times is amorphous. They do not feel right but do not understand why.

Since the late 1700’s, political and economic conflict between Stages E and F has intensified – It fuels most political campaigns in the Western world today. Cycle 3 life is dominated by issues of personal independence vs. dependence, intellectual vs. emotional balance and their consequences in terms of political, legal and material power. The great public debates are at their core about these issues. Persons and groups functioning at Stages E or F see every issue in mirror image opposite ways.

There is even more happening at Cycle 3 that is remarkable. My research indicates that for the first time in the Creator’s Grand Plan, the human psyche splits into two varieties – A Western variety and an Oriental variety. The conscious pattern of Western man at each Cycle 3 stage is the unconscious pattern of Oriental man – and vice-versa. This means that at Stage E, Western man is outwardly focused on the material world and Oriental man is focused on the inner subjective world – And that at Stage F, Western man is focused on the inner subjective world and Oriental man is focused on the outer material world. This hypothesis requires much more research, but I am comfortable in proposing that it is indeed basically valid. It helps us easily answer important questions about the human forces underlying world events over the last 200 years.

Let’s makes sure what I have just said is clear. Western Stage E man focuses on objective, outer world materialism to become economically dominant so he can assure his independence – And then Flip-Flops at Stage F to focus on subjective, inner world humanism where the drive for economic power declines and he seeks for affiliation and dependence. Oriental man also Flip-Flops during Cycle 3, but in the opposite way. At Stage E the Oriental psyche has an inner focus and an outer world materialistic focus at Stage F. Just opposite to Western Man. As Stage F grew in relative importance in human affairs over the last century, the rise of Oriental materialism and economic power and the relative decline of the West’s material power is then no mystery. It is another result of underlying bi-polar mirror-image human psyche patterns of the West relative to the Orient

Steiner is right again – To be a practical person you must understand human life.

We must move on – But let’s look briefly to the future. The Cycle 3 mirror image split will not last. It will be transcended as Stage A’ – Living System Life and Work grows in influence – Neither Western or Oriental power will ultimately dominate the world. The concept of world dominance is becoming obsolete – But most do not see this yet. The reasons why begin to emerge at Phase 2 life. I must wait to discuss that until we learn about Stages E and F in more detail.

Slide 4 – Cycle 3 Descriptors – Western #2

Stage E is really the climax of Phase 1 life. I mean that the underlying pattern of all Phase 1 human life begins to break down with the psyche transformation from Stage E into Stage F. Stage F is preparation – is a bridge – for entry into Phase 2 life and its first stage – Stage A’. I want so badly to make clear to you how important it is for your life and work to understand what is now happening in the world and what is coming next.

At Stage F, the Key Point is the opening up of our unconscious so we can experience it consciously. We have been led to believe that what is Conscious is the most important and practical in our life and work – And what is unconscious is some mysterious, impractical, secondary dimension of our life and work. At Stage F we begin to experience that these conventional beliefs are not true.

Stage F is not really aligned with the underlying pattern of Phase 1 that I discussed in Slide 44 – The “Generalized Separation” of life’s bi-polar opposites. Recall that this separation creates two opposite poles for every dimension of life – The so-called Good pole and the Bad pole as opposites in conflict. Recall that the Good pole is accepted in our conscious as a desirable part of our self and the Bad pole is denied as part of our self, which it is, and is banished to our unconscious where we believe it is gone, which it is not. Recall that its unconscious energy grows and can be projected on other persons so the Bad pole appears to be part of the other person or group – Not part of us as it really is.

Stage F is the beginning of the breaking of the previous splits in mankind. It is about human rebalancing in both the West and Orient to prepare for the greatest leap in human history – The leap to Phase 2 Life – And its Stage A’ – The beginning of Living System Life and Work.

Slide 5 – Cycle 3 Psyche Symbols – Western

Now let’s focus on the Western patterns of Cycle 3. The psyche symbols show the Conscious “Walled Off’ from the Unconscious at Stage E and the psyche opening up to unconscious energy at Stage F.

Slide 6 – Paradigm – Stage E

Note: Slides of Examples of Persons, Places and Events during Cycle 2 Life – Stages E are available in the file – NewPatSuc-Part2-6-HPSStageExampl-022607.pdf

Here is the Stage E Western Paradigm. It emerged from about 800 AD to 1000 AD, entered the Renaissance about 1300 AD and became world leader by 1500 AD in an exciting burst of material world development. The 1st Renaissance learning, art and science, technology, the age of exploration, European nations and empires, and the industrial revolution followed. As usual, this great leap forward into the 1st Renaissance came out of massive chaos and destruction – For example, the 100 Years War and the Black Death of the 14th Century that killed about one-third of European populations.

As we discuss Stage E – Linear System life, please make notes about where in your own life and work you have experienced examples of Stage E human nature – Family, friends, other persons, groups or organizations. Also note the effects of these experiences on you. Identifying your own personal examples of Stage E in parallel with my discussion will help the psyche stages to come alive for you.

We have mentioned keywords for Stage E Behavior – As secular, independent, objective, rational and linear with a mechanistic machine-like concept of life focused on outer world material power, self-interest and worldly advancements. Let’s add competitive, self-serving, legalistic and “Scientized” to what I said. There is sharp separation between what is considered religion and science and between church and government. At Stage E everything is Separate. That is the meaning of independent. Selfless cooperation and open communication are not highly valued. Secrecy is highly valued.

The Stage E learning pattern is called Expectant Learning with a moderate delay and risk of failure. We all went through this type of human rat race to win degrees – Especially graduate degrees. Education process is linear and fragmented into narrow specialties – Mechanistic and reductionist with difficult, but manageable, challenges. School purpose for most is certification to get some type of material payoff.

Bases for Stage E actions are Rational Thought and End-Point Goals. The measure for success is the “Bottom Line Quantity”. Action process is conscious, pragmatic, using objective laws and methods. The purpose for acting is self-interest and winning by survival of the fittest competition. Actions are often taken for personal gain at the expense of the overall system or organization and other individuals.

Stage E psyche disease is Manic/Depressive anxiety and a broad range of neurosis and psychosis. It is the insanity of conscious excess.

Slide 7 – Paradigm Summary – Stage E – Personal

Let’s quickly summarize Western Stage E personal pattern to package our mental image for sharp contrast with Stage F. It reads as a template for many so-called hard driving leaders today.

- Independent, objective, intellectual, rational, quantitative, self-sufficient, selfish,
materialistic and competitive.
- Life is quest for outer world opportunity by manipulating and controlling
nature, resources and people for one’s personal gain.
- Human drive is to get more of everything as measures of self-esteem
and status.
- Science and technology are high segmented and specialistic – Viewed
almost like a new religion.
- Religion is like a separate part of life – And sharply separate from
Science.
- Relationships are patriarchal, obsessed with gender, emotionally
alienated, often for personal advantage.
- Salvation is no longer delayed to the next life – It is to be won in this life
by independence, power and material possessions.

Slide 8 – Descartes #1

For example, an icon of linear thought and science is Rene Descartes, philosopher and mathematician of the early 1600’s. Fritjof Capra in his book, The Turning Point, wrote:

Descartes’ method is analytic. It consists in breaking
up thoughts and problems into pieces and arranging
these in their logical order …
It has become an essential characteristic of modern
thought …

This is a clear example of linear, conscious, machine-like Stage E thought.

Slide 9 – Descartes #2

Then Capra comments on results of Descartes’ conscious method:

Overemphasis on the Cartesian method has led to
fragmentation that is characteristic of … our
General thinking and our academic disciplines …
and attitude of reductionism in science …
… the belief that all aspects of complex phenomena
Can be understood by reducing them to their
Constituent (separate parts)

Capra is right, but he seems not aware that it is the underlying Stage E psyche pattern that is the cause – Cartesian method is inherent in Stage E pattern – It is not some chosen alternative – Persons and groups operating dominantly at Stage E always think and behave is this way.

Slide 10 – Paradigm Summary – Stage E – Collective

The Stage E Collective pattern is the story of conventional leadership, management and organization all around us today. This is the pattern that brought us the material advantages we enjoy, but it no longer works as well as it did. Why? – Because it is no longer aligned with the psyche stage of the most advanced and productive people or with the competitive needs of a collaborative networked business world. It behaves as a closed, inflexible machine with a slow functionally divided autocratic decision process. Today’s world for the leading-edge is aligned with the nature of Living Systems.

Let’s summarize it so we have a sharp mental picture to contrast with what comes at the next two stages. Stage E leadership is by separate functional specialists using command & control administration, a vertical hierarchy headed by a single CEO, a formal chain of command, separated line and staff and authority defined by job position. The German army created the prototype for its modern version in the late 1800’s – Business further developed it.

It runs by RHIP – Rank Has Its Privileges – With information going upward and decisions and commands going downward. Top officers are assumed to have the best overall knowledge and competency and be the best decision makers. This is now open to serious doubt.

Stage E organizes as streamlined versions of Medieval church bureaucracy – Machine-like, technocratic, functionally divided pyramids with formal divisions of power. In fact, today’s executive elite often behave like a secular “priesthood”.

Linear system science is dominant – Almost “Religious”.

Stage E pattern invented a materialistic, technocratic, sovereign nation state society. National self-interest is a burning issue. Nations compete and expand by economic, political and military conflict. The multi-national corporation and nation state/empire are its highest business and political forms.

Slide 11 – Western – Organization

This image says it all about Stage E organization – They all look just like this pyramidal, functionally divided hierarchy. This example is for a university, but it makes no difference. Today, when someone says the word “organization” this picture is what comes to mind. Many today cannot even conceive there is anything different – There is! – And that is where we are going.

Slide 12 – Paradigm Summary – Stage E

Here is a summary of Stage E Western Paradigm organized for your reference. It outlines what has been the most effective pattern for accomplishing practical results but No Longer Is. I paint a brief word picture to complement its words.

Western man at Stage E made the world’s greatest advances and then became unbalanced in the material sense – Some went to such individual power, arrogance, selfishness, greed and finally corruption that great achievements became humanly bankrupt.

Eastern man became unbalanced in the inward, subjective, non-material sense – Some withdrew from the world to the degree that profound inner discoveries were made amidst squalor, social corruption and their work had few applications to man's worldly life.

Stage E is the story of the unbalanced Western blind man in spirit and Oriental crippled man in materialism. That is the story of the first half of Cycle 3.

End of Part 2 – 6

Cycle 2 Life - Stages C & D - New Pattern for Success Seminar - Part 2-5

2007-04-26T19:06:56-05:00

This Post is the fifth installment of Part 2 entitled Cycle 2 Life - Stages C & D - Part 2- 5 Its materials are available to you in two ways. First, as three downloadable files - One for the edited Text material, one for the Visual material and one for Visual examples of persons, events and places that illustrate Stage C & D life. Second, in the Extended Post below you can read the Text of the Cycle 2 Life - Stages C & D -Part 2-5 section.

This Post continues to present Part 2 of the The New Pattern for Success seminar series. Part 2 is entitled Mega-Force 1 - World Human Transformation to Living System Life and Work.

You can download the Text of Cycle 2 Life - Stages C & D - Part 2-5 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part2-5-Text-032607.pdf

You can download the Visuals of Cycle 2 Life - Stages C & D - Part 2-5 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part2-5-Vis-032607.pdf

You can download the Visual examples of persons, events and places at Stages C & D -Here Download NewPatSuc-Part2-5-HPSStageExamp-032607.pdf

Click on the Continue reading link below to read the Text of Cycle 2 Life - Stages C & D - Part 2-5 .

I look forward to your Questions, Comments and Suggestions.

John Clayton Caris

********************************

LIVING SYSTEM LIFE AND WORK -
THE NEW PATTERN FOR SUCCESS

A Series of Presentation/Discussions
To Explore Critical Issues
For Your Life and Your Business

by Dr. John Clayton Caris
Isis Institute

Part 2 - Mega-Force 1 –
World Human Transformation
to Living System Life and Work

Begin Part 2–5 – Cycle 2 Life – Stages C & D

Slide 2 – Cycle 2 Descriptors

Note: Slides of Examples of Persons, Places and Events during Cycle 2 Life – Stages C & D are available in the file – NewPatSuc-Part2-5-HPSStageExampl-022607.pdf

Now let’s look at the first human transcendence from Cycle-to-Cycle – This is the leap from Stage B, the last stage of Cycle 1, to Stage C, the first stage of Cycle 2. Recall – I said that psyche stage discontinuities during Phase I life are much greater for a stage-to-stage leap from one Cycle to the next Cycle than for a stage-to-stage leap within a Cycle. This is the first case of this Human Psyche System principle. We will see that the leap between Stage B and Stage C is much more drastic than the leap between Stage A and Stage B.

There is another Human Psyche System principle for Phase I life that I want to remind you of as we begin to discuss the stages of Cycle 2 human life. Recall – I said that what a given psyche stage is closed to and considers negative transforms at the next stage to become what the new psyche stage is open to and considers positive. We can now see the first example of this principle. At Stage B life was absolutely closed to Individuality – The Group dominated the individual. At Stage C we will see exactly the opposite – Life is absolutely open to the Personal power of an individual dominating the Group.

Cycle 2 is the story of Ancient and Medieval Man. Here the Creator’s Grand Plan for man takes its next leap forward out of Stage B stagnation. It is mankind’s greatest advance so far – But at great human cost. Its primary issues are uncontrolled personal power and its use at Stage C (the Flip) and how to collectively control it at Stage D (the Flop). The Stage C era of brutal conquest through personal power transforms into the Stage D era of collective conformity, brutally administered in the name of God. [Please refer again to slides 36 through 39 to maintain your orientation]

Man emerges as an independent Heroic self, free of the bonds of family and tribe and goes to excess at Stage C – Then stabilizes and protects his fragile “Ego-Self” by becoming an Absolutist at Stage D.

The second half of the psyche structure is formed – The Individual vs. Collective dimension. Therefore, man can now differentiate himself from the collective. The Ego of his Personal Conscious is born so man can also differentiate his psyche from his body.

During Cycle 2, worldly life is dominated by one issue – Personal Power – Its use at Stage C and then its control at Stage D. Cycle 2 sacred life is dominated by the issue of the direct intervention of Gods into life – Polytheistic Gods at Stage C and a Monotheistic God, the “One True God”, at Stage D.

Writing is invented at Stage C – Science and technology blossom in mathematics, astronomy, metallurgy, military equipment and agriculture.

The powerful drama of Cycle 2 played out in Western history between about 8000 BC – the beginning of Stage C Mid-East Empires – and 1400 AD – the ending of Stage D Medieval Church dominant power. It was the coming of the first high civilizations. I will focus in my discussions on Western history.

In advanced human life today Cycle 2 emerges in children about 2 to 2 ½ years and concludes at the end of adolescence. When adolescence ends for an individual can be any age from the middle teens until late adulthood, depending on the person and his environments.

Cycle 2 life is the driving force even today in the adult lives of the world’s most difficult people and groups – Terrorists and Fundamentalists of all types. Remnants of Cycle 2 human nature in more evolved persons and groups are also problems for leaders today in every type of organization everywhere.

Religious experience at Cycle 2 is a big deal. It also takes massive Flip-Flop leaps – From female monotheism of the Earth Mother Goddess at Stage B – To the complex polytheism of Gods and Goddesses with a male God in control at Stage C – To male dominated monotheism at Stage D. The location of God also drastically changes during Cycle 2. At Stage B God is centered in the Earth – At Stage C, God’s location is elevated to the mountain tops and further elevated to an abstract Heaven at Stage D.

Slide 3 – Cycle 2 Psyche Symbols

Cycle 2 psyche symbols show the Individual vs. Collective dimension being created at Stage C and stabilized at Stage D. Recall that humans can differentiate Conscious from Unconscious at Cycle 1. They emerge from the unconscious of pre-birth to begin learning how to live and work in a conscious world experience – That is the psychological story of Stages A and B. Now at Cycle 2 humans can differentiate themselves as being Individuals as separate from their Collectives. Individual identity becomes possible. They emerge from unthinking, unquestioning control by Collectives, like the tribe and the family, to begin learning how to live and work with personal power and its control – That is the psychological story of Stage C and D. As we will see, it is a bitter/sweet period of human life and history. The basic four-fold structure of the human psyche energy system is completed at Cycle 2.

Slide 4 – Paradigm – Stage C

Stage C Heroic, Early Imperial Man was a giant step forward in human affairs from Stage B. The emergence of Stage C in today’s children, at from 2 to 2 ½ years, descends on mothers and families like thunder and lightning – This is commonly called the “Terrible Two’s”, when a lovable, tribalistic, well behaved little soul becomes at times an independent, rebellious, stubborn, disagreeable, destructive brat.

As we discuss Stage C life, please make notes about where in your own life and work you have experienced examples of Stage C human nature – Family, friends, other persons, groups or organizations. Also note the effects of these experiences on you. Identifying your own personal examples of Stage C in parallel with my discussion will help the psyche stages to come alive for you.

Stage C leaders and the beginnings of their early city states and kingdoms emerged from about 8000 BC to 5000 BC in the Tigris and Euphrates river valleys in what is now Iran and Iraq. Later they emerged in Egypt along the Nile river and along the Indus river in what is now Pakistan. These kingdoms, driven by leaders discovering their Personal Power, began to expand by bloody conquest to form the first empires. Stage C psyche led the world from about 3000 BC until 500 AD when the last ancient empire collapsed – The Roman Empire.

Stage C behavior is all about personal power and worldly destiny by breaking away from group control to become the new group leader – It can be described as egocentric, selfish, rebellious, compulsive action, angry, ruthless, destructive and paranoid with no conscience. Stage C human relationships are conditional – Based upon the simple test of “Are you for me or against me?” If you are for me, you are a candidate for watchful regard – It you are against me, you are marked for elimination.

At Stage C, learning is called Operant – That is, giving immediate feedback of the consequences of actions. Heroic stage persons do not think out the results and consequences of actions before they act – They act compulsively – Often irrationally. Epic tales of heroic actions were the literature of the Stage C leadership era – The famous books The Tales of Gilgamesh, the Iliad and the Odyssey are examples.

The bases for actions are the authority of personal power, the prerogatives of power and the feudal duties of the weak.

Stage C life is insecurity – The newly formed Ego is weak and fearful – Really doubtful about the power it projects outward. It is the life of an arrogant, autocratic tyrant or even bully who is inwardly fearful that he is really weak, but dares not even allow that thought. A person who functions dominantly at Stage C requires continuous adoration, the belief that his Gods are supportive and his personal power is super-human.

Stage C psyche disease is consistent with this situation – It is delusional paranoia – The obsessive fear that everyone is against you and you cannot really trust anyone. It is the humiliation, rage, and shame of the rejected child. Part of Stage C psyche disease is hearing internal “voices”. All over the ancient world leaders went to oracles to receive “the Voices”. The oracle at Delphi in Greece is famous – My wife and I had amazing experiences while visiting there.

I imagine you know persons and organizations still functioning in the Stage C psyche pattern. Let’s understand them better. It is important to do so for a very few Stage C persons or groups can destroy an organization or society today – Often from the top. Some companies and political organizations are run by Stage C leaders, their families and their courtiers.

Slide 5 – Paradigm Summary – Stage C – Personal

The Stage C personal obsession is freedom from any type of control. Especially important is to experience Self as a separate being free of family and tribal domination. Life is defined as personal power, force, violence, godly sanction and the heroic pursuit of personal destiny. The drive is to achieve one's own destiny by impulsive action through unlimited personal power. This usually means brutally destroying all challengers for power – Real or imagined.

Religion is a powerful Polytheistic force at Stage C through a panoply of male and female Gods located on sacred heights, like mountains. The wide range of Gods is led by a male God. The Stage B pattern of the Earth Mother Goddess is broken.

As I said, relationships are conditional based on a simple test – Are you for me or against me? Salvation comes through ONE thing – Personal Power.

Slide 6 – Paradigm Summary – Stage C – Collective

With Stage C came the first time it was possible to create and expand an empire – To accumulate food supplies and material wealth, manufacture weapon systems and combine them to create a military establishment. The epoch of Barbarism began. The world embarked on bloody conquest on a massive scale led by leaders who used tyrannical personal power and perceived Godly support to exert their authority as God/King-Emperors. Examples are Darius of Persia, Alexander the Great of Macedonia, Julius Caesar of Rome, Genghis Khan of Mongolia, etc.

Stage C power is organized as a vertical hierarchy with single point power at the top and a limited number of status levels. A new leadership/management and organization system was created – The Feudal system. It was a system of the Haves, the Have-Nots and the Slaves. The haves had God sanctioned power, the have-nots had little but duties to work and die, and the slaves had less.

Stage C power is organized as a four level hierarchy – The God/King-Emperor as the single point top power, then the Nobles, followed by the Common Man and the Slaves. The King-Emperor decides everything – Power flows down – Subservience flows upward. Everything depends on the skill, cunning and power of the Emperor.

This Divine Right King/Noble/Common man/Slave system re-organized the world. Local kingdoms with gifted leaders grew into great empires by conquest of the less gifted and weaker. This process of local kingdoms becoming large empires covered much of the world at that time from the Mid-East to Egypt to Rome.

Despite Stage C’s vast advances, the whole world became a massive blood bath. Its destructive excesses provoked, in man's Grand Plan, the need to correct them. At each Cycle of Phase 1 life it becomes necessary to correct excesses. At Cycle 2 that we are now discussing, the Flip to excess personal power at Stage C needed to be corrected. Then the world's greatest collective driven Flop appeared as Stage D to correct Stage C excesses. But Stage D also went excesses of collective power that in turn needed to be corrected. Before we discuss that, let’s summarize Stage C so it is sharp in mind.

Slide 7 – Paradigm Summary – Stage C

Its dominant motivation is to become a separate “Me” against the world, to achieve God-like personal power sufficient to get MY destiny by MY action NOW, to figure out how to “Beat the System” and to be worshipped as a Hero. The greatest shame is to “Lose Face”.

The Stage C Mission is to get and keep unchallenged power, by any means, in a hostile world of those you cannot trust.

Stage C Ends Valued are what we have said – A Personal position as all powerful, brave and heroic. But there is something else – There is a deep desire for emotional security, but sadly this is can never be achieved. Stage C leaders can be extremely insecure and lonely as people.

The Means Valued are a brilliant combination of manipulation, coercion, force, violence, ambition and seeking godly support – All wrapped in a program to exploit supporters and eliminate opponents, real or imagined.

The theme of Stage C life can be summarized as living by personal action and God’s sanction to achieve personal destiny by heroic actions.

There you have Stage C – An important story for us to understand because it is central to one of the greatest issues in the world today – Corruption. The inherent way the Feudal System operates is called corruption by persons evolved to the latest stages. Stage C leaders cannot perceive they are doing anything wrong. Their psyche system is not capable beyond Stage C. What we call corruption, they see as right ways to do things in their own personal power interest. That is all they are able to see. For only one example, much of Africa is mired in Stage C administration today. Underlying Stage C remnants are the roots of Corruption everywhere. As we see later, Stage E raises corruption to a high “legalized” art form, even in Western so-called democracies.

Psyche evolution beyond Stage C is the issue for solving corruption, not laws and regulations. In fact, psyche evolution beyond the stages of Phase 1 life is needed for any significant solutions to corruption. We will come to learn that Phase 2 life and its Stage A’ Living System behavior involves removing the power of the corruptors – Not trying to police them in ways they cannot comprehend. Stage C persons will find a way to beat any system setup to try to control them. Today’s un-corrupted leaders need to understand the Stage C psyche and how to deal with it. Again Steiner was right – being practical depends on understanding human life.

Slide 8 – Paradigm – Stage D

Now we come to the Cycle 2 psychological “Flop” for the Stage C “Flip”.
Stage D arose to counter excesses of Stage C power during the period from about 1400 BC to the life of Christ. The earliest Stage D leader I have found is Akhenaten, the Egyptian Pharaoh about 1350 BC. He took the name of the Sun God, Aten, and tried to convert Egyptian society from Stage C Polytheism to Stage D Monotheism worshipping only the Sun God. He eventually failed and was toppled from power. Absolutistic, Medieval man emerged over the next 1500 years.

As we discuss Stage D life, please make notes about where in your own life and work you have experienced examples of Stage D human nature – Family, friends, other persons, groups or organizations. Also note the effects of these experiences on you. Identifying your own personal examples of Stage D in parallel with my discussion will help the psyche stages to come alive for you.

Stage D pattern led the Western world from about 500 AD until 1400 AD. A totally new culture arose in the West resulting in a new leadership system in the form of the Medieval Church dominated bureaucracies. Man's ruthless Stage C personal power world collapsed as the world leader as humans searched for how to repent for its sins using their newly found guilt. Guilt does not exist at Stage C but bursts forth at Stage D as one of the central issues for a new collective dominated society.

Three unique humans appeared on the Earth in rapid succession early in the Stage D period – The Buddha in the Orient (563-483 B.C.), then Jesus Christ, and about 600 years later Mohammed (570-632 A.D.) Their lives were catalysts for this tremendous world transition to Stage D monotheism and absolutism.

My research on the Buddha and the Christ indicates for me they were far more evolved than Stage D Medieval man – Possibly as far evolved as Stage A’ or farther – But Stage A’ is as far as we seem to be able to see today. But their followers were ready for the Stage C to Stage D transition – And that is what they led. They built Stage D church dominated societies in their own psyche image and likeness because that is all they could do. Again Steiner was right. I have not researched Mohammed in any detail so I will not feature him in my discussions.

Stage D behavior in most respects is the opposite of Stage C. The Stage C to Stage D psychological “Flip-Flop” is dramatic – From total personal worldly power to total collective religious subservience to the power of an abstract God. Absolute conformity to monotheistic religion became the path to salvation. The Church became both spiritual and government power – The Church and the State were one and the same – Society became a Theocracy.

This was strong human medicine to try to cure man’s Stage C problems. It was the next step in man’s evolution but it was only partly successful. Because the psyche’s Unconscious Shadow is not yet open at Stage D, its solution switched from brutal individual power to brutal collective repression based on projected Shadow energy. Church led actions such as The Inquisition and burning at the stake are examples – All done in the name of piety and glorifying the “One True God”. Please recall the Phase 1 life underlying pattern of “Generalized Separation” of the inherent bi-polar nature of the psyche. One pole of everything was chosen as Good and of God and the other pole was chosen as Evil and of the Devil and must be suppressed and eliminated.

Stage D behavior is the quest to achieve absolute “Right” and destroy absolute “Wrong”. It is intolerant of dissent from absolute truth as perceived. It prohibits any doubt about what is believed to be true – Shades of “Grey” are not allowed in its “Black and White” perceptions of reality. Its new found Conscience becomes a compulsive tool in the search for criticism and condemnation of self and others. Atonement for perceived sins and evil is a “Big Deal”. Submissive/aggressive actions – Which are consistent with martyr/ terrorist behavior – are used to enforce beliefs while being both self accusing and judgmental of others. Acting “Saintly” is often part of the pattern. Stage D is the profile for “The True Believer” – The fundamentalist zealot of any type.

Learning at Stage D is called Avoidant Learning with delayed gratification. It is learning prescribed by higher authority. A person accepts it to avoid punishment – Now and later. True believers are certain that knowledge, science and law are divinely revealed through the Church and must be controlled through the authority of the Church. They know that reward for absolute belief and submission in this life will come in the after life. It drives fundamentalists of all types even today.

Authority for action “as legalized” by the “One True God” through the official human representatives of authority is a big deal at Stage D. Then authorized actions are administered by absolute rules and standards, also from God through authorized representatives. Individual will and dissent must be eliminated. High value actions are taken through self-sacrifice – The highest through Martyrdom in the service of God.

Psyche disease at Stage D is Schizophrenia – an insanity of disintegrating personality often related to life stress and beginning in adolescence. Persons functioning at Stage D can set such rigid and unattainable standards for themselves they cannot deal with the reality of failing to meet them. To cope, they create a fantasy life in which they can appear successful. They often fail. The potential for hypocrisy is large at Stage D. Stories of powerful churchmen with secret lives of sin are not rare. The psyche is a balanced bi-polar system – the Conscious excesses we openly see are balanced by the opposite excesses we do not see hidden in the Unconscious.

Slide 9 – Paradigm Summary – Stage D – Personal

Let’s paint a word picture of the Stage D personal pattern. We all know people who are functioning at Stage D. They know there is absolute truth. They live in a world of black and white with few or no shades of grey. They have one Universal timeless answer for everything that comes from their one true God speaking through an authorized channel.

This same pattern applies to all life and work, not just religious matters. There is no difference between the letter and the spirit of the law. Absolute rules measure everyone's behavior. Uncertainty, ambiguity and relative values are abhorred. Scholarship is to prove what is already believed – Not to discover new knowledge – Innovation is heresy – New Creations are blasphemy. Relationships are closed, not open – Judgmental, not communicative and not accepting of anything or anyone outside the prescribed limits. This slide gives a crisp summary of the Personal Paradigm of Stage D. This pattern is still so prevalent today we need to recognize it and understand it. In short, the whole Stage D psychology is absolutistic – A life of rigidity.

Slide 10 – Paradigm Summary – Stage D – Collective

Stage D psyche invented many level, theocratic bureaucracy as the tool for implementing a church controlled Medieval society. Leadership power was determined by Position in the hierarchy. Position defines the degree of leadership power and God granted authority. Stage D bureaucracy is complex and administered by absolute rules and procedure through humans authorized as agents for the one true God or body of officially prescribed doctrine. The bureaucracy, as the agent for God, claims universal jurisdiction over all human affairs.

During Stage D world power, kings and emperors were really vassels, or authorized servants, in the service of the Church to expand its power. Stage D passive/aggressive rigidity and collective oppression consumed vast human and material resources, led the world into stagnation and the Church into bankruptcy – Moral and financial. This brought the beginning of the Protestant Reformation.

Slide 11 – Paradigm Summary – Stage D
Stage D dominant motivation is to believe that absolute truth exists, that it is universal and timeless and that it is the path to personal Salvation. The greatest human drive at Stage D is to behave so as to win Salvation.

Therefore the Stage D Mission is to be saved by absolute conformity to the “Truth” as prescribed by authorized leaders. This mission has dimensions of breaking the heroic will of anyone who disagrees with the “Truth”, to atone for sinfulness and to eliminate heresy by any means necessary.

Stage D Ends Valued are being a true believer and achieving personal salvation through absolute conformity to the “Truth”.

The Means Valued are unquestioned faith and loyal, submissive/aggressive expansion of the faith. Other valued means include guilt, punishment of self and others and even martyrdom. These are the tools of zealots such as today’s suicide bombers.

The theme of Stage D life can be summarized as living by the universal “Truth” of the “One True God” and by actions prescribed by authorized superiors.

There you have Stage D – Another important story for us to understand because it is central to another of the greatest issues in the world today – Fanaticism. The Crusades were a most important example of fanatics in action. They were the high water mark, the “Swan Song”, of Western Stage D Medieval society. It never recovered from the human and material costs of these vast adventures. The Crusades began in 1095 A.D. and continued until about 1300 AD – Nine Crusades in all. During this period Western Christianity and Near Eastern Islam, both functioning at Stage D, organized their leaders and less evolved masses under their respective controls. Their fanaticism drove the “True Believers” of two opposite “Truths” to kill each other to prove once and for all which brand of God's love was true, not to mention the commercial interests as well.

The psyche stage profile of today’s fundamentalist terrorists is a combination of Stage C and Stage D dominance.

As a leader you have a question to answer – Can you build and operate a leading-edge organization today that contains people whose behavior functions dominantly, or with significant remnants, at Stage C and Stage D? My judgment is you cannot.

Slide 12 – Cycle 2 Psyche Pole Structure

This slide is for your reading and reference. It defines the nature of the conscious and unconscious poles for Cycle 2 Stages – That is, what each stage is open to and accepts as positive and what each stage is closed to and accepts as negative.

Stage C is open to getting and keeping unlimited personal power and is closed to anything that would oppose or limit getting or using uncontrolled personal power. Stage D is open to the collective control of personal power and closed to any question or opposition in thought or action to the one absolute truth that drives its nature.

End of Part 2 – 5

Phase 1 Life Intro and Cycle 1 Life - Stages A & B - New Pattern for Success Seminar - Part 2-4

2007-04-25T16:06:33-05:00

This Post is the fourth installment of Part 2 entitled Phase 1 Life Intro and Cycle 1 Life - Stages A & B - Part 2- 4 Its materials are available to you in two ways. First, as three downloadable files - One for the edited Text material, one for the Visual material and one for Visual examples of persons, events and places that illustrate Stage A & B life. Second, in the Extended Post below you can read the Text of the Phase 1 Life Intro and Stages A & B - Part 2-4 section.

This Post continues to present Part 2 of the The New Pattern for Success seminar series. Part 2 is entitled Mega-Force 1 - World Human Transformation to Living System Life and Work.

You can download the Text of Phase 1 Life Intro and Cycle 1 Life - Stages A & B - Part 2-4 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part2-4-Text-032607.pdf

You can download the Visuals of Phase 1 Life Intro and Cycle 1 Life - Stages A & B - Part 2-4 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part2-4-Vis-032607.pdf

You can download the Visual examples of persons, events and places at Stages A & B -Here Download NewPatSuc-Part2-4-HPSStageExamp-032607.pdf

Click on the Continue reading link below to read the Text of Phase 1 Life Intro and Cycle 1 Life - Stages A & B - Part 2-4 .

I look forward to your Questions, Comments and Suggestions.

John Clayton Caris

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LIVING SYSTEM LIFE AND WORK -
THE NEW PATTERN FOR SUCCESS

A Series of Presentation/Discussions
To Explore Critical Issues
For Your Life and Your Business

by Dr. John Clayton Caris
Isis Institute

Part 2 - Mega-Force 1 –
World Human Transformation
to Living System Life and Work

Begin Part 2–4 – Phase 1 Life Intro and Cycle 1 Life – Stages A & B

As we experience together our stage-by-stage psyche evolution, you will begin to see and understand yourself and those around you as never before – Why we do what we do – Why we agree, disagree and fight – And what this means for leader decisions and actions in these turbulent times. There is also a fascinating story of each stage’s unique pattern of human motivation. But the stage-by-stage story of motivation is beyond the scope of what we can accomplish in this discussion series. It must wait for another time.

Slide 2 – Phase I Human Life Descriptors #1

Let’s begin the story that leads up to Mega-Force 1 by grasping the underlying pattern of Phase I Life – That is the first six stages, Stage A through Stage F – The Phase 1 life pattern begins to break down at Stage F and the dramatically different underlying pattern of Phase II life, that is now the driving force for leading edge persons and organizations, begins to emerge at Stage A’.

From my introduction in Part 1 you know that life is about pairs of bi-polar opposites – We call them Dualisms. Examples are:

Right vs. Wrong
Good vs. Evil
Individual vs. Collective
Conscious vs. Unconscious
Male vs. Female
Life vs. Death
Leader vs. Those Led
Etc.

The pattern of Phase I life, except for the last part of Stage F, is the separation of each dualism into two opposite, mutually exclusive, conflicting poles. During the stages of Phase 1 life the psyche’s fixation is on separate, independent poles in disagreement or conflict with each other rather than complementary bi-polar pairs. People and collectives functioning at each Phase I stage choose one separate pole as Good – of their concept of God – and choose the other separate pole as Bad or Evil – of their concept of the Devil. This is what I call "Generalized Separation" of everything during Phase I life.

The resulting underlying pattern of human behavior is fixation on separating poles of their own human nature and using a single pole focus to live and work. The practical consequences for personal and world events throughout Phase I are profound – They are the base for disagreement, anger, hatred and conflict through history. What humans cannot comprehend during all of Phase 1 life is that their disagreements, angers and conflicts are not caused by what is external to themselves, but is caused by profound forces originating within their own psyche’s polar separations. They are in disagreement, anger and conflict among parts of themselves that they project outward on to other persons, groups and situations.

Our life at each Phase I stage experiences the following drama. We consciously accept the Good pole as a desirable part of ourselves. We make its achievement and protection an end-point goal of our life – This happens at each stage in a different way. We do not recognize or accept the Bad/Evil pole as part of our self – Even though it is. We cannot even begin to see this until late in Stage F. We deny, we disown and banish the pole we perceive to be Bad/Evil to our unconscious, where we mistakenly assume it is gone – It isn’t. Its energy grows. We make its detection and elimination in others an important end-point goal of our life. We easily see this in the behavior as the driving dynamic for all types of “fundamentalist” zealots.

Each Phase I stage makes its own types of judgments about others – Both positive and negative – based upon how it separates the dualisms it considers most important into independent opposite conflicting poles. In this way a new type of compulsive “End-Point Seeking” to achieve the Good pole becomes a life purpose at each stage. We will experience this as we discuss each Phase I stage.

In the unconscious, banished Bad/Evil pole psychic energy does not disappear. It grows in direct proportion to the intensity it is denied and hated by the conscious Good pole. As Carl Jung so rightly pointed out, the human psyche always remains a balanced bi-polar energy system. Each separate conscious excess is balanced by its opposite separate unconscious excess. This unconscious energy can be unconsciously projected onto other people and groups. If the projection is positive, it appears as irrational adoration or infatuation, often mistaken for unquestioning loyalty or love – Recall that infatuation means an obsessed attraction. If the projection is negative it appears as disagreements, anger and conflicts of even the most murderous types, all justified in terms of the conscious Good pole acting to try to control or eliminate the Bad pole in others. Daily our news reports are filled with such stories. This process is a convenient tool that manipulators, zealots and tyrants of all types have used to provoke fear, hatred, conflict and increase their power in the name of the what they call the Good to eliminate or punish what they call the Bad in others.

I am making such an emphasis of the Phase 1 separation of poles in our psyche now to enable you to become very conscious of it. We will learn later that it vanishes at the onset of Phase 2 life. This is one of the Keys to understanding the great world human transformation of Mega-Force 1 and its new pattern of leadership and organization.

There is a fascinating thing we will discover as we proceed through our Phase I story – The unconscious pole that is considered Bad/Evil at a given stage transforms into a new type of conscious Good pole at the next stage. For example, we will learn that the negative pole at Stage B is to separate yourself from the power and control of the tribe or family – Personal freedom from the collective cannot even be perceived at Stage B. But, we will learn that the positive pole of stage C is to separate yourself from the power and control of the collective to an extreme degree. What was the negative pole at Stage B transforms into a new powerful positive pole at Stage C. The psychological result throughout Phase I is a life of flip-flops in purpose and action as the basic dynamic from stage to stage.

Each Phase I Cycle of two stages has a flip-flop between its stages – A flip-flop from one excess of individualism/independence at the first stage of the cycle to an excess of collectivism/dependence at the second stage of the cycle. Then as each new cycle begins, there is a larger flip to a more evolved type of individualism at the first stage of the new cycle. So the psychological flip-flop from the last stage of one cycle to the first stage of the next cycle is greater than the flip-flops from the first stage to the second stage next within a given cycle.

I want to emphasize that the human psyche compensates for its banished “bad” poles in the unconscious by projecting their unconscious energy outward on to other persons, groups and situations. Recall that this is the cause of both infatuations and hatreds, disagreements and conflicts.

Slide 3 – Phase I Human Life Descriptors #2

A new type of motivation appears at each stage. The drive throughout Phase I is to find purpose in achieving and defending some fixed end-point goal. This goal is to achieve a strong equilibrium position at the positive pole. For example, the goal for Stage C is to get and maintain an invincible position of personal power.

Achieving the goal is a powerful “End” in itself that is the base for one’s perception of their human worth. For example, for a person functioning at Stage C the end of unchallenged personal power justifies any means to get it and life without it has no worth. I think that most of us know some people who behave this way.

Psychological flip-flop is the basic dynamic for Phase I as psyche evolution cycles from one human excess to another. At Stages C and E, the excess is a type of independence and individualism – At Stages B, D and F, the excess is a type of dependence and collectivism. But each Cycle and Stage is a great human advance over the previous ones.

There is continuous Individual/Collective antagonism throughout Phase I. It changes its nature at each stage, but the pattern remains. This is a major leadership problem.

There we have the underlying picture of human psyche evolution up to the emergence of Phase II life when this whole Phase I pattern of “generalized separation” breaks down – Its separation of dualisms into independent conflicting poles, its single pole fixations and its flip-flopping pattern end at Stage A’ – The newly emerging Human Psyche System stage that is driving Mega-Force 1. Hopefully you are beginning to see that what is now beginning to happen in the world by leading-edge persons is very special.

In summary, the psychological result of Phase I’s single pole fixation is life purpose defined as compulsive single pole end-point seeking at every stage. Persons and groups strive to achieve their Good-positive pole and hold on to it permanently while eliminating or hiding their Bad-negative pole. There are different Good and Evil poles for each Phase I stage, but the pattern remains the same.

Slide 4 – Cycle 1 Descriptors

Note: Slides of Examples of Persons, Places and Events during Cycle 1 Life – Stages A & B are available in the file – NewPatSuc-Part2-4-HPSStageExampl-022607.pdf

Now let’s see how this underlying pattern of Phase I life materializes Cycle-by-Cycle and Stage-by-Stage.

Human life and history begins with Primitive man at Cycle 1. Its primary issues are personal survival and group safety from the mysterious frightful forces of nature. Man emerges as human at Stage A – Primitive, Hunter Gatherer Man and then stabilizes and protects his fragile existence at Stage B – Mystical, Tribal Man.

More than 99% of mankind’s history is Cycle 1 life. But don’t think this is just about the distant past – It is very much about living system leadership today. Why? Deep emotional remnants of Stages A and B live within all of us – Even though we are evolved far beyond Cycle 1 stages. They are both important opportunities and problems in organizations today. Leaders need to understand the patterns.

Cycle 1 forms the first half of the psyche’s structure – The Conscious vs. Unconscious dimension. Here, man can differentiate himself from other objects and has a cyclical time sense of now vs. not now – But, cannot differentiate his psyche from his body. He feels he is his body. Also, he cannot conceive of being separate from the group – It is unsafe. The Individual vs. Collective dimension of the psyche does not yet exist.

Man’s life is dominated by a mysterious cyclical awareness of nature. Rational intellectual understanding as we know it is not yet present. Primitive religious experience is in terms of the Earth Mother Goddess. Until about 10,000 years ago God was female.

Cycle 1 life has spoken traditions – Writing is not yet invented.

Slide 5 – Cycle 1 Psyche Symbols

Cycle 1 psyche symbols show the Conscious vs. Unconscious dimension created at Stage A and stabilized at Stage B.

To present the story of each psyche stage I use a standard set of slides for each slide as follows, where X = A, B, C, D, E and F:

- Paradigm – Stage X
- Paradigm Summary – Stage X – Personal Paradigm
- Paradigm Summary – Stage X – Collective Paradigm
- Paradigm Summary – Stage X

Slide 6 – Paradigm – Stage A

Now we begin understanding life at specific stages. In parallel with my narrative, I give visual examples of people, groups and events at each stage. You can find these examples in the package of slides named Part 2 – Human Psyche System Stage Examples.

As we discuss Stage A life, please make notes about where in your own life and work you have experienced examples of Stage A human nature – Family, friends, other persons, groups or organizations. Also note the effects of these experiences on you. Identifying your own personal examples of Stage A in parallel with my discussion will help the psyche stages to come alive for you.

Stage A humans emerged from 1 to 4 million years ago depending on which scholars you believe – For humans today the first year of life recapitulates Stage A.

The Stage A Paradigm, or pattern is:

- World leader period extended to at least 30,000 BC
- Behavior by instinct, primitive associations and repetition
- Learning by primitive memory of what works
- Actions based upon instincts and primitive memory
- Psyche dysfunction is loss of consciousness.

Slide 7 – Paradigm Summary – Stage A – Personal

Keep in mind a young baby as I outline the personal paradigm. At Stage A the focus is on physical needs – Thirst, hunger, shelter, sleep, etc. Instincts and primitive habits are tools to satisfy survival needs. Communication is by primitive sounds and signs. Survival is the only salvation.

Slide 8 – Paradigm Summary – Stage A – Collective

Stage A Collectives organize in hunter, gatherer bands of primitive families in the form of small, loosely structured groups of nomads. Over hundreds of thousands of years, survival depended on small work team organization and leadership by those who best coped with danger and survival needs. Unsuccessful teams, leaders and their families died.

Instincts for small work teams survive to this day, especially under stress – Teams of 12 persons or less is optimum. It is interesting that US Army Special Forces A-Teams contain 12 men who can operate by themselves without continuous management from outside the group.

Networks of such teams are a most effective means to deal with terrorist cell networks and other non-conventional warfare needs. Networks of such teams are at the heart of powerful emerging Nodal Network Business applications beyond conventional linear thinking – Their deepest psyche base is the small team heritage of Stage A instincts.

Here again we see Steiner was right – The way to become a practical person is to understand the patterns of human life. Let’s go on. The coming stages are more interesting.

There is no known Stage A society remaining today on earth – Only infants in their first year.

Slide 9 – Paradigm Summary – Stage A

The basic motivation is to satisfy stress and survival needs. The mission is to survive. The ends valued are immediate physical needs satisfied. The only means available are instincts, proto-habits and primitive tools.

Slide 10 – Paradigm – Stage B

Although still primitive, Stage B life is far richer. As early as 30,000 BC, leading-edge people began to transform from automatic, instinctual responses of Stage A to the
stereotyped conditioned responses of Stage B – Mystical, Tribal Man. Transformation at this point in man’s psyche evolution was a very slow process relative to later stages. Today we see Stage B pattern in our young children from 1 year to 2-2 ½ years.

As we discuss Stage B life, please make notes about where in your own life and work you have experienced examples of Stage B human nature – Family, friends, other persons, groups or organizations. Also note the effects of these experiences on you. Identifying your own personal examples of Stage B in parallel with my discussion will help the psyche stages to come alive for you.

Stage B societies were world leaders from about 20,000 BC to about 8,000 to 5000 BC. The Stage B pattern still lingers in the deep emotional lives of people, especially in more traditional cultures. Pure Stage B society exists today in only the most remote areas of the world.

Group centered, submissive, passive, rigid thinking created the base for a stable, quite peaceful tribal society motivated by the quest for group safety from the mystical forces of nature. For instance in the most remote jungles of Indonesia, most remote areas of Asia, South America, Africa and central Australia.

Stage B behavior is group dominated, submissive, passive and superstitious to the point it appears hypnotic to more evolved stages. It has a rich imaginary experience and a reverent closeness to nature. The imaginary playmates young children have are very real to them. There are group habits, rules, taboos, totems, superstitions, hypnotic dancing and participation in tribal rituals.

The beautiful word “Gynolatrous” applies the Stage B culture. It means the love and reverence for all things female. Stage B religious experience focuses on one God in female form – the Earth Mother Goddess.

Learning is by conditioned response through verbal instruction and repeated demonstration.

The only legitimate basis for action is the way the group does it. There is profound fear of doing, or even thinking, anything new that is not already sanctioned by tribe and family leaders – Such action is believed to endanger the whole group – It is forbidden and punished.

The inherent fear of change we see everywhere is a deep emotional remnant of Stage B life in all people throughout Phase I life – It breaks down at Stage A’ of Phase II life . It is a serious problem in all organizations today. Leaders need to understand where it comes from. How to deal with it at each stage depends on details that are beyond the scope of our introduction to the Human Psyche System and human evolution.

Stage B psyche dysfunction involves withdrawing and not participating in the group. The deepest fear and worst punishment at Stage B is to be banished from the tribe or family. Excommunication and dis-inheritance are still used as punishments for not obeying collective rules and prohibitions.

Slide 11 – Paradigm Summary – Stage B – Personal

Personal life is believed inseparable from the group and controlled by mysterious forces of nature. Personal behavior is unassertive and participating without question. At times Stage B actions appear trance-like. Communication is spoken and highly symbolic.

Religion is centered upon nature, the earth and the female.

Salvation is equivalent to safety through the group. Group membership rights are the most valuable possession one can have at Stage B.

Slide 12 – Paradigm Summary – Stage B – Collective

Stage B psyche created leadership by Council. Councils were structured with three types of individuals – Tribal Elders for wisdom and experience, Chieftains responsible for operating leadership and management and Shamans responsible for vision and guidance for spiritual matters and dealing with the awesome forces of nature. The council’s purpose was to manage tribal affairs and to assure group safety through correct behavior and being in the good graces of spirits that were believed to control the forces of nature.
A Stage B collective is organized by rigid family and tribal relationships with structured roles and is administered by the tribal council. The power of tradition is so strong that tribal actions are like obsessions without innovation.

Women played powerful and respected roles in ancient Stage B families and tribes – Often as Shamans.

Stage B leaders invented a stable Tribal/Village society of families. These tribal organizations could be either or both nomadic or village based. Today, remnants of Stage B Council organization are at the underlying core of public and business organizations. Examples are the Council/Mayor organization of many municipal governments in the US and the Boards of Directors for business corporations.

Slide 13 – Paradigm Summary – Stage B

To belong, to remain aligned with and participate in the tribal society group is the dominant motivation pattern at Stage B. By such actions the individual receives support and strength from the family and tribal rules and instruction. A result is that tribal society becomes so closed and rigid that it cannot change.

The mission of Stage B life is to act only as the group prescribes. It is deeply believed that absolute adherence to the ways of the group is the only way to assure safety and survival of both the group and the individual. To disagree is to endanger both yourself and the group. The pattern of group participation is so strong that anthropologists have named it “Participation Mystique”.

The ends and means valued and the theme of Stage B life follow from what I have just described. Ends valued are to have rights of membership in, acceptance by and participation in the group – Being a group member is a Big Deal. Means valued are to act only in strict agreement with the beliefs and rules of the family and the tribe. The life theme at Stage B is to be and do only what is prescribed and allowed. Therefore, a stagnant atmosphere pervaded late Stage B collectives. Individual freedom of thought and action do not exist because the human psyche structure is only partly formed – The Individual vs. Collective dimension is not yet formed. This was man’s first collective controlled society – It is the Stage B “Flop” to the Stage A “Flip”.

Emotional remnants of Stage B are still powerful in many countries with traditional cultures. Even though more evolved consciously, their societies still have significant underlying Stage B nature. We now see Western public leaders, whose psyche stages are dominant at Stage E, aggressively trying to force direct transition of more traditional cultures to their versions of “Democracy”. They obviously do not understand human life. You cannot skip stages or try to force others to do so. The mess they have created is now obvious. What a tragedy.

Slide 14 – Cycle 1 Psyche Pole Structure

This slide is for your reading and reference. It defines the nature of the conscious and unconscious poles for Cycle 1 Stages – That is, what each stage is open to, and considers positive and Good, and closed to, and considers negative and Bad. Stage A is open to a primitive conscious awareness and is closed to anything that limits satisfying physical needs. Stage B is open, as I have described, to a personal identity totally aligned with the group and totally closed to an identity separate from the group or questioning or opposing its control.

End of Part 2 – 4

Introduction to Living System Psychology - New Pattern for Success Seminar - Part 2-3

2007-04-19T11:22:24-05:00

This Post is the third installment of Part 2 entitled Part 2-3 - Introduction to Living System Psychology. Its materials are available to you in two ways. First, as two downloadable files - One for the edited Text material and one for the Visual material. Second, in the Extended Post below you can read the Text of the Part 2-3 section.

This Post continues to present Part 2 of the The New Pattern for Success seminar series. Part 2 is entitled Mega-Force 1 - World Human Transformation to Living System Life and Work.

You can download the Text of Introduction to Living System Psychology - Part 2-3 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part2-3-Text-032307.pdf

You can download the Visuals of Introduction to Living System Psychology -Part 2-3 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part2-3-Vis-032307.pdf

Click on the Continue reading link below to read the Text of Introduction to Living System Psychology - Part 2-3 .

I look forward to your Questions, Comments and Suggestions.

John Clayton Caris

********************************

LIVING SYSTEM LIFE AND WORK -
THE NEW PATTERN FOR SUCCESS

A Series of Presentation/Discussions
To Explore Critical Issues
For Your Life and Your Business

by Dr. John Clayton Caris
Isis Institute

Part 2 - Mega-Force 1 –
World Human Transformation
to Living System Life and Work

Begin Part 2–3 – Introduction to Living System Psychology

Now – We have the background to begin the third area of our work on Mega-Force 1 – To begin understanding how we as leading-edge individuals in our personal lives and human collectives through history are part of the World Human Transformation – How we have evolved stage-by-stage to arrive at the emerging Human Psyche System stage of Living System Life and Work. We will discuss what this emerging stage is, where it came from stage-by-stage, where it is taking us and how it is now transforming today’s conventional pattern for success.

To do these things I use Living System Psychology – The structure and dynamics of the Human Psyche System. I have been led to develop it over the years by standing on the shoulders of several giants. It explains how mankind, and our own individual lives, can evolve through six stages of the human psyche up to today’s transition to the seventh stage. It shows that indeed the dominant stage of our Human Psyche System is the underlying force – The Morphic Field – for what happens in our life. Each stage has its own pattern of life and work, its type of science and its pattern for leadership and organization and its pattern for success – All of which first arrive on Earth as great advancements for the person and for mankind and then finally become ineffective and are replaced by those of the next stage during a cataclysmic period of transformation.

That is exactly what is happening today – The currently dominant human stages have become ineffective – but most do not yet see this – and we are within a period of growing chaos – that most do see but do not yet understand. This situation is the insignia of underlying transformation to the next human stage. Our objective is to see and understand. Let’s do it.

An old saying is – Human Nature Never Changes. That is Not Correct! The great mass of people may remain stuck at their current dominant psyche stage for personal and/or human environment reasons. But, the leading-edge of persons and organizations continue to progress through a specific sequence of stages in life and work – And today leading-edge people stand on the threshold of the greatest transcendence in their human nature in history – the Seventh. Understanding and transforming to this newly emerging human nature is the key to success from now on.

Please remember – That the slides I use from this point forward are organized summaries for your use later, as well as guides for my discussions. I am not going to read the slides to you, so my words may not exactly match the slides.

Let’s prepare for the stage-by-stage story of our evolution as humans this way.

Recall that Rudolf Steiner said – To become a truly practical person we must understand human life. I took his wisdom seriously. In 1972 I began my quest to discover, develop and apply new theory and practice for leaders during the world transformation then beginning to accelerate almost totally out of sight by the mass of persons and organizations. This was a great strategic opportunity – A new approach to leadership and organization that worked – But was almost totally unseen! I was fascinated with this story then just barely beginning to make sense to me.

My enthusiasm has grown since then as my understanding of Living System science, Human Psyche System evolution and its emerging Stage A’ emerged out of my research and applications. I was guided to develop Living System Psychology in this process.

Let’s get acquainted with Living System Psychology. I use a few slides to define its new terminology and structure. I will point out the key ideas. You have detailed slides for later reading and reference.

Slide 2 – Diagram of Individual Human Psyche System Structure

You know the psyche is a living energy system in which we are embedded. You need to be aware of its structure that forms through several stages. This slide shows you its structure when fully developed – It has two bi-polar dimensions and four sub-systems.
The two psyche system dimensions are:

– The Personal/Collective Dimension; and
– The Conscious/Unconscious Dimension.

The four subsystems of the individual psyche system are:

– The Personal Conscious – a central portion is called the Ego
– The Personal Unconscious – a central portion is called the Shadow
– The Collective Conscious – contains the conscious patterns and forms of what is
called Culture
– The Collective Unconscious – contains energy patterns shared by all humans
called Jungian Archetypes

The Psyche system is open in two ways:

– Open through the Conscious subsystems to external experience on the Operating plane of life and work through the physical senses; and
– Open through the Unconscious subsystems to internal experience and the
knowledge of the universe on the underlying Morphic field plane of life and work through
the intuitive senses.

Each psyche sub-system is a fascinating story whose details are beyond our needs now.

Slide 3 – Human Psyche System Model Terminology

This table defines Human Psyche System terminology for identifying the human psyche stages. There are seven psyche stages known so far. Each stage is a whole pattern of human life. Each has its unique patterns for life purpose, motivation, learning, leadership, organization, relationship, etc.

The first six stages – A through F – Compose Phase I of human life. Phase I contains three bi-polar cycles of two stages each. The stages of each cycle are complementary opposite psychological patterns of each other:

– Cycle 1 – Stage A – Primitive, Hunter Gatherer Man and
Stage B – Mystical, Tribal Man
– Cycle 2 – Stage C – Heroic, Early Imperial Man and
Stage D – Absolutistic. Medieval Man
– Cycle 3 – Stage E – Linear System, 1st Renaissance Man and
Stage F – Relativistic, Socialistic Man.

The seventh stage – Stage A’ – Living System, 2nd Renaissance Man begins a new Phase II of human life. The current world human transformation of leading-edge persons into Stage A’ is Mega-Force 1. It is a unique event in history. It is not just a Stage transformation – But also, the coming of a whole new Phase that breaks the underlying patterns for all previous stages of human life. It is a big deal – That is why I call it The World’s Biggest Story that is Almost Invisible.

To the right of each stage pattern name I give in parentheses the life period when a given psyche stage tends to be dominant for highly evolved persons living in an advanced society today. For example – The life of Infants from birth to about 1 year is dominant at Stage A – The life of Young Children from 1 year to about 2 ½ years is dominant at Stage B – The life of Older Children is dominant at Stage C – The life of Adolescents from late childhood to mid-teens tends to be dominant at Stage D – The life of Young Adults tends to be dominant at Stage E. Life at Stages F and A’ arrives later and is more complex.

Earlier Stages can remain dominant in the lives of less evolved persons and groups much later in their chronological ages. For example, Terrorists behave as being driven by underlying Stage C and D dominance. Of course, I am not saying that all humans driven by Stages C and D are terrorists. This fascinating situation we discuss later.

Slide 4 – Diagram of Human Psyche System Stages

This diagram adds understanding. It shows first the Phase I life as three cycles of two stages each. You see the psyche’s Conscious/Unconscious dimension forming at Cycle 1 and the Personal/Collective dimension forming at Cycle 2. At Stage D, or Adolescence, the psyche’s basic structure is complete. Throughout the world, the underlying patterns of Stages A through D are uniform.

But, Cycle 3 brings a mirror-image human behavior split between the West and Orient. Later in this Part 2 discussion I will use this split to explain world geo-political and economic forces over the last 200 years – The materialist dominance of the West during its Stage E rise and dominance and the more recent materialistic power of the Orient as its Stage F rose to shared dominance with Stage E. More on this fascinating insight later.

Each Phase I stage is driven by its own type of End-Point Goals. This has profound effects on how individuals and organizations find purpose, are motivated, form relationships, organize, operate and do strategy work.

Stages A, C and E are each driven by a different type of Individualism and independence – While Stages B, D, and F are each driven by a different type of Collectivism and dependence. For example, the reasons for the recent rise of political correctness, populism and drug dependencies are no mystery, they are to be expected – They are underlying Stage F behavior characteristics.

All of Phase I life is a process of human Flip-Flops in each Cycle from one type of unbalanced individualism to its opposite as one type of unbalanced collectivism.
You note that Stage A’ is shown as a totally different pattern – End-Point goals and flip-flops between Individualism and Collectivism are gone. Life becomes continuous flow process and interdependence-collaboration driven. Goals become milestones embedded in a continuing process – Not ends in themselves. This has profound meaning for the emerging pattern of life and work, especially for leadership, organization and strategy.

Slide 5 – Human Psyche System Terminology #2

This Slide shows – When each stage was world leader – Together with the approximate period when each stage is dominant in the life of highly evolved persons today.

Slide 6 – Human Psyche System World Leadership and Transformation Eras

This slide reminds you to refer back to the three slides I gave you in Part 1 showing the rise and fall of Human Psyche System stages in world leadership and the great leadership transition periods of history.

Slide 7 – Individual Psyche Stage Evolution Through Life

This diagram symbolizes the rise and fall of psyche stage dominance through the life of a highly evolved person in our culture. The peaks represent approximate periods when a person’s conscious and unconscious are aligned in the same stage.

It is normal that we enter each stage first in our conscious, intellectual life and later become aware consciously of our unconscious, emotional life. For some time after we first enter a new stage, we are split humans – Our conscious becoming dominant in the new stage and our emotions remaining dominant in an earlier stage. Great confusion, turmoil and troublesome behavior can result. Split people are problems – For example, fundamentalist Terrorists tend to be split between Stage C emotions and Stage D intellect and emotions.

The Key idea is – If you understand the dominant psyche stage patterns of individuals and groups you can know how to lead, manage and organize them for maximum performance consistent with their stage patterns, Not Yours. This is a foundation for our leadership work – You cannot lead anyone without knowing who you are and who others are in their psyche stage evolution. This is what Rudolf Steiner said – Only those who understand life can become a truly practical persons.

Slide 8 – Inter-Stage Transition & Intra-Stage Development

This slide diagrams the human psyche’s bi-polar evolution process through a complete cycle. It includes the 3 part process of discontinuous transformation into a given stage (called Inter-Stage Transition) and the 3 part process of development within a given stage (called Intra-Stage development). The vertical scale represents the psyche’s rate of evolutionary change and the horizontal scale represents the parts of the psyche evolution process.

The diagram starts at Part 1 of an Inter-Stage transition from a given stage into a new stage. The rate of change and the degree of openness to transition are rapidly rising. The psyche system reaches its “Point-of-No-Return” – The discontinuous transition cannot be stopped. Part 2 represents the point of discontinuity – The point of the leap to the new stage when the rate of change peaks. Part 3 represents the completion of the transition into the new stage – The rate of change and the openness to change rapidly decrease. At the end of Part 3 the human psyche at its most stable point in the whole cycle – It behaves almost as a linear system. At this point the person or the organization is most certain that its new pattern of life and work is exactly correct – They are “True Believers” in the new stage.

Next comes the quasi-linear Intra-Stage development period. It is important to note that the development period is many times longer than the relatively short transformation periods. For convenience I have condensed the diagram’s horizontal scale for Intra-Stage Development. Part 1 of development has very low rate of evolution and openness to change – The new stage pattern of life and work meets all needs. During Part 2 of development there is a gradual and uneven increase in the rate of psyche evolution and openness to change – The then dominant stage requires some innovations to meet life needs, but they can be handled by fix-ups within the current stage. During Part 3 of development the current psyche stage begins to face situations where it is no longer effective – Of course this is strongly denied. This marks the beginning of non-linear increase of rate of change and openness to change. At the end point of Part 3 Development the psyche begins its process of dis-association with the current stage and begins its pre-transition state of chaos as it begins to align with the next stage.

The human psyche evolution cycle I have described in some detail is consistent with the general outline Laszlo gave in his speech discussing how living systems transform.

Slide 9 – Two Paths of Human Psyche Evolution

We need to know there are two parallel paths in the story of Human Psyche System evolution – The individual evolution path and the collective evolution path. The first path is our individual psyche evolution as a person. In classical biology individual evolution is called Ontogeny. The other path is human history, or the collective psyche evolution of mankind as a species. In classical biology evolution of the species is called Phylogeny.

A classical biology principle states – Ontogeny recapitulates phylogeny. Applying this biological principle to human life means that individual evolution in its life retraces the collective evolution of mankind. Applying it to human psyche evolution means that individual psyche stages evolve through same stages that collective mankind has evolved through in history. So far the classical recapitulation principle is OK.

According to this classical Recapitulation principle the individual follows the collective in evolution. And it implies that an individual cannot evolve to a stage beyond the most advanced stage of the collective. It implies that new psyche stages must always appear first in the collective and then in the individual. This is not OK. Both these implications are not valid. Unfortunately many persons and groups seem to believe the collective is the driver of evolution that the individual must follow. Living System Psychology holds just the opposite, that the individual leads human evolution, not the collective. Why?

Classical Recapitulation of biology is a linear principle, not a Living System principle. Therefore, it makes no provision for an individual to transcend beyond the most advanced psyche stage of the collective. Recall that linear systems cannot self-transcend. But we know that Transcendence is exactly what happens to catalyze world human transformations beyond the most advanced stage that previously existed. Therefore, there are serious problems with Classical Recapitulation. Let’s summarize them.

The first problem is that classical principle clearly gives the impression that the collective leads the evolution of individual life – Meaning that we as individuals are always following, or recapitulating what came before in the collective. This impression is wrong. We need to have a Living System principle that puts individual psyche evolution in the leading role. The classical principle is valid only for individual psyche evolution up to the most advanced stage of the collective.

The second problem is that the classical principle is based on linear system science and therefore cannot deal with how a new psyche stage emerges from within the psyche itself beyond what previously existed. Linear system science is very poor at dealing with “origins” of anything – It does not recognize transcendence except through some external force.

Based on my interpretation of emerging Living System science, I use an Extended Principle of Recapitulation for human psyche evolution that solves both problems. The Extended Principle goes like this:

- Individual psyche stage evolution does appear to recapitulate collective stage
evolution, but only up to the collective’s most evolved stage;
- Individual psyche stage evolution for some leading-edge individuals can Transcend existing collective evolution to a new stage beyond existing collective
evolution and in this way catalyze and eventually lead collective evolution into a
new collective psyche stage that did not previously exist for the collective; Therefore:
- Individual psyche stage Transcendence is “Morphogenic” for (gives form to) the
collective’s next stage, that did not previously exist in the collective; and thus
- Individual psyche evolution is the leading force and collective psyche evolution is the eventual result, not the cause of human psyche evolution; but
- Collective psyche stages do play important guiding and supporting roles for
individuals who are less evolved than the collectives in which they are embedded.

The Living System Extended Principle of Recapitulation solves the problem by placing the transcending individual in the primary leadership position and bridges the gap from what now exists to a new stage as a natural process flowing from an underlying Morphic Field deep within the unconscious of the human psyche. “Discontinuous Transcendence by Individuals” is the key – It is a natural property of Living Systems – It is impossible for linear machine systems.

The Extended Principle explains what is happening in today’s Mega-Force 1.Individuals are leading today’s world human transformation. Classical recapitulation does not recognize emergent transcendence and therefore cannot explain what is happening.

There are many individuals and groups today trying to transform the collective mass as the primary means to improve human life and work. Unfortunately most of them have it backwards – The proper approach to improving human life and work is through catalyzing leading-edge individuals capable of transcending so they can then assist others to repeat this process with other individuals and eventually their organizations. That is the process I am using in this program.

Slide 10 – Human Psyche – World’s Most Fundamental Living System

The basic concept underlying Living System Psychology is:

The Human Psyche System is the world’s most fundamental Living System –
Everything in our life results from it.

The psyche’s Phase, Cycle and Stage patterns that we develop and explain in the rest of Part 2 are the underlying “Morphic Fields” for our life and affairs. They underlie the surface differences between individuals and collectives – They are underlying life templates we all use to live and work. Therefore – All that happens individually and collectively are results of underlying psyche stage patterns. They are the real causes of external observable events in our lives and work.

As I proceed to tell the story of how we have evolved up to the stage of Mega-Force 1 - Our current transformation to Living System life and work – I suggest you continue to refer back to Slides 35 through 43. They remind you of the definitions and the structure of Living System Psychology that we are using in our discussions.

End of Part 2 – 3

- How a Living System Transforms - New Pattern for Success Seminar - Part 2-2

2007-04-18T09:27:05-05:00

This Post is the second installment of Part 2 entitled How a Living System Transforms - Part 2-2. Its materials are available to you in two ways. First, as two downloadable files - One for the edited Text material and one for the Visual material. Second, in the Extended Post below you can read the Text of the Part 2-2 section.

This Post continues to present Part 2 of the The New Pattern for Success seminar series. Part 2 is entitled Mega-Force 1 - World Human Transformation to Living System Life and Work.

You can download the Text of How a Living System Transforms - Part 2-2 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part2-2-Text-032007.pdf

You can download the Visuals of How a Living System Transforms - Part 2-2 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part2-2-Vis-032007.pdf

Click on the Continue reading link below to read the Text of How a Living System Transforms - Part 2-2 .

I look forward to your Questions, Comments and Suggestions.

John Clayton Caris

********************************

LIVING SYSTEM LIFE AND WORK -
THE NEW PATTERN FOR SUCCESS

A Series of Presentation/Discussions
To Explore Critical Issues
For Your Life and Your Business

by Dr. John Clayton Caris
Isis Institute

Part 2 - Mega-Force 1 –
World Human Transformation
to Living System Life and Work

Begin Part 2 – 2 – How a Living System Transforms

Next, we begin to understand how a human system, like the Human Psyche System, transforms. Its process may come as a surprise. How we transform in our personal lives from one stage to another and how the World Human Transformation works is not at alllike a linear machine changes. It is essential for developing our new Mindset to know and understand the difference. To do so we need two more additions to our new Mindset.

First – We need to broaden conventional thinking about what we mean by the term “Change”.

Slide 2 – Spectrum of Human System Change

Human systems change in three ways – be they persons, groups, organizations or even cultures. This has profound effect on how we lead Living System organization change.

First – Change that is almost linear –
It is manageable and controllable by conventional means. It is gradual, step-by-step, developmental change – It is almost continuous (meaning almost smooth without discontinuities or jumps) – It is trend like. This is the conventional type of human change. That is, gradual developmental change within a given Human Psyche System stage pattern. Gradual linear change is understandable and acceptable by conventional linear managers.

Second – Transformation Change –
It is guidable, but almost un-manageable or controllable by conventional, linear command & control methods. It is non-linear, discontinuous, leaping change. It is both qualitative and quantitative change. An example is transformation from one Human Psyche System stage to another stage. But, both stages have previously existed in human affairs – personal and collective. This means there are persons and organizations that have previously made this transformation. Transformation frightens many conventional linear managers.

Third – Transcendent Change –
This is the really non-conventional type of change. It is only partly guidable and totally un-manageable or controllable by conventional linear management. It is a special type of transformation change – An unprecedented change that has not happened previously in human affairs. For example an unprecedented transformation to a new Human Psyche System stage that did not previously exist in human affairs. This means there are few, if any, persons and organizations that have made this transformation previously. Many conventional managers are not just afraid of Transcendence – They are terrified by it to the point they deny it can exist and to terminate any person who seems to represent it.

Transcendent change is the Mega-Force 1 type of human change we are now experiencing – Leading-edge persons, leaders and organizations are now beginning to undergo transcendence. They are experiencing qualitative and quantitative change in life and work that is unprecedented.

The Second addition to our Mindset is to understand the contrast between Linear Systems and Non-Linear Living Systems to help us understand how the new Genre of leaders thinks and act.

Slide 3 – Meaning of Linear and Non-Linear Living Systems

This slide points out some of the key contrasts.

First, all Living Systems are also Non-Linear, but not all non-linear systems are living.

- Linear system means – Independent, separable parts, closed and a time reversible system. Linear systems are like machines.

- Non-Linear system means – Connected, non-separable parts, partly open and a non-time reversible system. There is no such thing as an independent non-linear or Living System.

Time reversal is an important concept for Living system leadership applications. Time reversal means that the system behaves the same whether it is running forward or backward in time. Most machines work this way. Linear science is time reversible. Its equations give the same answer when the time variable “t” is either – t or + t. This means to a linear thinking leader that you can take a decision or an action and then just reverse it if you want to get back to where you were before you took the decision or action. Human Living System organizations do not work that way. They are time irreversible. This means that a leader cannot reverse a decision or action to get back to where he was before he decided and acted.

The term Living System means a non-linear system with additional properties that enable life. Some of those properties are the capacity to Self-transform and to Self-create as long as the system is open to and embedded within an enabling and nurturing environment. These capacities are part of a property of Living Systems called Autopoiesis. I will discuss Autopoiesis in Part 4. Linear machine systems have none of these properties.

Let’s quickly make key word contrasts so you can grasp the pattern of differences between linear and Living Systems.

- Linear system – Means step-by-step sequential, continuous development
- Non-Linear Living System – Means both almost linear development and discontinuous transformation in a cyclical spiral pattern of evolution.
So, Living Systems have both Darwinian type evolution (almost linear) and
transcendent, creation type evolution in cyclical sequence.

Moving on with the contrasts –

- Linear system – Sequential, one-cause-to-one effect behavior vs.
Living System – Cyclical, pattern-cause-to-pattern effect behavior.

- Linear system – Analysis of separate parts vs.
Living System – Analysis of whole system and its cycles.

- Linear system – Quest for Equilibrium and Order vs.
Living System – Never at equilibrium (except at death) and dynamic cycle
type of stability with a mix of both order and chaos.

- Linear system – Organized vertically by separate functions vs.
Living System – Organized as a flat network structure of inter-connected,
inseparable nodal sub-systems that are themselves smaller Living Systems.
This is the organization structure for what I later define as Nodal Network
Business – The emerging pattern for successful operations.

- Linear system – Competition by separate organizations in conflict vs.
Living System – Cooperative Competition within a network of inter-related
organizations.

- Linear system – Managed by a vertical, command & control structure vs.
Living System – Managed by Underlying Protocols with voluntary
agreement and a meritocracy in operations.

This last contrast may sound wild and crazy – Underlying protocols, voluntary agreement, and meritocracy. No – This is Not crazy. It is just so different from linear management that it sounds crazy. It is exactly the contrast between conventional software management and the management used by the Hackers who created Linux and lead the rapidly growing Open Software movement. To this day, conventional software organizations cannot understand how the Hackers accomplish fantastic creative feats that work with a minimum of “bugs”. Leadership by underlying protocols, or rules, voluntarily agreed to within a social structure known as a meritocracy is aligned with the emerging pattern for success not only in software – But everywhere.

A meritocracy is a social structure where Competency is the key to influence, authority and responsibility granted by those in the organization – Not hierarchy position. A meritocracy has minimum vertical hierarchy.

I must make clear something the media and common knowledge have wrong – The people who break into computer systems, use viruses and do other destructive things are “Crackers” – They are Not “Hackers”, who never do such things. “Hacker” is a term of respect for those few who reach the highest levels of recognized computer and software skills – It is a term bestowed upon them by their colleagues – That is part of what a Meritocracy is all about.

This Living System approach to leadership/management is not limited to software – It is an emerging pattern for all successful business. Dee Hock used a variation of it for leading the transformation of VISA. A lot more on this issue in Part 4.

Slide 4 – Transition Slide

Our next step is to begin understanding how non-linear Living Systems transform – In general, and specifically for Mega-Force 1. This knowledge is essential for getting the new Mindset for Living System leadership. It is a non-conventional leap away from how most people think systems change.

In my library I have a document that clearly explains how a non-linear Living System transforms and it does this in terms of our current world transformation. Perfect for our needs.

It is the report of a speech made in 1984 by Ervin Laszlo, the leading non-linear system thinker, when he spoke to a World Future Society conference. Glen Heimstra reported Laszlo’s speech in his Future Tense Newsletter that I subscribed to at that time. I will never forget his competent report of Laszlo’s visionary speech. That is why I saved it.

Excerpts from Laszlo’s comments are the quickest way I know to show you how human systems transformation – Especially our current world transformation because that was what Laszlo was speaking about. As you listen to what I say, remember that Laszlo made these comments 22 years ago using system science known at that time – Today it is developing into Living System Science.

He saw how the underlying patterns for world transformation were then developing. He was correct. I use Laszlo’s and Heimstra’s exact words because I cannot improve their precision, brevity and power.

Slide 5 – Laszlo World View ’84 - # 1

Heimstra began his report on Laszlo’s speech in this way:

... His Presentation Was…The Most Powerful One At The
Conference. He Believes That By The End Of The 1980's,
Humanity Will Enter The Most Crucial Epoch Of Recorded
History…(1990 To 2020 Is His Critical Period)

He was exactly on target by understanding the underlying patterns. We are now near the mid-point of his critical period. Please recall my discussion of the K-Wave in Part 1. The end of the 1980’s we know to be the beginning of the Q3 to Q4 transition of our current K-Wave. His critical period aligns perfectly with the next two decades that are the period of the Mega-Force 4 - Cataclysmic Confluence. Let’s go on.

Slide 6 – Laszlo World View ’84 - # 2

Heimstra continued:

In Brief Summary, Laszlo Maintains That Global Transformation
Will Occur As Current Trends Break Off, Presently Dominant
Institutions Crumble, And Instability Rocks The World's
Interconnected Economic, Social, And Political Systems...

Please note – Transformation is about Discontinuity – Trends are broken. Continuing trends are linear. Non-Linear leaps are trend breaking and discontinuous – Trend thinking and analysis during Living System transformation periods are worthless. Business strategy based on trends and quantitative objectives is worthless in the environments we face now.

Slide 7 – Laszlo World View ’84 - # 3

Heimstra went on:

...Factors Such As These Convince Laszlo That The
Present World System Is Not Sustainable. The Alternatives
We Face Range…From 'Apocalypse' To 'Phoenix'. Laszlo
Believes In The Possibility Of The Phoenix Alternative.

Laszlo was saying the current world system must transform – It can’t continue as it is. He also said that when a human system transforms it either self-destructs in its leap – That is what he means by “Apocalypse”. Or it successfully leaps to the new stage – That is what he means by the “Phoenix Alternative” – The Phoenix is the ancient mythical bird that consumes itself in the flames of its own death and then rises from its ashes to give birth to its new life.

The death and resurrection story resonates deeply with humans. It says our greatest human advances come through crises and adversity – Through the death of who we used to be and the birth of the new life. I emphasize – Our current world leap is a transcendence to a new world pattern of life and work – A leap to a stage that did not previously exist.

Slide 8 – Laszlo World View ’84 - # 4

Heimstra then reported:

He (Laszlo) Is Given Hope By The New Thinking On Systems
Transformation …This Thinking Is Currently Being Applied
To Evolutionary Biology, Thermodynamics, Psychology,
And Other Fields.

Laszlo is talking of thinking about non-linear, discontinuous, irreversible transforming leaps to a new stage. Our work in this program, and especially this Part 2 we are now discussing, is making pioneering applications to Living System psychology (The emerging science of the Human Psyche System) as the foundation for life and work.

Slide 9 – Laszlo World View ’84 - # 5

In this slide and the next, Laszlo correctly pointed out errors then being made in the early 1980’s by popular authors who were writing linearly about a world and business that are in discontinuous transformation. Unfortunately, they Did Not understand Living System transformation, especially transcendence. I comment that these same errors are being made today by the same and other authors.

Laszlo said in 1984:

...Contrary To The View Of Such Popular Authors As
Toffler And Naisbitt, Social Transformation Is Not Here
Yet. …While Naisbitt Would Say That Major Trendlines
Of Transformation Can Be Observed Now, Laszlo Argued
That The Coming Transformation Involves Major
Discontinuities With Current Trends.

Laszlo correctly said we were building up to the transformation but it had not yet come collectively. It will come when our growing level of chaos reaches a crescendo – I believe the years near 2012 may be the time for reasons Laszlo did not mention.

Slide 10 – Laszlo World View ’84 - # 6

Heimstra’s report continues:

…Naisbitt Implicitly Suggests That Societal Transformation
Will Involve Little Discomfort. Laszlo Noted that
Transformation Occurs In The Womb Of Crisis. The Sooner
We See The Coming Epoch As One Of Probable Crisis the
Sooner We Can Prepare.

I recall reading Naisbitt’s book Megatrends in the 1980’s and remarking how linear his mindset was. I believe he said, that if you understood some major Trends you could successfully navigate the coming times. Living System science says that is just not correct. At human system turning points, the issue is recognizing the breaking of trends, not discerning how to follow the trends you can now see. The point is that the limited vision of linear thought sees positive behavior as somehow fixing-up the current situation rather than transforming successfully away from it.

Slide 11 – Laszlo World View ’84 - # 7

Laszlo then said:

The Theory Being Developed Is That System Change
Occurs By A Very Slow Buildup Of Adaptations,
Interspersed By Periods Of Critical Non-Equlibrium.

Here is exactly what I said earlier. “Slow buildup of adaptations” is the nearly linear development change of a Living System in one of its stages. “Critical Non-equilibrium” is the leaping transformation of the Living System from one of its stages to another. I emphasize that all Living Systems – Including our lives and our organizations behave this way. This is the inherent bi-polar, cyclical evolution process for Living Systems I discussed in Part 1 as part of the Principles of Living Systems. The Human Psyche System behaves exactly this way.

Slide 12 – Laszlo World View ’84 - # 8

Then Laszlo gives us more insight into the cyclical, bi-polar evolution of Living Systems. Please remember that linear machine-like systems do not change this way – They can’t.

He said:

…Systems Change Very Slowly Over Long Periods Of
Time, Remaining In A State Of Relative Equilibrium.

(I add – This is the nearly linear, quasi-equilibrium development period in a given stage – Here is where linear management can work fairly well)

However, From Time To Time...Forces...Buildup To
Such A Point That A Critical Threshold Is Crossed
And The System Goes Into A State Of Crisis.

(I add – This is the buildup to transforming leap, the break-off of current trends and the system crisis that precedes the leap to a new stage. Here is where conventional linear management and organization break down. Today – General Motors and many of the world’s intelligence organizations are “Poster Children” for linear breakdown. There are investment market signs that General Electric and Microsoft are candidates also.)

Slide 13 – Laszlo World View ’84 - # 9

Laszlo then describes what develops during the crisis:

At That Point (Linear) Predictability Goes Out The
Window, And The System May Collapse Or...May
Make A Rapid Leap To A New And Higher Level
Of Organization. The Structure Or Organization Of
The New System Cannot Be Predicted Based On
The Structure Of the Old System.

That is exactly what we said earlier. Let’s focus on the last sentence. Please recall – I emphasized that you cannot even see, much less predict, the structure, organization or anything else about the new system stage unless you transform out of the mindset of the old system into the emerging Mindset of the new stage. Once you can perceive the new realities of the new stage, you can begin to see how to organize and lead/manage in it.

That I see as one of the tragedies of most of our current so-called educational institutions – They are hopelessly locked in the mindset of the old system. You must start with the new Mindset to implement any of the transformations that are the Isis work. That is the fundamental purpose for this program.

Slide 14 – Laszlo World View ’84 - # 10

Laszlo then summarizes the history of collective human system evolution:

Human Cultures Have Reached It (a Critical Threshold)
Over Periods Of Thousands Or At Least Hundreds Of
Years. Human Societies Have Responded To The
Critical Moments By Leaping To The Next Level Of
Organization.

He is saying that human history has been so far a series of successful Phoenix-like transcendences. Recall the diagrams I gave you earlier in Part 1 showing the series of rises and falls of Human Psyche System stages through history.

Slide 15– Laszlo World View ’84 - # 11

Then Laszlo concludes:

At That Point, Human Society Will Face The Choice:
Evolve Or Perish. A Major Transformation Is Coming.
The Question Is In Which Direction Will It Go.

He is clear – He sees the world transformation is coming. He leaves open what will happen. We are in the process to answer that in the remainder of this Part 2 of our program.

Slide 16 – Summary To this Point

Now let’s summarize where we are in our story:

First – We can see and believe the world human transformation is coming for
leading-edge persons and organizations to Living System Life and Work;

Second – We know how Living Systems transform, in sharp contrast with
how linear systems behave.

Now – We can begin to understanding the foundation for Living System Life and Work
Our Tool – Living System Psychology.

End of Part 2 – 2

Make World Human Transformation Visible and Believable - New Pattern for Success Seminar - Part 2-1

2007-04-17T11:36:34-05:00

This Post is the first installment of Part 2 entitled Make World Transformation Visible and Believable - Part 2-1. Its materials are available to you in two ways. First, as two downloadable files - One for the edited Text material and one for the Visual material. Second, in the Extended Post below you can read the Text of the Part 2-1 section.

This Post begins presenting Part 2 of the The New Pattern for Success seminar series. Part 2 is entitled Mega-Force 1 - World Human Transformation to Living System Life and Work.

You can download the Text of Make World Transformation Visible and Believable - Part 2-1 - HereDownload NewPatSuc-Part2-1-Text-041707.pdf

You can download the Visuals of Make World Transformation Visible and Believable - Part 2-1 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part2-1-Vis-032007.pdf

Click on the Continue reading link below to read the Text of Make World Transformation Visible and Believable - Part 2-1 .

I look forward to your Comments, Suggestions and Questions.

John Clayton Caris

********************************

LIVING SYSTEM LIFE AND WORK -
THE NEW PATTERN FOR SUCCESS

A Series of Presentation/Discussions
To Explore Critical Issues
For Your Life and Your Business

by Dr. John Clayton Caris
Isis Institute

Part 2 - Mega-Force 1 –
World Human Transformation
to Living System Life and Work

Introduction - Our Isis Approach to Human Living Systems

This Part 2 of our program is about Mega-Force 1. It is the base for all of our work. It approaches Living System Life and Work in terms of the Human Psyche System – The most fundamental Living System at the foundation of all human affairs. This is the most useful way I have found for understanding human life and work and for making applications.

You recall from Part 1 that the Human Psyche System is the underlying energy field system for human life. It is not the human brain, which is the portion of our physical body that enables us to become aware of our psyche during our life on Earth. The psyche is the totality of all conscious and unconscious processes at the core of our life. Its transformations are what cause the transformations through the stages of our individual lives and through the stages of collective human history. I show that this knowledge is directly applicable to our lives and work.

To tell business people that the most important thing to understand about the New Pattern for Success is human psychology may sound strange. I assure you it is not. It is a new concept for many, but it is not strange. It is at the core of Living System Life and Work.

Rudolph Steiner, an early pioneer in what has become Living System thought for us, wrote: “Only he who understands life can become a truly practical man.” In this Part 2 of our seminars, our purpose is to approach Living Systems from the Human Systems viewpoint so we can directly understand the stages of human life and their practical consequences in individuals and organizations. With this knowledge we can become a new type of practical person who operates in the New Pattern for Success.

Most other discussions of Living Systems do not approach the subject of Living Systems from the nature of human beings and their organizations, which is our major interest. These conventional discussions approach Living Systems from a "Non-Human" Living Systems perspective. Specifically, they use an historical scientific perspective from biology or ecology or some version of modern physical concepts, such as quantum mechanics or physical field theory. This is not what we are interested in. We use a modern psychological science approach that deals directly with Human Living Systems. That is what we are interested in.

I find that the conventional Non-Human Living Systems approaches cannot lead directly to useful applications in life and work – Especially in business. They require making complicated analogies from Non-Human systems to Human Systems before they can try to be applicable to human persons and their organizations. I find the analogies that try to translate Non-Human Living System science knowledge into Human Living System science knowledge to be weak, often misleading or wrong.

These analogies do not, because they cannot, directly shed light on the transforming patterns of human motivation, behavior, organization, leadership, entrepreneurship, etc. Approaching Living Systems from the nature of the Human Psyche System enables us to make direct applications to the lives and work of humans. We do not need to make analogies about how biological, ecological or modern physics systems are like human systems before we can make applications.

I want to be sure I am being clear, so I summarize what I have said about our approach to Human Living Systems. Once we understand the Human Psyche System and its transformations, there is no need for analogies to make applications in life and business - Especially in business. The Human Psyche, its structure, its behavior and its stage-by-stage process of evolution that we discuss, are what we need to know to understand what is happening in the world and how to create, organize and operate a business organization containing real people. What you know when we complete this Part 2 is the “Real Deal” – You do not need analogies from molecular biology, genetics, ecology, fundamental particle physics, etc. What we discuss in Part 2 is in my judgment the most important human knowledge that a leading-edge business leader needs to have to implement the New pattern for Success.

I emphasize, our Human Systems approach to Living Systems from the viewpoint of the most modern science of the Human Psyche System is not the conventional viewpoint about Living Systems that almost always begins from the science of Non-Human Living Systems. But that does not concern me in the least. I hope that you come to the point that it does not concern you either. If I am right, this knowledge can give you significant strategic advantage in creating, leading/managing and operating a Living System Business. What we discuss should enable you to decide for yourself.

Begin Part 2 – 1 – Make World Human Transformation Visible and Believable

Slide 1 – Cover Slide

Slide 2 – I Made a Judgment

I made a judgment to violate PowerPoint guidelines for some Part 2 slides. I use slides with more than just a few keywords. Why?

The slides are organized as detailed summaries for you. What I say in this text does not always align exactly with the greater detail on many of the slides. I want you to have these slides as a useful record to re-read and refer to later. This Part 2 presents material with unfamiliar words and concepts. Slides with just a few keywords and not organized with a standard structure would not be as useful to you. From my experience you may not fully grasp this material immediately – It can happen weeks or months later. Then, slides that are complete and organized are important. My script will not use all the words on the slides or exactly as written. So my presentation flows more smoothly and emphasizes key content. Let’s begin

Slide 3 – World’s Biggest Story

The world’s biggest story is almost invisible!

With those words I began the Introduction. I said the world’s biggest story is Mega-Force 1 – The vast human transformation now in progress.

Slide 4 – Our Purpose

Our purpose in Part 2 is threefold:

- First – To make the story of World Human Transformation visible and believable to you; then

- Second – To begin understanding how a human Living System transforms because this is essential for learning how the world transformation of Mega-Force 1 works
[Note: It is Not the way linear systems change]; and then

- Third – To begin understanding how the Human Psyche System stages underlying our
lives and organizations evolved to the currently emerging stage of Living System Life and Work.

Let’s begin to make the story of world transformation visible and believable to you.

Slide 5 – Buddhist saying

An old Buddhist saying is:

Each age sees what it is prepared to discover.

This means each era of history can see only within the capacity of its most evolved Human Psyche System stage. To see beyond that we must be prepared to discover a new stage – A new pattern for success that transforms all of leadership, organization, operations and entrepreneurship.

Our objective in Part 2 is to gain the new Mindset about human transformation that prepares us to discover Living System Life and Work – The emerging age. The Mindset leap must come first – We must become the Right People first before we can successfully develop the Right Means to make applications. Otherwise we would be the wrong people trying to use the right means – That, as you know, leads to failure.

I have used an important term several times – The Human Psyche System. It is possibly new to you so I want to be sure that it is clear to you.

- The Human Psyche is the personal energy system that is the total of all our
conscious and unconscious processes. It is a Living System. We are embedded
in it. It inter-acts with the other personal and collective psyches we interact
with. So, groups and organizations also have a Psyche – a collective psyche.

- The personal Human Psyche is not the Brain – The Brain is our biological
system that, by inter-acting with our Psyche energy system, enables us to be
aware of our Psyche during our life on Earth. The Brain is also a Living System.

I can make a rough analogy. The Human Psyche System field is somewhat like a television signal surrounding us. The brain is somewhat like a television receiver that displays the transformed effects of the TV signal. The most serious limit to this analogy is that a TV signal is a physical electro-magnetic field while a Human Psyche System field is a non-physical energy field. Now let’s go on.

Slide 6 – Nature of Today’s Biggest Story

Recall this slide from my Introduction discussion. It means that – To discover today’s human transformation we must ourselves make a discontinuous leap to the Mindset of the new psyche stage appearing in the lives of leading-edge people. Our personal beginning to make this leap is the only way we can begin to see the new reality. As we experience the new Mindset we are then able to see the transformation unfolding in life and work. If we remain in the conventional mindset, still all around us, we cannot see such a leap, or the need to make one.

Let’s work now to see the new Mindset and the current human transformation by answering three questions:

- Are there others who have seen this transformation?
- What have they said that helps us to see it?
- What have they said that helps us believe it is real?

Yes there are others who have seen it. Let’s experience their words and Mindset to help us see the transformation and believe it is real.

Slide 7 – Rudolf Steiner

The Austrian philosopher Rudolf Steiner, who I mentioned earlier, was one of the earliest examples of Living System vision. About 1900 he wrote in his book Theosophy:

Only he who understands life
can become a truly practical man.

At that time, and even today, the overwhelming mindset perceived a type of practical person that focuses on managing and controlling the outside material world – Certainly not being centered on the inner world to understand the process of human life as the means to then achieve practical success in the outer world. Steiner was saying that understanding the underlying pattern of life was the key to become a successful practical person on what I call the conscious Operating plane of life. He saw the need for fundamental transformation to a new approach for being practical. Over 100 years later Steiner is still a pioneer on the forefront of leadership.

Recall that in Part 1 I called these underlying patterns “Morphic Fields”, Structuring Fields or Guiding Fields. All Living Systems have them. Linear systems do not.

Slide 8 – Gerald Heard

The cultural historian Gerald Heard wrote about human transformation in his powerful book, The Five Ages of Man. He saw, as did the great historian Arnold Toynbee, the sweep of history in terms of human transformations through a number of stages. But Heard saw more. He saw human psyche evolution as the central force in man’s transformations through history and through individual lives. He saw transformations being driven from the inside of humans, not primarily from external forces and events. He wrote:

Man’s history …is a psychological story
for the spiral evolution of the psyche is
the theme of the human venture.

We excuse him for not seeing either the first stage of man’s Human Psyche System – Stage A – or the latest stage – Stage A’ Living System man – who was not nearly so visible when he wrote his book. We know now that we should say – The Seven Ages of Man.

Slide 9 – Carl Rogers #1

The pioneering psychotherapist Carl Rogers was specific about a vast psychological transformation at the heart of our current world’s upheaval. In his book, On Personal Power, he wrote:

There has been a spate (an eruption) of books from widely different
sources …seeing our culture undergoing some sort of drastic Change
and producing a new type of individual, a type of consciousness, a
way of being and behaving that will reshape our world.

Slide 10 – Carl Rogers #2

Later in the book, Rogers describes the person of the future. Who he saw coming is exactly the Stage A’ – Living System person we define later. Rogers wrote:

I am convinced that at this point we are going through a
transformational crisis from which we and our world cannot
emerge unchanged. …Today’s emerging persons …would
have been more or less at home in the world of the Renaissance
man, during another painful and exciting period of transformation.

Rogers clearly saw our current transformation, saw a specific type of emerging human and also saw that human transitions are traumatic and painful – And they are driven from the inside out into the world of external affairs.

Slide 11 – Carl Jung

For more evidence of a great internally driven human transformation we turn to another pioneer of Living System thought, Carl Jung. He wrote in The Spiritual Problem of Modern Man:

The upheaval of our world and
the upheaval of our consciousness
are one and the same thing.

He saw a broad human transformation in progress, and that the external world’s discontinuity is a result of human internal upheaval – Not the other way around that so many believe. He is another leading thinker who placed the inner underlying plane, or Morphic Field, as primary for understanding the outer world and its transformations.

Here is a Key point for creating our new Mindset –

External forces and events are Results – They are Not Causes!
These Results are indeed Real – But they are Not Real Causes.
Real Causes in Human Affairs – Personal and Collective,
are Underlying Patterns in the Human Psyche!

Again I emphasize, in Part 1 I called these underlying patterns “Morphic Fields”, or Structuring Fields and Guiding Fields. All Living Systems have them. Linear systems do not.

This idea is at the heart of the new Mindset for successful business leadership and strategy based on Living System science – That is what our Isis work is about. Many still have it backwards. They are looking for causes in terms of external world forces and events. Like technology, globalization, etc. that are indeed real, but are not primary causes.

An example is the current focus of econometric analysis on quantitative, mathematical models of events in the outside world to try to understand the past, the current and to discern the future – Rather than first focusing on understanding underlying cyclical patterns – Like the Kondratieff Wave Cycle I discuss in detail in Part 3.

As Jung said in a quote I gave you in Part 1:

What is happening in the human psyche is generally overlooked.

Go Back to Slide 7 – Rudolf Steiner

This is exactly what Steiner meant when he said that the path to being a practical person is through understanding the inner patterns of life. Here you see the Mindset of Living System Life and Work in action.

Let me ask you –
How many of today’s executives would stand up in their board rooms to say such things as the path to a new pattern for practical success in their business – NOT Many – If ANY at all. That is exactly the problem – They are locked into only the Operating plane of life and work and cannot see powerful unseen underlying forces that are guiding strategy and events. Many today are clueless about why their power – that used to be so great – is declining during a world transformation to a pattern that requires just such a foundation based on inner awareness. A poignant example is today’s tragedy of General Motors on the edge of bankruptcy – A needless tragedy of so-called practical leaders stuck in an obsolete mindset.

Now, let’s look at what leading-edge business and finance persons have seen about the current human transformation?

Slide 12 – Robert Greenleaf

One of the most famous is, Robert Greenleaf, who wrote in his classic book, Servant Leadership:

As I read the signs, we are in a period of radical transition
regarding power, authority, and decision making everywhere,
and a cloud has settled over all leadership and management
in any form.

His book was a catalyst for my work toward discovering Living System Life and Work.

Slide 13 – George Cabot Lodge

Professor George Cabot Lodge wrote a wake-up call to American business in his book, The New American Ideology. He wrote:

America is in the midst of a great transformation,
Comparable to the one which ended the Medieval Era.
…(His book is about) how the ideological basis of
Legitimate authority in America is being radically
transformed – The profound implications for our society
in general and the great corporations in particular.

Slide 14 – Alvin Toeffler

Alvin Toeffler, best known for his book Future Shock, wrote another smaller book I believe is more important. It is entitled Eco-Spasm Report. In it he wrote:

What we are seeing today is not simply an economic
upheaval, but something far deeper. …What is happening
…is the breakdown of industrial civilization on the
planet and the first fragmentary appearance of a wholly
new and drastically changed social order.

Slide 15 – Charles Tavel

Charles Tavel in The Third Industrial Age: Strategy for Industrial Survival wrote:

The early 1970’s have marked a turning
point in the history of world economy.

Slide 16 – Stewart Thompson

The Age of the Manager is Over by Stewart Thompson criticized the culture of big business management. He was blunt and to the point by writing:

The principles and practices of managing that at one
time created the most renowned industrial empires create
now only futility. …This is a theme worth studying for
managers owe it to themselves to understand why what
they’re doing doesn’t work anymore.

Unfortunately he offered no specific vision for what was to come. I do in Part 4 of our program.

Slide 17 – Dee Hock

Dee Hock conceived and implemented a transformational turnaround of the VISA card organization that is a clear example of Living System principles and leadership in action – even though he did not use those words to describe his remarkable achievement.

In his book, Birth of the Chaordic Age, he expresses himself on world transformation:

We are living on the knife’s edge of one of those momentous
Turning Points in human history.

…We are at that very point in time when a 400 year-old age
is dying and another is struggling to be born – a shifting of
culture, science, society, and institutions enormously greater
than the world has ever experienced.

“Chaordic” is the term he coined to express his understanding of the nature of business as necessarily Both chaotic and orderly. This is clearly consistent with the Mindset of Living Systems. We discuss Dee Hock and his bi-polar Living System leadership work in detail in Part 4.

Slide 18 – George Soros

Finally, I must mention George Soros. His personal views and professional work on the Open Society and in business and finance using his non-linear Theory of Reflexivity are examples of Living System life and work in action. In his 1998 paper entitled, The Crisis of Global Capitalism, he said:

Financial markets are best understood in terms of reflexivity
(non-linear feedback), not in terms of equilibrium (linear
behavior).

Here is another example of non-linear, bi-polar Living System thought by a leading-edge business man. He calls in several of his papers for a transformation in business and finance as well as in the organization and operations of society.

There are many other examples of leaders and organizations. I feature some of them in Part 4.

Slide 19 – Transition Slide

The world human transformation is now visible and we have evidence that it is
believable. I hope you see the words and thoughts of these persons to be consistent
with the Principles of Living Systems I introduced in Part1.

End of Part 2 – 1

The Cataclysmic Confluence - New Pattern for Success Seminar - Part 1-6

2007-04-14T13:38:56-05:00

This Post presents the The Cataclysmic Confluence - Part 1-6 materials in two ways. First, as two downloadable files - One for the edited Text material and one for the Visual material. Second, in the Extended Post below you can read the Text of the Part 1-6 section.

You can download the Text of The Cataclysmic Confluence - Part 1-6 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part1-6-Megas-Text-032007.pdf

You can download the Visuals of The Cataclysmic Confluence - Part 1-6 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part1-6-Megas-Vis-032007.pdf

Click on the Continue reading link below to read the Text of the The Cataclysmic Confluence - Part 1-6 .

I look forward to your Questions, Comments and Suggestions.

John Clayton Caris

*******************************

LIVING SYSTEM LIFE AND WORK -
THE NEW PATTERN FOR SUCCESS

A Series of Presentation/Discussions
To Explore Critical Issues
For Your Life and Your Business

by Dr. John Clayton Caris
Isis Institute

Part 1 – 6 - 4 Mega-Forces – The Cataclysmic Confluence

Slide 2 – Mega-Force 4 – The Cataclysmic Confluences

Mega-Force 4 – The Cataclysmic Confluence - The “Double Whammy” Effect

Mega-Force 4 comes from confluence, or coming together, of the effects of the other Mega-Forces I have introduced. This confluence I believe is the source of world changes and upheavals that are properly called “Cataclysmic”.

I want to place our discussions of the Mega-Forces in the proper context. The term “Cataclysmic” is commonly considered negative, or at least frightening. I want to make clear that “Cataclysmic” – or massive change and upheaval – is Not necessarily frightening or negative at all. The point I am making in all my discussions is that we live and work at a very special time in history when a number of transformations are happening together. It is a time of unprecedented transcendent change as I have said.

Cataclysms can be positive if you see them coming, you understand their nature, you are aligned with their opportunities and you are prepared to act on nullify their problems before they strike. On the other hand, Cataclysms can be threatening or devastating, if you are unaware, are aligned against fundamental change and are not prepared before a crisis happens. It is axiomatic that the majority are never aware, aligned or prepared. I believe that is why “Cataclysmic” is commonly viewed as being a negative term. It is our purpose to become the leading-edge minority for the Mega-Forces and their confluences.

For example – we know Mega-Force 1 is bringing a Human Psyche System stage transformation that is re-creating the whole pattern of successful life and work. This is marvelous for those persons who are aligned with the emerging pattern - While it is a serious threat to leaders who remain committed to the conventional pattern. The same situation applies to organizations that are not aligned with the coming pattern like General Motors, Ford, the major airline companies, the major department stores, etc., etc. A most current example is the Google vs. Microsoft story – Google aligned with a Living System like web based nodal network concept and practice and Microsoft protecting its linear system like concept and practice.

Another example – We know Mega-Force 2 – the K-Wave Cycle means a cyclical pattern of economic, business, financial and investment market strategic change for each of its approximately 15 year long Quadrants. Being aligned with the underlying K-Wave pattern and anti-aligned with the majority offers good safety, low risk and opportunity – Being aligned with the majority and not aligned with the K-Wave offers high risk and poor operating results.

Mega-Force 3 – the Demographic Bomb is still another example. Those leaders and organizations and countries unaware of the great shortages of human talent now being masked by current K-Wave Q4 conditions will be surprised and adversely affected when the K-Wave situation reverses in the next decade. Countries not now acting to stop emigration of their best talent will suffer losses to their economic, technical and political bases.

Mega-Force 4 is the confluence of the world human transformation of Mega-Force 1, the K-Wave of Mega-Force 2 and the Demographic Bomb of Mega-Force 3 over the next two decades. I call it the “Double Whammy” effect.

What is a “Double Whammy”? It is a slang term for a situation where you are hit in the head from one direction and just as you are absorbing that impact, you are hit from the opposite direction.

Mega-Force 4 is an economic and business beast with two threatening faces that I expect will materialize in sequence in opposite ways during the next two decades. The first whammy hits one way during the current decade of K-Wave Q4 deflation business conditions from now into about 2010 to 2012. Then its impacts will reverse in direction for both developed and developing countries to show its second whammy during the following decade of K-Wave Q1 business expansion.

Mega-Force 4 involves radical shifts in the supply of people in two ways:

1) For employment in general and for the supply of leadership,
entrepreneurial, manufacturing and technical talent in particular, and
2) For the supply of permanent tax paying citizens.

Slide 3 – Mega-Force 4 – Double Whammy Effects #1

Whammy 1 –

The first face of the Double Whammy means surplus people and growing unemployment, not only for labor but also for displaced leadership, management, professional and technical talent as well during K-Wave Q4 conditions of deflation and possibly depression. For example – This situation continues today in both developed and developing countries, like the U.S. and Mexico. Almost all of us know people now underemployed. University degrees may no longer assure employment.

The great human transition of Mega-Force 1 also continues during the next two decades. It means there is critical need to develop a new Genre of leaders using Living System Nodal Network Business concepts and practice that are inconsistent with the still dominant pattern of linear system business. Universities are not yet creating this new Genre of leaders. They continue to teach SOS – The Same Old Stuff.

The purpose of the new Genre of leaders is to create large numbers of new businesses and to transform existing businesses to provide growing employment in the new Living System pattern – Not the failing linear system pattern. These business creations and transformations should be global in concept and scope no matter what the size of the business. As Seth Godin has said, “The new big is small”.

One example of proper business transformation is the growing shift to Continuous Flow Pull Manufacturing to replace conventional Mass Production Push Manufacturing. Pull Manufacturing is inherently consistent with Living System principles. It is now beginning to be used for commercial and service businesses as well.

Conventional leaders and entrepreneurs using linear machine system methods will not be successful in trying to fix-up the current system. It must be let go of – Not re-designed, re-engineered or fixed-up. The best young talent no longer wants to work in a linear system environment, but many must because of the current lack of jobs. Unemployment will become a critical problem for both developed and developing countries as the current K-Wave Q4 conditions climax near the end of the current decade. The effects of Mega-Force 3 – the Demographic Bomb are also present during the next two decades. This means that during the last years of the K-Wave Q4, unemployment is temporarily masking the coming shortage of workers and taxpayers.

Slide 4 – Mega-Force 4 – Double Whammy Effects #2

Whammy 2 –

During the following decade, beyond 2012-2014, the second face of the double Whammy strikes. At that time the most developed economies, especially the U.S. and Europe, will once again be expanding according to Mega-Force 2 and its K-Wave Q1 period. A low inflation “Real” production business expansion should begin again. The demographic bomb of Mega-Force 3 then explodes. Critical skilled manpower shortages will no longer be masked, especially in the most developed economies.

I believe it is inevitable that advanced developing countries will be drained of their most valuable talent if they cannot keep that talent employed in their countries. I feel that the most critical loss will be those with the greatest entrepreneurial spirit. I see a new type of “Colonialism” coming – Not focused on raw material needs like in the past. I call it “Human Colonialism” based on critical human talent needs. For example – The threat of mass emigration of highly skilled leadership, operating and technical talent from countries like Mexico should be obvious.

In fact, recent documents from a number of sources, including the World Bank, are reporting the “Brain Drain” of educated and skilled humans from developing countries is already an intensifying trend. Just imagine what will happen in the next decade when highly developed country needs are greater.

The solution for both faces of the Double Whammy is significant numbers of transformed existing businesses and new businesses in the pattern of Nodal Network Business to accomplish two critical objectives aligned with the Mega-Forces:

1) Employ displaced people during the current decade and
2) Keep entrepreneurial, leadership, technical and labor talent in
their native countries during the following decade.

Slide 5 – Conclusions

Let’s conclude Part 1. The 4 Mega-Forces during the next two decades generate critical needs for new economic and business development models to transform and expand existing businesses and create new ones. There is a worldwide crisis of leadership – This widening crisis is the insignia of the transformation period we live in. It cannot be fixed-up in the current pattern. Many people and organizations will probably remain locked into trying to fix-up what is collapsing. I believe it must be addressed through a new path to success – Living System Life and Work. The choice is yours!

End Part 1-6

The Demographic Bomb - New Pattern for Success Seminar - Part 1-5

2007-04-13T10:21:34-05:00

This Post presents the The Demographic Bomb - Part 1-5 materials in two ways. First, as two downloadable files - One for the edited Text material and one for the Visual material. Second, in the Extended Post below you can read the Text of the Part 1-5 section.

You can download the Text of The Demographic Bomb - Part 1-5 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part1-5-Megas-Text-032007.pdf

You can download the Visuals of The Demographic Bomb - Part 1-5 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part1-5-Megas-Vis-032007.pdf

Click on the Continue reading link below to read the Text of the The Demographic Bomb - Part 1-5 .

I look forward to your Questions, Comments and Suggestions.

John Clayton Caris

*******************************

LIVING SYSTEM LIFE AND WORK -
THE NEW PATTERN FOR SUCCESS

A Series of Presentation/Discussions
To Explore Critical Issues
For Your Life and Your Business

by Dr. John Clayton Caris
Isis Institute

Part 1 – 5 - 4 Mega-Forces – The Demographic Bomb

Slide 2 – Mega-Force 3 – The Demographic Bomb

Mega-Force 3 – The Demographic Bomb
Human imbalances underlying geo-politics and business strategy

Massive human imbalances in birth rate and age distributions of national populations exist and continue to grow between various areas of the world – Especially between developed and developing countries, and between the Islamic and Western worlds. These imbalances are fact. They are locked in. They are growing. There is no avoiding them.

Their two dimensional effects qualify as Mega-Force 3 – Really a Demographic Bomb overhanging the world. These imbalances are the real story underlying:

1) The growing immigration and citizenship competitions between developed and
developing countries – Like between Mexico and the U.S.; and
2) The growing geo-political and religious conflicts between the Islamic
and the Judeo-Christian worlds that could develop into modern day “Crusades”

Like the Middle East situation today and the Africa situation in the future.

The problems are based upon the relative numbers of humans in various areas of the world, their dominant psyche stages and their behavior because of those stages. Yet amazingly, these demographic roots of both geo-political and business conflicts between large areas of the world seem to be largely unknown and their effects unrealized by many business people.

First – Let’s look at the business strategy ramifications of demographic imbalances. The facts are startling! For example, some highly developed countries have birth rates so low they cannot maintain their populations or grow their economies without large cross-border migrations – Legal or illegal. Their growing aged populations are major drains on both their social programs and the profitability of their companies. The US is using both legal and illegal immigration to help its demographic situation. You can answer for yourself why there is no effective US control of its southern border.

As time goes on, the quest of most population short countries will not be for temporary “Guest Worker” programs but for permanent tax-paying citizens who can support their bloated and growing social-political cost structure problems compounded by the needs of aging populations.

Europe and especially the vast Russian/Siberian land mass are in a more critical demographic condition that is the US. So is Japan, and it is not going to solve its demographic problems by massive immigration from outside. Russia can’t either – Not many want to go there.

Some other countries have birth rates so high that their geo-political and religious power is fearful for their adversaries. This is the situation for the Middle East and other Islamic areas of Asia.

Slide 3 – Demographic Bomb Data

Some key demographic data will help to illustrate the intensity of the world’s demographic imbalances for both the business strategy and the geo-political struggle dimensions of the Demographic Bomb. In a country with moderate to good medical services it takes a fertility rate of about 2.2 children per woman to maintain a population. On this slide I show 2005 fertility rates from US Census Bureau and the CIA Fact Book data.

Let’s look at North America. The US now has a fertility rate of 2.1 children per woman. It is just barely able to maintain its population of young workers as more people age. Immigration is needed now and more into the future.

Mexico is now at 2.4 children per woman. Its fertility has declined from the past. This number does not reflect Mexico’s loss of population from emigration. Its fertility rate is forecast to drop to 2.1 by 2025. With continuing emigration, Mexico could become like Europe.

Canada’s fertility rate at 1.6 children per woman is much too low to maintain its population. But Canada can be a place people want to go to. Its emergence as a world energy leader is one reason it can become a people magnet.

Now let’s turn our attention to Europe – It is a demographic cripple. Its supply of young able workers is woefully short. Its populations are aging. Its high social costs requires more tax payers to keep the society functioning. Germany and Switzerland at a fertility rate of 1.4 children per woman are more than 35% below a sustainable population. France and England are at least 20% below sustainable populations. Russia at a 1.3 fertility rate and the least healthy population in Europe has the greatest population problems – 41% below sustainability. It is forecast to lose one-half of its current population in the next several decades. The Russian government recently announced incentives for larger families.

Some do not believe Europe can solve its worsening demographic problems with the bureaucratic, socialistic, anti-entrepreneurial environment present in some European countries.

Now look at the Islamic world. A population explosion is in process. Youthful populations cover the area. Average ages below 20 years are not uncommon. Only Iran is reported to have a fertility rate less than sustainable. The others have twice to three times the fertility rates to maintain their populations. Yemen and Syria being the highest at 6.7 children per woman. The only conclusion is that the Islamic world is in a population explosion.

Second – The geo-political effects of demographic imbalances over the next two decades could become the most powerful dimension of Mega-Force 3. I mean greater than its business ramifications. Growing political, natural resources and religious stresses between the Islamic and the Judeo-Christian worlds are being addressed by leaders of both worlds in terms of anger, confrontation and conflict rather than conciliation. This is the Middle East situation today and the probable Africa situation in the future.

We have growing evidence that neither a military solution by one world or a terrorist solution by the other world can be effective in the long-term and should have never been started by either. Some sort of social-political solution is needed – But given the inherent chaos of the world transformation of Mega-Force 1, the deflationary crises of the last decade of the current K-Wave of Mega-Force 2 and the current leadership in both worlds, the nature and process for a peaceful resolution is not now visible. I believe the results of no effective solution, or at least a peaceful working accommodation, could be cataclysmic.

A U.S. CIA report on world demographic imbalances published in 2001, included specifics of the “Demographic Bomb”. It said, “Some of the world’s poorest and most politically unstable countries will have the largest populations.” This means that these countries will have even larger numbers of under educated, unemployed and desperate young people than they have today. This report also forecasted that by 2030 to 2050 there will be as many Islamic people as there are people in the Western world.

Desperate young people in the developing world functioning in Stage D absolutistic and Stage C heroic psyche stages who have nothing to lose are a powerful demographic force to be recruited and organized for large scale destruction. Equally desperate leaders in the developed world functioning in Stage E linear and Stage D absolutistic psyche stages who see their concept of power being threatened and who view solutions in terms of manipulation and force are also a powerful demographic force for large scale destruction. Unless there is a transformation in the current leadership in both worlds, the potential is forming for some type of “Modern Crusades” wrapped in a religious mantle similar to the earlier Crusades.

Therefore, we as leaders in our own lives, families and businesses have serious strategic issues to face because of Mega-Force 3 as it now exists and as it is likely to further develop over the next two decades. Although we as individual persons and businesses probably cannot confront these issues directly – We do have the clear need to understand them as clearly as possible so we can position our lives, families and businesses so as to avoid being adversely affected.

Now let’s briefly relate Mega-Force 3 – The Demographic Bomb with Mega-Force 2 – The K-Wave.

Slide 4 – Mega-Force 3 – Relate to K-Wave #1

First, I consider the business strategy dimension of the coming explosive effects of
Mega-Force 3’s Demographic Bomb on world business. It is now being masked by the current decade’s deflationary K-Wave Q4 business conditions and the relentless drive to reduce employment resulting from Mega-Force 2. But there is a massive human talent shortage lurking under the surface. Before Q4 conditions began about the year 2000, the demographic shortages were more visible. For example, some European countries were then immigrating large numbers of workers from the Mid-East, like Turkey, and from North Africa to meet their manpower needs.

During the decade beyond the end of the current K-Wave (probably 2012-2014) the Q1 business expansion of the next K-Wave cycle should begin to exert its effects. Demographic imbalances will burst forth as major issues when business conditions reverse from contraction to expansion. Highly developed countries will have a two-fold crisis – A serious shortage of productive talent and of working taxpayers to support their ballooning social costs. The demographic imbalances bomb of Mega-Force 3 for business will no longer be masked. It will explode.

The needs for really new economic and business development models for advanced and developing countries alike come from the interactions of Mega-Forces 1, 2 and 3 over the next two decades. Massive strategic questions emerge for business leaders. Conventional linear approaches are not the way to answer these questions, even though that is what the majority will try to do.

For example, developing countries like Mexico need to place major emphasis during the current decade on solving their growing unemployment by transforming existing businesses and creating large numbers of new businesses, rather than by emigration. I doubt these countries will act without first experiencing massive crises. But for the example of the U.S. and Mexico, there are opportunities for pioneering business leaders working together on both sides of the border using the new Living System Nodal Network Business pattern to defuse the manpower shortages of the Demographic Bomb for their businesses. The current linear machine system pattern of government and business will only further intensify the demographic unbalances.

I know the vast majority of businesses and countries will not heed a call for new economic and business development models until after a severe crisis strikes. I expect only leading-edge persons and organizations will prepare themselves for their future. I cannot be concerned about who cannot see the inevitable. I am focused on those who can and will align their lives and businesses with what is coming – Living System Life and Work. If they act now during the most crisis filled years at the end of the current K-Wave cycle, they will be naturally positioned with the new tide of human affairs that can begin to emerge at the beginning of the next K-Wave cycle. That is a great underlying strategic issue for business leaders today.

Slide 5 – Mega-Force 3 – Relate to K-Wave #2

Second, I consider the geo-political-social dimension of the coming explosive effects of Mega-Force 3’s Demographic Bomb on the growing world confrontations between the Islamic and the Judeo-Christian worlds. The demographic facts are certain – The populations of Judeo-Christian countries will continue to decrease or at best maintain their current size – The populations of Islamic countries will continue to rapidly increase. Their capability to challenge who they now consider enemies will continue to increase. I expect the pressure to act on deep emotional energies will accelerate especially during the current decade of worsening business conditions because of the underlying K-Wave Q4 deflation forces. Leadership intransigence in both worlds points towards deepening confrontations and possible world conflicts. No one will win from such an eventuality. There are ways out of this growing catastrophe if we can abandon combative leadership, military force and terrorism as primary paths to solution. I believe there is no solution by destructive force.

My conclusion is that world demographic imbalances will exert Mega-Force effects during the next two decades. We know a Demographic Bomb is formed. The effects of its social-political dimension are already present. Its explosive business effects may now be masked but will explode as the world begins to enter the Q1 business expansion of the next K-Wave. The effects of its geo-political dimension are now growing toward some type of climax in the next several years – Probably before the end of the current K-Wave’s Q4 deflationary period. The nature, intensity and extent of this climax are great strategic uncertainties that leaders must now face. No one now knows the answers – Except that the current collision course is not the right one and that the emerging Stage A’ Human Psyche System stage as the base for new leadership, at least in the Judeo-Christian world, offers the best foundation to avoid cataclysmic consequences. Now let’s move on to the Mega-Force 4 story.

End Part 1 – 5

The Kondratieff Wave Cycle - New Pattern for Success Seminar - Part 1-4

2007-04-12T14:09:20-05:00

This Post presents the The Kondratieff Wave Cycle - Part 1-4 materials in two ways. First, as two downloadable files - One for the edited Text material and one for the Visual material. Second, in the Extended Post below you can read the Text of the Part 1-4 section.

You can download the Text of The Kondratieff Wave Cycle - Part 1-4 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part1-4-Megas-Text-032007.pdf

You can download the Visuals of The Kondratieff Wave Cycle - Part 1-4 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part1-4-Megas-Vis-032007.pdf

Click on the Continue reading link below to read the Text of the The Kondratieff Wave Cycle - Part 1-4 .

I look forward to your Questions, Comments and Suggestions.

John Clayton Caris

*******************************

LIVING SYSTEM LIFE AND WORK -
THE NEW PATTERN FOR SUCCESS

A Series of Presentation/Discussions
To Explore Critical Issues
For Your Life and Your Business

by Dr. John Clayton Caris
Isis Institute

Part 1 – 4 - 4 Mega-Forces – The Kondratieff Wave Cycle

Now, let’s use what we have just learned about Living Systems to continue our discussion of the Mega-Forces.

Slide 2 – Mega-Force 2 – The Kondratieff Wave Cycle

Mega-Force 2 – The Kondratieff Wave Cycle

Mega-Force 2 is the Kondratieff Wave Cycle, often called the K-Wave. It is critically important for decisions and actions to be taken over the next two decades, especially for business leaders. Even so, the K-Wave is not well known. Few have even heard of it and still fewer know of its powerful uses. In this section my objective is to introduce you to it as a Mega-Force. In Part 3 of our program I will give you a detailed discussion of its nature and applications.

The K-Wave is a Living System wave cycle that is the template for long-term “Tidal Waves” in world affairs. It is the Morphic Field underlying the cycles of human optimism and pessimism in all human affairs, especially in the areas of economics, finance, business and markets. It results in an observable Operating plane wave cycle of human events in these areas. That is why it is a Mega-Force – And we will soon learn that we are now living and working during the most critical portion of the current K-Wave cycle.

The K-Wave’s observable results appear as a sequence of events in human affairs arranged along a non-linear wave of about 50 to 60 years in duration. Recall that non-linear waves do not have the same quantitative period and amplitude for each cycle. They are qualitatively the same from cycle-to-cycle, but can be quantitatively different. This means that the same qualitative sequence of events appears in K-Wave after K-Wave through history.

I emphasize that these observable results are guided by an underlying template, or Morphic Field, for human affairs. It is only one of the underlying waves in the world’s system structure. But it appears to be the primary wave guiding the ebb and flow of human optimism and pessimism in the areas I have named.

The Kondratieff Wave Cycle is named for the Russian agricultural economist, Nicolai Kondratieff, who headed an important government institute in Moscow in the 1920’s. He quantified the Operating plane effects of such long wave cycles using interest rate, commodity price and labor cost data from Europe, and to some extent from the U.S. His work meant that Communist theory was basically wrong. He found that a capitalist society, or any society for that matter, does not disintegrate at the end of a depression as Communist theory predicts. It eventually regenerates and begins its next K-Wave cycle. To properly recognize his pioneering work, the Soviet government condemned him to a Siberian prison camp where he died.

Kondratieff and other long wave scholars, like Joseph Schumpeter and Joshua Goldstein, focused on only the observable Operating plane results. When they did their work, scholars were not aware of Living System theory and it’s New Mindset that could have enabled them to see that the K-Wave results they studied were really being guided by an underlying wave – a Morphic Field.

I believe that what I am saying is critically important for creating and implementing proper business, financing and operating strategy in our transforming world. This is probably the first time you are hearing these things so I understand it may seem confusing. That is what always happens when we are beginning to see a new pattern. It cannot be understood with the conventional mindset – It requires a new mindset in a new stage.

Let’s be clear about what I am doing in this section. I am introducing you to a new treatment of the K-Wave phenomenon that is consistent with the theme of our program – Living System Life and Work. My presentation on the K-Wave is different from any other I am aware of. It is based on the Principles of Living System science.

The conventional treatments of the K-Wave, from their discovery in the early 1900’s until now, are based on the linear systems mindset. This mindset considers the K-Wave to be only an observable Operating plane phenomenon because linear waves do not have underlying Morphic Field waves, as you know from my previous discussion on the nature of Living Systems. A linear system mindset believes that Only measurable Operating plane data are real. We know that Living System waves are always “Double Wave” bi-polar things. So, the K-Wave as a Living System phenomenon must have, as all Living Systems have, both:

1) An underlying Morphic Field wave that is the guiding template for the K-Wave results that appear in the Operating plane; and
2) An observable wave of human events on the Operating plane wave, that only in part, are the results of the underlying K-Wave Morphic Field.

What I mean by the words “only in part” is critical for understanding what has happened in the world pattern of economics, finance, business and investments since about 1987, and most especially since 2000. In am saying that especially since 2000, the actions of official forces, like governments and central banks, have been purposely misinforming and acting to distort the Operating plane results of the K-Wave so the underlying Morphic Field pattern of the K-Wave is obscured.

What we observe is the combined results of the “pure” underlying wave pattern overlaid by the pattern of distorting actions by official forces. They are trying to nullify the normal deflation during the last years of the current K-Wave cycle to make human affairs appear to be what they are not. This has led some observers to say that the K-Wave is not true. I believe they are unaware of, or refuse to see, the official distortions. This masking of the underlying K-Wave pattern makes it more difficult for a business strategist to understand what is really happening and how to properly protect himself and his business during the last decade of a K-Wave. There was also significant government manipulation during the last years of the previous K-Wave cycle – But not to the vast degree we experience today.

We do not yet have the mutual background at this moment for me to explain the details of what this means to you, your family and your business. It is profound. I am developing background in this section so I can answer your questions using my more detailed treatment of the K-Wave in Part 3. It is important for you at this point to at least know of powerful government financial, market and business manipulations, especially since 2002.

We should be aware that the K-Wave is only one of the wave cycles underlying world events – it is one of a family of interrelated wave cycles. There are both longer and shorter wave cycles that we should know of, but we need not go into detail about them here. For example, there is an observable wave cycle of period from 150 to 180 years (~ 3 K-Waves) called the Hegemony Wave; another wave of about 3 to 4 years (~ 1/18 K-Wave) called the Kitchin Cycle and another of about 15-20 years (~ ¼ K-Wave) called the Kuznets Cycle. There are other observable business and investment market cycles of about 15 years in recent decades – They appear to correlate with the Kuznets cycle. We can also observe a longer term investment market wave of about 30 years that correlates with one-half of the K-Wave cycle. But, the K-Wave appears to be the primary Morphic Field guiding the cycles of human optimism and pessimism for economics, finance, business and markets.

To continue, I focus on a rather conventional view of the K-Wave so you get a basic understanding of its characteristics. That means I will not make major distinctions between the underlying K-Wave guiding field and the Operating plane observable results that are so important to being a Living System financial and business strategist today during our world transformation. We will do that later when we have enough background.

Slide 3 – Pattern for two most recent K-Waves

Let’s examine the basic wave structure and the sequence of Operating plane events for the two most recent K-Waves – The one we are now ending within the next decade and the previous one. This slide diagrams the overall shape of the K-Wave business pattern of expansion and peaking during the Up-Wave and contracting and bottoming during the Down-Wave. The current K-Wave may be as long as 65 years from beginning in 1949-1950 to probable end about 2012-2014. The previous one was 54 years from bottom to bottom. From peak to peak these two cycles were 60 years – 1920 to 1980.

Although we are looking at just two wave cycles there are many more that are known. Kondratieff studied 2.5 cycles starting with the K-Wave that began about 1790 A.D. to the top of the previous K-Wave on this diagram in 1920. From the work of Goldstein I have quantitative data showing that K-Waves have occurred continuously since the late 1400’s A.D. when government economic data became available. There is qualitative data that K-Waves existed thousands of years earlier. Peoples of the ancient Middle East had a 50 year cycle in human affairs as did ancient peoples in the Americas, like the Mayans. So you can be assured that the K-Wave is not just a phenomenon of modern capitalistic society as some analysts Wrongly assume.

Let’s consider structural details. The up and down waves tend to be about the same length in time, but need not be. For example, for the previous K-Wave the Up-Wave was 25 years (1895-1920) and the Down-Wave was 29 years (1920-1949). For our current K-Wave the periods were 31 years up (1949-1980) and probably will be at least 32 years down (1980~20012).

I find it important to divide the K-Wave cycle into four quarters that I call Quadrants. There are two for the Up-Wave – Quadrant 1 and Quadrant 2 that I name Q1 and Q2 for convenience: And two for the Down-Wave – Quadrant 3 and Quadrant 4 that I name Q3 and Q4. Each Quadrant is about 15 years long. Each has its own characteristic strategic realities for business and finance that transform in sequence throughout the wave cycle. This means strategic commitments need to be transformed about every 15 years to remain properly aligned with the underlying K-Wave. What is strategic brilliance during one Quadrant can be strategic ignorance and error during the next. The greatest strategic discontinuity comes between Quadrant 2 and Quadrant 3.

A brief outline to identify for you the nature of each Quadrant is appropriate. I will include references to the situations we have experienced since the current K-Wave began in 1949 to give you an historical context.

During Q1 there is real business expansion based on sound investments in production capacity. The financial environment is low inflation and low interest rates. The investment environment is a powerful, but quiet, Bull Market in stocks fueled by real earnings from production that starts to become speculative at the end of Q1. This was the situation between 1950 and mid 1960’s.

Q2 is characterized by increasingly speculative business expansion in an environment of continuously rising inflation with price increases, rising nominal interest rates and growing overcapacity in many key industries. These conditions accelerate to a climax at the peak of the wave at the end of Q2. This situation played out between the mid 1960’s to 1980.

Right at the peak of the K-Wave there occurs a short, sharp financial crisis for from 1 to 2 years. This was the situation between 1980 and 1982. Given the widespread overcapacity, it is no longer possible to make high returns from new investments for most manufacturing situations during the Down Wave – It becomes easier to buy a company on the stock exchange that to build one the Q1 way.

Q3 begins with a profound shift in business toward “Paper Assets” rather than “Tangible Assets”. Nominal interest rates and commodity prices go into long-term declines. Investment banking and merger and acquisition activity accelerate. The era of “Financial Engineering” and “Money Shuffling” reappears and the transformation to the Q3 strategic environment is completed. Q3 is known for its “Booms” in stocks, derivatives, credit, debt and real estate speculations and manipulations while real asset production is in relative decline.

About 10 years after the K-Wave peak a series of financial and business crises begins in various places in the world. This period is the time of transition from Q3 into Q4. For the current K-Wave cycle, this situation began with the Tokyo stock market collapse in 1989 and continued in the mid 1990’s with crises in Asia, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, etc. It climaxed with the US Technology Stock crash of 1999-2000. The transition into Q4 was then complete.

The Q4 period of deflation comes to correct the business, monetary, credit and debt excesses of Q2 and especially Q3. Q4 characteristics include financial asset “Bear Markets”, business recessions or depressions and the eventual rejection of “Paper” assets for hard assets. This is the period during recent K-Waves when “Official Forces” implement massive man-made financial manipulations and managed news to try to reverse, or at least nullify, the deepening deflationary environment. Such “Bubble Creating” manipulations were much simpler during this K-Wave because of the worldwide paper money environment This is the situation began in the late 1990’s after the tech-stock crash and is still playing out. The next several years are when the K-Wave’s Mega-Force character will become more evident.

Further, each K-Wave cycle is composed of six Phases in Mass Psychology – Three during the Up-Wave and three during the Down-Wave. Each Phase is about 10 years in duration. The Mass Psychology Phases overlap the Quadrants of business and finance conditions – They create increasing optimism during the Up Wave, especially during Q2, and increasing Pessimism during the Down Wave, especially during Q4. They cover the cyclical range of mass human emotions – From high pessimism at a K-Wave beginning to extreme optimism at the peak and back again extreme pessimism and even despair at the ending.

Let’s identify for you the mass psychology phases using a few keywords:

- Phase 1 – Denial that conditions can improve;
- Phase 2 – Gradual belief that conditions are improved;
- Phase 3 – Euphoric belief that conditions will continue to be better;
- Phase 4 – Denial that conditions can worsen;
- Phase 5 – Gradual belief that conditions are indeed worse;
- Phase 6 – Depressed belief that conditions are bad and will continue to worsen.

I discuss in greater detail each Quadrant and Phase in Part 3 together with the proper pattern of strategy and behavior for a business leader to use throughout a complete K-Wave cycle. Here my objective is to give you a general picture of the repetitive pattern of observable events during a K-Wave cycle so you can better understand the K-Wave as Mega-Force 2 especially now during the most critical years of our current wave – Mid to late Q4.

To do that I will paint a word picture of our current K-Wave from its peak in 1980, to today and then to its probable ending.

First, how do we recognize from events that the K-Wave peaked in 1980? Easy. We observed rapid increases in inflation rates, interest rates, commodity prices and business costs that went into excessive upward “Blow-Offs’ – The mass opinion was that the expansion would go on “forever”. Then came collapses in nominal interest rates, inflation rates and commodity prices. They all rapidly reversed and went into long-term decreases. Overcapacity was widespread. These were the situations in both 1920 and 1980. A short but sharp financial crisis came in 1980-81 and lasted into 1982. The same thing happened from 1920 to 1922. Economies shifted from emphasis on real production and investments in real assets to speculation, paper investments and financial engineering.

Then an investment market “Boom” started along with an apparent business expansion for the next several years. That was the roaring 1920’s of the previous wave and the roaring 1980’s and early 1990’s for our current wave.

Now let’s continue the picture of the Down-Wave after the peak crisis. A great Q3 Bull Market in financial instruments is ignited. The Q3 period is called the “Plateau” – Its business pattern does not seem to be a decline, at least for a few years, because of all the paper profits being made. It is always a paradox – It is apparently the coming of the best of times for those captivated by the “Financial Bubbles” While at the same time it portends the coming of the worst of times for those who focus on the underlying reality. But almost no one senses the latter. Q3 is like a “Big Party” – “Let the good times roll” as they say. It is the coming of a new era of prosperity based on paper, credit and debt.

I refer you to the Roaring 1920’s of the previous K-Wave and the New Era of the 1990’s of the current K-Wave. The great Bull Market in stocks and various financial instruments rolled on to the point that its intensity became a Mass Mania together with the last stages of a commercial real estate expansion. Then about 10 years after the K-Wave peak, the most financially over-expanded link in the world’s mania chain broke. For the previous K-Wave it was the New York stock market crash in September 1929 – For the current K-Wave it was the Tokyo stock market crash and the start of Japan’s real estate collapse in late 1989.

These events told a K-Wave strategist that the beginning of the end of Q3 and the beginning of the transition to the K-Wave Q4 deflation and depression had come – Even though the financial markets still had more mania actions to complete. The transition from the last few years of Q3 through the first few years of Q4 normally takes about 10 years. That is exactly what has happened.

During the Q3 to Q4 transition governments, banks, businesses, and financiers got busy trying to manipulate their way out of the crises they were in. A series of crises continued for several years, culminating in the final crash that told a K-Wave student that Quadrant 4 deflation had come. Please recall the Q3 to Q4 transition Crisis history of our current wave – It began with the 1989 Tokyo crash – Continued through the Mid-1990’s including crises in Asia, Mexico, Brazil, Argentina, etc. – And ended in 1999-2000 with the Tech and Telecom stock crash in the US.

There is one point I need to clear up right now. There are those who say the massive business expansions in China and India do not fit with Q4 deflation so the validity of the K-Wave is suspect. Wrong. The Orient’s expansion is a massive deflationary force on world product and service prices. It is a vast transfer of production costs and jobs to the Orient in exchange for profits for the US to try to counter-balance the inevitable profit drops during Q4 deflation – It is a deal that says: We give you our jobs and you give us your profits. The K-Wave Q4 environment was a catalyst for more outsourcing. Since China must increase employment at all costs to prevent internal chaos and to grasp the opportunity build its national power, it made the deal – Profits are not the most important issue there – Employment, social order and future production and financial power are.

To complete this introduction of the K-Wave as Mega-Force 2, let’s focus on the story since 2000. Between 2000 and 2002 the first leg down of a powerful Q4 Bear market in investment markets and business came. Government and central bank actions since 2002 show that they declared an all-out war on deflation, while publicly denying its existence. Massive government, central bank and Wall Street manipulations of economies and markets together with the largest monetary, credit and debt expansions in human history were used, and are still being used, as stimulants to try to prevent a resumption of the Q4 Bear market in securities and to try to stop the underlying K-Wave forces of world deflation. The quest was, and is, to create man-made, but hidden, inflation at least equal to the underlying deflation of the K-Wave so governments could claim they were “controlling inflation” (which was and is not true) while distorting the K-Wave effects enough to prevent the economy from spiraling into deflation. The price for all this is continuing loss of purchasing power of irredeemable paper currency.

When modest financial stimulations are applied during the K-Wave Q2 and early Q3 periods significant economic growth benefit is triggered along with significant inflation.
During inflation the burden of debt can be inflated away and the effective cost of carrying debt decreases. But during Q4 deflation the situation reverses. During deflation it takes large amounts of financial stimulation to trigger even small amounts of economic growth and the effective cost of carrying debt increases. During deflation, excessive debt becomes a dangerous enemy.

It has taken unprecedented amounts of money, credit and debt over the last several years to implement government stimulation programs throughout the world. The amount of debt overhanging the world is now beyond comprehension. During this K-Wave the US has gone from being the largest creditor in the world to its largest debtor. Nobody knows for sure how big are the total US debt and liabilities – There are professional studies putting it at more $40 trillion dollars and some estimates putting it as large as $70 trillion dollars – Much of it is unfunded future liabilities that are “off-the-books”. There are estimates that the rest of the world’s debt is at least as large as the US amount. There is one thing for sure – This amount of debt can never be repaid or even serviced. If a Q4 deflationary depression materializes, its effects are unknown because no K-Wave in history has ever approached its end with such a “Debt Bomb” overhanging. A wise observer named Richard Russell says that the US must – “Inflate or Die”.

The path of man-made manipulations of the K-Wave has been tried before. Each has created imbalances in economics, finance, business and markets that were not sustainable. Bubbles were created that eventually crashed. Up to the case we are now living through, the most famous example is the fiat money and credit bubble engineered by John Law just before 1720 to try to extract the French monarchy from financial crisis and restore general prosperity. He created a massive bubble based on paper money, credit, debt and real estate securities at the start of a K-Wave Down-Wave. It brought temporary riches, then crashed and ruined the French economy for decades. Bubbles inevitably crash. A few get rich – Many are smashed financially. The parallels between John Law and today’s situation are notable but beyond what we can discuss here. The previous local situation of one country, France, is now worldwide.

So our conclusion is that the underlying K-Wave is indeed a Mega-Force with powerful effects for the next two decades. You now have a basic understanding of its nature and where it is taking us in the next several years – To its Q4 conclusion. We know the K-Wave is a Living System “Double Wave”. We know its underlying Morphic Field wave is primary and the one that tells us the truth. We know its Operating plane wave effects can be significantly distorted by “Official Forces” and we should not trust its appearances if they differ significantly from the underlying wave.

We cannot know the extent of the turmoil to come but we can be assured it will transform the conventional pattern for success over the last several decades. Having the Mindset of Mega Force 1 will be a powerful advantage. We know that the next K-Wave will begin after the conclusion of this one – The world will once again regenerate when mass psychology believes it never will. Following Q4 we will experience Q1 of the next K-Wave cycle. Its effects will include real economic and business expansion.

We know that the underlying K-Wave is a powerful tool for us as leaders to make our own economic, financial, business and market forecasts, especially during a time when we cannot trust official ones. I will discuss K-Wave issues in greater detail in Part 3. Having a business that serves people in essential ways and generates cash with minimum financial risk and delay is probably the best place to be.

Now let’s discuss Mega-Force 3.

End of Part 1 – 4

Nature of Living Systems - New Pattern for Success Seminar - Part 1-3

2007-04-11T12:32:57-05:00

This Post presents the Nature of Living Systems - Part 1-3 materials in two ways. First, as two downloadable files - One for the edited Text material and one for the Visual material. Second, in the Extended Post below you can read the Text of the Part 1-3 section.

You can download the Text of Nature of Living Systems - Part 1-3 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part1-3-Megas-Text-032007.pdf

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Click on the Continue reading link below to read the Text of the Nature of Living Systems - Part 1-3 .

I look forward to your Questions, Comments and Suggestions.

John Clayton Caris

For Previous Posts in this Series - Click the Links below
- New Pattern For Success Seminar Series Announcement
- New Pattern for Success - Introduction
- New Pattern for Success - Part 1-1 - Mega-Forces Overview
- New Pattern for Success - Part 1-2 - The World Human Transformation

********************************

LIVING SYSTEM LIFE AND WORK -
THE NEW PATTERN FOR SUCCESS

A Series of Presentation/Discussions
To Explore Critical Issues
For Your Life and Your Business

by Dr. John Clayton Caris
Isis Institute

Part 1 - 3 - 4 Mega-Forces – Nature of Living Systems

Now I need to share with you some critical background knowledge in the new Human Psyche System stage pattern, so you can better grasp what I have just said about Mega-Force 1 and what I am about to say about Mega-Force 2. I want to make a few comments about what Living Systems are like so you are better able to contrast them with the Linear Systems that surround us.

Slide 2 – Nature of Living Systems

Living Systems, especially those that relate to human affairs, are dramatically different from non-living, linear and relativistic systems. I give you here only a brief panorama so you grasp the main ideas – To help you develop a new Living System Mindset. In Part 4 of this seminar series, I develop with you the Principles of Living System Life and Work based upon what I introduce you to now.

1) Inherent Bi-Polarity

Everything about Living Systems exists as pairs of complimentary opposites. All system characteristics operate as pairs of bi-polar opposites. Not one pole or the other – Not Either-Or – But BOTH. These poles are mutually essential and supporting opposites in dynamic, cyclical interaction. This is a new concept that does not exist for linear systems and only partly exists for relativistic systems.

For Living Systems, a Paradox is Reality – Not to be solved, but to be lived. Linear system characteristics are about separate things. In other words, linearity is about separate, independent, mutually exclusive poles – NOT about BOTH poles in dynamic relationship and cooperation as is the nature of Living Systems.

A good example – Order & Chaos – A healthy living system organization has a proper mix of both order and chaos in dynamic interaction. Order and chaos are mutually necessary. They support and enable each other. A human system, like an organization, with insufficient order is undisciplined and directionless – With insufficient chaos it becomes rigid and unable to innovate or create.

For linear systems, Order is the good pole and Chaos is the bad pole. The objective is to maximize order and minimize or eliminate chaos. For Living Systems, neither Order nor Chaos are inherently bad poles – Both are essential in balanced dynamic relationship.

Another example – For linear systems, freedom and control are mutually exclusive. The presence of freedom means the absence of control and vice versa. Linear systems live only on the conscious operating plane of reality. They have no underlying plane of reality. Living Systems on the other hand live on more than one plane. For living systems, freedom on the operating plane can result from control on the underlying plane. They are mutually essential and enabling. Freedom and control are for a Living System a bi-polar pair of mutually opposite but supporting and enabling characteristics. Such thought is nonsense for the linear system mindset.

An excellent example Living System bi-polarity is how our e-mail systems operate – Freedom for the user and voluntary rigid control underneath through protocols. You are free to write any e-mail you wish and send it to anyone on you mail list – However to be able to do this you are voluntarily agreeing to be bound by the control of underlying rules in the software code. The underlying rigid control enables the freedom on the operating plane of sending and receiving e-mails.

2) Underlying “Morphic Fields”

A critical part of the bi-polarity of Living Systems is underlying guiding fields, called “Morphic Fields”. Therefore, all Living Systems exist on more than one plane of reality – The Operating plane of conscious world events and the Underlying plane of normally unseen guidance called the “Morphic Field” plane that guides the pattern of conscious events on the operating plane. We are indebted to Dr. Rupert Sheldrake for the concept of Morphic Fields and Morphic Resonance among living systems. I discuss his work and give you important references in Part 4. In the meantime you may wish to visit his fine site at http://sheldrake.org/homepage.html .

The most fundamental living system in our life is the Human Psyche System. The psyche’s underlying Morphic Field is our Unconscious. The psyche’s Conscious involves our operating plane awareness of daily events. Our unconscious is the normally unseen pattern of guidance for our conscious life events. Such thinking is inconsistent with conventional linear concepts of psychology.

Linear System life and work exists only on the Operating Plane – There is NO underlying Morphic Field plane. Living System Life and Work exists on BOTH the Operating Plane and the Morphic Field Plane with both planes in dynamic interaction. This has profound effects on how Living System leadership and organization operate – Especially in the areas of innovation and creating.

Living System Science is based on underlying protocols, or Principals, that guide what happens on the operating plane. It is the Science of Underlying Patterns that move in cyclical waves. The future of business leadership and strategy is based upon recognizing these underlying wave cycle patterns of human living systems as individuals and organizations.

I emphasize that Linear Systems Science has NO underlying Morphic Field patterns. Therefore, linear approaches to leadership and strategy are limited to surface events on the operating plane. They are blind to the larger issues of human affairs on the Morphic Field plane of reality.

3) Function in Cyclical Waves – Not Linear Trends

Living systems move in bi-polar wave cycles that are qualitatively similar from cycle to cycle – But, quantitatively the cycles can be quite different. Living System wave cycles do not have exactly the same period, amplitude or structural details.

A good example is the bi-polar evolution process of Living Systems. One pole of the evolution process is gradual, almost linear development within one quasi stable stage pattern. (This is what is known as Darwinian evolution) The other pole is discontinuous non-linear transformation leaps from one stage pattern to another in the system’s evolution sequence. So a Living System evolves in cycles of slow development within a given stage (called Intra-Stage Development) followed by a rapid leap to the next stage (called Inter-Stage Transformation). This is how living cells grow and divide – It is how an embryo grows and then leaps to its next stage – It is how we all evolved before we were born – It is how our Human Psyche System evolves after birth – It is how our organizations evolve also.

The Human Psyche System’s evolution process I just mentioned is a bi-polar wave cycle – Gradual development within a given psyche stage followed by a transition leap to the next stage. For humans this progresses from Stage A to Stage B and so on to where the leading edge of mankind is now – Transitioning to Stage A’, the Living System Stage of human life and work.

Mega-Force 1, as I have said, is the discontinuous transformation leap in Human Psyche System evolution from Stage F into Stage A’.

4) Organize as Nodal Networks

Living Systems organize as networks of nodes. Each node is a living sub-system. This means that the nodes are themselves smaller living systems – Not just functional components as in linear machine systems.

Living Systems can self-organize and evolve, but only consistent with the next two Principles below – 5 and 6. This means that Living Systems can self-organize and evolve only if they are:
- at least partly Open (Principle 5) and
- In the right kind of relationships with their environments (Principle 6).

Today’s transformation in human leadership and organization depends on nodal network character. The most effective organizations for good or evil have nodal network form – For example, the World Wide Web network of the Internet for Good – The Cells of a terrorist network for Evil.

5) Open System in Dynamic Interactions

Living Systems must be at least partly open and in dynamic interaction and communication with their environments. There is no such thing as a closed, independent Living System.

This is in stark contrast with Linear Systems that can be, and often are, closed relative to their environments. Their life can be independent of other systems and their environments. Linear system science is the science of closed systems with independent variables. The 2nd Law of Thermodynamics is one of the most famous examples of conventional closed system science.

Linear system independent corporations in direct competition is one of the principles of conventional business – It is often called the “Free Market”, whatever that is. Living systems can’t be independent – They are inter-dependent. They are inherently cooperative and collaborative, if they are to be healthy. If a Living System becomes isolated it decays, and then dies. The prominent financier George Soros is saying such things about economic and geo-political systems to the horror of some conventional financial and business minds.

6) Embedded in Enabling and Nurturing Environment

Living Systems can exist only when embedded in enabling and nurturing environments. The properties of Openness and Interaction are necessary, but not sufficient by themselves. The Openness and Interaction must also occur in ways that are both enabling and nurturing, or the living system cannot survive and grow.

For human living systems, this means that linear system organization, its vertical hierarchy structure and its command-and-control management are improper for superior human performance for people whose psyches are evolved beyond Stage E linear pattern. There you have the base reason for the leadership and organization crises today.

This explains why the Stage E pattern of life and work used to be so successful when the most highly productive people were evolved only to Stage E. But when leading-edge people evolved beyond Stage E pattern, its leadership and organization pattern started to decline in importance. Key examples are GM, Microsoft and the old AT&T.

7) Never at Equilibrium

Living Systems are never at equilibrium. They always function away from it. Equilibrium in anything is not a valid goal for a Living System. In fact, the most dynamic and creative human systems operate far from equilibrium near the threshold of a discontinuous leap.

Equilibrium or end-point objectives are obsolete and dysfunctional ideas for a Living system business. This fact drives conventional linear managers crazy. They find it nearly impossible to be in “conventional control” of such an organization and its people.

The goal for linear systems is to achieve equilibrium. The “Quest for Equilibrium” in everything surrounds us today – In accounting, finance, business, public affairs, personal life and everything else.

I emphasize – Equilibrium is not a desirable, or possible, goal for a Living System – It means death. A proper dynamic Goal is Resilience. Resilience is the ability to endure instability and persist near the borderline between dynamic-stability in one stage and leaping transformation to the next stage. How to do this in practice is at the core of the art and science of Living System leadership and management. It is an art and science that leading-edge persons are just beginning to learn. Of course what I have just said may sound like non-sense to linear, equilibrium seeking business systems. It is not for those who have achieved the Living Systems Mindset.

8) Optimal Size for Nodal Sub-Systems

Human living systems have optimum size limits for their nodal sub-systems. The smallest sub-nodes should be about 12 or fewer persons. An example is the US Army Special Forces “A Teams” of 12 men. The largest sub-nodes should be about 150 persons. An example is the size of business units in the
W.L Gore & Associates organization.

These numbers have been known for centuries from wise experience – Recently they are being validated by network theory. If business units get much above 150 persons they begin to “linearize” and lose their former effective human qualities as they degenerate into inhuman bureaucracies.

9) System Analysis by Underlying Wave Patterns

Living System analysis focuses first on understanding the qualitative cyclical patterns of the underlying wave cycles – The Morphic Field wave cycles. Then, when the underlying waves are understood, it is possible to make sense out of the complex pattern of events on the operating plane of daily experience. This also sounds like non-sense to the linear psyche.

What we discussed in Mega-Force 1 and discuss next in Mega-Force 2 is exactly this point – Understanding the underlying wave cycles first. For Mega-Force 1 the underlying wave cycles are those of Human Psyche System stage evolution. For Mega-Force 2, the underlying pattern is the Kondratieff Wave Cycle.

By knowing the structure of Human Psyche System evolution through its Stages from A to A’ we can understand the coming specifics of Living System leadership, organization, operations and entrepreneurship. Part 2 of this series focuses on how mankind through history and we through our own lives have evolved stage by stage up to the current transformation to Stage A’, the Living System stage. Then we can see where the current transformation came from, what it is and where it is taking us.

By understanding how the underlying wave pattern for economics, finance, business and markets evolves we can understand and make accurate predictions in those areas. That is what Mega-Force 2 – the Kondratieff Wave Cycle – is about. I introduce it in the next section and I devote Part 3 to its details.

Living System analysis is in stark contrast with conventional quantitative analysis so popular in our linear system world. The proper quest is first to perceive the underlying Morphic Field cycles and their pattern. Then we can perceive how the Operating plane patterns of events will probably develop over time unless they are being purposely distorted by man-made actions on the Operating plane. This process has long been used informally by perceptive leaders using intuition. Now it is being developed into a formal bi-polar process of Qualitative and Quantitative analysis for economics, finance, business and markets.

10) Power Law Statistical Distributions – The “Long Tail”

This is Really a Shocker! The properties of Living System networks, like the Internet, have statistical distributions that are dramatically different from those of linear systems.
They are called Power Law distributions.

What is this difference in distributions? Let me explain it this way. Linear system properties have peaked distributions like the well known Bell curve. It has a peaked value for a system property and sharply falling values on either side of the peak. Every MBA student knows this. However, most MBA students are not yet studying Living System networks and their economics.

The point is that Living System network properties have No Peaks in their values – No most probable values. The value distributions for their properties fall off continuously from some initial value according to what is called a Power Law function. Let’s skip the mathematics and get to the bottom line.

Why do we care? Because this difference in distributions between a Living System and a linear system has astounding practical consequences – It turns conventional mass marketing, business strategy and even productivity improvement thinking upside down on their heads.

For example – If the system property we are interested in is sales volume per product, then for a mass market linear system business we perceive and can reach only a few percent of the total sales potential – Relative to the total sales potential that can be reached by a Living System network business model.

When the Power Law distribution is plotted on ordinary graph paper you get a curve with a “Long Tail”. If you plot the curve on Log-Log paper you get a straight line curve sloping down to the right – But I promised you no math.

Yes, you heard me right. A network business relative to a linear system mass marketing business can have a much higher sales potential – That was never seen before and never reachable before. These effects are found to be in the range of twice to more than 10 or even a 100 times the sales potential for a properly networked business rather than a linear system business.

Please note that when I use the term Network Business, I am not talking about “Multi-Level Sales” – That is something totally different. Now let’s look at a famous example of Power Law Distributions commonly called the “Long Tail”.

Slide 3 – Long Tail Marketplace

This is a Long Tail curve for Sales of products whose distribution can be embedded in a Living System network, like the Internet. Let’s assume the products being sold are books. Plotted vertically is the number of books sold of a given title. Plotted horizontally is the distribution of the number of books sold for a given title. This curve shows a very few titles have very large sales volume and the sales per title drops off continuously – Sharply at first and then ever more slowly, forever.

This example shows that a few thousand book titles give 50% of the total sales and millions of titles give the other 50% of sales. The top sellers are what can be handled in physical stores (linear system mass markets) and the low volume “non-popular” sellers are handled through a network (these are Living System niche markets). For this example the total sales potential is twice what can be seen or reached by linear mass marketing. The millions of low selling books were not previously believed to be a real market. It is.

Slide 4 – Long Tail Economics

Here we have an example of Long Tail economics. For a linear system business model with physical store inventory, the normal Pareto distribution of 20% of the products bring 80% of the sales and nearly 100% of the profits is valid. But if the business has Both physical store inventory and network sales inventory, then for this example the Long Tail sales involves 10 times the number of products, but at much lower sales per product they still bring in significant sales and profits.

Now you see that the Long Tail turns much conventional business opportunity thinking “Upside Down”.

This section has given you ten Principles of Living Systems to introduce you to their dramatic differences from those of conventional linear systems that surround us. It should help you to develop the New Mindset. I used some Living System Principles to explain Mega-Force 1 – The World Human Transformation. Next I will do the same thing to introduce you to Mega-Force 2 – The Kondratieff Wave Cycle. It should be getting clearer to you that what lies under the New Pattern for Success is emerging human understanding of the nature of Living Systems.

End of Part 1 – 3

The World Human Transformation - New Pattern for Success Seminar - Part 1-2

2007-04-10T09:57:32-05:00

This Post presents the The World Human Transformation - Part 1-2 materials in two ways. First, as two downloadable files - One for the edited Text material and one for the Visual material. Second, in the Extended Post below you can read the Text of the Part 1-2 section.

You can download the Text of The World Human Transformation - Part 1-2 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part1-2-Megas-Text-032007.pdf

You can download the Visuals of The World Human Transformation - Part 1-2 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part1-2-Megas-Vis-032007.pdf

Click on the Continue reading link below to read the Text of the The World Human transformation - Part 1-2 .

I look forward to your Questions, Comments and Suggestions.

John Clayton Caris

********************************

LIVING SYSTEM LIFE AND WORK -
THE NEW PATTERN FOR SUCCESS

A Series of Presentation/Discussions
To Explore Critical Issues
For Your Life and Your Business

by Dr. John Clayton Caris
Isis Institute

Part 1 – 2 - 4 Mega-Forces – World Human Transformation

Slide 2 – Mega-Force 1 – Human Transformation

Mega-Force 1 – World Human Transformation

Mega-Force 1 is a world transformation driven by the new pattern of human and business identity that began to appear on Earth about 1900 A.D. It results from a new pattern of human psyche operation in some persons. The new pattern is called Living System Life and Work. Its emerging science is called Living System Science. It is in the process of beginning to transform away from today’s scientific establishment – the science of linear and relativistic systems – upon which almost all conventional leadership/management, organization, operations and entrepreneurship are based.

Slide 3 – Mega-Force 1 – Stage A’ 2nd Renaissance® pattern

Mega-Force 1 is now accelerating. As Paul Williams said in the poem from Das Energi that I gave you in the Introduction:

We are going to make a quantum leap
Everything will change
You will never be the same.

Still small, but growing, numbers of people are evolving into the new psyche stage pattern – It is called the Stage A’ (A prime) – Living System, 2nd Renaissance pattern of life and work. I will explain exactly what that means as we proceed. Most of these persons who are beginning to transform are not themselves consciously aware of what is happening to them. They may not know about psyche stages either. They just know they are different and they are impelled to try to live and work in a new pattern that they do not really understand – It just feels more natural to them.

Their minds are operating in non-conventional patterns, at least in part. A very few examples are Bill Gore who founded W.L. Gore and Associates as probably the earliest Nodal Network Business; Dee Hock who led the “Chaordic” transformation of VISA; Linus Torvalds who led the non-conventional Nodal Network organization who created LINUX; and Christopher Locke, Rick Levine, Doc Searles and David Weinberger who wrote The Cluetrain Manifesto calling for the end of business as usual. We will discuss them and many others as we proceed to develop the mindset of the New Pattern for Success.

Those using the Living System pattern demonstrate a new vision of the purpose of life and work and what is valid science. It leads them to discover new methods for pursuing a meaningful life. It usually results in powerful dissatisfaction with what now exists.

Today people and organizations functioning only in the currently dominant psyche stage patterns are experiencing a complex pattern of crises they cannot solve. Many of them are not even aware of the situation they are in. These crises and failures to deal with them in any but conventional linear ways are leading to the terminal decline in leadership and importance of the human patterns we will come to know as Stage E and Stage F.

The same type of human transition, with crises and failures of the conventional pattern and the emergence of a new more effective pattern of life and work, led to a new era at six previous turning point periods in human history. Such transitions do not happen very often – But when they do Everything Begins to Change Discontinuously – What looks like chaos and destruction is the prelude to the emerging order and stability – For those who can see it, understand it, align with it and use it. So Negativity and Pessimism for what is declining is valid – And Positivism and Optimism for what is being born is equally valid – And far more effective.

Beginning as Primitive Hunter Gatherers at Stage A, today’s leading edge people have progressed through five more psyche stage transformations up to the threshold of today’s transformation into Stage A’. Let’s just name these human transformations in sequence so the stages of mankind, when they emerged and when they were the leading stage in mankind become familiar to you:

Stage A – Primitive, Hunter Gatherer Man
– Emerged as first humans more than 1 million years ago
– World Leading until ~ 30,000 B.C.
Stage B – Mystical, Tribal Man
– Emerging by 30,000 B.C.
– World Leading until ~ 5000 B.C.
Stage C – Heroic, Early Imperial Man
– Emerging by 8000 – 6000 B.C.
– World Leading until ~ 500 A.D.
Stage D – Absolutistic, Medieval Man
– Emerging by 1500 B.C.
– World Leading until ~ 1400 A.D.
Stage E – Linear System, 1st Renaissance Man
– Emerging by 800 – 1000 A.D.
– World Leading ~ 1400 A.D. to Today
Stage F – Relativistic, Socialistic Man
– Emerging by 1750 A.D.
– World Leading ~ Late 1800’s A.D. to Today
Stage A’ – Living System, 2nd Renaissance Man
- Emerging since ~ 1900 A.D.
– Still emerging and beginning to lead in certain niches of human affairs

It is fascinating to learn that your own life evolves through the same sequence of psyche stages as collective human history has. This is called Recapitulation. It means that in our life we retrace, or recapitulate, the previous stages of mankind. Let’s just identify typical age periods when the various Human Psyche System stages usually dominate in the lives of the most evolved persons:

Stage A – Primitive, Hunter Gatherer Man
– Infancy, the first year of life
Stage B – Mystical, Tribal Man
– Early Childhood, 1 to ~ 2 1/2 years
Stage C – Heroic, Early Imperial Man
– Childhood, Starting with the “Terrible Two’s”
Stage D – Absolutistic, Medieval Man
– Adolescence
Stage E – Linear System, 1st Renaissance Man
– Early Adulthood
Stage F – Relativistic, Socialistic Man
– Mid-Adulthood
Stage A’ – Living System, 2nd Renaissance Man
– Mid to later Adulthood

My discussions in Part 2 of the Seminars will present a more detailed picture of the evolution of Human Psyche System stages through history and through our individual lives. Now I introduce a graphical overview of the rise and fall of human psyche stages through history as they lead up to our current transformation – That is the human transformation to Stage A’ that I call Mega-Force 1.

Slide 4 – Human Psyche System Stages through History – View 1

This diagram shows the rise and fall of specific Human Psyche System stages in world leadership over the last 50,000 years. I want to emphasize that what has happened through history is not just an interesting story. It has important applications for leadership/management, organization and operations today.

This diagram shows that at critical times in history a new Human Psyche System stage emerges and the previously dominant one declines in influence and leadership effectiveness. The great transformation periods of history are shown by the shaded areas. This process is now happening for the seventh time in history and for the seventh time in the lives of today’s leading-edge humans. Remnants of all these stages remain important for leadership and organization today.

About 30,000 B.C. we see Stage A – Primitive, Hunter Gatherer Man was in decline and Stage B – Mystical, Tribal Man was in leadership ascendance. This marked the first transition era of human history when stable tribal life, village organization, agriculture and animal domestication emerged. Stage B grew to be dominant in human affairs by 15,000 B.C. and began its gradual decline.

Stage C – Heroic, Early Imperial Man emerged from about 8000 to 5000 BC in the Middle East area of what is now Iran and Iraq. This second transition era was dominated by the Stage C pattern of violent personal power and its Feudal System organization replacing as world leader the Stage B pattern of peaceful tribal societies. As Stage C organizations grew by conquest from City States into sizable early empires, it was necessary to invent early types of secular bureaucracy to control and administer captured territories for the benefit of the conquerors. Each bureaucracy suited the individual whims and needs of the King/Emperor. Stage C pattern rose to world dominance and then declined throughout the period from about 3500 BC to 500 AD. This was from the time of emperor Darius the Great in Persia until the first fall of the Roman Empire.

Slide 5 – Human Psyche System Stages through History – View 2

This diagram expands the horizontal time scale to better show the rises and falls of Stages C, D, E and F. It shows the third transition era of history between about the birth of Christ and the fall of Rome about 500 AD. In this period the Stage D – Absolutistic, Medieval Man pattern replaced the Stage C – Heroic Man pattern as world leader.

At Stage D the concept and practice of organization by bureaucracy was profoundly transformed. Its secular nature became religious. It became a more complex many level church dominated bureaucratic structure that was uniform throughout the Western world of the time. Individual whims of an Emperor were replaced by the absolute uniform structure and operations of the Universal Church. The Stage D Pattern of church-state autocracy peaked about 1000 AD during the time of the Crusades. The Crusades were the swan-song of Stage D pattern power.

Please note: During each transition age, world power centers went through chaos and violent, disruptive upheaval from one leading pattern of life and work to another. Emerging world leaders went in a qualitatively new direction – first individually and then collectively. Each transformation brought a new society that was discontinuous with the past with new patterns of leadership/management, organization, operations and entrepreneurship that became more successful than what had previously existed.

About 1300 AD the fourth transition era of history began – It was the terminal decline as world leader for Stage D Medieval church dominated bureaucracy and the ascendance of Stage E linear, 1st Renaissance pattern of life and work. Linear machine like leadership, organization, society and science were born. They have been world leader ever since, but are now in terminal decline. They are responsible in the West for most of mankind’s material advances in the last 1000 years – Until just the last few decades.

I am emphasizing the Western version of this human story because that is closer to our culture and history. Later in Part 2, I will introduce you to psyche stage patterns of the Orient and how they are important for our life and leadership today.

Slide 6 – Human Psyche System Stages through History – View 3

This Slide further expands the time scale since 1750. It shows the most complex period of human transitions in history beginning near 1900. It is really two major transition eras back-to-back. This had never happened before. There are reasons that we will come to know. Now let’s focus on the two transition eras of modern history.

First. The fifth transition era included the beginning of the Stage E to Stage F transformation – The peaking of Stage E pattern and the emergence of Stage F – Relativistic, Socialistic Man. It began in the early 1800’s and lasted in my judgment until about 1900 when the Stage A’ Living System psyche began to appear on Earth.

The French Revolution in 1789 was a signal event for the coming of Western Stage F – The bursting forth of the socialistic, relativistic force to counter the previously dominant Western Stage E pattern. For the last 200 years the drama of Stage E versus Stage F has been the human backdrop for the most violent conflicts in history. The wars of the 19th and 20th centuries were unprecedented in scope, intensity and destruction. Today our society is still dominated by continuous struggles between the Left (Stage F oriented) and the Right (Stage E oriented) – These conflicts are geo-political results of the deep antagonism between Stage E and Stage F psyche patterns.

Second. About 1900 the sixth transition era – Our Current Era – began with the emergence of Stage A’ Living System psyche – Everything started to shift, very gradually at first. This transition period is more complex than any previous one. Why? Because it involves a contest for leadership power among three psyche system stages rather than between two stages, as was the case previously through history. It includes both the end of the Stage E to Stage F transition and the emergence of the new human Stage that transcends not only Stage E and Stage F – But also it transcends the underlying pattern of all previous stages of man.

This beginning of the emergence of Stage A’ – Living System, 2nd Renaissance pattern marks the end of the first Phase of human life (Stages A through F) and the beginning of a whole new Phase of life and work. It is the beginning of the World’s Biggest Story Today that I call Mega-Force 1. It is the primary purpose for all of our Isis Group work, including this Series of discussions.

I have given you a panorama of our Human Psyche System evolution process as human beings. You now have insight into what the current world transformation is and where it has come from. Let’s briefly summarize today’s sixth transition era so we can see where Mega-Force 1 and its Stage A’ pattern are taking us.

Stage E –Linear System life and work pattern – still dominates Western business, public and scientific establishments. Its influence peaked by 1910-20 and is now rapidly declining. It is in its last gasp of apparent strength – Its “Swan Song”. Stage F, the relativistic socialistic system of life and work is now peaking.

Now let’s consider why Mega-Force 1 transforms the current pattern for success. Our current world is mostly led and managed by persons and organizations operating in a mixture of Stages E and F. For example, the prevailing pattern of most large corporations is Stage F “Political Correctness” and its “Public Relations type of Humanity” on the surface with underlying Stage E linear hierarchical power structure.

But Stage A’ Living System Life and Work pattern is already beginning to create a networked world. Its absolute size is still small but rapidly growing. It is the coming leadership pattern – the New Pattern for Success. Never before has there been such a tumultuous pattern of transitions as during the last 200 years.

How can you benefit from learning and applying the new lessons of Mega-Force 1 – World Human transformation? Because Stage A’ human identity is already proving itself as superior to, inconsistent with, and is a discontinuous leap away from what is conventional in personal and professional life and science. Stage A’ pattern is the primary source for what we define as Nodal Network Business practice, the emerging form of 21st Century business. For example, in the US there is already evidence that the corporation form of business is becoming obsolete. Limited Liability Company form of business is emerging as the means for creating business organizations that naturally are consistent with nodal business networks, while the corporate form is not.

Mega-Force 1 is the human template for creating the new Living System Life and Work. It is the driving force for making critically needed leaps in leadership, organization structure, business operations, entrepreneurship and education. This Mega-Force really is number one as the catalyst for the effects of the others.

It is amazing, but true, that many are not even aware that such a human transition is in progress. They are not aware that it can be precisely described and understood and used to live more successfully aligned with a new type of order during a time when chaos reigns. It can!

More and more people are becoming aware there is something severely wrong with conventional answers we are given for how our lives are to be lived, how our organizations are to be led and managed and how our public institutions are to serve our needs. Chaos abounds, yet a growing number of people sense a new reality emerging that conventional thinking does not even perceive. They are right – It is emerging! If you feel this way, Mega-Force 1 is probably active in your life.

This same pervasive chaos has come six previous times in history and six previous times in the current lives of many of us. At these special times a new order and clarity emerge out of the disruption and chaos. This is the eternal myth of the Phoenix in action. This seemingly confused situation is the insignia of our human leap into new order. That is where we are going.

So Mega-Force 1 is the primary cause for the next decades being a very special time. The bottom line of Mega-Force 1 is that business can no longer be successfully led, organized, operated or created by the conventional linear machine system or relativistic means as they have in the past. New Living System means are needed.

I conclude my introduction to Mega-Force 1 with one fact – Each new stage of human psyche emerged as a negligible influence in human affairs, and then grew non-linearly from almost nothing into the dominant world leadership pattern – Every Human Psyche System stage accomplished this through history! Without exception!

We have entered into the unmistakable growth of Stage A’ in human affairs surrounded with the chaos of the greatest transformation in human history – And now I believe it is certain that the same thing will happen. The new Human Psyche system stage – Stage A’ – is on its inevitable path to dominance. That is why I am presenting it to you – It is why my life and work is totally aligned with it. From now on, this new stage will be swimming with the tide of human affairs and not against that tide as the other stages already are.

End of Part 1-2

Mega-Forces Overview - New Pattern for Success Seminar - Part 1-1

2007-04-09T13:06:12-05:00

This Post begins presenting Part 1 of the The New Pattern for Success seminar series. Part 1 is entitled 4 Mega-Forces Driving World Human Transformation to Living System Life and Work.

This Post presents the Mega-Forces Overview - Part 1-1 materials in two ways. First, as two downloadable files - One for the edited Text material and one for the Visual material. Second, in the Extended Post below you can read the Text of the Part 1-1 section.

You can download the Text of Mega-Forces Overview - Part 1-1 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part1-1-Megas-Text-032007.pdf

You can download the Visuals of Mega-Forces Overview - Part 1-1 - Here Download NewPatSuc-Part1-1-Megas-Vis-032007.pdf

Click on the Continue reading link below to read the Text of the Mega-Forces Overview - Part 1-1 .

I look forward to your Questions, Comments and Suggestions.

John Clayton Caris

For Previous Posts in this Series - Click the Links below
- New Pattern For Success Seminar Series Announcement
- New Pattern for Success - Introduction

********************************

LIVING SYSTEM LIFE AND WORK -
THE NEW PATTERN FOR SUCCESS

A Series of Presentation/Discussions
To Explore Critical Issues
For Your Life and Your Business

by Dr. John Clayton Caris
Isis Institute

Part 1-1 - 4 Mega-Forces - Overview

Slide 1 – Cover Slide

Slide 2 – 4 Mega-Forces Real Unseen Causes

Part 1 is about the Mega-Forces that are real unseen causes underlying what is happening today – And what probably will happen for the next two decades – Locally and Worldwide.

I will refer to man and mankind in my discussions. This has no gender significance – It refers to both female and male as one human species. I use the words “he” and “his” for simplicity rather than clumsy terms like “she and he”, etc.

Slide 3 – 4 Mega-Forces – Driving Forces

The 4 Mega-Forces are the Driving Forces – like underlying tides – for your life, family and business. We discuss in Part 1:
– What are the Mega-Forces?
– Where do they come from?
– Where they are taking us?
– Why they transform the current pattern for success?
– How you can benefit from them?
– If you see, understand and align with them

I use a new perspective not consistent with what is generally known and believed. I hope you have no fear to depart intellectually and emotionally from convention – You will need to do so.

I ask you again – To turn-off conventional learning methods. You recall from my introduction, that these are learning methods that use a linear, step-by-step process to “Add-On” new knowledge to what you already know and believe. The problem is that most of what we will be discussing cannot be based on what people generally know and believe. It is in large part dramatically new. It is a discontinuous leap away from what is conventional – A qualitatively new pattern of knowledge. Therefore, the step-by-step “Add-On” process of learning will not work for us.

Learning by recognizing patterns rather than by the normal linear sequence of steps is how we can best learn something dramatically new. It is like seeing a new picture for the first time that is not the same as anything you have seen before. To understand it you must see it as a whole before you begin to try to compare it with something else. This learning of new patterns is an important part of the new mindset we will be developing. The ability to do this is a powerful strategic advantage for leading-edge persons and organizations.

Now – let’s introduce you to the 4 Mega-Forces.

Slide 4 – Mega-Force 1 – World Human Transformation

First, a vast human transformation to a new pattern of human nature, unseen by most, is in progress throughout the world. It is a leap to a new stage of the human psyche – both conscious and unconscious – that brings new patterns for successful life and work and for new science. These patterns are called Living System Life and Work – and Living System Science. That is Mega-Force 1.

Slide 5 – Mega-Force 2 – Kondratieff Wave Cycle

The human leap of Mega-Force 1 is accelerating during the most critical decade of a powerful long term Living System wave that underlies all of human affairs, including the world’s economic, financial, business and market patterns. It is also unseen by most. It is named the Kondratieff Wave Cycle. That is Mega-Force 2.

Slide 6 – Mega-Force 3 – Demographic Bomb

The human transformation of Mega-Force 1 and the critical economic, geo-political and financial situation of Mega-Force 2 are unfolding during accelerating demographic imbalances throughout the world that underlie geo-politics and even business strategy. That is Mega-Force 3.

Slide 7 – Mega-Force 4 – Cataclysmic Confluences

Mega-Force 4 is about two types of Cataclysmic Confluences I expect to play out over the next two decades.

Type 1 is the coming together of the other three mega-forces that now exist. Their Confluence is already having profound effects on the availability of human talent to effectively lead and operate the world’s businesses and other institutions as well. This Confluence will strike in two opposite ways, one after the other, in sequence during the next two decades. For the period from now into 2010 to 2012 its effects appear in one direction during the last years of the current K-Wave Cycle and then reverse to hit in the opposite direction during the following decade of the beginning of the next K-Wave Cycle. That is the “Double Whammy” portion of Mega-Force 4.

I can best discuss the specific nature of this bi-polar double-whammy after I discuss the other three Mega-Forces in more detail. The needs it brings are important for all countries, but are especially critical for advanced developing countries, like Mexico.

The Type 2 Confluence involves what I believe will become three more new Mega-Forces over the period of the next two decades. They are like a young hurricanes forming far out in the ocean. We know they are there. But, we do not yet know their final form, trajectory, strength or exactly where or when they will impact our lives and businesses together with the Type 1 Confluence. But they will – I believe there is no avoiding them. That is the newly emerging portion of Mega-Force 4.

I will not discuss the coming Mega-Forces in this series of discussions beyond identifying what I believe they are at this time. Their discussion in any detail is beyond the scope of this program. I will discuss them in future events and publications

The first of the coming Mega-Forces involves the world’s energy future. Its nature is determined by the “Peak Oil” conclusions of M. King Hubbert. A Google search for “Hubbert + Peak Oil” will reward you with valuable materials. Understanding “Peak Oil” enables us to see how the current linear approach to energy solutions, depending mostly on finding and developing more oil and other fossil fuels, cannot be successful in the long term. Even though major oil companies and oil producing governments deny “Peak Oil”, for self-interest reasons that are not hard to learn, it is a fact. The world’s supply of oil and natural gas has peaked and is now in terminal decline – About 50% of available supply has been used and the consumption rate has risen far beyond the rate of new discovery and development. There is so much to this story that it must wait for another time.

The second emerging Mega-Force is now visible to few who do not know monetary history - Especially the spectacular failures of previous adventures into irredeemable paper money – Called “Fiat Money”. I believe its ferocity when it strikes will be like a Category 5 hurricane for the whole of mankind. It involves the possible implosion and painful transformation of the world’s monetary and financial systems. What will possibly come are major changes in the U.S. Dollar as an irredeemable reserve currency; the current worldwide fiat money system; Central Banks and the banking system as we know them; uncontrolled expansions of “electronic money”, credit and debt; and the almost unbelievable creation of hundreds of Trillions in nominal value of Derivative instruments in the world’s financial operations. There is even more to this story than there is for the “Peak Oil” story. This coming Mega Force is of such importance to all of our lives and businesses that I am now planning for special events and publications to discuss it.

The third emerging Mega-Force is now only beginning to show its nature. It concerns a massive shift in the world Hegemony position of the United States in world affairs. Possibly it is one of the greatest of the Linear System breakdowns now developing in human affairs. The nature of its transformation to the coming Living System nature of the world system is a giant story whose dimensions are only now beginning to be seen. It is also beyond the scope of our current program. We leave it for future programs and publications.

The combined impacts of both types of Cataclysmic Confluences surely place us at a unique situation in history. Let’s now return to our focus on the Type 1 focused on the first 4 Mega-Forces. Aligning your life and work with the 4 Mega-Forces calls for transformations, not fix-ups, as I have said. Now let’s help prepare our mindsets for understanding and dealing with the Mega-Forces – Both those that are here and those that are surely coming.

If we are to navigate this coming mixture of chaos and great opportunity, it is critical that we act now prepare ourselves to be aligned with the New Pattern for Success. As I have said – The first step is to Transform Mindsets

Slide 8 – Conventional Education Prepares for Continuity

Conventional education prepares us for Continuity – Not what we need to comprehend and align with the Mega-Forces that are about the Discontinuities- That lead to future order and stability for those personas and organizations that are aligned with them. Conventional education is predominantly linear in approach and content – It avoids radical disruptions as an important part of reality. That is an example of the conventional linear system mindset and behavior. My conclusion is that conventional education does not prepare us to deal with Discontinuities, with non-linear transitions – That are basic for Living System mindset and behavior. So we need a new way to learn.

What worked so well for so long no longer does. We cannot just fix-up or improve in the conventional pattern. As I said, we must transform away from it. The fix-up focus is what I see almost everyone trying to do. Inevitably it will not be successful, except in short term improvements that do not last.

Some feel that those who disagree with convention are Negative Persons. That is not valid, especially during a transformation period – I prefer to call them visionary persons who can see a newly emerging positive order that many cannot yet perceive. They are profoundly Positive Persons who are aligning with the emerging new reality. They are experts in seeing what is already coming and will be more useful.

For example, I disagree with much that exists, but I am not negative – I just refuse to align with what I know is no longer useful. For strategic reasons I am not against the current system and its patterns. I bless what exists for its past accomplishments. And I hope my competitors remain locked in the obsolete current system – Forever. That helps my strategy commitment to framing the value of my life and work on transformation as the means to be more successful.

We have to let go of the past intellectually and, most importantly, emotionally. We strive for a new more successful way of seeing reality and acting on it before competitors can even see it. We transform our lives first to become a Right Person and then transform to the Right Means for applications.

To do this we must put aside how and what we now Think we know and believe. That is why I ask you fervently – Please do not try to understand my discussions in terms of what is most familiar to you. While that is natural behavior, it will not work in our time of transformation. Now let’s begin our understanding of the Mega-Forces.

End of Part 1 - 1

Introduction - New Pattern for Success Seminar Series

2007-04-08T13:15:00-05:00

Beginning with this Post I present the edited Scripts and Visuals for my 2006 New Pattern for Success Seminar series in a number of Blog post installments. It is the Seminar series that enables you to develop your New Mindset so you can go on to become a leader in the coming of Living System Life and Work - The New Pattern for Success.

This Post presents the Introduction materials in two ways. First, as five downloadable files - Two for the edited Text material and Visual material for the Introduction and three more files containing handout materials given during the first session. Second, in the Extended Post below you can read the Script of the Introduction session.

You can download the Text of the Introduction - Here Download NewPatSuc-Intro-Text-032007.pdf

You can download the Visuals for the Introduction - Here Download NewPatSuc-Intro-Vis-032007.pdf

You can download the Seminar Series Brochure - Here Download IsisBrochure-080906.pdf

You can download two pieces of Introduction Material - Here Download IntroHandout-080806.pdf and Here Download TheSituation-080806.pdf

Click on the Continue reading link below to read the Text of the Introduction.

I look forward to your Questions, Comments and Suggestions.

John Clayton Caris

For Previous Posts in this Series - Click the Links below
- New Pattern For Success Seminar Series Announcement

*********************************

THE NEW PATTERN FOR SUCCESS -
LIVING SYSTEM LIFE AND WORK

A Series of Presentation/Discussions
To Explore Critical Issues
For Your Life and Your Business

by Dr. John Clayton Caris
Isis Institute

Introduction

Slide 1 – Preview Slide – Frank Herbert Quote

The Beginning of Knowledge
Is the Discovery
Of Something
We Do Not Understand

[Shown before the Session begins –
No words spoken about this slide]

Slide 2 – New Pattern for Success Heading slide

The world’s biggest story is almost invisible!

It is the new human pattern on Earth. It has begun to be used by leading edge persons and organizations to gain remarkable advantage, while many current giants are fading. Ultimately it will become dominant for Success in life and work.

Few see it. The majority dismiss it. Still others Feel some giant change in progress, but don’t understand it. The conventional pattern of life and work used to be So Successful – But no longer is – There is a Crisis of leadership almost everywhere – Also unseen by many. Leaders and organizations act as if they are embedded in a giant Fog. A new vision is needed to see through that Fog.

What is happening reminds me of a profound experience I had in Nepal. In the cold early morning, standing outside my tent at 17,000 feet no matter which direction I looked – All I could see was fog.

Slide 3 – Mountain Fog

I kept scanning in all directions to no avail. I knew there was something Big out there – The biggest thing in the world – I knew it, but I could not see it.

Then – When I looked in a new direction where the morning sun dispelled the fog – I saw It!

Slide 4 – Mt. Everest

Mt. Everest - The most magnificent natural monument on earth.

There were two elements in my success to see Mt. Everest
– I looked in a new direction and
– I was helped by warm light that dispelled the fog.

Our Seminar Series has the same purpose and elements for Success –
– To enable you to look in a new direction in your life and work with
a new vision that penetrates the pervasive fog of our current pattern,
– To prepare you to Act on the emerging pattern for Success – That
we name Living System Life and Work.

Our job is to make the World’s Biggest Story visible and believable to you and then show you how it can be actionable by a new Genre of leaders.

Now let’s prepare for the New Mindset required to enjoy this Experience. Helping you to create within yourself the New Mindset for Living System Life and Work is our objective for this four part Series of Presentation/Discussions. It is important to be aware of a few things as we start creating the Mindset.

Slide 5 – New mindset - Things to be aware of

First – A human transcendence to a new pattern of life and work that did not previously exist on Earth has happened six previous times in human history. Each time the new pattern ultimately became the dominant means for Success worldwide. At its beginning, each new pattern was almost invisible. Then its influence inevitably grew to become dominant. That process has begun in the world again among unprecedented chaos, destruction, stress and leadership crises. I introduce these human transformations to you in Part 1 and explain more details of each in Part 2.

It is vitally important to realize that what is happening today is the normal situation for a world transformation period – It is its insignia. The previously dominant human pattern appears stronger than ever – even omnipotent – but it is really decaying in power, just like today.

Second – Today, leading edge humans are experiencing the seventh – And greatest – human transition ever. The new Living System Pattern is gradually accelerating in its eventual rise to dominance in life, leadership, management, organization, operations and entrepreneurship. It is doing this in ways that those using only the conventional, declining patterns cannot even comprehend.

Third – This situation is the source for your powerful competitive advantage if you can see and understand the emerging pattern and then implement it. It is our purpose to help you accomplish these things.
Now – What will we experience together?

Slide 6 – Outline of the Presentation/Discussion Series

We explore critical issues for your life and your business including –

WHY –
Even though it used to be so successful, the current linear system of life and business suffers leadership and performance crises nearly everywhere.

WHAT –
Is beginning to successfully replace it through leading edge persons and organizations using living system ideas and practices.

HOW –
To align yourself with the future, not with the current practices that are declining in effectiveness.

Now let’s consider how we develop insight into how to comprehend the new Pattern that is Discontinuous relative to what generally exists.

Slide 7 – Right Person Quotes

We begin this way:
– All our Isis Group work begins from the wisdom of an unknown ancient
Chinese scholar who wrote:

If the wrong man uses the right means,
the right means will work in the wrong way.

Therefore – When dealing with discontinuous transformations, we cannot immediately focus on Means to make applications – As many want to do. We must first begin with becoming the Right Person. That is what we focus on in this series of discussions.

Over years of experience in business operations, consulting and education I learned it is also true that:

The wrong person will almost always choose
and try to use the wrong means,
That will then work in disastrous ways.

These ancient and modern observations are both aligned with what we see happening in the world today.

We are at a unique time in history when who is a Right Person for effective leadership is undergoing a dramatic transition. Who used to be the Right Person is now becoming a Wrong Person for the emerging pattern for Success – And what used to be the Right Means have now become the Wrong means.

I emphasize our objective

– We want you to become a Right Person for using the Right Means
for the pattern for success now emerging.

To prepare for achieving this objective
– We need to see what is happening with “New Eyes”
– We need to develop a new perspective on life and work to guide us.

In the handout we have given you entitled – The Situation – I wrote:
The world has begun a discontinuous human transformation to
a new and more effective pattern for success aligned with the
future, not with what currently exists. ….

Slide 8 – The Nature of Today’s Biggest Story

I went on to write:
…. What I am talking about is not some change WITHIN the
current system to fix-up or improve it – But rather it is a
discontinuous transformation – A Leap Away From The Current
System To A New System That Did Not Previously Exist.

This is already well in progress for those who can see and experience it. But to see it, we must become a new type of Right Person who can see and experience In The New System. And we must accomplish being this new type of person BEFORE we can make successful applications. We cannot see and experience it with the mindset, learning, knowledge and the experience of the current system.

Parts 2 and 4 feature examples of such Right Persons, like Linus Torvalds and LINUX – Bill Gore and W.L. Gore Associates – Google – and the US Military Special Forces. Certainly not General Motors, Delphi, the Old AT&T or Microsoft. We must enable ourselves to Let-Go of the current system. Many are not able to do this. They will remain locked in what is declining all around them. Our path is to depart from their fatal fixation.

My comments are such a dramatic break from conventional life and work, it helps to set the stage for our discussions in the next few slides.

Slide 9 – Frank Herbert Quote

I return to the preview slide you saw first – The quote by Frank Herbert, the famous science fiction author of the Dune books:
The beginning of knowledge
is the discovery of something
we do not understand.

This is probably the case for many of my comments. You cannot understand them if you try to use conventional patterns of knowledge and learning as you listen. It Will Not Work. If you try to directly compare what I say with conventional knowledge – especially in business – It Will Not Make Sense.

This is my plea – Set aside conventional education process that begins from something you do understand and then proceeds by taking a conscious rational step-by-step learning process.

That will not work for transformational learning. There is no step-by-step linear learning for transformation. You must begin with a leap into the unknown. You must set aside rational step-by-step learning. You must begin with learning a whole new pattern FOR ITSELF – Not in relation to what you previously knew or believed. You must use a Pattern Recognition Learning Process. This may be one reason why conventional classroom education is failing to deliver results for training leaders who can work in ambiguity and deal with transformations – These are critical needs for leaders today.

In my Personal Blog I wrote about “The Curse of Add-On Knowledge.” My point is that there is a fundamental problem with the way most of us approach problems, and opportunities. We try to add-on new knowledge to what we already know and believe – Rather than let go of what we now know and believe to make room in our psyche for the entry of what is Truly New.

The current pattern of life and work is based upon linear system science. Its pattern of learning is conscious, rational and step-by-step sequential. Its natural way to try to learn and solve problems is to "add-on" to its current knowledge in a stepwise logical, continuous way. This learning process is still useful for many things. But, it cannot perceive the need for a discontinuous transition – a leap away from what now exists – as the way to start new learning.

Linear add-on learning is driven by strong belief that to solve our current problems we must find a rational step-by-step path from where we are now to where we want to be. The world today is deluged with such "fix-up" schemes – Some of them quite ingenious, but in the current linear pattern. Examples such as re-engineering and strategic management come to mind. They are certainly not in the emerging non-linear Living System pattern that is more-and-more required for success.

The bottom line is - Linear learning will not work for making discontinuous leaps in knowledge that involve transcending to really new knowledge that did not previously exist – at least Consciously. I repeat – There is no linear step-by-step path for transformation.

By avoiding the curse of add-on knowledge we can enjoy the blessing of transcendence – the discontinuous leap out of what we now know and believe - that frightens so many today. I ask you to turn off the conventional learning process in our discussions.

Let’s prepare for our leap across the gaping canyon between today’s conventions and the new pattern of living system life and work.

Slide 10 – Carl Jung Quote

This quote from Carl Jung’s memoir helps. He wrote:
There is a general feeling to be sure, that
we have reached a turning point in the ages,
but people imagine that the great change has
to do with nuclear fission or fusion, or with
space rockets. What is currently taking place
in the human psyche is usually overlooked.

The point he makes is that the source for our transforming leap is found inside us, not from external events or help. And that inner help comes from the newly emerging stage of the psyche – not the brain which is the psyche’s marvelous instrument for revealing the psyche to our human experience. This may be a shocking new idea.

The Western variety of the linear system pattern of life and work fixates on outside objective experience as our real primary source. The living system pattern of life and work begins from inner experience as the most effective base for working successfully in the outer world as a Right Person.

Slide 11 – Outline of the Presentation/Discussions

What we discuss in the four Parts in this series helps you to begin, or to accelerate, your development as Right Persons for the new pattern for success.

Part 1 –
Our research discovered 4 Mega-Forces now driving world affairs for at least the next two decades that create critical needs for human and organization transformations. These Mega-Forces are the proper departure point for our series of discussions. Therefore I focus on them in Part 1.
[Note: After our Seminar Series was completed my continuing research discovered three more Mega-Forces forming on the horizon like young hurricanes. They will be discussed in a future publications.]

Part 2 –
Enables you to begin understanding Mega-Force 1 – The human transformation to living system life and work using my work on the Human Psyche System. It is the Living System foundation for a new practice for human leadership/management, organization, operations, entrepreneurship and motivation that turn conventional practices upside down on their heads.

Part 3 –
Digging deeper into the fascinating nature of Mega-Force 2 – The Kondratieff Wave Cycle – is the focus of Part 3. It is the Living System foundation underlying economic, financial, business and investment cycles. Knowing its nature enables you to see Economic Reality more clearly and Business Strategy in a new way.

Part 4 –
Living System nature is a growing practical reality in the behavior of leading-edge persons and organizations. Part 4 introduces specific principles that distinguish Living Systems, together with practical examples. It gives you the most complete discussion of the principles for making Living System applications that we are aware of today. It shows you that Living System Life and Work are indeed here and accelerating in influence.

Slide 12 – Paul Williams Quote

For insight into the nature of our human leap into the new pattern, Paul Williams in Das Energi says it all:
We are in the verge of the new age,
a whole new world.
Human consciousness, our mutual awareness,
is going to make a quantum leap.
Everything will change,
you will never be the same.
All this will happen just as soon
as you are ready.

Our Purpose is to help you to become ready for the new pattern of leadership.
Now, let’s begin Part 1 to discuss the 4 Mega-Forces.

Announcement - The New Pattern for Success Seminars The World's Biggest Story Is Almost Invisible! - It Is the Coming of Living System Life and Work

2007-04-07T15:10:31-05:00

In 2006 I presented a Series of Seminars to introduce The Coming of Living System Life and Work as the New Pattern for Success. These seminars focused on 4 Mega-Forces that are driving the coming of the new pattern worldwide. This Post Announces a Series of Blog Installments that give you the edited scripts and visuals for those seminars.

Living System Life and Work, its Living System Psychology and its Nodal Network Business are dramatic breaks from what currently exist. They are really the world's biggest story that is almost invisible. They are newly emerging paradigms for effective human relationships, leadership, organization, operations and entrepreneurship. They are not yet mainstream. They are for Leading-Edge persons and organizations. Since they are not yet well known, there is significant competitive advantage for those who understand and use them now.

To be able to act on this emerging competitive advantage requires developing a new Livng System Mindset. That is what this Seminar series enables you to begin doing.

Wherever elements of Living System Principles are appearing in practice we find persons and organizations who perform in superior fashion relative to those locked in conventional linear system patterns and who do not have the Mindset that enables them to perceive the new paradigms or understand what is beginning to happen worldwide.

I emphasize, the purpose of this Series of Posts is to help the emerging stage of humans and leaders, I mean You, to develop a Mindset that does enable you to see, understand and learn to use Living System Life and Work.

The Seminar Series has an Introduction and four Parts:
Introduction - The New Pattern for Success
Part 1 - 4 Mega-Forces;
Part 2 - Understanding Mega-Force 1 - The human transformation to Living System Life and Work;
Part 3 - Understanding Mega-Force 2 - The Kondratieff Wave Cycle
Part 4 - Understanding Living Systems

Each Blog Post in this Series gives you one installment of the scripts and visuals for the Seminars. At the end of each post I give you links to all the previous Blog Posts of the series. Therefore, you can always reach all previous installments from any Post in the series.

The next Post in the Series presents the Introduction Script and Visuals and three pieces of Handout materials. It begins the installments for the New Pattern for Success Seminars.

I invite your Questions, Comments and Suggestions for any of the materials in this series.

John Clayton Caris

Purpose of The Mega-Forces

2007-01-30T15:15:00-06:00

Four Mega-Forces now underlying human affairs are real, but largely unseen, causes for what is happening today - locally and worldwide. They are driving forces for your life, your family and your business for at least the next two decades. They are creating critical needs for human transformation to Living System Life and Work.

In addition, there are three more coming Mega-Forces now forming like young hurricanes far out at sea. They are in the process of becoming additional driving forces for Living System transformation in human affairs.

The purpose of The Mega-Forces Blog is to enable understanding the existing Mega-Forces and the coming Mega-Forces - And learning how to transform so as to align with them. Aligning with the Mega-Forces is powerful action consistent with the new Pattern for Success.

The Situation & The Mega-Forces

2007-01-05T16:33:59-06:00

The world has begun a discontinuous human transformation to a new and more effective pattern for success – A new pattern of leadership, management, organization, operations, entrepreneurship and learning for today’s needs. These needs include new types of global vision and immediate actions aligned with the future, not with what currently exists.

We live and work at one of the few times of such world transformation in human history. At these times a new pattern of human nature appears on Earth within the psyches of leading-edge persons, and then their institutions.

Isis Group Network programs focus on unique learning experiences whose purpose is to enable you as individuals, as an executive team and an institution to discover, understand and grasp new opportunities with strategic and operations advantages by using a qualitatively new concept and practice of life and work. It is Living System Life and Work – Not the still predominant pattern of Linear Machine System Life and Work that is no longer enabling leaders to deliver superior results.

Our programs enable you to understand how the emerging practice of Living System Life and Work leads to new practical systems and methods that naturally integrate qualitative intuition with quantitative analysis and measurements. Therefore, at its core are a new concept and practice of strategy and its operations implementation consistent with a Living Systems world – Not today’s obsolete strategy for a world dominated by inhumane machine system organizations.

This situation is now especially critical for educational and business institutions of all sizes. They should be leading on the forefront of this transformation. But the vast majority, in our judgment and experience, are not leading. Many are committed to trying to “fix-up” current problems with obsolete approaches and methods rather than learning to transform away from what exists. The result is that they are progressively isolating themselves from the rapidly growing leading edge of their markets and the human commitments of their most innovative/creative people.

To achieve business success now that is aligned with the future requires leaders to make transforming leaps – First personal and professional and then organizational so you are properly aligned and embedded in the accelerating societal and business transformation.

Our research discovered Four Mega-Forces now driving world affairs for at least the next two decades that create critical needs for the human and organization transformations.

Recently our continuing research sees three more Mega-Forces now developing. They increase the needs for the transformation of human affairs to the Living System Life and Work pattern.

The Mega-Forces are in our view a proper departure point for our programs.

John Clayton Caris