I have been reflecting on some of the ancient sites in the UK and thinking about how perspectives of them reflect some of the limitations of perspective that we take on life generally. I wanted to start with a personal love of my own, the White Horse of Uffington. It […]
authenticity
27 posts
This blog is about curiosity. We will get to the great scientist a bit later. There is more to learning than being taught. Learning is not simply an exercise in logic or linguistics, even if societally we tend to elevate these ones above all others. Our capacity to learn did […]
As facilitators and coaches (and similarly for those in therapeutic practice) we are often charged with, or engaging in, working with the idea of supporting change or developing in individuals. Yet so often we encounter a degree of resistance, even if our clients wish for it. Kagan and Lahey, in […]
It was quite a few years ago that I decided the only logo that was appropriate for The Mindful Horse (the name by which I have worked for over 10 years) was the White Horse of Uffington. No one would ever be able to create an image to which I […]
Outside-in or Inside-out is a reflection on how we see ourselves and our minds, and our relationship with what goes on there within. As someone for whom mindfulness serves as a consistent foundation I often express the idea that we are not our thoughts, any more than we are our […]
In German there is a word “Umwelt” which defines the environment around us, however it has been more specifically engaged by ethologists such as Frans de Waal to mean – and as it is defined in the Microsoft online dictionary – “the world as it is experienced by a particular […]
The Clever Hans phenomenon At the beginning of the 20th Century the world has consumed by the capabilities of a horse called Clever Hans. Clever Hans and his owner Wilhelm von Osten created a great stir in the popular entertainment of time. According to von Osten, Hans was a very […]
I find that this topic has come up a lot in recent facilitator training at Athena Herd Foundation. When we are observing the world around us how often do we perceive it as it is? More often we see it within a framework that is superimposed by our minds. I […]
The world can be overwhelming. Period! Each of us has a can only take so much pressure or stimulation. We each have a mental “glass-ceiling”. This limit was recognised over 100 years ago by US psychologists Robert Yerkes and John Dillingham Dodgson. Their model followed a classic bell curve. In […]
“Ask yourself if you are happy and you cease to be so.” So said the nineteenth century philosopher and economist John Stuart Mill. Give it a go! As soon as we go to look for it, it proves illusive. Even if we were in some moment of real joy. How […]