Listening of a Different Order

My experience with the idea that "the very misperception of one's spoken intent can lead to new meaning on the spot" is one of those things that most people don't get or understand.

I believe it's probably something you must experience before it's an idea that will stick. How do I know? Because whenever I bring it up, almost no one seems to notice.

However, when I experienced it for the first time in 2014, it was such a significant event that it led me to say to my partner, "We will never forget this day. It's going to change our lives forever."

At the time, I described it as minds coming together with a greater mind in a fashion that might be represented as a golden ratio.

We felt we had touched something unlimited. New knowledge and understanding came to our awareness, filling our minds and discussion. That's why I chose to represent it as an infinity symbol.

We were so excited about sharing this experience and what we learned with others, but the world just wasn't ready for it. Most people didn't understand or appreciate the significance of it.

We also struggled with how to talk about it with others. Only a handful of our colleagues knew what we were talking about.

What's behind it

Our work with golden ratio-based design and our workshops with Space Beyond Boundaries and LeaderONE have recently brought some new understanding.

David Bohm, the renowned physicist, described "dialogue" as a shared exploration towards greater understanding, free from predetermined agendas.

Bohm's style of dialoguing encourages fostering an open space and tapping into collective intelligence.

Meanwhile, the golden ratio embodies harmonious proportions, beauty, and elegance in nature and design. It brings forth the elegant balance from simplicity and illustrates the interconnection with nature.

When we intertwine these concepts — the mathematical beauty of the golden ratio and the collective wisdom fostered by Bohm's dialogues — we venture into a deep realm of shared understanding.

You can imagine the golden ratio as a metaphor for the ideal dialogue.

Any single voice should not dominate the conversation but should allow room for the contribution of everyone, fostering an overall understanding that transcends individual points of view.

Like the golden ratio's inherent beauty, a dialogue under Bohm's principles can result in a cooperative exchange of ideas, weaving together shared understanding that exceeds the sum of its parts.

The journey to becoming an inner leader involves honing one's ability to facilitate and engage in such dialogues, creating a space where shared meaning can unfold in a balanced, harmonious way.

Much like the unfolding of the golden spiral, this journey is an iterative process of constant growth and expansion.

From this perspective, Bohmian dialogue and the golden ratio are intricately intertwined, two expressions of the same underlying reality. Both represent our striving towards understanding, harmony, and balance — in nature, conversation, and ourselves.

When we engage in real dialogue, we discover our inner leader, find harmony in our thoughts, and embrace the shared wisdom that emerges.

Join our next workshop on Thursday, June 15, 2023

We encourage you to join one of our workshops to deepen your inner leader journey. Our next event is for our sponsor members on June 15, 2023.

However, we also open these sessions up for free to those who have never attended one of our workshops before. Contact me if you'd like to schedule a private session for yourself or your team.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on anything in this newsletter today and explore how we might bring more "listening of a different order" to you and your world.

Here's to increasing our ability to engage in real dialogue and creating a better life and world!

— Bill