Articles by Dave Smart

Well-Grounded Faith is Alive and Well Today
In India, middle-class citizens flock to the Char Dham Yatra, a pilgrimage to four Hindu temples in the Himalayas. The spiritual appeal of this demanding journey seems to relate to the spirits of place that these temples are situated at. The closeness of Hinduism to spirits of place is common to Native American and other tribal religions, and all these respond to a human need to grounding to specific places in the world.
Published 20Nov2009, viewed 38 times

The Dark Side of Pharmaceutical Company Executives
All of us develop opposites in ourselves that tend to negate our efforts in our chosen jobs. However in the current health care reform debate, the pharmaceutical and health care insurance executives are finding out that their opposites are aiding efforts they are making to disrupt the debate process with misinformation, heckling and dirty tricks. But, the rest of us must identify our opposites and find other places in our lives to honor them.
Published 17Sep2009, viewed 159 times

Connecting With Those We Like - and Our Politics
We prefer others to the degree that we connect with parts of ourselves we accept - and dislike others to the degree that we are disconnected with parts of ourselves. The way this relates to our politics depends on what political theory we believe in. Some theories emphasize an "us versus them" stance that encourages enmity, while others demand accountability and so connecting with all parts of ourselves.
Published 22Aug2009, viewed 87 times

Spengler's View of World Culture Revisited
Oswald Spengler's views on world culture, written in 1918-23, have relevance today. From his model of changes in our culture and others in world history, come predictions - many of which are being fulfilled today. These include tendencies for a superpower to become an empire. But ordinary people, emboldened by the communications opportunities today, can maintain and practice the values of tribal societies which empires and states conquered.
Published 12Jul2009, viewed 84 times

Competing to Win or Taking an Opportunity?
When we find ourselves in competition in some way, our Warrior archetype takes over, and he is concerned with winning - with honor. When an opportunity presents itself and we seek it, our Opportunist takes over. These two very different archetypes are present in situations that are a combination of these two circumstances, and we need to understand how their differences, especially in matters of honor and fairness, shape our decisions in life.
Published 29May2009, viewed 87 times

Transformation - what is it?
Public speakers, including politicians, find that there is virtually zero tolerance for mistakes at the lectern. The discipline that is required of them results in the energies of opposite archetypes, and they deal with them successfully, or unsuccessfully. Their experience in so doing highlights the challenge all of us face in dealing with our opposite archetypes, which we can own and honor in our lives; or disown - but at our peril.
Published 04May2009, viewed 139 times

Perfection in an Imperfect World
Public speakers, including politicians, find that there is virtually zero tolerance for mistakes at the lectern. The discipline that is required of them, results in the energies of opposite archetypes, and they deal with them successfully, or unsuccessfully. Their experience in so doing highlights the challenge all of us face in dealing with our opposite archetypes, which we can own and find a place in our lives; or disown - but at our peril.
Published 16Apr2009, viewed 126 times

Coaches Serve People, Not Fix Them
Among the differences between coaches and therapists are: coaches serve people, therapists 'fix' them. Frequently a part of a client to coaching is yearning to be fixed, yet another part considers himself whole, and ready to take on issues. The coach is all too often tempted to take on an issue as a problem to fix, but ways can usually be found to treat it as an issue; oftentimes the coach's own experience will suggest a way.
Published 12Mar2009, viewed 100 times

Living With the Hero Within
There are heroes all around us: in the news, in movies, sports, science fiction stories. They are important because there is an archetypal hero in all of us. Most of us honor that hero only vicariously. But whatever the hero, there is an opposite - something that for each of us is an opposite. We can choose to discover and honor that opposite by finding some place for it in our lives - or we can be in denial of it, but at our peril.
Published 20Feb2009, viewed 300 times

When You Think It Is Time to Give Up Your Goals
Setting goals tends to be effective only when done from the centered position within oneself. The centered position is where one hold all parts of themselves present, considering them nonjudgmentally. When, as so often happens a few weeks into the new year, one is about to give up the goals and new year's resolutions that he has made, he needs to replace those goals with others made from that centered position.
Published 30Jan2009, viewed 141 times

Dream Symbols - Universal Signposts
Psychological terms that we describe human interactions and relationships are generally absent from ancient languages that tribal legends were written in. The ancients turned to metaphor and symbolism to describe these things. This symbolism occurs in our dreams and, as it helped them, it can help us understand ourselves, our relationships, and our interactions with others as a modern expression of timeless legends and of Bible stories.
Published 16Jan2009, viewed 100 times

Empathising With Those Who Travel South for the Winter
What enables us to empathize with a description of an activity is whether we can relate the words used to parts of ourselves. If we can, we FEEL that description; otherwise it's just words like defined in a dictionary. This tactic is used by advertisers and propagandists alike. We can use it too, by deciding which activities to really LIVE and which to merely define.
Published 25Dec2008, viewed 151 times

Embracing the Counterintuitive - and CSE's
Counterintuitive ideas, which are contrary to what our senses tell us, range from that the earth is round, to quantum mechanics. A Comprehensive Satisfying Explaination (CSE) supports many theories, including evolution and psychological theories. Often we find credibility gaps in things arising from these theories, but it is one part of ourselves that draws the line on the counterintuitive while another part makes life-planning decisions.
Published 08Dec2008, viewed 186 times

When You Ask 'Is That All There Is?'
When we are depressed and can see no positive to accentuate, it makes sense to listen - and to get into that place in ourselves best for listening. These voices are archetypal - they are present to some degree in all of us. Perhaps you will be called upon to be someones "guardian angel".
Published 29Nov2008, viewed 150 times

Trick Questions and Power Questions
Trick questions are asked more to manipulate and entrap than to obtain information. Trick questions narrow the perception of self for the recipient of the question; while power questions tend to broaden the perception. Coaching can work well when the client is asked power questions, and can enable the client to ask better power questions..
Published 19Nov2008, viewed 193 times

We Automatically Distribute Articles
To Thousands Of Publishers And Web Sites:
Submit Article

All content is viewed and used by you at your own risk and we do not warrant the accuracy or reliability of any of the information. The views expressed are those of the individual contributing authors and not necessarily those of this web site, or its owner, Takanomi Limited.