the individual and the state

In response to Matthew Taylor's blog comment on positivity

Matthew,

Right... I grasped the broader point you were making, which might be summed up like this – the individual vs. the state (or politic) as a focus for positive human change, or perhaps both.

Haven’t we been kicking this around since the birth of philosophy?

Is this not what Plato’s Republic is trying to address - That ‘intelligent’ beings, pull the levers and the public are made better/more positive by it.

Clearly clever people making the right 'collective' decisions for the benefit of the many is also essential, but it is the individual that must do the personal development. Complex ideas are made simple by simple minds, so that they can understand the complex.

RE Hegel: who followed on from Kant and was as you know was a massive influence on Marx, can be simplified by saying that he focused his philosophy upon ‘the unreality of separateness’, which is an illusion, nothing he believed was ultimately / completely real except ‘the whole’.

We have a divergence and perhaps a cross roads in society like never before. And (I believe) must watch very closely what plays out, that separation is - the individual vs. the state or community.

We are being told that we must be the masters of our own destiny, and that if we fail, then that is in some way our fault. A powerfully flawed suggestion in my opinion. Especially as if you don’t have the right information to hand or aren't taught what to do with it – how can you realistically act successfully?

We were told that there is no society (community) only the individual, which pits man against man. If there is no community, or ‘being with’ others, in reality there can be no state. Why should I care for some invented notion of Britishness (that feels like quite an inflammatory thing to write) if it’s all about me and my personal success? His loss, my gain, as I drive into my gated community.

We are all hooked into notions of success (collapsed with positivity and wealth) and we are to admire wealth and success regardless of how it is achieved. I heard someone who worked with a very famous music mogul say of his character - he was in essence a materialistic, ruthless, driven brute and made no bones about the fact that he was very, very rich. AND that was somehow OK. 'Say what you like about him – he’s successful' – isn’t that what you are trying to do – you’re just not very good at it.

We end up despising ourselves for not being 'successful' and will sell our gran for success. Why? Why do we so desperately 'want'... at the cost of community or the state, or others?

Is the state dead or is community?

But all happiness as Hegel would suggest is in the whole. It is the desire to be in connection with others that creates happiness, it is the separation that creates unhappiness. Therefore, it is this sanitized version of happiness of ‘positivity’ which is the Prozac, the oil upon our dysfunctional selves that has us survive this ‘insane’ society we have built for ourselves, where the rich get richer and the prisons get fuller, there are more wars, more medication, more mental health issues, and what do we do?...line up to take advantage of the boxing day sales to buy designer clutch bags at half price, like demented fools, we justify the savings (from £1000 to £500 or whatever), when the product was undoubtedly made in China for pennies. Madness. But hey look at me, I have to show you I’m important, otherwise, I’d be like the others, and they are Helots, the serfs.

Dark Matter - this year, next year

It seems perfectly appropriate that I finish my working year at 1 Alfred Place amongst some of the leading entrepreneurs and social entrepreneurs in the UK - put together by the extraordinary Oli Barrett.

He was asked the floor what we felt were our key observations for the coming year. Mine was that we would see individual success, but society would continue to struggle, with up to a 25% cut in state expenditure – this would be felt most keenly ‘up north’ where there is greater government employment.

Physics tells us that for every force, there is an equal and opposite force. So is it unreasonable to say that after 10 great years of expansion, might there not be 10 years for contraction?

For the individual there has never been a better time, for the entrepreneur or those comfortable with responding to change/opportunities, the market is incredibly open and buoyant, but for the static, entrenched juggernaut – corporate or governmental - these are going to be very challenging times.

Making money and making a difference

We are entering a new time. We are entering a time where it is cool and desirable to want to make a difference and be paid well for it. In the past - in past based thinking - people would make a lot of money and then ‘give’ to charity. However, the charity model has been proven as ineffectual. Our best people have not ended up working in the charity sector, some of our nicest people have but not our best – they went to into financial and legal services or policy or elsewhere.

Being an entrepreneur became a sexy thing to do, now being a social entrepreneur is where the best graduates go – look at Rajeeb Day. He could have gone anywhere; he chose to build his own business instead. The truth is with only 1 in 5 university graduates finding employment currently; they have very little choice but make their own way anyhow.

2009-12-21

To sum up this year, it has been nothing short of amazing. We have seen Arrival Education grow in so many ways – in confidence, in revenue, in reach, in deliverables, in reputation.

There are no short cuts to any place worth going

There’s a balance between not making mistakes and learning from others (peoples mistakes), and then there is the fact that if you try to take short cuts or not go through the experience yourself you don’t really own the experience or understand it.

I’ve delivered a lot of programmes with year, and each one taught me something new about myself, my limitations and the gap between where I am at and where I want to go. (Students who read this will recognise that concept)

We’re working with some amazing organizations and some amazing people. Thank you.

There’s a lot of change on the horizon, politically, economically. We best learn to embrace that otherwise, natural selection will take its course, and contraction is sometimes painful.

My greatest challenge for 2010 is attracting and keeping the right talent, and until the AE participants are ready I’ll need to work with others. Others it is and 'others' are both a blessing and a curse.

Dark Matter

I'm currently writing a programme on how the unknown keeps us trapped, the gravitational force, hidden from view that shapes our universe. The beliefs and attitudes that have us all held within the fabric of our world our community.

I'm very excited about working with Flow to develop the content of our programmes in order to take our work to the general public.

A thank you note, but it is I that should be doing the thanking

A special moment occurred this week in the hallowed walls of the RSA, on John Adam Street.

There comes a point when you do something repeatedly and often, all of a sudden in a flash of realisation, that process makes you aware of something. That something may have always been there, but you didn’t see it.

For me it was a little like when I’d learn the lines for a play, which for ages, would feel like I was trying to get something right - to understand the words and understand the intention of the words, and the vision of the director; then you just ‘know’ them to a point, where you don’t have to think, and then something magical happens, you just play, you just enjoy and ‘occur’, it becomes 'le jeu' – play.

That's what occurred form me at the RSA this week, the programme finally became something I really trusted, something that always works. There's been many rewrites, many late nights, many moments of doubt and soul searching. And every time, I look upon a new set of young people I work with and ask - can we do it this time too?

What a small audience at the RSA was privileged to see was witnessing a moment when young adults, bravely took the first steps into trust, believing in themselves, + others, opening up to life as an 'amazing opportunity' of positive experiences, a optimistic future and not somewhere you just survive.

Their lives, without exception have changed forever.

A generous, kind message from a brave young man on the programme:

“Thank you so much for helping me find out who I really am. I have learnt a lot form the programme. Todays session in particular, showed me what I’ve been hiding behind. I can relate to you because of your family, and I look up to you for that and I think your an amazing person, and I mean that from the bottom of my heart. I hope I can be half as successful as you. Thank you again.”

The truth is, by understanding himself now as well as he does, he will be much more successful than I. For he now has something I didn’t have until much later in life. Self love + the courage to believe in myself and others.

Corleone

Basking in the hot Sicilan sun in the summer of 2006 in Corleone, I looked down over the dry valley below (the picture is the panarama from where I stood), in search of meaning and inspiration.

I'd travelled to the hillside town of Corleone, Sicily due to my love of The Godfather, which had a huge impact on my imagination. To get into the spirit, I took a tired tatty copy of Mario Puzo’s mafia classic.

I’d gone to write the Arrival Education business plan. It seems an age now. However, every step is a learning one I guess.

The writing of the business plan was both a useful experience and an utter waste of time - I’ve never used it, however, the headline vision remains the same and we move toward it slowly, surely - I could have saved myself some time though and put it on the back of an envelope and focused on the fantastic food and wine.

Steady as she goes...

The targets remain there to be achieved... we’re ticking them off slowly, which in one sense is great and in another frustrating. I want everything to happen NOW! Life isn't like that of course but i want the best for the participants.

We’re half way through this terms delivery and already I've been witness to so many wonderful moments. The tears and the laughter of insight and recognition that genuinely supports long term change.

Pimlico Academy have now completed their first foundation programme, where we have built a wonderful relationship with the school and the school liaison manager. We’d also like to welcome Northumberland Park School to Success for Life; I greatly look forward to working with them.

I’m very excited about the potential development of a number of students we’re currently working with. I had one of our first students set out their three greatest weaknesses to a CEO of an investment bank the other day, you could see how palpably impressed he was.

Not so far from now, AE graduates will be delivering the programmes – who better?

The feedback from businesses remains very good:

“I was very impressed with the students yesterday both in relation to their presentation skills and their self awareness. Given that these were kids who used to cause trouble in class and not listen to anyone, it says a lot about the program run by Arrival to see the progress that had been made.”

“Very impressed with the students – they have a raw talent and energy which is a credit to themselves and the programme. The students’ stories are a real eye opener and made a huge impact on me.”

We have now started to deliver work at YSC and Man Group Plc, which is wonderful – such great institutions to work with.

With Christmas beckoning the goose is far from getting fat as we also need to move offices from Westbourne Studios to the City or near to it for our client’s sake, when we find time to squeeze that in who only knows.