Your Life is a Performance - So what is your Story?

Having spent 24yrs of my life in the performance industry with the past 13yrs studying & teaching various personal development modalities - I have come to the following conclusion:
Everyone is a Performer and has a story to tell through their unique medium - Creative movement, dance, art, teaching, music, writing, healing, politics, music, business and all of our performances are bottom line - a story. We create stories based on our life experiences, feelings, interpretations and voids. What we perceive is most missing is what is called a void and from the void a story is created. We see this all the time in movies and as children in fairytale books.

In the arts dancers dance their story; writers write their story; artists paint their story; fashion designers create a new piece - In the corporate world sales people sell you a solution based on a story; politicians make stories to create change; the media sells the biggest stories. All of our stories are created to fill a void and create a change either within ourselves or within society but ultimately it’s both.

As a personal development facilitator specialising in the performance industry - many performers seek me with the perception that their personal stories are ‘wrong’ or ‘should have been different’ and want me to ‘solve’ or ‘fix’ them. In reality what they have failed to see is the missing pieces of their jigsaw to create resolve & solution for an empowering ending - A story is able to be transcended when we can see the full picture which includes a conclusion. What I do with my clients is shift their perception to enable them to see the FULL picture of their story and hence create an empowered ending. They then become the conscious author of their story! This awakens them to the full power of themselves which drastically increases the magic and strength of their performance, not to mention selling ability to an audience! - Your performance and story is all about you and stories are the things that can be converted in cash through EXPRESSION!

What is your story? Have you found the solution to your story yet?
Want help? theconcourseoftheearth@gmail.com

Kate Histon Co founder of The Concourse of The Earth
Director of www.katehiston.com & www.byrondancedynamics.com.au

Life as a Demartini Facilitator

There is a small group of people around the world who volunteer their service to facilitate a specific process, collect data for case studies, calculate Value Metrics to keep in Fair Exchange, form and maintain communities to collaborate, connect and co create while leveraging the value of their facilitation experience in every possible way.

In essence, volunteering programs form vital foundations for many enterprise training structures.

I am fresh from facilitating for The Breakthrough Experience in Brisbane with Dr John F Demartini in Brisbane last weekend. Facilitate – the word originates from the French word “facile”, a facilitator is one who assists an individual or group to attain an effective result without taking any side of the argument. According to Oxford, to facilitate is to make easier.

The theory would be therefore that the employment of Facilitators by Demartini at his Breakthrough Experiences would be to make it easier for him to deliver value to the participants. Interesting theory! J Knowing the Demartini Method, the question then begs, where do facilitators also making it harder for him….and the participants. :-)

To say I was conflicted about participating as a facilitator would be an understatement. Why? Because I have a “story” about my experience as a Facilitator. Several experiences had imprinted feelings and thoughts onto my bio survival brain circuitry and I established a “belief” that facilitating for that particular brand was “XYZ”. In my case, I had experiences associated with the drama and politics surrounding facilitators and this brand in Australia.

Note the words – drama and politics – what they mean to me essentially is human interactions behind the scenes - the expectations, the challenges – in essence the “story” – ha - just like my own little tale – my own little mythology. None of it is factual or real. It is all opinion, judgement, reaction and perspective and the experience and subsequent ability to manage it forms an integral part of enterprise development in every industry worldwide. In my case, my political experience was actually one of my greatest breakthroughs and quite possibly one of the most positive experiences I have ever had – once I analysed and reviewed and evaluated the data I gathered from the “story”.

Mmmmm - what does that process remind me of? That’s right - there is no distinction between the stories that each participant brought to the BTE on the weekend and those brought by each facilitator. Each time we facilitate, we also experience a Breakthrough.

Oh and we are also there to make it “easier”. :-)

For many facilitators, this Demartini journey has formed quite an apprenticeship in our quest to be Human Behaviour Mechanics. By studying various systems or methodologies, in our individual tool boxes, many of us have collected the Demartini screwdriver, the Magicians Way hammer, the Robert Fritz Drill, the Robert Scheinfeld Plyers, the Joseph Campbell Cold Chisel and the S.O.L.A.R. Wrench along with many others. Armed with these tools, we are trained to unplug ourselves from our various “stories” once we enter the Breakthrough room and simply mirror each participant as they tune their own engines.

It is once outside the Breakthrough room that we take our turn at running our stories – and run it we do as that forms part of our human function. We are all master story tellers – and it is through this medium that facilitators spin stories into gold for participants to relate to – to translate – to make it easier.

In our debrief on Sunday afternoon, the smaller facilitator meeting room is typically a wonderful mirror for the larger Breakthrough room. All dynamics well represented, a rich mix of positive and negative balance, the same human dramas unfolding driven by our own individual stories as each facilitator shared personal observation of the weekend.

It was beautiful and perfect and formed an integral part of our on going training.

How lucky are we to have the opportunity to leverage our experience as facilitators every time John tours this country?

How fortunate are we to share our stories and perspectives through the use of analogy with participants?

How priveleged are we to have the opportunity to listen and collect the stories of hundreds of strangers all sharing that one common bond – playing a part in the same human Heroes Journey?

The Concourse of the Earth was created to establish a universal Values Metrics specifically for Facilitators, the opportunity to collaborate and communicate via the Ning community - http://theconcourseoftheearth.ning.com/ - so we can collectively polish our screwdrivers in preparation for the next time John is in town!

Nichola Burton
Level II Certified Demartini Facilitator
Co Founder of The Concourse Of The Earth
www.pushworth.com and www.howgoodisthis.com.au

Where's the Food?

One of my clients said recently how angry he was with himself that no matter how much work he “did on himself” there was still “shit” in his life. How many of us have felt like that on occasion? My client was feeling frustration about his physical appearance. He wanted to bulk up and increase his fitness and felt that no matter what he did with diet and exercise, he could not gain control over his external aesthetic. Ha – how many of us have also felt like that? :-)

Knowing who we are won’t get rid of the “shit”. “Doing work on ourselves” won’t get rid of it either. We’ll all still swim between the flags of nice and mean, kind and cruel and experience pleasure and pain. However understanding WHAT drives us, HOW we make our choices, HOW we resolve tension and WHAT we value takes us closer to the APPRECIATION of Self. Ah there’s that “attitude of gratitude” we hear Demartini talk about.

Human BE HAVE IOUR – where am I “BE ing” what am I “DO ing” and therefore what do I “HAVE” as a result of my actions? Our last exercise used the recent Christmas event as a benchmark of Self Assessment. Asking “quality of questions” - drilling down to what your life truly demonstrates often further uncovers your hierarchy of values as they currently are and not as you would like them to be. (I’ve noticed that many of us can confuse a “wish list” with our values.

We all eat – so looking at our relationship with food – will highlight various aspects of our Values that we may otherwise fantastise.

For many people, meals are all about entertainment and social interaction. Finding a fab restaurant, being seen in the right spot and dressing for the occasion is more important than the GI content of the meal. For others, mealtimes are an opportunity for family to sit down together – to connect and share. For others, they wine and dine their clients on a regular basis and do most business over their meals – Coffee, Lunch and Cocktails. Some will spend all day creating culinary masterpieces carefully selecting the finest of ingredients, decorating their tables and creating a gourmet feast for their loved ones. Others may run through their busy hectic lives and grab whatever food is around at the time as a last minute thought. Some people find food a distraction and countdown to mealtimes while salivating madly in anticipation. Others still may have a disciplined relationship with food and research nutrition, understanding how the ph balance works and only eat foods that keep them in balance – spending hours on shopping, preparation and investing in more expensive “healthier” options. Some people have the best intentions and purchase all the ingredients required to cook nutritiously for themselves only to throw most of it out six months later as something always seems to “come up” leaving them no time to cook. Some people get headaches at certain of each day and “need” a certain food or drink to “pep” them up and help them to survive the 3pm slump. Many people buy take away food on a regular basis as they “feel” good when they eat it. Some eat when happy; others when sad and tired while some starve themselves as either a reward or punishment.

The HOW and the WHY and the WHO and the WHAT and the WHEN of our relationship with FOOD that our values become more obvious.Create a Seven Area list – Physical, Mental, Social, Familial, Vocational, Financial and Spiritual – and enter your answers into each category with a 1 – 7 rating.

1. Do you have a kitchen where you live and do you use it or do you eat out more often than not?2. What do you think about Food? Is it fuel, fun or a burden?
3. If money were no object how would you eat?
4. What is your favourite food?
5. What is your favourite food related activity? (Cooking, Shopping, Preparation, Presentation, Cleaning Up, Going out, Time with Family etc)
6. What does your kitchen look like? (Especially inside the kitchen cupboards)
7. How do you spend your time eating?
8. How do you spend your energy shopping for food?
9. Do you shop in your budget or according to your nutritional needs?
10. What determines your budget choices?
11. Do you plan your meals or scavenge what you can at the last minute?
12. Are you frugal or extravagant?
13. Do you believe that you are what you eat or do you believe the body can consume any matter?
14. Do you know how your body digests food or would you rather leave that to an expert?
15. Do you dress for dinner at home – dress the table – and regard mealtimes with respect?
16. Did you plan your shopping with a list?
17. Do you have a plan for meals, nutrition and your physical body?
18. If you are hungry when you shop for food do you stick to your list or do you deviate?

How many of us have a plan, a set budget and a vision of what we want to achieve and get to the store, fridge, table and meal and do something completely different? Then we beat ourselves up and ask “Why did I do that” Why did I eat that chocolate cake?” Or why did I work through my day without eating and go to bed hungry AGAIN?

We’ll all still swim between the flags of nice and mean, kind and cruel and experience pleasure and pain. However appreciating the patterns that underly our choices and our values will help us to dissolve our fear, guilt and shame when it comes to our relationship with food giving us greater opportunities to integrate the mirrors of our bodies with our personal holographic journeys.

Nichola Burton
Level II Certified Demartini Facilitator
Co Founder of The Concourse Of The Earth
www.pushworth.com and www.howgoodisthis.com.au

Christmas a Clue Map for our Values

Most of you will have completed the Demartini Values Exercise by now. Knowing what we value, understanding what our priorities are, what drives us and what unconsciously makes our choices is a practical step in our own personal Human Behaviour 101 journeys.

We regularly do a “values” check once every three months as a self benchmark diagnostic tool. Google “Values” and you will see the thousands of ways that Values are appreciated.

Demartini speaks of the “quality of questions”. Now, in the first month of the New Year, is a perfect time to ask some quality questions in our first 2009 Values survey. Christmas is over and as many people await the credit card bills lurking in the background this may be a perfect opportunity to identify your hierarchy of values by examining your Christmas experience in preparation to appreciate paying for it next month.

For many people, Christmas is one big shopping spree. For others, Christmas is a time for family. Some will spend all year creating hand made arts and crafts for gifts. Others may invest their time in planning the Christmas meal and research recipes and collect non perishable food items throughout the year. Others still may plan to decorate their houses and neighbourhoods with lights and displays and plan, collect and save all year round in order to create a magical light display for just a few weeks. Many people work in Community and Charity over Christmas and devote their time in service. Some people may take the opportunity to take a well deserved holiday over Christmas away from traditional celebrations, some may work in the quiet of their office as normal and others may simply just ignore it.

Your Christmas experience says much about your Values. It is in the HOW and the WHY and the WHO and the WHAT and the WHEN that our values become more obvious.

Create a Seven Area list – Physical, Mental, Social, Familial, Vocational, Financial and Spiritual – and enter your answers into each category with a 1 – 7 rating.

1. How do you feel about Christmas?
2. What do you think about Christmas?
3. If money were no object how would you celebrate Christmas – what is your Dream Christmas?
4. What is your favourite Christmas memory?
5. What is your favourite Christmas activity? (Cooking, Shopping, Decorating, going to Church, Time off Work, Time with Family etc)
6. What does your space look like at Christmas?
7. How do you spend your time at Christmas?
8. How do you spend your energy at Christmas?
9. Did you buy gifts at Christmas?
10. Who did you buy gifts for?
11. What did you buy them?
12. Who did you go “a little nuts” on and who did you scrimp on?
13. What determined your purchase choices? (the Why)
14. What determined your budget choices?
15. Did you save all year or spend at the last minute?
16. Were you frugal or extravagant?
17. Did you buy Xmas paper, cards and decorations at the previous year Boxing Day sales?
18. When did you do your Christmas Shopping – Starting October or on Xmas Eve?
19. Were you still wrapping presents at 2am on Xmas day or were they wrapped and under the tree by 1 December?
20. Did you put up a Christmas tree?
21. Did you put your tree up on 1 December, Xmas Eve or September?
22. Did you plan your shopping with a list?
23. Did you plan your purchases with a budget?
24. Did you have a budget?
25. Do you ignore Christmas or celebrate it?

How many of us have a plan, a set budget and a vision of what we want to purchase and get to the store and do something completely different? Then we beat ourselves up and ask “Why did I do that” Why did I spend $800.00 on The Night Garden books and toys for my niece and totally blow my budget?” Or we visit our parents place for Christmas dinner and eat enough to feed a third world country, need a wheelbarrow to roll our stomachs home in the evening and then berate ourselves about our lack of control?

Christmas is the best time to identify the patterns that drive our Values and making an evaluation in January is a great way to look objectively at ourselves, appreciate our Christmas experience and draw on it for the rest of the year when we seek to follow our plans, budgets and visions.

Happy New Year!

Xx

PS for those who do NOT celebrate Christmas, next time we will be asking questions about your Kitchen – everyone eats!

Nichola Burton
Level II Certified Demartini Facilitator
Co Founder of The Concourse Of The Earth
www.pushworth.com and www.howgoodisthis.com.au

Why Create a Community?

The Demartini Method ® is a revolutionarily transformation method which results in a new paradigm using a pre-determined series of questions and actions directed toward the objective of bringing an individual’s conscious mind to states of presence and certainty.
(http://www.drdemartini.com/pages/demartinimethod.html)

As this method is a system and a process designed to achieve an end result of certainty, The Concourse Of The Earth ™ has been born out of the perceived void of this same certainty. In the dynamic of any entity, where one part is perceived to be in chaos, another will rise up to create order. The emergence of COTE is a living breathing example of the Demartini Method seeking to balance this dynamic of leadership, community, network and enterprise in creation, collaboration and connection.

In business and in life, a structure, standard and a system are critical in the management of all moving parts. Without a process, every action can potentially become a cost factor as it is dependant on perception, opinion, hearsay and memory. Without a collaborative connection structure, personal preferences + charges, politics and fears will drive the feedback process in every area. Feedback for the current form of community clearly demonstrates a desire for accountability or due process. This is the Intention of The Concourse Of The Earth ™

Community is a Cost Factor for any business. The Concourse Of The Earth ™ is an apolitical body created from the inside out. If you want community, here it is - be a part of it - form your own group - participate, form, order and systemise out of your own voids.

Close assessment of students of The Demartini Method ® shows a high level of judgement (self and others) as we journey through our own personal charges – our own gravitational force. We often forget that this method is not about deleting the charge, rather it is the appreciation of them and it is this appreciation which inspires the formation of The Concourse Of The Earth ™.

As the plane takes off from the runway, we sit back into our seats in preparation for the energy rush as the plane both retains and releases gravity as it takes off in flight. The friction between the forces is the very thing that moves the plane into flight! The Concourse Of The Earth ™ has emerged out of this friction and intends to appreciate the charges of everyone in this community in alignment with The Demartini Method ® itself.

Nichola Burton
Level II Certified Demartini Facilitator
Co Founder of The Concourse Of The Earth
www.pushworth.com and www.howgoodisthis.com.au