II. Energy Management: Translations from the Psych Research Lab, the Board Room and the Shrink’s Couch
Hendricks, Gay. The Big Leap. 2009.
Many books about creativity talk about the need to move beyond your comfort zone, but few have explored the territory of what lies beyond it as well as Hendricks does in The Big Leap. He calls it the Upper Limit Problem and does the best job I’ve seen yet laying out the roots of how we sabotage ourselves from making the Big Leaps we are actually capable of. As he puts it: “The Upper Limit Problem is our universal tendency to sabotage ourselves when we have exceeded the artificial upper limit we have placed on ourselves ….a too-low thermostat setting on our ability to achieve and enjoy our ultimate success.” (p. 197)

He maps out four unconsciously held beliefs and a longer list of automatic behaviors that keep us limited with their carefully hidden glass ceilings. The beliefs are that 1. you are fundamentally flawed, 2. success involves disloyalty and abandoning others, 3. your success will impose a burden on others, and 4. it’s normal to fear outshining others with your success. The examples he gives are likely to set at least a few bells to ringing, especially in particular sectors of your life. You may not feel fundamentally flawed as a person, but may have assumed any difficulties you have in specific areas, like with money or math, are themselves fatal flaws and, thus, unchangeable.

His list of self-sabotaging automatic behaviors is also likely to include a few that are on target for each reader. For example, two insights included are how worrying can set our upper limits way too low and how not keeping our agreements can pollute our overall success.

Throughout, he weaves many tidbits of awareness that are the fruit of his years of running workshops, and consulting with individuals, couples, and corporations who are stuck. My personal favorite is his take on coming into a new relationship with time in our lives (about which I’ll have much more to say in later newsletters). Like the goldfish on his cover art, we can all use this kind of encouragement when leaving our comfort level behind.
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III. Friends in the Media: When you feel like reading, listening, or surfing the web
Ranck, Christine and Nunner Christopher Lee. Ignite the Genius Within: Discover Your Full Potential. 2009.
This is not a book to be read. This is a mini-performance piece that the authors have managed to deliver into your hands by including a free downloadable audio experience you listen to while looking at highly evocative images. The point of the experience is to know yourself better at an experiential rather than intellectual level.

The basis for the combination is a relatively new psychological approach, EMDR (Eye Movement and Desensitization and Reprocessing) which itself is backed by highly respected and solid research when used by psychotherapists to treat patients. David Grand, Ph. D., who created the audio, used EMDR in his work with actors. Here, however, you are on your own with the book and the audio, so I advise caution if you choose to try it. Precisely because of its potential power, it can ignite not only your ‘genius’ but also some baggage that you’d rather not deal with. If you have any troubling reactions, I recommend stopping the approach as not right for you. From my few explorations, I can feel tentative tendrils of new patterns; I’d be glad to hear from others who decide to carefully try out this new kind of experience.
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IV. E-mail changes. To change your e-mail address, subscribe, or unsubscribe please e-mail connect@dianereardon.com. If you use a spam filter, please add this e-mail address to your list of approved senders. This material is included on the breakTHROUGH Creativity Coaching (website www.dianereardon.com) All material is copyrighted ©, 31July2009, Diane Reardon. All rights reserved. Visit the website for back issues and details on scheduling a complimentary one-hour coaching session.
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