Fall 2008 Workshop Outline:
Finding Balance in a Multi-tasking World

There's more to happiness than material comfort. It also requires emotional flexibility and wisdom. Just as we work our body consciously and methodically against the challenges of physical stress and aging, it’s only by rethinking our automatic responses to emotional stress that we can adapt proactively to it. That takes strategy.The first stage of this reevaluation is developing mental relaxation and concentration, what you might call the mental muscle. We develop this through breathing techniques.

Stage two is using that strengthened muscle to rethink your approach to life. Most attitudes are largely subconscious because we develop them as children and the brain promptly automates them. But change is difficult not just because habits are deep-rooted; it’s also because we don’t take the time to sit back and take in the whole picture. Our response to one event is shaped by our attitude to others, so when we try to fix something about ourselves we don’t immediately see the full implications of what we’re attempting. That’s why conscious change happens in two steps: firstly understanding the mind from the inside, and then gently retraining it.

These two steps are addressed by various contemplative traditions. I sum them up as ‘mindful reflection,’ an age-old method that in the history of civilization has been forgotten and then resurrected countless times. It’s embedded in most religions, independently of their various belief structures. It’s when we forget it most completely that we most urgently recall our need for it, simply because there’s a price to pay for neglecting emotional balance. These days, we’re seeing a renewed surge of interest in mind-training because the imbalance of our material and goal-oriented preoccupations is getting out of hand.

Mindful reflection begins by measuring old habits against new realities and seeing how they’re working for us. It also teaches us what and how we can change, as well as what we can’t. It helps us accept the ups and downs of life while becoming proactive in feasible and creative ways. It’s what Blaise Pascal had in mind when he said, “All men’s miseries come from being unable to sit alone in a quiet room.”

For those interested in the classical roots of these teachings, Stephen is happy to recommend various books, websites and learning centres. Please email him, detailing your specific interests and/or questions.

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