I will be sharing more on the inspiration I am finding in Napoleon Hill's life and work but for now check out this video, apparently the only one in existence, of this brilliant and humble fellow who has influenced all of us whether we know it or not.
Been meaning to post this for a week... this is the team who wrote the bomb-diggity book Subject to Change giving a talk at Google about the material in the book. I have to say I am amazed at the rows of empty seats! I can tell you this much.. I would be front and center for this one.
I have just started learning about Muhammad Yunus and can only say that this man is as brilliant as he is inspiring. In this video clip he tells the story of how he was inspired to create the micro-loan banking system for the poor, called the Grameen Bank, that has grown to global proportions and is redefining the banking systems and showing the world that financial systems can serve the many not just the few. He also offers us a vision for social businesses which hold a goal of uplifting people from poverty and have no blood sucking shareholders draining all value and life from the business or service.
These are hands down some of the most inspiring ideas in design I have seen in my short life time. The 12 sustainable design ideas should be tatooed on the foreheads of each and every corporate cylon CEO before they are allowed to drive that train high on cocaine. With so many brilliant people in the world I constantly feel like I am late to the party in learning from them all... so it is always with great humility that I post such awesomeness to this blog to share with anyone else out there that has been living in a cold dark cave wondering when the next round of guess that shadow will begin.
Janine Benyus's ground breaking book titled "Biomimicry: Inovation inspired by nature" is a must read. Below is a video of her talk at TED conference.
Tenzin Rincpoche offers us an open handed invitation to partake in the vast and powerful practices of the Bon Tibetan culture in The Tibetan Yogas of Dream and Sleep. Offering the West this material brings a whole new understanding and practice to the life of western lucid dreaming practitioners.
My guess is at the moment serious lucid dream practitioners are a tiny minority here but I am finding the more I talk with friends and family the more I see new minds opening to the possibilities. I have seen four close friends have their first lucid dreams just from us talking about it.
On further reflection I am realizing this is partly coming from my ability to better explain and illustrate lucid dreaming. This is a direct result of learning from texts like this. Clear, practical language with examples and explanations that bring Tibetan perspectives within reach are found throughout.
My personal practice is currently only in the dream yoga teachings where I am working to be regularly lucid and to take a given teaching for practice in the dream. Because of this I wouldn't attempt to comment on the sleep yoga practices....
On the dream yoga side I can say hands down this is an excellent text in the way of a user's manual. I regularly work from this book and find every time I read a section I gain another insight. The depth of knowledge the Bon practices offer the lucid dreamer is priceless. Learning to lucid dream is one thing but learning what this lucidity can be used for is a whole other world and the Tibetans are masters.
I very much look forward to reading more of Tenzin Wagyal Rinpoche's work and hope to eventually attend a seminar at the Ligmincha Serenity Ridge Retreat Center.
Just have to write a quick note and highly recommend this book from Adaptive Path. The title Subject To Change: Creating Great Products & Services for an Uncertain World is an excellent guide to user centered design as not just a set of principles for making better software but as clear path to thinking of providing services to end users that they are actually wanting and needing. I wont attempt some grand book review hear as there are plenty written by folks much better qualified.. I will merely say if you have any intentions of starting a business or are already a business owner you should read this book. These folks are at the bleeding edge of thinking in new models of business development and I plan to make every effort to attend thier next UX intensive training...
In true web fashion there is also a very well put together keynote talk given by Jesse James Garrett which covers some of the core points from the book. You have to hand it to adaptive path for not only doing this excellent research and development but also for being willing to share their brilliance with the rest of us. Also thanks to scribemedia.org for making this presentation available.
