Resources

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ's)

Q1. Your book is a reasonably good descriptive of your hypothesis. However, I am still confused. In its simplest terms, what is your hypothesis?

A1. Our hypothesis is that we proposed that there is a universal model of life and leadership that informs all known ancient and current models. The purpose of our three year study was to search for and find that foundational universal model.

Q2. Jim Collins searched for the principles of greatness in his book, Good to Great, by using a data set called corporations. In his search for good to great companies, he examined 1450 corporations from 1965 to 1995 and found 11 companies that satisfied his stringent criteria of what qualified them as moving from being simply good to great. What was your data set upon which you derived your Integrative Leadership philosophy, foundational model, universal principles and practices associated with the process of integration?

A2. There were three foundations on which our work is based.

The first foundation is that we intentionally and consciously embarked on the deep inner work of integration ourselves. We did not simply study and observe the process of integration. We chose, as a part of our investigation, to live it and experience it ourselves. This process resulted in 1,500 pages of correspondence (375,000 words at an average of 250 words/page) and another 3,000 pages of personal journal writing (450,000 words at 150 words/page). This data is phenomenological and anecdotal that describes, in writing and in detail, our inner journey.

The second foundation is that, as we experienced the various elements that comprise the process of integration, we searched the existing research and literature on leadership, scientific, wisdom and mystic traditions that described similar patterns and processes that we were experiencing. Once found, we used an integrative evaluation process to correlate them.

For example, one correlation would be Warren Bennis's "crucible of leadership" process with St.John of the Cross's "dark night of the soul" process (700 years ago) with our own experience of the transformative process. We have summarized the essence of this resulting universal transformative process as six steps on page 138, paragraph 4 of Integrative Leadership. We have another approximately 6,000 pages of articles, summaries and original distillations as well as an integrative library of over 1,000 volumes that support what we directly experienced in the process of integration that is shared in its essence within the first book (of a four book series). This data is external validatable and describes our outer journey.

The third foundation is that we shared our emergent findings publicly with over 3,000 people; workshopped intensive seminars with over 300 people; and integratively coached nearly 30 people within the three year duration of the study. Our study was based on observations, assessments, evaluations and questionnaires (pre situational and post) that comprise, in one form or another, 2,000 pages of information. What we found was that others had different circumstances and specific situations, but similar universal principles, patterns and processes that we captured within Integrative Leadership. This we consider as the movement from differentiation towards integration within the marketplace.

These three foundations represents over 12,000 pages of documentation plus the volumes within our integrative library.

The first foundation represents deep inner attunement. The second foundation represents historical external embodiment. And the third foundation is application in the marketplace as the phase of integration in relationship with others.

These three foundations when considered together also represent the data set (cosmology); the source of the tools associated with the process of integration (epistemology); and the source of the concepts that describe the simplicity and unity found within the model of integrative life and leadership (ontology) that support the emergence of an Integrative Life and Leadership Philosophy.

This work continues to grow daily with each new insight, contact, suggestion, project and assignment.

Q3. Is Integrative Leadership simply a documentation of your personal journeys or is it applicable to anyone that desires to experience the process of integration?

A3. What we have tried to share in Integrative Leadership are eight universal principles, universal patterns (4 domains, 3 levels, power of choice), twelve universal practices and three universal processes (transactional, transformational, transcendent) that are aligned with most external scientific and secular studies, most wisdom and mystic traditions, and with most of our personal experience of integration. We believe that this journey of integration is for anyone and should be applicable to everyone who has a desire to become whole and fully integrated in their life, love, work and play.

So the answer to your question is that it is not true that it is specific to us. We believe, based on the best of our experience and understanding these past three years, that it is applicable to everyone who is willing to open their eyes and see and open their ears and hear. It is not applicable for those who are self satisfied with themselves exactly the way they are and have chosen to remain closed to meaningful, life giving change.

Q4. "You claim that you have investigated 3,000 years of scientific, wisdom and mystic traditions in the course of your three year study. However you do not discuss the whole concept of Jungian Archetypes such as King, Warrior, Magician and Lover. Why are they not included in your study and work on Integrative Life and Leadership?

A4. Your question has allowed us to share the essence of how we structured and wrote Integrative Leadership. Thank you. We extracted from our three foundations the essence of the study and shared it as an integrative framework that provides an integrative context. We have shared it as a series of ideas that provides the integrative concepts. But to allow the book to have meaning in people's lives they need to have sufficient self awareness and desire to attempt to place the content of their own life and leadership journey within the context and concept of Integrative Leadership that we have to date, publicly shared.

Within the generally mechanistic paradigm of leadership development literature, we have found that most authors supply context, concept and content. They spoon feed their readers rather than allowing them to think for themselves. Our desire was to stimulate and allow reflection by the reader about their own life and leadership journey. This is one essential step in moving their awareness from the mechanistic to the organic paradigm.

I am reminded of a quote that was shared with me the other day whose source escapes me: "You measure a man's cleverness by the answers he gives. You measure a man's wisdom by the questions he asks." In our work, we tried consciously to ask many questions of the reader. We did not supply all the answers. It is you who must supply the answers to the questions that may arise in your reading of our work. We have pointed to and illustrated the path and the process to get these answers for yourself. The rest is up to you.

Based on your question, your life experience or life content was obviously impacted by the work of Moore and Gillette. Their work was originally sourced from Carl Jung. My question to you would be this: How do the King, Warrior, Magician and Lover archetypes fit and resonate within our integrative context? Which of the four domains of physical, mental, emotional and spiritual would be most closely associated with these four archetypes?

If you have difficulty answering this question, then let me refer you to page 69, bottom of Table 4 of our book, Integrative Leadership. We have considered their important perspectives in our study.

If you would have invested the time and had the desire to reflect and interact more actively with Integrative Leadership then you have to date, you would have also seen that Jung's work is totally captured within what some readers have called the Integrative Psychology that emerges from our study on Integrative Leadership. It is represented and resonant as involution (introvert) and evolution (extrovert), four domains (sensing, thinking, feeling, intuiting) and three levels of awareness (conscious, subconscious, collective unconscious). We have simply made Jung's specific psychology an aspect of an emerging universal integrative psychology that is as yet unhardened. But this perspective is only for those who have the desire and the eyes to see it.

Q5. My dharma is peace, health, loving relationships and achievement. Where would these qualities fit within your integrative framework?

A5. Peace and loving relationships resonate at the organic paradigm. Health and achievement resonate at the mechanistic paradigm. Our understanding is that there are three elements of Buddhist teaching: Dharma, Sanga, Buddha. Dharma is the essence or truth of your nature that is your mission or purpose and the teaching associated with that nature. Sanga is the community with whom you associate and relate. And the Buddha would be the pattern of perfection that is waiting for your will to awaken it so that your personality and your individuality can become fully aware that you are one with All That Is.

Sanga is Level I awareness or our tribe. Dharma is Level II awareness and is about our heart. And the Buddha we would associate with Level III awareness that is about our the spirit within your soul.

These organic qualities are excellent. We would suggest that you had a past journey that helped move you from the mechanistic to the organic paradigm. The organic paradigm is the most difficult to transcend without association with others who have done so. The next and final step for you would be to extend a heartfelt invitation for the Buddha Consciousness within you to awaken and become a part of your current awareness. With this invitation, your final phase of integration can begin in earnest.