Transcending Transformative Purpose

Peter Diamondis, founder and CEO of Singularity University and of 16 other companies, is a coach and trainer for numerous companies. He wrote and published Abundance and now is promoting his new book, Bold.  I watched many of his videos on You Tube to understand what he is about. In the videos and apparently in Bold, he gives good tips to entrepreneurs for being successful.

In Abundance he discusses the difference of an abundance mentality from a scarcity mind set.  In Bold, he discusses the difference of linear thinking with which we are wired by evolution with the exponential thinking that we need to acquire to keep up with the rapid, exponential development of our culture and world.

I won't buy his book because I feel I already read it. I see his great ideas in Alvin Toffler's Third Wave, in Tom Peter's many books and videos. And then all the works on positive thinking from Emerson and James, to Norman Vincent Peale and all the Think and Be Rich (Napoleon Hill) type of books. And let's not forget the EST movement about 30 years ago. The insights and practice of cognitive therapy are certainly germane to all these works.

Parker Palmer in Promise of Paradox and other works which deal with spirituality and social action first introduced me to abundance vs scarcity thinking which I used in many of my own seminars. John McKnight's Asset Based Community Development was a terrific tool for community organization which he claimed to have learned from Saul Alinsky.

In almost all these "cognitive" or "spiritual" based approaches, we are encouraged to identify what we want most and go for it boldly going where no one has gone before, always of course accepting the situation in which we are. We acknowledge our limitations but use them as opportunities to connect to other strengths in order to achieve our life's purpose. Diamonds calls this our MTP--our massively transformative purpose. Focus on this, he says, and the billions will come. He interviews successful billionaires and draws the lessons of success from them: knowing what you want to accomplish, being confident that you can achieve it, optimistic thinking, willingness to risk but always having am downside plan, endless experimentation, focusing on the abundance, not the scarcity, of resources. But it all starts with passion for your MTP.

I am not interested in amassing billions of dollars; and I refuse to make money a sign of success. In fact I think it is the sign of the failure of what I want for myself, others, and the world.

Joseph Campbell counseled all his students "to follow your bliss." And indeed it is worth reflecting from time to time on that which I really want to do and achieve in my life starting now. What is my vocation: that to which I am called whether by god, or destiny, or oracle, or nature, or spirit of life, or the universe. That which gives my existing meaning. My bliss, my MTP--which I would rather call TTP--Transcending Transformative Purpose. And reformulate it based on where I am now and where do I want to go from here. How do I use the abundance I have received and is even now available to me in this exponentially changing world?

Let me try. My TTP commitment is a new politics with new and renewed republics or simply PUBLICS EVERYWHERE FOR EVERYBODY.

A public is a place and event of freedom, equality, and power through association. What I want is that all persons in the world know and experience themselves and each other as having the ability and the actuality of participating, of initiating, and of creating their world. I want personally to have respect and meaning from power, which comes when everyone with whom I associate has respect and meaning from power. We have and are publics.

There are some specific objectives and actions that I will take to achieve this TTP. Also there are some measures I will use to judge when and where it is being achieved

1. I will take every opportunity to participate and promote publics--spaces and times for persons to associate in order to get things started and done for the common good.

2. I will keep writing and learning to write about social ethics, politics, publics, community organizing to promote and publish my developing vision of a city, nation, and world of free and open publics.

3. I will identify partners, starting with my existing networks, and foster expanded networks that link many initiatives, training centers, community organizations, and persons.

Oh, yes, soon to be 77, I have a subsidiary objective: I will train for another marathon knowing that this will keep body and mind fit for I have time and ability to keep working for my TTP.