Lawsagna

Love of Education: A Shifting Paradigm - for LeWeb08 by Robin Good (Video)

This is the video of the "Love of Education" presentation delivered by Robin Good at LeWeb in Paris.

I am off to create my list of things I need to learn in 2009.  What's on your list?

5 Tips to Help Busy Professional Manage Stress and Be More Productive

This post was contributed by Kelly Kilpatrick, who writes on the subject of massage careers.  She invites your feedback at kellykilpatrick24 at gmail dot com.

Our world is a busy one to say the least.  This is why we must find ways to manage our stress and time in order to be more effective and productive individuals.  It can seem like a daunting task to make changes that will impact our lives in a profound way that will ultimately make things better, but rest assured that it is not as difficult as it sounds.  What follows is a brief list of ways to help manage stress on a daily level and become a more productive individual in the process.

Find a Balance Between Work and Personal Life

This may sound difficult, because many of us see ourselves as full-time representatives of our professions.  Though this may be partly true, it is important not to let work bleed into personal time, or vice-versa.  Allowing work to take over all of your time will only serve to alienate others from you, which will only hurt more later on down the road.  Balance your life so that you know you are doing your best on all fronts.

Practice Deep Breathing

When things feel like they are getting out of control, practice deep breathing.  Inhale slowly and deliberately through your nose, then try and exhale for twice as long through your mouth.  Doing this ten times when you feel overwhelmed will help bring you back to the present moment and will bring about feelings of relief and relaxation in the process.

Live in the Moment

Living in the moment is something that many people have trouble with.  When you are at work, you may be thinking about problems at home, car trouble, or any number of things from your past or upcoming events in your future.  This is simply wasted time; you cannot be in two places at once.  Why not re-focus to get back to the task at hand while you can.  If not, you may be sitting at home later, thinking about all the work you could have finished when you were there.  Live in the moment and you will feel better sooner rather than later.

Know When to Take a Step Back

This can be just as important as living in the moment, if not more so.  If you are unable to regain focus or if something is really bothering you, you may need to take some time to gather your thoughts.  Take a break, go for a walk, or call and talk with a close friend.  Many times whatever is bothering us will melt away if we can just remove ourselves from a situation temporarily.  Get back to things as soon as you have found your center once again.

Make Time for Yourself

No one can go on forever only fulfilling the needs of those around them.  You need to make sure and have some "you time," where you meet your own needs and can take time to recharge, rest, and relax.  Spending time doing the things you enjoy will help make sure that feelings of resentment don’t grow to an alarming scale and will help you maintain your identity.

"De-Stress Kit For the Changing Times"

Doc Childre, founder of HeartMath, a leading stress research institute, has written a free booklet De-Stress Kit for the Changing Times that provides a few simple practices to help people intercept and manage stress during this period of challenge and uncertainty.

Kinesthetic Intelligence: Learning through Dance

Many cultures value dance as a form of non-verbal communication.  What can we learn through dance?   Is it possible to use dance for self-improvement to gain deeper knowledge of ourselves as we dance or others as we watch their performance? 

I was intrigued by the post "The brain dancer: How about a little movement in your mediation? Just a little?" at Brains on Purpose.  (As a former ESL instructor, I had fun watching the kinesthetic representation of regular and irregular verbs in the video.)   I also happened to be reading the article "A Nonverbal Language for Imagining and Learning: Dance Education in K–12 Curriculum" [PDF] by Judith Lynne Hanna at the time.  She writes:

"Drawing from movements in everyday life, dance stylizes movement with a degree of conventionality or distinctiveness. A multichanneled system, dance is embodied cognition that can convey declarative, procedural, and emotional knowledge, apart from co-occurring with speech or being an element of a sign language."

Judith Lynne Hanna describes six symbolic devices to encode meaning through dance:

"Concretization is movement that produces the outward aspect of something, such as a warrior dance displaying advance and retreat battle tactics. An icon represents most characteristics of something and is responded to as if it actually were what it represents. For example, a Haitian dancer manifesting through a specific dance the presence of Ghede, the god of love and death, is treated by fellow Haitians with genuine awe and gender-appropriate behavior—as if the dancer were actually the god himself. A stylization encompasses arbitrary and conventional gestures or movements, such as a ballet dancer pointing to his heart as a sign of love for his lady. A metonym is a motional conceptualization of one thing representing another of which it is a part, such as a romantic duet representing an affair. The most common way of encoding meaning in dance is through metaphor, the expression of one thought, experience, or phenomenon in place of another that it resembles.  Illustrative of joining different domains are contrastive movement patterns for men and women referring to their distinct biological and social roles. Actualization is a portrayal of one or several of a dancer's usual roles, such as a woman who performs in a dance for mothers, to convey her maternal role."

If we were to use the above devices to encode, for example, the meaning of an interpersonal conflict through dance, what would it look like?  Perhaps, we could explore the conflict as follows:

Concretization:  Use movement to express the development of the conflict and its effects on the lives of the conflicting parties.

An icon:  Represent the other side, or dance in the opposing party's shoes.

A stylization:  Express the feelings about the conflict through gestures and movement.

A metonym:  Convey the most important thing about the conflict though movement.

A metaphor:  Use a kinesthetic metaphor to represent the conflict.

Actualization:  Embody your typical role or your desired role in the conflict.    

What could we learn from this "conflicted dance" activity?  Among other things, we could learn to:

• Express ourselves non-verbally;
• Process our own assumptions, ideas, judgments about the conflict kinesthetically;
• Develop empathy to the movement and body language;
• Explore metaphoric associations;
• Read non-verbal clues;
• Use our body as a guide in making decisions;
• Heighten sensory perception;
• Release emotions through dance;
• Induce emotions through dance;
• Evoke the memory of an emotion through dance.

And it can be a fun workout and stress-relief activity too.    

Is there anything on your mind that makes you feel stuck?  Perhaps, you can explore your challenge through dance.

Tim Brown: "The powerful link between creativity and play" (TED VIdeo)

Tim Brown, the CEO of the "innovation and design" firm Ideo, talks about the relationship between creative thinking and play at the 2008 Serious Play conference.

Emotional improv for interpersonal intelligence

I am a big fan of the the Thiagi Gameletter.  If you are in the learning business, you should definitely check it out.  Their mission is to "increase and improve the use of interactive, experiential strategies to improve human performance in an effective, efficient, and enjoyable way."  The November issue was dedicated to improv activities, including the improve game "Emotional Meeting" by Kat Koppett.  Since I am on the lookout for the awareness-building practices for multiple intelligences, I found, that activity was a great example of such awareness practice that engaged interpersonal intelligence.  You can read the full description of the activity in the gameletter, but here's its brief summary:

"Four people roleplay having a meeting. They enter the room one at a time with a different emotional attitude. Each time a new person enters, everyone takes on this person's emotional attitude. When the individuals leave, in reverse order, the remaining group reverts to the previous emotion."

Some suggested emotions and attitudes to play with include joy, anger, fear, and ambition. 

This activity can reveal a lot about the effect of our emotions on other people and on team performance. 

In your everyday interactions, do you notice when you take on other people's emotions?  How does it affect your actions and reactions?

Related post:  Mindfulness in Movement

Release stress and weight these holidays...

We are launching a community-based free half-hour program, hosted by Sue Stebbins, Master Coach and clinical hypnotherapist,  starting the second of December at 12:30 Eastern Time  to GIVE People struggling with Stress and Weight and Isolation a BREAK -- want to join the fun and--  Drop the Holiday Baloney...??  Click here.

The Girl Effect (Video)

"The Mindfulness & Acceptance Workbook for Anxiety"

Researchers at the University at Albany – SUNY are looking for participants in an online research study.  The purpose of this study is to examine the effectiveness of a new self-help workbook for people who are suffering from anxiety-related problems -- "The Mindfulness & Acceptance Workbook for Anxiety,"  written by John P. Forsyth, Ph.D. and Georg H. Eifert, Ph.D.   Here's what they say about the book:

"The workbook we are using has one purpose:  to help you live better, more fully, more richly. Your life is calling on you to make that choice, and the skills in this workbook can help you make it happen. Find out how your mind can trap you, keeping you stuck and struggling in anxiety and fear.  Learn to nurture your capacity for acceptance, mindfulness, kindness, and compassion.  Using these qualities to shift your focus away from anxiety and onto what you really want your life to be about. As you do, your life will get bigger as your anxious suffering gets smaller. No matter hat kind of anxiety problem you’re struggling with, this workbook can guide you toward a more vibrant and purposeful life. "

Visit the "Act for Anxiety" website to learn more about the study and the eligibility requirements. 

Meditate NYC

If you happen to be in the New York City area, you have an opportunity to explore meditation through a series of free events, workshops and meditation open houses that will take place around New York City from Sunday, November 9 to November 16.   (A hat tip to Urban Mindfulness).  To learn more, visit http://www.meditatenyc.org

VOTE!

Election Protection

To report an elections/voting problem, contact Election Protection Coalition  at 1-866-OUR-VOTE or 1-888-VE-Y-VOTA.  You can also tweet them at http://twitter.com/866OURVOTE.

Mindfulness in Movement

If you want to bring more mindfulness into your daily life, consider matching your mindfulness practices to your dominant intelligences.  According to the theory of multiple intelligences developed by Dr. Howard Gardner, professor of education at Harvard University, and discussed in his book "Intelligence Reframed: Multiple Intelligences for the 21st Century," there are eight different intelligences that describe the ways people relate to information.   Your preferred ways to process information are your strengths or dominant intelligences.

As I mentioned in my earlier post, I begin with the bodily-kinesthetic intelligence today and proceed with the rest of the intelligences in the upcoming posts.

We engage our bodily-kinesthetic intelligence when we express ourselves through movement and use movement to process information.  If you have a strong bodily-kinesthetic intelligence, it may be easier for you to concentrate when movement is involved.  There are many ways to develop awareness through movement.  In fact, many types of physical exercises can help you get into the zone, a state of mind where you feel focused, your senses are heightened, and time tends to disappear.  So, you can choose whether you want to do yoga or rock climbing to practice mindfulness in movement.  Your physical sensations, your breath, the rhythm of the movement, the flow of energy through your body are all good anchors for your attention that can help you get beyond the mental noise.  Sometimes, simply being mindful of your posture and remembering to relax your shoulders or do a few shoulder rolls can be a centering technique that can teach you to pay attention to your body signals.  Here are a few more examples of kinesthetic practices:

Yoga offers an excellent way to strengthen your mind body connection.  We are often concerned with changing, toning, shaping, sculpting, building our bodies.  Yoga allows us to experience our bodies and learn to respect their needs.  Focusing on the breath, movement and physical sensations helps to quiet the swirl of thoughts in the head and develop better awareness.

A meditative walk not only gently introduces even the most sedentary folks to a more active lifestyle, it can also calm the nerves and clear the mind.  You can gain more self-awareness, energy, relieve stress, improve your body image and your mood – all while walking.   As you walk, train your attention by noticing your breath and bodily sensations or observing the surroundings.  You can also try walking the labyrinth.  Here's how Daniel Pink describes his labyrinth walk in his book "A Whole New Mind: Why Right-Brainers Will Rule the Future" :

"This labyrinth, which I walked one morning not too long ago, is composed of four-inch by four-inch brick squares.  Eight concentric circles, formed from similarly sized white squares, orbit a center space that's roughly two feet in diameter.  Along the outer edge a few squares have single words stamped onto them: Create, Faith, Wisdom, Believe.  Visitors often choose one of these words, and then repeat it, like a mantra in meditation, as they circle to the center.  I began my labyrinth walk by heading left and walking down the first ring.  As I looked around, I saw a few Medical Center buildings on one side and a parking lot on the other.  Nothing transcendent about this.  It felt as if I was simply walking in a circle.  So I started again.  To avoid distractions, I looked down.  I focused my sight on the two curving lines that formed the outline of my path, and I began walking – as slowly as I possible could.  The lines curled around me.  And after a while it felt a bit like driving on a long empty road.  I didn't have to pay much attention, so my mind slipped to a different place – and that had an unexpected calming effect."

Dancing is another great way to practice mindfulness by noticing how your moods, ideas, and emotions are expressed through movement.  I have to admit that I am biased here because Latin ballroom dancing got me moving throughout college, helped me manage the stress of law school, and allowed me to meet my most wonderful friends for years, including my husband.   Dancing is an excellent tool of self-expression.  Even if it's just you alone in the room, turn on the music that speaks to you and try expressing what you feel at the moment through movement.  No specific structure or choreographed routines – just your emotions flowing through your body.  

Hobbies that require you to work with your hands, such as pottery, woodworking, knitting, or cooking, make it easier to focus your mind on the process and away from nagging thoughts. 

The rhythmic movement of prayer beads in prayer, meditation, or simply during the repetition of affirmations can also be helpful to people with dominant kinesthetic intelligence. 

Do you have any kinesthetic or tactile habits, such as pacing the room when you need to think things over, tossing up a pen, playing with a stress ball?  Next time, use these habits as reminders to take a few moments for yourself and clear your head by focusing on the movement. 

What kinesthetic practices help you to be more mindful?

Integrative Productivity Teleclass

Are you familiar with the term "situational awareness"? It is often used in the industries in which information flows fast and decisions lead to serious consequences, for example, in the military or air traffic control.  In the marital arts, this concept is loosely translated as the "reserved mind" or "combat awareness."  It is a state of heightened perception and sharpened awareness that enables people to take the relevant clues from their immediate environment and make optimal decisions in a dynamic context because they understand how information, events, and their own actions impact their goals. 

If you want to learn more about the use of this state of awareness in the daily life  and my integrative productivity system, join me tomorrow, Wednesday, October 22, 2008, at 1:00pm ET for a 1-hour free teleclass "Opening the VALVE of Integrative Productivity: How to Accomplish More with Less Effort".  I'll send the link to the recording later to those who register but cannot attend the live call.  Just enter your name and email address to receive the teleclass details.

You can learn more at http://www.selfhelpbookmuse.com/teleclasses--events.html

Awareness practices for multiple intelligences

How do you stay centered when the waves of life come crashing against you?  It's not easy.  We all know how hard it is not to get caught up in a negative whirlpool when we feel threatened, attacked or snubbed.  But it is worthwhile to remember that you can build resilience and inner peace to withstand turbulent times.  When you are able to center yourself, you take power away from difficult people and circumstances.  You are able to respond consciously, as opposed to projecting your own anger, doubt, frustration and letting the emotional whirlpool twirl and spin you around.  

Much like you build your core muscles through targeted exercise routines over time, you can strengthen your center of awareness through consistent practice.  It's like going to a mind gym.  The real test to your mindfulness is not how long you can meditate, but rather how you can take what you learn through meditation and apply it to your daily interactions.  Similarly, the purpose of this mind workout is to empower yourself and develop confidence that you can constructively handle whatever comes your way.  

Recently, I've been working with some of my coaching clients on the ways to match awareness practices to their dominant intelligences.  I will be sharing some ideas for awareness practices for each type of the multiple intelligences in the upcoming posts.  In the meantime, what helps you stay centered in challenging situations?  I’d love to read your comments.

Strategies to build resilience to stress

The Texas Medical Association offers ten strategies to build resilience to stress:

   1. Make connections
   2. Avoid seeing crises as insurmountable problems
   3. Accept that change is part of living
   4. Move toward your goals
   5. Take decisive actions
   6. Look for opportunities for self-discovery
   7. Nurture a positive view of yourself
   8. Keep things in perspective
   9. Maintain a hopeful outlook
  10. Take care of yourself

Visit their Coping with Stress website for more detail.

I am on Twitter

I finally joined the Twitter community.  You can follow me at http://twitter.com/Lawsagna.

As I am learning about Twitter, I thought I’d share a few links I found useful:

"How Twitter Can Help at Work" by Sarah Milstein in the Shifting Careers column of The New York Times

"Twitter for Beginners - 5 Things to Do as a New Twitter User" at Problogger

"50 Ideas on Using Twitter for Business" by Chris Brogan

"Twitter for Business Reading List" at Pistachio

Twitter Social Brand Index

A list of lawyers and legal professionals on Twitter compiled by Adrian Larssen and the update post (hat tip to Build A Solo Practice, LLC)

iTweetNet.com  -     Interface for Twitter:

•     Built-in auto-refresh, search and hashtags;
•     Full follow, block, notifications features;
•     View user bio, location, URL inline with tweets;
•     Watch conversations with "in reply to" links.

Do you have any links you like?

Fortune Cookie

Things are never as good or as bad as they seem.

"Connecticut Lemon Law Gives Consumers a Choice" by Sergei Lemberg

Sergei Lemberg, a Connecticut lemon law attorney,  is sitting in the guest blogger’s chair today.

Connecticut was the first state in the nation to enact a lemon law that gives consumers recourse when they’ve discovered they’ve purchased a defective vehicle. That was over 25 years ago, but the law is still working hard to protect the people of Connecticut.  There are generally two avenues for prosecuting lemon law claims: CT state-run lemon law arbitration program and the courts. Consumers may choose their venue.

Late last spring, we were surprised when, after we filed a routine lemon law complaint in court, Volkswagen responded with a motion to strike down our claim. The manufacturer held the view that Connecticut’s lemon law only allows consumers to take action through the state Attorney General’s arbitration program – not directly to court.

The court ruled that, when the legislature amended Connecticut lemon law and directed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection to launch an arbitration program, their intent was not to preclude people from their private right of action.

It goes without saying that we agreed with the judge’s ruling, but the affirmation reinforced that consumers can choose between the court system and the arbitration program when manufacturers won’t step up and buy back or replace defective vehicles.

Personal productivity and mind body connection

In our fast-paced world, maintaining focused energy is one of the biggest personal productivity challenges.  Much of the energy drain happens due to the sense of mental overwhelm and frequent information overload.  This sense of overwhelm and inability to cope effectively with the daily flow of information, interactions, and distractions is a significant cause of stress and decrease in productivity for many people.

What stops you from having focused mental energy right now?  Here's a list of common energy drainers and stressors.  Do you see anything that applies to you? 

•    Lack of focus
•    Mental clutter;
•    Mindless distractions;
•    Fear of uncertainty;
•    Pessimistic attitude;
•    Self-criticism;
•    Unrealistic expectations or beliefs;
•    Information overload;
•    Perfectionism;
•    Low self-esteem;
•    Procrastination;
•    Negative self-talk;
•    Overwhelming negative emotions;
•    Resistance;
•    Misalignment between your life purpose and everyday actions;
•    Poor diet;
•    Insufficient physical activity;
•    Lack of sleep;
•    Toxic home or work environment;
•    Lack of social support.

Now, picture the power of the focused energy and how it could transform your life.  Imagine what it feels like to be so absorbed by the task that nothing else matters.  Certain practices enable us to maintain clear focus and add more energy to our days.  Here’s what you can do to boost your energy and personal productivity. 

1. Stop multitasking to avoid the "sprinkler effect."
   If you are easily distracted by thoughts buzzing in your head as you are trying to concentrate on a project, you are not alone.  Mental noise and distractions create energy leaks.  I call it the "sprinkler effect."  Just like the sprinkler cuts through the stream of water dispersing it, distractions dissipate our energy.  Our focus and perception diminish when it happens.  Think of all the distractions throughout your typical day:  a phone rings, an urgent email pops up, somebody interrupts your train of thought, etc.  A common response is to multitask, but multitasking doesn't work.  Our brains cannot do parallel processing if it requires conscious awareness. Multitasking is really a rapid task switching.  The more complex and unfamiliar the tasks are, the longer it is going to take to switch between them.  Multitasking causes the sprinkler effect. 
2. Pay attention:  awareness = mental "White Space."
   We can experience more focused energy if we practice mindfulness and give our full attention to the present moment.  As we cultivate awareness, we gain the state of clarity, or the mental "white space."  In art and design, the concept of "white space" refers to the absence, or nothingness, that makes the content stand out.  White space creates balance.  Similarly, when we are truly present and aware, our perception is heightened.  We notice things we wouldn't otherwise.  We experience more insights.  We respond to situations as they arise without stress or worry generated by mental clutter.
3. Chop up your projects and your work days into chunks.
   Create a sequence of specific, measurable steps to complete your current project.  Set milestones and deadlines to keep track of your progress.  Then, divide your work day into chunks of uninterrupted time when you can focus on your scheduled tasks and eliminate distractions.       
4. Verbalize distractions:  pour your disruptive thoughts onto paper.
   When you feel bogged down by persistent, negative thoughts, write them all down and set the time when you will review the list.  Writing thoughts down decreases their negative influence on the mind.  When your scheduled time comes, review the list and determine which thoughts actually deserve your time and energy.  Develop a habit of verbalizing your fears, doubts, and concerns.
5. Practice WOW: "Witness Ordinary Wonders."
   Present is the only thing that we ever experience, but how much time do we spend projecting our present fears and beliefs into the future or holding on to the constructs from the past that don't serve us well?
   
   It takes practice to be present, but it can be done with any activity, no matter what it is and how small it may seem.  This is about your mental attitude, and not the attribute of the activity itself.  Here's what you do:
   
   Each day, take time to choose an ordinary thing from your surroundings or a simple activity that you normally do almost on auto-pilot.  Approach it as if you have never seen or done it before – with the beginner's mind.  Think of a child who has not learned a label of your chosen item or action and is trying to figure it out.  What new aspects of this familiar object or activity do you notice?  What piques your curiosity?
6. Befriend your emotions, even the negative ones.
   It's natural and human to experience the whole range of emotions.  What's important is how we process those emotions in our minds and our bodies.  There are constructive ways to deal with negative emotions.  You don't want to bottle them up because you will end up with emotional and energetic imbalances.  Instead, you want to let yourself experience the emotion, just be with it for some time and observe.  Recognizing negative emotions, labeling them, and paying attention to the physiological responses these emotions produce in your body may help to counteract their effect.
7. Don't resist, accept:  stewing is worse than doing.
   Do you ever feel so overwhelmed and exhausted by all of the things you need to do that you can only complain and procrastinate instead of taking action?  All this time, you are building resistance.  Many people can relate to this experience.  Resisting and complaining sap your energy.  Whenever you feel the build-up of resistance, you want to stop and think about how you can move from resistance to acceptance.  My earlier post on 5 ways to procrastinate with purpose can help you prepare for action. 
8. Get excited!
   Don't wait for the next holiday to start a celebration.  Make a list of five things that you are excited about today.  What brings you joy when you just think about it?  We all should have something to celebrate each day.  This is a good exercise to do in the morning to begin your day on a positive note.
   
   Next, list five things that you are grateful for or people you would like to thank.  Notice any shifts in your emotional state once you have competed the exercise. Expressing gratitude for things that go well is a sure way to cultivate positive emotions.  Positive psychology studies have linked feelings of gratitude to emotional well-being.
9. Have a clear vision.
   When Michelangelo was asked how he created the sculpture of David out of the block of marble, he said:  "I simply chipped away everything that wasn't David."  You can chip away at marble, but you won't create David unless you have a clear vision. Know what your "David" is. 
10. Eliminate inconsistent goals:  don't try to be in two places at the same time.
    Prioritize and eliminate inconsistent goals.  The goals we set often compete for our time, effort, and resources.  It’s important to know the priority of your goals and check for conflicting objectives.  You may be as passionate about visiting Italy as you are about visiting Brazil, but you can't be in two places at the same time.  You must choose.
11. Use the three "Energize-Rs" to supercharge your days:  rhythms, rituals, and routines.
    Paying attention to the changes in your energy patterns throughout the day is a first step towards bringing more energy into your life.  You can do it with the help of the three "Energize-Rs":  Rhythms, Rituals, and Routines.  Here's the link to my post on these three powerful "Energize-Rs."
    
12. Embrace uncertainty, just like you would do in a casino.
    How comfortable are you with uncertainty?  What stops some people from pursuing their dreams and their mission is fear of the unknown.  Interestingly, uncertainty can actually add to our motivation.
    
    Do you ever wonder how people can spend hours pulling a lever of a slot machine?  It is the uncertainty of the reward that keeps them interested.  The anticipation of uncertain rewards has been linked to the increased production of the neuromodulator dopamine, which is responsible for a focused attention and more pleasurable experience.  Imagine what would happen if you were to get a regular salary for pulling the same lever but no chance of a random win. You’d be bored to death very soon.  The uncertainty of the reward keeps the excitement alive.
13. Practice bodily awareness: think on your feet.
    We all have bodily-kinesthetic intelligence that enables us to learn through movement.  Our body can also guide us in making decisions if we are attuned to our physiological responses.  When you are evaluating your options, listen to your body.  If your breathing is full and open, your muscles are relaxed, and you sense pleasant spaciousness in the chest or head, you may be moving in the right direction.  On the other hand, if your muscles become tense, especially in the shoulder and neck area, you have a "pit" in the stomach, or your attention is scattered, your body may be telling you that something is amiss. 
14. Don't let toxic words poison your body.
    Avoid negative conversations as you eat because the chemicals your brain sends through your body in response to the negative emotions or stress affect your digestion, and you need nutrients for sustainable physical energy.  Don't let toxic words poison your body and block your energy flow. 
15. Open an account at the Bliss Bank.
    Start feeding healthy, energizing images to your mind and you will feel more energized yourself.  Consider opening an account at the "Bliss Bank."  The Bliss Bank is a collection of small things that can cheer you up quickly.  It can be pictures of your kids or your pets, a souvenir from your favorite place, a song or an image.  Your Bliss Bank should be easily accessible at home, in your office, and your car so that you could draw from it whenever you felt sad, stressed out, or simply needed to recharge.
16. Use the power of visualizations: if you don't like what your eyeballs see, use your mind's eye to create whatever you want.
    The images we create in our mind's eye can be as real to our brain as the ones we see with our eyeballs.  Athletes use the power of visualizations and mental rehearsal to train, and so can we to boost our energy.  What could you imagine right now that would help you feel energized?
17. Tune up:  listen to music and healing sounds.
    Music elevates dopamine levels, those "feel good" molecules.  If you think of it, music delivers many of the benefits that people often try to get from food:  stress relief, comfort, energy, pleasure, etc.  So, let's start using music and movement to bring more energy, joy, and vibrance into our lives.
    
    Ayurveda, a system of medical knowledge that originated in India more than 5,000 years ago, explains healing sounds as rhythms and vibrations found in nature that resonate with our bodies.  Spending more time outdoors and listening to natural sounds of wind, waves, leaves, and birds can have a harmonizing effect on your body and mind.
18. Embrace your "wild" side: spend more time in nature.
    We’ve all probably experienced the peace and clarity that nature can bring about.  We don’t need to go far to have the benefits.  Take your pressing problem for a walk in the park.  If you enjoy gardening, remind yourself of the need to love and nurture yourself as you water and nurture your plants. 
19. Hang out with people who can lighten up the room.
    Sometimes, all we need to do to get energized is to talk to certain people. 

• Who are those people with vibrant, positive energy in your life?
• How can you limit your interactions with people who drain you? 
• How can you strengthen your support system?
  
  Taking personal responsibility for your energy also has an effect of attracting more people with positive energy into your life.  Do you know people who can lighten up the room with their presence?  Everybody wants to be around them.  With little practice and conscious choices, you can be that person.

What are your best personal energy management practices?

Working/Learning Carnival

Michele Martin of The Bamboo Project Blog is hosting the September edition of the Working/Learning Carnival today.  The topic is how to stay motivated for learning.   Check it out.  You can find the information about the Working/Learning Carnival and its past editions here.

Orientation Series: 21 Steps to Becoming a Better Learner Step 21: Inspired Learning

Learning seems to be more on people's minds in September because kids go back to school.  My daughter, Alexis, who is 2.5 years old went to her playschool for the first time last week.  She wasn't very happy at first even though she is there only for three hours a few days a week, but things are getting better.  This is a good time to remember that although it may have been a while since our own school days, learning never stops.  Moreover, certain things in life we have to learn despite or, maybe, because of our resistance and kicking and screaming.  This brings me to the topic of today’s post – inspired learning.

Even when we are done with formal education, we still live out our personal learning curriculum every day.  This learning is not about getting good grades or impressing others, but rather about our continuously improving and growing. It's about directed personal development that is the hallmark of a rich and vibrant life. How do we decide what to learn?  How do we keep track of what we are learning?  Here are a few things to consider in designing a personal learning curriculum.

Seeking learning that matters.  There is usually a gap between information and transformation, knowledge acquisition and action, intent and impact.  Possible causes for such a gap are the lack of relevancy, inertia, and wavering attention.  For the learning to stick and matter, it needs to be personal, meaningful, and inspiring.  The following three questions may help us close the gap.  As you consider what you should be learning, go ahead and ask:

1. What's in it for me?
2. What's in it for those who I love and care about?
3. What's in it for those I serve?

Inspired learning enables us to improve our own lives and lives of others.

Reflecting on our learning.   Awareness of how we learn every day is the first step to gaining more control over our personal learning curriculum.  The learning goals we set for ourselves are driven by the outcomes we want to achieve in work and life.  When we make a conscious decision to learn something, the progression towards our goals is easier to track.  But it's not the whole picture of learning.  The challenge is to become aware of what we learn unintentionally. For example, children model their behavior after parents, including negative patterns because they don't have yet the capacity to decide what's good for them and what's not so good.  Adults can also learn undesirable habits without much thought.  Mindfulness is the antidote for unintentional learning.  Awareness can also help us to focus attention on positive learning that sometimes goes unnoticed.  The following questions are good for detecting unintentional learning that have happened during the day:

1. What could I have done better?  This question gives us a chance to reflect on our actions and improve on them so that we can do better next time.  We unlearn negative behavior patterns by replacing them with better alternatives.  
2. What triggered strong negative emotions in me today?  As much as we like to attribute our negative reactions to the behavior of others, these reactions are opportunities to examine our own perceptions and mindset. If we get frustrated because the traffic light turns red, the problem is not the light. If left unresolved, these negative patterns may grow stronger if we are exposed to the trigger again, and as a result, we unintentionally learn to react in an undesirable way.
3. What should I do more of?  This question helps to reinforce what's working well for us.  As they say, energy flows where attention goes.  
4. What assumptions and beliefs undermined my achievements today?  Unchecked assumptions may lead to misunderstandings, poor decision-making, and repeated mistakes.  They keep us stuck in the old paradigms. This question aims to break rigid thinking patters that we may have learned unintentionally and open our mind to new perspectives.    
5. What assumptions and beliefs supported my progress?  We want to nurture these beliefs because they are the foundation of our future successes.  

Being mindful of learning as it happens.   The practice of reflection may lead us to a new level of awareness:  we may be able to monitor our learning as it occurs and adjust our course of actions as needed instead of reflecting on things only after they happened.  We are able to gain the state of clarity that I like to describe as the mental "white space."  In art and design, the concept of "white space" refers to the absence, or nothingness, that makes the content stand out.  White space creates balance.  Similarly, when we are truly present and aware, our perception is heightened.  We notice things we wouldn't otherwise.  We experience more insights.  We respond to situations as they arise without stress or worry generated by mental clutter.  This is learning in the moment, with the mind open to all relevant cues our environment has to offer.  

Expanding our information channels.  Information is inside and all around us.  How do we decide what to notice and act upon?  We are used to relying on our critical thinking and cognitive abilities to process and filter information.  This limits our learning to what we can observe through our senses and get to know through thinking.  Recognize that we can access information through a variety of channels:  text, images, people, experiences, dreams, intuition, feelings, emotions, etc.  Some of these channels are rarely used, if at all.  If we only stick to the preferred ways to receive and process information, we may develop a tunnel vision.  The challenge is to learn how to use different information channels and integrate them for the optimum decision-making.  For example, if you are a logical/analytical type, try using your intuition more often or notice your emotional and physiological responses once you've made a decision.  

Emptying the mind-cup.  You may have heard the Zen parable about a cup of tea.  A university professor came to visit a Zen master to inquire about Zen.
The Zen master served tea.   He poured the cup full and kept on pouring.  The professor watched the overflow in bewilderment and then protested: "It is overfull. No more will go in!"  The Zen master said, "Like this cup, your mind is full of your own opinions and preconceptions. How can I show you Zen unless you first empty your cup?"

There is learning, and then there is knowing that comes from learning less rather than more.  Information overload doesn't make us wiser.  Sometimes, we need to quiet our mind to have a true insight.  Try incorporating practices that help you gain clarity and heighten perception, such as meditation, guided visualizations, longer walks in nature, or simply naps.  You may discover that you are able to concentrate better, notice more, and respond creatively to challenges as they arise.     

Creating flow.  In his book “Finding Flow,” Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi talks about how to achieve the state of complete engagement, "being in the zone," or "flow."  It is a very joyful state when we are completely immersed in the experience, free of fears and doubts, and we often lose the track of time.  According to the author, the conditions that make the "flow" more likely to occur include:

• clear and compatible goals,
• immediate feedback, and
• a fine match between the skills and the challenge to avoid anxiety when the challenge is too high or boredom when  it is to low compared to the level of skills.  

The state of flow is characterized by clear focus, involvement, and control – all important attributes of inspired learning.  Csikszentmihalyi writes, "Thus the flow experience acts as a magnet for learning – that is, for developing new levels of challenges and skills." 

Recognizing serendipitous learning opportunities.   As much as we'd like to control our personal learning curriculum, it is important to embrace some element of uncertainty when it comes to learning and be open to important lessons as they come.  Indulge your curiosity and trust your instincts to take you to the learning path you need to follow in the moment.  

What does inspired learning mean to you?   Please share...

Orientation Series:  21 Steps to Becoming a Better Learner:
Step 1:  Setting your learning objectives
Step 2:  Taking an inventory of your skills
Step 3:  Taking an Inventory of Your Learning Tools
Step 4:  Finding opportunities for cognitive apprenticeship
Step 5:   Determining the "IIQ" of what you read
Step 6:  Choosing helpful books for law students
Step 7:  “The Three 'P's of Performance” in Action
Step 8:  Tapping into your social networks
Step 9:  Identifying your learning barriers
Step 10:  Finding your sources of motivation
Step 11:  Managing your energy
Step 12:  Focusing on how you think
Step 13:  Mastering informal learning and professional development
Step 14:  Asking Good Questions
Step 15:  Condensing your knowledge
Step 16:  Memorizing
Step 17:  Becoming a reflective learner
Step 18:  Establishing rhythms, rituals, and routines
Step 19:  Learning holistically
Step 20:  Learning to learn

Dancing around the world (video)

A friend sent me the link to this video.   It made me smile.  Are you ready to dance?

Where the Hell is Matt? (2008) from Matthew Harding on Vimeo.

Constructive thinking during meditation

Many people find it difficult to quiet their minds when they meditate.  Some erroneously assume that they are supposed to eliminate thinking altogether.  The article "Thoughts on Thinking" by Edward Espe Brown, a Zen priest and author, offers tips on how to engage your thinking constructively when you meditate. 

Rather than eliminate thinking, you could say that one of the basic skills to develop in meditation is to be able to hold and sustain contradictory thoughts—calming the impulse to eliminate the opposition. One obvious example has to do with sitting still. You want to sit still, so can you have the thought to move and go on sitting still? Or do you have to do what the thought says?

The first strategy is to focus your thinking on posture and breathing.  For example, your thinking may enable you to count the breaths or keep your spine straight. 

The second strategy is to give your thinking a task.  For example, you can ponder Koans to break traditional thinking patterns or take mental notes of what's going on, such as "thinking," "judging," "labeling," "feeling happy," etc. 

The third strategy is to ask your thinking to leave you alone for now and promise to check back later.  The author recounts the advice he received from a speech consultant when he had trouble expressing himself at meetings:

"Tell me what you wanted to say," she prompted.

"I can't." When she wondered why not, I explained: "My thinking won't let me. It says it won't be good enough."

She offered some instructions: "Ask your thinking to go into the room next door while you talk, and promise that you will check back with it when you are done."

"It won't go."

"There's a television there."

"It doesn't believe I'll check back."

"Promise."

"It still won't go," I lamented.

"Close the door! Force it shut!" she insisted.

Finally, I told her what I had wanted to say at the meeting. "Now, let's ask your thinking what it thought," she said. My thinking was pleased and relieved to be consulted: "That was rather good," it told me. But my speech consultant wasn't finished. "And now let's ask your thinking if it has any suggestions for improvement?"

My thinking was so pleased and politely responded, "You might have tried this or emphasized that a little more."

This was a fundamental shift from the more habitual approach of simply telling my thinking to go away and not "bother" me. Here, I asked my thinking to be quiet so as to closely observe what was happening—and then tell me about it.

You can read the full article "Thoughts on Thinking" by Edward Espe Brown here.

The Complete Lawyer focuses on "The Brave New World Of Associates"

The current issue of The Compete Lawyer is dedicated to associates.  There are plenty of insightful offerings from professional development to lifestyle to productivity and networking, so check it out. 

"Q-tools: An approach for discovery and knowledge work" by Dave Gray

In the world of rapid information flow, asking the right questions is often more important than knowing the answers.  Dave Gray offers an interesting paradigm of questions to help us process information:

A prism is a question that divides information into smaller groups. The purpose of a prism is to break down information into categories or subgroups…

A razor is a question that divides information into two categories, based on relevance. The purpose of a razor is to define a boundary which can be used to sort any incoming information, and determine whether it lies inside our outside the boundary…

A generator is a question that has a potentially unlimited number of answers. The purpose of a generator is to explore new or unknown territory and to find knowledge that may be hidden and make it explicit…

A peeler is a single question that, when repeated, drives attention to deeper and deeper levels, like the peeling of an onion. The purpose of a peeler is to penetrate beyond superficial levels in order to get to the heart of the matter…

A flanker is a question that seeks patterns or ideas that are similar. The purpose of a flanker is to think laterally and find an analogous situation that may help you think about things differently…

A splicer is a question that combines information, or sets, into groups. The purpose of a splicer is to find larger categories and simplify collections of information…

A pointer is a question that has a well-defined or broadly agreed-upon answer, or set of answers. The purpose of a pointer is to gather specific information…

Check out the full article for the visual representations of the question types and specific examples of their use. 

My video of positive affirmations

How selective are you when it comes to the images that appear in front of your eyes, sounds that you hear, words that you use?  What we feed to our senses affects our perceptions, emotions, and vibrations.  We don’t always have a choice of blocking negative signals, and there is no need to, as long as we have tools to counterbalance the undesirable effects with strong positive messages that help us stay centered, peaceful, and aware.  Visualizations, vision boards, meditation, affirmations are all helpful techniques to bring balance and clarity to our hectic lives. 

Yesterday, I created a brief video of positive affirmations.  I had lots of fun doing it and hope you enjoy it too.  Here it is...  

"Pursue the Passion" interviews attorney Lonnie Williams Jr.

In this post last year, I wrote about Pursue the Passion and their project "to interview passionate professionals about their career paths."  They recently interviewed attorney Lonnie Williams Jr. about his dream and his path to become a prominent lawyer in Arizona and "a dispute resolver," as he sees himself.  You can read his inspirational story here and watch the video.

Meditation Retreat for Law Professionals and Students

The Center for Contemplative Mind in Society is offering Meditation Retreat for Law Professionals and Students on September 11-14, 2008 at Menla Mountain Center, Phoenicia, NY: 

Mindfulness meditation can provide a practical tool for busy legal professionals to quiet the mind, enhance clarity and professional effectiveness, and restore a more peaceful balance to their lives. This program will include meditation instruction and practice, and will explore the interplay between contemplative and legal practices and the role meditation can play in the professional and personal lives of lawyers, judges, law professors, law students, and other legal professionals. There will be periods of silent meditation, lectures, and group discussions concerning skills training and the ethical practice of law.

The Center for Contemplative in Society has offered retreats for legal professionals for ten years, offering annual retreats in California since 2004. We are pleased to return to the East Coast to present this special program.

This retreat is co-sponsored by the City University of New York School of Law.

You can learn more about this event at the Contemplative Mind Law Program website and register here.

Stephanie West Allen of Idealawg wrote about the benefits of mindfulness in the practice of law in this post.

I am making plans to attend the retreat.  Who else is going?  

Wordle

This is a visual representation of Lawsagna created in Wordle.  Worlde is an application that creates word clouds from text that you provide.  You can enter text, submit a URL of your blog, or a del.icio.us user name to see the tags.  You can choose different fonts, layouts, and color schemes for your image.  It’s a neat tool to play with. 

Personal Energy Management Teleclass

You are motivated, ambitious, hardworking, and at the same time, you often feel overworked, overscheduled, overwhelmed.  If this rings true, join me on August 5, 9:00pm ET for my free 1-hour tele-coaching class on mind/body approaches to personal energy management.  Just fill out the form below and you will receive the details of the call.  The recording will be available to those who register but can’t attend the live call.  Bring your questions.  To learn more, visit http://www.selfhelpbookmuse.com/events--teleseminars.html

Interview with Cheryl Stephens, the author of “Plain Language Legal Writing”

I wonder sometimes how much time and energy we waste on creating and reading legal texts that are hard to understand.  It is a sad situation that many people expect legal documents to be incomprehensible.  Cheryl Stephens is set to change that with her new book  Plain Language Legal Writing.  I am happy to offer you my interview with Cheryl.

Cheryl Stephens, of Building Rapport, the plain language blog, is a leader in the field of plain language communication, and provides training and workshops to clients all over North America. She is making a guest appearance today promoting her new book, Plain Language Legal Writing.

Lawsagna:  Your work is in the area of plain language. Can you tell us about that? What’s plain language all about?

Cheryl Stephens:  Plain language is writing, or any language, that is clear and understandable, so that it’s easy for people to get — and use — information that is important to a person's life.

Lawsagna:  What kind of information?

Cheryl Stephens:  Well, think of anyplace you’ve seen legalese in your own life: contracts, regulations, waiver forms and releases, even the agreement you have to sign whenever you install software or sign up for something online.

Lawsagna:  And you’re saying those things don’t have to be written in legalese? Isn’t the law inherently complex?

Cheryl Stephens:  There is no reason that legal language — language regulating legal rights and duties — has to be incomprehensible. It can be made plain enough for its intended audience.

Plain legal language is being written every day. Those who defend out-dated, poorly-written gibberish on the grounds of its complexity should be embarrassed.

Lawsagna:  What other common arguments against plain language do you hear?

Cheryl Stephens:  People say it is "talking down" to people or "dumbing down." I have learned that real experts have internalized and integrated their special knowledge to the point where they can talk of it in simple language—without any mystery. Anyone who can't do that, and complains about being asked to "dumb it down," is a pompous ass.

Lawsagna:  If few lawyers and few clients like to read legalese, why do you think we continue to see it?  What is the biggest barrier to the wide use of plain language?

Cheryl Stephens:  Lawyers need to develop new writing habits. That is all. Once you have learned to write legalese and you have done it for years, it is ingrained in your thinking patterns.

I have been working at plain language for 19 years, and still, my first drafts often follow traditional legal phrasing and sentence structure, and I have to think twice about word choices.

So make that two things: develop new writing habits, and allow yourself enough time for each writing project to do it right.

Lawsagna:  Are there any risks of using plain language?

Cheryl Stephens:  Depends who does it. A person who is not well-versed in the law, in general, should not write contracts. But many organizations think they can write their own plain language contracts. I do not advise it because there have been lawsuits resulting when an amateur's rewrite changes the substantive content. Lawyers better do it.

Lawsagna:  In our fast-paced world, people look for easier and faster ways to process information. Internet and social networks have changed the way we read, aggregate information, and collaborate on projects.  What is the relationship between plain language and Web 2.0?

Cheryl Stephens:

1. Plain English is the language of the Internet, and W3.
2. Plain Language favors the use of standard grammar, spelling, and punctuation. I am not sure those standards are respected by Web 2.0 (btw, can you define that in plain English?).

[Lawsagna:   It looks like people are still debating the meaning of Web 2.0.  According to Wikipedia, which is an example of Web 2.0, “Web 2.0 is a term describing the trend in the use of World Wide Web technology and web design that aims to enhance creativity, information sharing, and, most notably, collaboration among users.”  So, can we say in plain language that Web 2.0 refers to the use of web technology and web design to promote creativity, information exchange and collaboration among users?]

Lawsagna: Do certain practice areas use plain language more than others?

Cheryl Stephens:  Family law, juvenile law, criminal law, immigration -- for individual practitioners.
Banking and consumer law for institutions (but not by their choice).

Lawsagna:  Do you have any suggestions for someone who wants to find a lawyer that uses plain language?

Cheryl Stephens: No, my suggestion is to lawyers: advertise that you provide service in plain language—if it's true.

People are always asking me for a referral to a plain language lawyer in a particular practice area in a specific geographic area. I send out an email asking my contacts if they know of someone. This is always anecdotal. To my knowledge, only major Australian law firms have pushed their plain language skills in their marketing.

Lawsagna:  In your book, you talk about visual aids.  Could you explain their function in legal writing?

Cheryl Stephens:  Charts, graphs, maps. These are increasingly being used as schedules to laws, by-laws, and contracts. For any legal matter that a firm handles regularly, the firm should (have an expert) develop some graphical resources for client use. These reinforce the message in your text.

Also, you have written on your blog about the different learning styles of students. People have different information-processing styles, too. So the more variety you use in correspondence, the more likely you are to get the information across.

For example, if clients are missing important appointments, consider using three tactics in future:
 1. Send a clear, simple letter that ONLY confirms the appointment (and has no substantive material).
 2. Include with that letter a page, or appointment card, showing:
    * the calendar month with the date checked,
    * a clock face with the hands set to the appointment time.
 3. Have your receptionist call the day before to confirm the appointment.

It may seem like a big hassle, but it will work.

Lawsagna:  What do you need to know to write in plain English?

Cheryl Stephens:  We have a process which takes into account the reader's interest, reading skill, and need for the information. It is an elaboration of the classical approach to writing effectively.

By the way, we now talk about plain language instead of plain English, because the ideas apply to communication in any language. Whatever the language, the aim is clarity and usefulness of the information.

In English, a number of shortcuts and guidelines have been developed to help the person who is not a writer by profession. Most of the US state laws requiring plain English set out some of these as requirements or measurements of plainness. In Canada, the laws tend to demand qualities like "clear" or "readable" and so on.

Lawsagna:  You’re having a contest, aren’t you? What’s that all about?

Cheryl Stephens:  It’s a contest to rewrite a section of the U.S. Copyright Act — both to rewrite it as the law would look in plain English, and to write a clear explanation for the general public.

Lawsagna:  What are you trying to accomplish with this contest?

Cheryl Stephens:  I want to show the difference between legal drafting and legal writing. One task is to redraft the legislation in plain language, and that’s a specialized skill. Not every lawyer needs to know how to do that. But the other task, to explain the law in plain language — that’s a skill every lawyer does need.

Lawsagna:  And that’s what your new book is about?

Cheryl Stephens:  Yes. I wanted to write a simple but complete guide for lawyers who want to make their writing clearer.

Lawsagna:  Well, I think you’ve done a great job. Can you tell us where we can learn more about the book, and about the contest?

Cheryl Stephens:  Yes, there’s a web page for the book. PlainLanguageLegalWriting.com, and there’s a link to the contest on that page as well.

Bar exam review

For July bar exam takers, here's a round-up of my earlier posts to help you prepare:

How to take exams with the champion’s mindset

Memory techniques

8 times smarter : learning with multiple intelligences

Getting ready for the bar exam

More bar exam tips

How to create memorable flashcards

Tip bit #21: Change the word

On stress and memory

8 bar exam preparation myths busted

Mnemonics to remember the future estates

Best diet before a test

Tip Bit #29: Run away from panic

Best of luck!

Using multiple intelligences for health and wellness

Yesterday, I led a session on bridging the gap between information and transformation at “My Ultimate Mind-Body Makeover” event organized by Master Coach, NLP Practitioner and Audio Author Sue Stebbins, the founder of Successwaves.  We discussed the topic of information imbalances and the ways to correct them by engaging multiple intelligences.

We may not think of ourselves as information, but that's what we are:  the cells in our bodies contain information about who we are, what traits and predispositions we have.  The information is also all around us.  It comes to us through a variety of channels:  text, images, people, experiences, dreams, insights, feelings, emotions, etc.  Our reality is, in essence, defined by the combinations of information:  what information we choose to recognize and what information we ignore, how we access and interpret this information, and how we integrate it into the knowledge we already possess.  

Have you ever played with kaleidoscopes - those tubes of mirrors with loose colored beads?  You turn and shake them, and the same stones form different colorful patterns reflecting off the mirrors.  Our minds can be like kaleidoscopes.  We receive the same pieces of information, but they get reflected off the mirrors of our experiences, attitudes, beliefs, and form our own, unique patterns of understanding.

Learning is about taking in information, making it your own, and using it to function well in the world.  I wonder if a person who only uses some information channels but not others is at risk of information imbalances.  For example, as lawyers, we have been trained to rely on our cognitive skills to solve problems and ignore our gut feeling and intuition in favor of critical thinking and analysis.  An unfortunate consequence is that we often stop recognizing the intelligence of our bodies.  The disengagement from the wisdom of our bodies manifests itself in addictive behaviors, compulsive eating, prolonged stress, anxieties, and a multitude of other health and mental issues.  The good news is that this body intelligence is always present and available to us, but we have to re-learn how to access it and interpret its messages.  Engaging multiple intelligences can help open up some of those underused information channels.  Here are some examples:

1. Use your bodily-kinesthetic intelligence to take time throughout your busy day to notice how your body feels.  Think on your feet:  let your body guide you when you need to make a decision.  If you experience muscle tension, a "pit" in stomach, or a sudden headache, perhaps, your body is telling you that you are moving in a wrong direction. 
2. Use your logical-mathematical intelligence to rebel against your own limiting thinking.  Flip your assumptions, mock the established thinking patterns, and come up with fresh, powerful, energizing ideas. 
3. Use your linguistic intelligence to build a healthier vocabulary and ban toxic words that poison your body.  Avoid negative conversations when you eat because the chemicals your brain sends through your body in response to the negative emotions and stress affect your digestion.
4. Use your spatial intelligence to practice stress-reducing visualizations.  Here’s the one I like to use.  Close your eyes and imagine that you are near the ocean.  As you are walking along the shore, you feel the softness and warmth of the white sand under your bare feet.  And with each step you take, your worries and anxieties just dissipate into the sand.  You feel peaceful and relaxed…  
5. Use your musical intelligence to listen to natural sounds of wind, waves, leaves, birds, etc. to harmonize your body and mind.
6. Use your naturalist intelligence to explore how a certain concept that’s relevant to you is played out in nature.  BEAUTY, BALANCE, PURPOSE, HARMONY are all good candidates.  For example, if you want more balance in your life, you can explore how nature manifests it.
7. Use your intrapersonal intelligence to learn what brings you joy and energy and do more of it!
8. Use your interpersonal intelligence to strengthen your support system and share your curiosity, humor, creativity, and appreciation with others.

Related post:  For suggestions on how multiple intelligences can be used in law school, read 8 times smarter : learning with multiple intelligences.

If you want to increase your intelligence, train your working memory

If you want to sharpen your mental ability to solve new problems outside your area of expertise, you should train your working memory, according to The New York Times article “Memory Training Shown to Turn Up Brainpower” by Nicholas Bakalar.  

Fluid intelligence refers to the ability to reason and solve new problems independently of previously acquired knowledge:

"Until now, it had been widely assumed that the kind of mental ability that allows us to solve new problems without having any relevant previous experience — what psychologists call fluid intelligence — is innate and cannot be taught (though people can raise their grades on tests of it by practicing).

But in the new study, researchers describe a method for improving this skill, along with experiments to prove it works."

This method was a structured training in working memory:

"The four groups underwent a half-hour of training daily for 8, 12, 17 and 19 days, respectively. At the end of each training, researchers tested the participants’ fluid intelligence again. To make sure they were not just improving their test-taking skills, the researchers compared them with control groups that took the tests without the training.

The results … were striking. Although the control groups also made gains, presumably because they had practice with the fluid intelligence tests, improvement in the trained groups was substantially greater. Moreover, the longer they trained, the higher their scores were. All performers, from the weakest to the strongest, showed significant improvement.

...

The authors suggest several aspects of the exercise relevant to solving new problems: ignoring irrelevant items, monitoring ongoing performance, managing two tasks simultaneously and connecting related items to one another in space and time."

Top 100 Tools for Learning

Jane Hart at the Centre for Learning & Performance Technologies is compiling the Top 100 Tools for Learning 2008 list by asking learning professionals to contribute their lists of top 10 favorite tools for learning.  If you want to know more about Web 2.0 technologies and social learning, the Centre is an excellent place to start.  I've written about the Directory of Learning Tools, which now contains over 2,000 production and personal tools for learning. You can also check out 25 must-have free tools for professional development. And here’s the link to my top 10 learning tools. 

Spring Equinox

It's been busy around here (I will update on the developments soon), and my blogging gave in.  Today is a fresh start.  It's Spring Equinox.  The word "equinox" derives from the Latin words "aequus" (equal) and "nox" (night), which translates into "equal night."  During the equinoxes, the Sun is positioned directly above the Earth's equator, and day and night are about the same length all over the world.  Some believe that we should actually make our plans for the New Year on Spring Equinox.  The winter months preceding the Spring Equinox are good for reflection and contemplation, but now is the time to spring into action.  Have you given up on any of your 2008 resolutions yet?  Today may be a good day to bring the important objectives back into focus.  Let's get in sync with nature, affirm our clear intentions for 2008 and receive the energy boost we need to shake off the winter slumber.

TimeLeft for time management

TimeLeft is a multipurpose time-management tool that can notify you of an upcoming event, count down till your next scheduled study or work break, measure time interval and signal its end, even track online auctions.  The program can can also replace Windows' built-in system-tray clock.

"TimeLeft is a versatile desktop utility, which may be used as a countdown clock, reminder, clock, alarm clock, tray clock, stopwatch, timer, sticker, auction watch and time synchronization utility. TimeLeft uses Winamp skins to show digits and text.

The main feature of TimeLeft is a powerful customizable reminder, which can show a message, play music (any formats including mp3) or open a link, document, execute an application, turn off your monitor or shutdown your PC."

"The Opposable Mind" by Roger L. Martin

If you like to think about how you think, you may want to read Tim Milburn’s review of "The Opposable Mind: How Successful Leaders Win Through Integrative Thinking" by Roger L. Martin.  The book discusses the concept of integrative thinking:

The ability to face constructively the tension of opposing ideas and, instead of choosing one at the expense of the other, generate a creative resolution of the tension in the form of a new idea that contains elements of the opposing ideas but is superior to each.

For lawyers who are used to fighting out the opposing ideas, this book may offer a refreshingly new perspective.  I imagine, mediators may find it useful too.  I've just added the book to my Amazon wishlist.

Orientation Series: 21 Steps to Becoming a Better Learner

Step 20:  Learning to learn

What distinguishes best lawyers, doctors, architects, etc. from the rest of the crowd?  What do they know or do that others don't?  One possibility is that they are very proficient in using certain meta-skills that can be applied to multiple tasks and contexts and supercharge whatever these experts do.  Effective learners invest time and effort in developing the skills that help them learn and perform to their best potential.  What could those meta-skills be and how can we develop them?  Here is what I've brainstormed so far:

Extracting only relevant information. Being able to zero in on the essential elements saves time and brain power.   

       What to do: 

1. Learn the basics well.  Applying meta-skills takes up working memory, which is very limited.  When you have to think about the basic content and try to use your meta-skill, your working memory gets overloaded.  You have to know the foundations well in order to filter any additional information.
2. Clarify and simplify.  If you have clutter on your desk and somebody leaves an important piece of paper there for you, you may not see it.  But if you have a clean and well-organized desk, anything new will jump out at you.  The same applies to your head.
3. Practice "selective ignorance."   In this day and age, we consume much more information than we really need.  It's not always better to read and learn more.  Making sure you pick the best in the ocean of information is important, so become selective.  Each piece of information you consume should have a purpose and application.
4. Learn to prioritize.  Prioritizing forces you to make decisions about the relative importance of things.  The ability to see the essential will strengthen with this practice.
5. Use effective reading strategies that allow you to get to the important information quickly.

Recognizing patterns easily.  If we can connect pieces of information into a pattern, we are able to use our previous knowledge and experience more effectively.  Once something falls into a familiar pattern, we know what to do because we encountered a similar situation before and we can draw from the past experience. 

       What to do: 

1. Compare and contrast things.  You will teach yourself to notice important differences and similarities. 
2. Reflect on your past experiences.  As you do so, look for patterns in actions and outcomes. 

Memorizing. Working with our memory means being selective about what we need to memorize and why.  It is also about choosing the right strategy to retain information. 

        What to do:

1. Learn how memory works. 
2. Find memorizing strategies that work best for you.
3. Ask yourself why you need to remember something.
4. Choose the appropriate strategy and give your full attention to the material you need to memorize.

Analyzing and comprehending information.  We constantly rearrange our knowledge base to integrate new information.  How do we know that we truly comprehended something?  It fits into our big picture of how things work. 

        What to do:

1. Summarize and synthesize what you have learned.  Make sure you know how the concepts fit together.
2. Ask questions.  Questions help to reveal blind spots in your knowledge, challenge assumptions, expand your thinking.  Opt for open-ended questions, which start with what, who, how, why, when, where.
3. Teach what you have learned to others.  It will help you master the subject matter. 

Occasionally, we analyze something incorrectly, hence the next point…

Verifying and testing the knowledge.  Effective learners are able to test and adjust their mental maps continuously.  They are not afraid to put themselves out there because that is how they receive feedback and make improvements.   

       What to do:

1. In the ideal world, you encounter a problem and ask yourself what you need to know to solve it.  Then, you go and learn what you need in the easiest and fastest way.  It is called "just-in-time" learning.  It ensures that your learning is relevant and valuable.  You apply it right away and gain competence in the process.  In the "learning-in-advance" scenario, look for opportunities to practice what you have learned.  If it is a skill, try transferring it to a different context and use it there. 
2. Learn collaboratively.  Share your ideas with others.  Talk through your thought process. 
3. Capture your ideas in writing.  Writing makes things clearer.  If somebody reads it, you may get feedback as well. 
4. Be adventurous and get out of your comfort zone.      

Reviewing. Assessing past actions is a crucial step if we want to achieve mastery.  We need to figure out what worked and what didn’t and adjust the behavior.

        What to do: 

1. Develop a habit of looking back at your actions and evaluating how well they served you.  Did you get the outcome you wanted?  Can you think of a better and faster way to achieve the same result? What would you do differently in the future?
2. Always search for ways to simplify, speed up and improve the process.
3. Ask people for feedback and once you’ve received it, consider it carefully.

Self-monitoring. Here, we have to assume the roles of the doer and observer at the same time.  We assess the performance in the moment, react, predict, and make adjustments as we go.  Such self-regulation offers a big learning advantage because we are attuned to instant feedback and can correct our course of actions accordingly.

        What to do: 

1. Practice mindfulness.   
2. Think about your thinking.
3. Pause and reflect on what you are doing.  Eventually, you will be able to monitor yourself without having to stop what you are doing.  It will be like a second layer of awareness that will allow you to stay attuned to the relevant clues in the context and adjust your actions as needed.

Maintaining the right attitude. Cognitive skills are important but they are not everything.  Emotional intelligence is needed as we navigate through our lives.  Think about how much information is encoded in people’s emotions and attitudes.  We have to be "emotion detectors" to succeed.  Read my earlier post on "How to develop your emotional intelligence" for more tips and resources. 

How do you develop your meta-skills?

Orientation Series:  21 Steps to Becoming a Better Learner:
Step 1:  Setting your learning objectives
Step 2:  Taking an inventory of your skills
Step 3:  Taking an Inventory of Your Learning Tools
Step 4:  Finding opportunities for cognitive apprenticeship
Step 5:   Determining the "IIQ" of what you read
Step 6:  Choosing helpful books for law students
Step 7:  “The Three 'P's of Performance” in Action
Step 8:  Tapping into your social networks
Step 9:  Identifying your learning barriers
Step 10:  Finding your sources of motivation
Step 11:  Managing your energy
Step 12:  Focusing on how you think
Step 13:  Mastering informal learning and professional development
Step 14:  Asking Good Questions
Step 15:  Condensing your knowledge
Step 16:  Memorizing
Step 17:  Becoming a reflective learner
Step 18:  Establishing rhythms, rituals, and routines
Step 19:  Learning holistically

Free places to learn

I am just back from browsing courses at MIT OpenCourseWare. There, you can access more than 1800 courses in different disciplines of the MIT curriculum free of charge. Titles range from How to Develop "Breakthrough" Products and Services to Neural Basis of Learning and Memory to Expository Writing - Food for Thought: Writing and Reading about Food and Culture.

 
For more learning, check out More than 100 Free Places to Learn--and Counting at Mission to Learn (Hat Tip to The Bamboo Project).

What I learned in my first week of the raw food diet

It's been about a week and a half now since I started my 30-day raw food program.  I view it as a learning experience.  Instead of focusing on limitations, temptations and frustrations, I choose to think of this experience in terms of explorations, discoveries and learning opportunities.  I believe that the mindset is really important when it comes to any kind of change, and sometimes, being able to adjust your perspective on things can do wonders for you.  I want to share some of my observations so far in the hope that it may help you maintain the positive attitude when you want to adopt a new behavior.  Here are a few things I learned:

Creativity.  When I started the program, the little voice of self-doubt tried to plant some limiting concepts in my head.  For example, I feared that avoiding cooked foods meant my choices were very limited.  It took some critical thinking to get rid of this notion.  I looked at my regular diet and realized that the bulk of it consisted of the same cooked foods, such as rice, pasta, fish, chicken, turkey, etc. in various combinations.  There was no reason I couldn’t combine raw foods in the same way creating varied menus.  I decided to focus on creativity when it came to menu planning.  I learned to make tasty green smoothies that combined fruit and vegetables for optimum taste and nutrition.  The celery, cucumber and romaine lettuce mix tasting like mango and bananas is easier to enjoy, and I don't have to eat salads every day.

Discovery. For each food item I had to give up, I decided to come up with a new item that I could try.   My additions include persimmons, papaya, agave nectar, pumpkin seeds, flax seeds, and the list will continue to grow.  My trips to the grocery store are like mini-explorations now that I hunt for vegetables, fruits, nuts, and seeds that I have not tried for a while (or at all).

Balance between planning and flexibility. I need to plan for the upcoming weeks so that I have enough food around to keep me on the program.  At the same time, I realized I liked it better when I didn't have each day's menu planned.  I now go day by day and eat what my body wants at the moment.  I listen to my body more and learn to recognize its messages.

Re-assessment. When you do the same thing the same way over and over again, you don't feel the need to stop and ask if what you do still makes sense or whether there is a better approach.  A change forces you to take a second look at your habits and routines.  My raw food program made me realize that I unnecessarily overcooked many fruits and vegetables, depleting them of their nutrients.  For example, from now on, when I need to cook broccoli, I will boil water, take it off the heat, and then add the broccoli.  There is no need to boil it even for a few minutes.  Hot water will break it down a bit, but it will still be full of flavor, and crunch, and all those things that are good for you.  Also, now when I cook my baby's oatmeal, I add frozen blueberries after I take it off the heat.  They will thaw and cool the oatmeal faster.  Simple things like these, I would not have noticed without my raw diet. 

The benefit of firm boundaries.  I still have cupcakes and cookies in the house as the rest of my household is not ready for the raw diet yet.  However, making a firm decision not to eat them took away the doubts, hesitations, and all of that back-and-forth dialogue and guilt trip that I would have otherwise had in my head:  "I really shouldn't eat…or maybe, just one...I hate my sweet tooth…will it help if I eat just one…was it that good?"  Firm boundaries stop unproductive thoughts.

Support.  Identifying and using your sources of support is very important.  Internet and Web 2.0 offer great opportunities in this regard.  I visited raw food blogs and websites for tips and recipes, watched motivational interviews on YouTube, wrote about my experiment publicly – all of which strengthened my commitment.  It is good to have those resources lined up before the going gets tougher.

We can all learn from our challenges.  Take time to think about what you are learning and how it can help you in the future.  What did you learn from your challenges?

"Taking Play Seriously"

The New York Time Magazine’s article "Taking Play Seriously" by Robin Marantz Henig offers interesting perspectives on the nature and function of play:   

Armed with research grounded in evolutionary biology and experimental neuroscience, some scientists have shown themselves eager — at times perhaps a little too eager — to promote a scientific argument for play. They have spent the past few decades learning how and why play evolved in animals, generating insights that can inform our understanding of its evolution in humans too. They are studying, from an evolutionary perspective, to what extent play is a luxury that can be dispensed with when there are too many other competing claims on the growing brain, and to what extent it is central to how that brain grows in the first place.

Scientists who study play, in animals and humans alike, are developing a consensus view that play is something more than a way for restless kids to work off steam; more than a way for chubby kids to burn off calories; more than a frivolous luxury. Play, in their view, is a central part of neurological growth and development — one important way that children build complex, skilled, responsive, socially adept and cognitively flexible brains.

Their work still leaves some questions unanswered, including questions about play’s darker, more ambiguous side: is there really an evolutionary or developmental need for dangerous games, say, or for the meanness and hurt feelings that seem to attend so much child’s play? Answering these and other questions could help us understand what might be lost if children play less.

The article goes on to discuss a number of scientific hypotheses about the nature of play and studies that support them.

What do “love” and “law” have in common (besides the fact that they both start with “L”)?

I won't be eating chocolate today as I am on a 30-day raw food experiment.  As I sit here buzzing from all the sweet fruit I've consumed (I hope it's the fruit), I am pondering the following question:

What do "love" and "law" have in common (besides the fact that they both start with the letter "L")?

Service comes to mind.  The value of the legal profession is measured by the service we provide.  And the service is driven by love.  What we love, though, varies from person to person.  One could be driven by:

• love for people;
• love for justice;
• love for ideas;
• love for lifestyle;
• love for money;
• love for family;
• love for himself or herself (self-worth)
• etc.

Does the nature and quality of our service depend on what we love?  What do you think?  What drives your service?

Orientation Series: 21 Steps to Becoming a Better Learner

Step 19:  Learning holistically

When we think of learning, we often focus on cognitive functions and memory.  But learning doesn’t happen just in our heads.  I think there's a benefit in looking at learning from the holistic perspective that involves body, mind, and spirit (I am talking about human spirit here).  If the learning is powerful, what we learn becomes integrated into our belief system and behavior.  Learning has the potential to change not just what we know, but who we are.  How can we experience holistic learning?  Here’re a few suggestions:   

• Let your heart and passion drive your learning.  We are so conditioned to follow somebody else’s curriculum from school to college to corporate training, we come to believe that there is no learning without a syllabus.  Try setting your own learning agenda and let your curiosity guide you.  Learn something not because you have to, but because you want to.      
• Develop your intuition.  Intuition is a powerful blend of experience, awareness and inner wisdom.  It offers you a shortcut to knowledge that you may not gain through logical reasoning.  For more information on how to develop intution, check out the intuition resources at the Institute of HeartMath.
• Engage your multiple intelligences when you learn.  You can find tips on how to do it in my post "8 times smarter:  learning with multiple intelligences."  Think about how you can use various senses in learning.
• Be emotionally engaged.  Feeling inspired requires consistent work.  Create your own learning “bliss bank” and fill it with words, images, articles, and other things and activities that motivate you.  When you need an emotional uplift, go to your “bliss bank.”    
• Experiment with your learning environment.  Pay attention to how the physical space and tools you use to learn make you feel.  Escape into nature to see how fresh air and movement influence your thinking and memory.  For example, you can experiment with the "memory palace" technique as you walk along a familiar route. 
• Approach learning as play.  Our fear of failure and self-limiting constraints often prevent us from entertaining our best ideas.  Play is less threatening and can help us unleash the creative potential inside.  Next time you need to solve a problem, first create a list of bad ideas.  Get this fear of "looking stupid" out of your system.  You may be surprised how this simple technique can lead you to some great solutions.
• Consider the moral and ethical implication of what you are learning.  Will the use of your new knowledge be congruent with your values and beliefs?  Are you a better person because of this recently acquired skill?  Focus on developing skills that help your life mission. 

Do you have any suggestions for how we can learn better holistically?

Orientation Series:  21 Steps to Becoming a Better Learner:
Step 1:  Setting your learning objectives
Step 2:  Taking an inventory of your skills
Step 3:  Taking an Inventory of Your Learning Tools
Step 4:  Finding opportunities for cognitive apprenticeship
Step 5:   Determining the "IIQ" of what you read
Step 6:  Choosing helpful books for law students
Step 7:  “The Three 'P's of Performance” in Action
Step 8:  Tapping into your social networks
Step 9:  Identifying your learning barriers
Step 10:  Finding your sources of motivation
Step 11:  Managing your energy
Step 12:  Focusing on how you think
Step 13:  Mastering informal learning and professional development
Step 14:  Asking Good Questions
Step 15:  Condensing your knowledge
Step 16:  Memorizing
Step 17:  Becoming a reflective learner
Step 18:  Establishing rhythms, rituals, and routines

 

Mind on a Diet

"If we want to simplify and deepen our lives, we must simplify and deepen our minds. When we become more centered, clear, spacious, caring, and open, there is suddenly much more room in our frenetic lives for both others and ourselves."
—Lama Surya Das

This is the season when many people talk about losing a few pounds here and there.  As you decide what to feed your body, take time to think about what you feed your mind.  Here are a few things to consider.

1. Avoid empty information calories.  Just like junk food is harmful to our bodies, junk information dulls our minds.  (Here's the link to the post about my "Information Impact Quotient" approach).
2. Look for fresh ideas that forge new pathways in the brain.  Try new approached to old problems.  Evaluate situations from different perspectives.
3. Appreciate diversity.  Develop a curious mind that wants to wander and explore.
4. Make healthy thought choices.  Ban toxic thoughts.  Cherish positive, invigorating ideas.
5. Look beyond the packaging to discover the essence of things.
6. Don't feed on spoiled leftovers.  Let go of the notions that don't work for you anymore.  Release the attachments.
7. Be mindful as you consume information.  Slow down.  Take time to reflect on the meaning and usefulness of what you read and hear and integrate it into your existing knowledge base.

   

Go Red for Women

Today, February 1, 2008,  is the National Wear Red Day.  Its goal is to promote awareness of heart disease and empower women to reduce their risk.  Cardiovascular disease is the No.1 killer of American women and the cause of one in every 2.6 female deaths. 

Consider these alarming heart health statistics:

• One in three women has some form of cardiovascular disease.
• Cardiovascular disease kills approximately 460,000 women per year.
• More women die of cardiovascular disease than the next five causes of death combined,
  including cancer.

It may be a little late for a wardrobe change, but it’s never too late to learn more about your heart.  Read about the American Heart Association’s Go Red For Women Campaign and take the Go Red Heart CheckUp for a personal heart-health assessment:

"This important tool forecasts a woman’s 10-year risk for heart disease and provides a personalized action plan to help women reduce their risk. Go Red wants women to know their numbers and track their blood pressure, cholesterol, glucose and weight and keep them in a healthy range."

Practice of law can be stressful.  Please keep your heart safe and spread the word.

   

A website where mentors and mentees meet

iMantri is a new social networking site for people who offer and seek mentoring:

"Whether you want to be a mentor or a mentee, iMantri allows you evaluate your competencies, help find a suitable mentoring match, provides a framework and facilitates mentoring interactions."

I am about to explore this site more.  Shifting Careers has a nice review of this application.  (Here's the link to my post on "How to find a mentor.") I think Web 2.0 has a great potential to foster mentoring relationships.  What do you think?  Can you see a social networking site as a platform for lawyers to seek and offer mentoring?  What are the advantages and disadvantages of this high-tech approach?  I'd love to read what you think.   

   

Cognitive Fitness

From "Cognitive Fitness" by Roderick Gilkey and Clint Kilts, Harvard Business Review (need subscription, you can preview the summary of the article on the order page):

…advances in neuroscience suggest that there is no reason why your brain at 60 can’t be as competent as it was at 25. That would not have been news to thinkers such as Socrates, Copernicus, and Galileo, who were all still at the peak of their intellectual powers in their sixties and seventies. Nor would it surprise business leaders such as Alan Greenspan, Warren Buffett, and Sumner Redstone. These icons and others like them have intuitively understood that the brain’s alertness is the result of what we call cognitive fitness—a state of optimized ability to reason, remember, learn, plan, and adapt that is enhanced by certain attitudes, lifestyle choices, and exercises. The more cognitively fit you are, the better you will be able to make decisions, solve problems, and deal with stress and change. Cognitive fitness will allow you to be more open to new ideas and alternative perspectives. It will give you the capacity to change your behaviors and forecast their outcomes in order to realize your goals. You can become the kind of person your company values most. Perhaps more important, you can delay senescence for years and even enjoy a second career.

The article goes on to suggest steps you can take to stay cognitively fit and discusses some implications of the brain research to learning.  For example, the study of mirror neurons, which "aid the speed and accuracy of our perception by mentally simulating objects and actions in our environment," helps us understand how we can learn better through observation and indirect experience. 

The authors encourage play at work because play "engages the prefrontal cortex…nourishing our highest-level cognitive functions – those related to incentive and reward processing, goal and skill representation, mental imagery, self-knowledge, and memory, just to name a few."  They suggest playing games, such as bridge, chess, sudoku, solving challenging crossword puzzles, doing improvisation, reading funny books.

Searching for patterns is another way to maintain your cognitive fitness:  "First and foremost, challenge your existing mind-set, enlarge it, and make it more complex."  The authors encourage executives to "[l]isten to different viewpoints, read new kinds of articles and books, and visit places with a focused set of learning objectives."

Those who seek novelty and innovation through continuous learning benefit from neuroplasticity, the brain’s ability to change and enhance its performance.  The article suggests learning a new language, musical instrument, or new technology.

Bar exam tips round-up

For February bar exam takers, here's a round-up of my earlier posts to help you study:

How to take exams with the champion’s mindset

Memory techniques

8 times smarter : learning with multiple intelligences

Getting ready for the bar exam

More bar exam tips

How to create memorable flashcards

Tip bit #21: Change the word

On stress and memory

8 bar exam preparation myths busted

Mnemonics to remember the future estates

Best diet before a test

Tip Bit #29: Run away from panic

VizThink Conference '08

VizThink Conference '08 will take place on January 27-29, 2008 in San Francisco.  Even if you cannot attend, you may want to visit the conference website and check out a number of available podcasts and webinars on the topic of visual thinking.  They also have a blog and a wiki with additional content.   

"VizThink is gathering visual thinkers from all corners of the world to create the first global community dedicated to the use of visualization in all forms of learning and communication."