by James | Jun 13, 2014 | Exploration I
What (if any) are the methods of initiation?
Initiation, despite some overtones it has picked up does not imply that the community is a cult. Established communities and organisations use initiation ceremonies all the time, from university graduation days, to receiving a watch for your 21st birthday. There should be some official recognition of achievements not just for the community but for the individual. Public recognition of every grade is a sign of achievement and success.
There certainly should be a method of initiation into the community just to let people realise they are entering a new system, a moment they should remember, a time they should look back on.
Once such possibility is in the initial 6 months of entering the community to make a huge emphasis on the change the person is going through. Everyone enters equal that is certain they are given all the some basic clothing and items they are introduced to their teachers and staff. While there are many possibilities 2 things have a big reaction.
- Sudden environmental or external change greatly effects us
- Gradual unnoticed change suddenly noticed deeply effects us.
By moving into the the community we have already accomplished point 1 by radically changing the environment people are accustomed to. I have numerous opinions on how to achieve option 2 which are merely conjecture.
Firstly, each and every long term member candidate will shave their head on entry, it may seem extreme but if you want a generation of newcomers to identify and connect with each other creating a common unnatural situation works very well, it is in line with entering the community as equals and in 6 months you will have your hair back with its natural colour at a reasonable length.
Secondly, a lack of mirrors in the novice community would only aid in the effect of gradual unnoticed change. After 6 months of exercise, meditation, healthy eating and regular sleep only the healthiest of individuals would remain unchanged at the end.
After an optional shave the candidates would have access to a full body mirror of their new selves which should be a radical change from their initial point.
Levels of BMI, cardiovascular fitness and making people redo any tests they initially did would all hammer home how much they have changed physically.
For mental improvement show them their increase in levels in subjects in front of classes show the novice how far they have come in just 6 months welcome them to the community in a state of good health and positive thinking.
Each major step should be an exercise in showing the difference between now and where you were before.
by James | Mar 18, 2013 | Life, Writing
I’m pretty sure I’m the only one who reads this blog, but that aside I should explain that I am in the process of creating a language centre in France, not that it’s a real excuse at to why I haven’t continued my writing, I have had plenty of time to watch TV shows and waste my time on other pursuits.
The school is still in a fragile state and we are slowly gathering students, the concept of the community has not completely left me, I think my ideas have matured a lot since I wrote them down but I shall continue to write up my original thoughts on a more regular basis.
More to the fact, running an educational institution, or any kind of business at all, is going to be a very useful experience to help me consolidate and clarify my thoughts as to how the community might be able to work.
by James | Jul 5, 2012 | French
Afin, j’ai peur de cet exercise, parce que je sais que mon orthographe, grammaire et structure de la phrase sont très mal. Néamoins, pour améliorer mes compétances et monte et augmenter mon confiance, je sais que j’ai besoin de practiquer. En fait, il faut que j’ai obtenir une bonne niveau, Il n’est pas poli de vivre en France depuis deux ans et toujour pas saisir le langue.
OK, ça suffit pour aujourd’hui. S’il vous plaît laissez une critique dans les commentaires! Et je vous remercie à l’avance!!
by James | Jun 21, 2012 | Exploration I
Why are members trained in a large number of subjects and disciplines? Why not just focus on a particular field from the beginning?
General education, in many countries, segregates every subject teaching it in isolation of its peers. As a community of reason we should realize that no subject is used in complete isolation from the others, especially in the sciences, many different disciplines combine to form very diverse subjects from nano-technology to bio-chem. But equally art, philosophy and creative visual thinking have been behind some of the greatest scientific breakthroughs (DNA, General Relativity etc) in a holistic, homogeneous approach to education a general spread of foundation skills can greatly improve our abilities in unexpected ways.
Secondly, the general studying of a wide range of subjects allows us to create a basic level of equal understanding. This could point to a level whereupon the member becomes a full fledged member of the community. The idea is that the level should not be a destructive barrier for people who have very specialised expertise but a level where by the members have enough understanding that they can be helpful in any disciple in some way, even if it is just data entry or testing data, at the very least community members should understand the arguments and essentials of a dialogue in a number of different fields.
While equality is the goal there might necessarily be a hierarchy of upper and lower levels of understanding. The lower level being equivalent to a GCSE or O-Level and the upper being the same as an A-level. To become a specialist in any subject you must have a fundamental understanding of the whole (chemistry, biology, physics, mathematics) in addition to this the disciplines of electronics and computing should be taken as they are essential for building practical applications or appliances. Nevertheless, it would be unreasonable to assume that you need a high level of knowledge in all areas of all subjects there has to be some cut-off points. To become an expert in a field you need to direct your unwavering attention to it, thus an advocate of a subject will have to be content in letting other disciplines slide.
Finally, by keeping members educated or teaching subjects in a churn it keeps knowledge and humility alive as they realise their weaknesses in other disciplines and the strength of their peers, meanwhile by teaching other students their subjects it helps reaffirm and retain those fundamental skills of their trade.
by James | Jun 20, 2012 | Writing
Not sure what to write on it. I’m still typing up my views on creating a new community so that’s an ongoing project. I’m also working on a few programming projects now on hiatus because of work I’m doing on a business (that’s really in difficulties before it’s even started).
I know that people say that if you write a blog it should be a service to the people who read it and released on a timely schedule. I think I’ll take a page from Seth Godin and if you don’t know who he is…
You: https://sethgodin.typepad.com/
really: https://www.ted.com/talks/seth_godin_on_sliced_bread.html
should: https://www.ted.com/talks/seth_godin_on_sliced_bread.html
look: https://www.ted.com/talks/seth_godin_this_is_broken_1.html
at these.. Oh and you should read his books if you have time.
He is a writing machine far above and beyond me but maybe, just maybe I can write a paragraph or transcribe my deluded writings for at least 30 days (Matt Cutts would be proud 😉 I could form a good habit of expressing my thoughts online and also the progress I’m making towards creating a new kind of school here where I live.
