#1 – Four Books that Changed My Life
As I work towards finishing my first book, I’ve been thinking about the books which have had the biggest positive effect in my life.
There are too many to name, but if I had to narrow it down, these are the four that I would pick.
What about you?
Which books have had the biggest positive impact on your trajectory?
If you have 30 seconds spare, leave a comment here with your top 3-5.
#2 – Two Frames That Can Make Any Day 10x More Interesting
Frame 1
In an interview for our Holistic Psychotherapy Summit in 2022, Dr. Pat Ogden shared an idea that has stuck with me since:
Every body tells a story.
And she meant “body” here in the literal sense.
As Wilhelm Reich said: “The body is the manifestation of the unconscious”, which means that the way we hold ourselves (i.e. our posture and movement patterns) can often tell a story about our inner life too.
So, the next time you have time to kill and there are a lot of people around, e.g. in an airport, choose a random person to observe, and ask: “What story is their body telling?” (This can be particularly fun to do with a friend.)
Frame 2
Another frame I love came from Dr. Bill Matulich during our Recovery Summit in 2023.
When someone enters his practice, Bill immediately assumes he is now talking to the most interesting person in the world.
Which causes him to interact with them very differently than he would under normal circumstances.
So, when I’m meeting someone for the first time, e.g. a taxi driver, hairdresser, or a homeless person, I often do the same, and assume I’m talking to the most interesting person alive.
This puts me in a state of deep curiosity, and almost always leads to a meaningful connection with the person I’m speaking to.
#3 – Seven Questions That Helped Me Find Deep Clarity on the Camino this Year
I’ve just returned from another week on the Camino de Santiago in Spain.
Since 2022, I’ve been doing this annually to disengage from technology and the busyness of life, reconnect with the bigger picture, and get clarity on my direction for the months ahead.
I find it helpful to combine the long walks in nature with “seed questions” I let my mind meditate on during the walks, and journal about on stops along the way.
This post (3 min read) outlines the 7 questions I used this year.
#4 – Expanding Your Range of Meaning
Your range of meaning comprises all of the potential sources which you can derive meaning from in life.
Some people have a large range and get meaning from multiple sources.
Others have a narrower range, and only get it from 1 or 2 sources.
Speculating here, but my bet would be that the size of a person’s range of meaning likely correlates with their resilience and wellbeing in day-to-day life.
Larger range = robust mental health.
Smaller range = fragile mental health.
If you think about it, the process of becoming addicted is a gradual narrowing of what someone can get meaning from. As the addiction gets stronger, it becomes the primary — and sometimes the only — source of meaning in their life.
Which is why approaches like Harm Reduction, Organic Intelligence, and Mindfulness Oriented Recovery Enhancement (MORE) focus on helping individuals gradually introduce other sources into their life. By doing so, the person gets psychological nourishment from other areas, making them less dependent on the addictive substance or behaviour.
On the other end of the spectrum, you have someone like the Dali Lama.
Put him in almost any situation, and he’ll probably experience a great deal of joy and meaning, regardless of the circumstances — whether it be a trip to the supermarket, looking at a tree, or taking the dog for a walk.
A question worth thinking about then is…
How can you expand the range of meaning in your life?
#5 – Federico Faggin, Part-Wholes, and Archetypal Energy
I’ve recently been fascinated by the work of Federico Faggin.
Faggin is a physicist, inventor, and entrepreneur, who has developed a theory of reality—grounded in quantum physics—which sees consciousness and free will as fundamental.
A key aspect of this is his idea of “part-wholes”.
This short post (533 words) provides a simple introduction to the concept, how it links with the perennial wisdom, IFS, and Jung’s archetypes, and explores how you may be able to apply it to improve your quality of life.
#6 – Why We Need to Take Play Seriously
I recently interviewed Charlie Hoehn for our Holistic Coaching Summit.
Charlie was instrumental in helping Tim Ferriss make “The 4 Hour Body” a #1 New York Times Bestseller, and he’s the person that Codie Sanchez, Ramit Sethi, and Noah Kagan go to for book advice.
Earlier in life, Charlie went through a period of severe anxiety, and tried just about everything to treat it: including: talk therapy, exercise, extended fasting, volunteering, and even psychedelic therapy.
Nothing worked.
Then, he discovered the book: Play by Dr. Stuart Brown.
Inside, he learned that play is a biological need for humans (similar to food and water), and that when it’s missing from our lives, there’s an avalanche of negative consequences.
In one study, when rats were restricted from play, they grew up to be socially and emotionally crippled, were unable to read basic social cues, and often lashed out aggressively when placed with unfamiliar peers.
Brown also studied the biographies of violent criminals and found that the one thing they all had in common was a severe lack of unstructured play in early life.
After reading the book, Charlie reintroduced play into his life and his anxiety went away.
For me, the activity that brings me the most joy is 5-a-side football — but I haven’t made time for it recently.
However, after speaking with Charlie, I’m going to make this a weekly rhythm again.
What about you? What did you do for play as a kid? And is there any way you can make play a regular part of your life again now?
#7 – A Documentary I’m Enjoying – Wild Wild Country
This provides a fascinating look at the inner workings of the Rajneeshpuram commune, established by Osho and his followers in 1981.
They bought 64,000 acres of land in the middle of nowhere in central Oregon (US), and attempted to build a new city from scratch—one built on the values of love, compassion, and generosity.
And when I say “city”, I’m not exaggerating…
They built an airport, a shopping centre, plumbing, housing, and a dam. They even had their own police force and public transport system.
It was a serious attempt to build an actual utopia here on earth.
I’m only halfway through the 2nd episode in the series, and I have a feeling things are about to take a turn for the worse quite soon 
.
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Today’s newsletter is sponsored by The Holistic Psychotherapy Summit.
If you’re interested in exploring the key ideas shaping modern psychotherapy, and want to learn from the best and brightest in the field, this summit is for you.
Speakers include: Stephen Porges, Janina Fisher, Richard Schwartz, Pat Ogden, Steve Hayes—and many others—and completing the quizzes qualifies you for a certificate + 30 CPD points.
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