April 29th, 2011
From his book Synchronicity, Jung writes, “It is modern psychology and parapsychology which proved that causality does not explain a certain class of events, and in this case, we have to consider a formal factor, namely synchronicity, as a principle of explanation.”
April 28th, 2011
I just had a phone conversation with MA, a strategic research client whom I haven’t seen for a while, but I once conducted two research projects to position soy burgers and cold cuts. He and I might propose on a new strategic consumer research project related to the category of desserts and fruit.
The wood reference? Relocated from California, MA now has a 10-acre farm in Connecticut that grows Christmas trees. Not only was he intrigued, serendipitously, with the trees on my blog and the wood synchro story (Recurrence of wood on April 27), but his Christmas tree farm experience appears to contain interesting elements of synchronicity. Besides our potential study together, I’ve asked to interview him about trees so we can publish the story in its entirety. Stay tuned.
April 27th, 2011
The topic of meaningful coincidences is too good to keep to myself. If you’ve experienced a synchronous event, a situation with people, places, or things that represents serendipity, or a strange and interesting coincidence–even a series of associations that are noteworthy–please feel free to post your experience.
If you like, let me know, and maybe we can do a video or recording of it. Some synchronicities take a while to tell, with the meaning to be explored in a free form way, and that’s part of the power of it.
So, what synchronicities have operated in your life?
April 27th, 2011
On Monday, April 17, there is a series of relationships with the element wood. I make elderberry tea to soothe a sore throat. I don’t want the hot boiling water of the container to damage the formica counter in my kitchen. T takes a wood cutting board and places it under the hot container, commenting that this wood chopping block brings in the wood element of Chinese medicine. T says, “This makes for good feng shui and adds to the power of elderberry tea.” Within 10 minutes, I open my computer, and there is an email from MB who sends me a link to an astounding video on YouTube, related to wood and a nature performance of Jesu Joy of Man’s Desiring. The link is http://youtu.be/C_CDLBTJ4M, by the way, to see “music as you’ve never seen or heard it,” according to MB’s email.
In the evening, these wood references cause me to choose the green blog template with its tree background and its Tree of Life icon. I know–I have a sense of knowing that–this is the right template for my blog on synchronicity.
These wood occurrences lead me to ask: Are intriguing, memorable, unusual series of associative repetitions, one after the other, a form of synchronicity?
April 27th, 2011
Here are the guidelines to conduct authentic ethnography, a valuable process related to the purer observation espoused by academic anthropology. Doing these principles, we gain enormous depth of real-world experiences observed directly in consumer households. There are nine principles:
1.Pre-screening quads or triads: Conduct a preliminary, highly creative set of 6-8+ small focus groups or triads in several locations, first. We choose our ethnographic candidates from these groups
2.Rule of 2: Conduct the longer ethnographic observationals in households based upon the scope of 2 per key segment per two regions to read results accurately
3.Direct immersion: Observe at least 12-18+ reality observationals, each of which is 3-4 or more hours long, for at least 40-90 hours of observation per study
4. Only times of natural behavior: Observe households and subjects only during times when behaviors important to the inquiry are likely to exist and occur spontaneously, with little prompting
5. Limit typical indepth interviewing: Unlike abbreviated forms of garden-variety “talking ethnographies,” purer spontaneous observationals are emphasized with minimal staging, prompting, or asking direct questions. We leave time at the end of each observational for a formal interview, if necessary
6.Committed client team: Clients are trained in Authentic Ethnography; each client participates in at least two observationals with lead ethnographer, assists with two data-gathering roles
7.Team reinforcement in field: Prior to each ethnography, team is refreshed in special observation processes such as “active invisibility,” “soft gaze,” and “soft presence”
8.Continual ideation: The lead ehnographer debriefs frequently with client team to make sense of intricate findings, in formal and informal debriefs
9. Digital photography and videography is a key part of process: Households are photographed extensively, then edited for analysis and presentation. Visuals are as important as language
10. Pay attention to synchronicity and serendipity: Although most research analysis uses more traditional clustering of data against key themes, the element of synchronicity and meaningful coindence of observed events, icons, and behavior within households should be included as a-has and insight. The blog will report on synchronicity in ethnographic and focus group case histories at a later date
April 26th, 2011
I had two synchros that can be classified in the minor associative category. I asked W about the time of my scheduled talk at the Double Festival conference. This email occurred moments before rushing onto a subway in NYC. As I got into the subway car, my eyes lit on a poster with these words, “I took the partying into double overtime.” Although the ad was about designated drivers, it made me wonder…is the Double Festival or might my talk extend itself or our discussion until late at night? A few hours later, I got an email from W who said: ”Amidst a major jugglement, I’ll feel much better answering this by end of this weekend or sometime next week, my apologies. Thank you for bearing with me.” It seemed as if scheduling for the Double Festival was chaotic, but I don’t want to read too much into it. Yet.
The second relates to the play Wicked. T and I saw a new opera at the David Koch Theatre in Lincoln Center, Seance on a Wet Afternoon, with music composed by Stephen Schwartz. This was on Sunday afternoon. We loved the music, found the singing and acting provocative, but disliked the opera itself; we were glad when it was over. We did say that it would be fun to see Schwartz’ other works, like Wicked, a mega-hit on Broadway. This afternoon, two days later, while walking on Broadway, a street seller came right up to me and yelled that he had “reduced tickets for Wicked.” I talked with him, tickets were indeed available at 1/3 the price, but we couldn’t go tonight. Wonder what’s the connection with Wicked or Stephen Schwartz?
April 26th, 2011
Five thoughts about synchronicity:
1. It’s not a cause and effect phenomenom. It is in its own category of being
2. Jung did an experiment on synchronicity, sometime during the 1920s. He was in fact obsessed with the nature and reality of synchronicity
3. Synchronicity is usually a positive, surprising experience that we want to repeat
4. It connects with something of underlying importance to us
5. It represents the intersection of the universal and particular, the personal and the collective
April 26th, 2011
What defines synchronicity? Can synchronicity be comprised of very tiny interconnections of language or visuals that as of yet have no strong meanings other than plays on words? I’ll report back later tonight.
Here’s the oracles for April 26.
I choose three cards for today that represent a) synchronicity generally (King of Wands), b) my role (Ace of Wands), and c) role or effect on the world (8 of Swords, Interference). The Queen of Swords represents the new blog Secrets and Synchronicities in its current evolution.
A few notes from my immediate reactions to it: Three people are holding either a wand or a sword, the King, the hand in the Ace, and the Queen, while the 8 is bound up and feeling a sense of interference. Red/rust is prominent, in the robes, wand, and the clothing of the woman bound up. Synchronicity today has a sense of masculine activity, confidence, power, and forthrightness. For my side, new ideas are arising in the energy field. The world feels as if it is suffering and bound up.
How to release the world’s sufferings? How to get major organizations even corporations to create products and concepts that “give back” and release this pain and fear.
Objects are hands, bindings, water in pools, castles in the background, blue skies, powerful rulers, lizards and salamanders, and magickal wands. Will I experience any of these visuals or ideas today, or is the intent for synchronicity enough?
April 25th, 2011
Today’s synchronicity or “synchro” as they’re sometimes termed: On Saturday night, April 10, 2011, I attended a 3-hour panel discussion on synchronicity given by the Yale Synchronicity Project at the Open Center in New York City. At the end of the evening, I turned to a clinical psychologist next to me who’s interested in dreams and meaningful coincidences. I remarked that there were solid, practical ways to increase awareness of interesting, potentially significant, meaningful events and things during the day. I mentioned that the founder of The Renaissance Project in Gaithersburg, Maryland, a Ph.D. educator whose genius was focused on combining systems of accelerated learning and problem solving–but whose name I couldn’t remember–had once described to me, more than 10 years ago, the benefits of making 50 short observations a day in one’s notebook. Just writing down spontaneous, unrelated observations in a notebook. That’s all that’s necessary, this man said, to intensify brain power and awareness.
Of course, putting down observations is a favored, vital process for cultural anthropologists and qualitative researchers who constantly make notations on paper or laptop that may lead to new findings.
One week later, on the morning of the opening session of a conference on creativity–the Atlanta Creativity Exchange–where I was speaking about empowering teams to higher levels of creative performance, I looked across this wide room and saw the founder of The Renaissance Project–I suddenly remembered his name, i.e., Dr. Win Wenger–sitting at a table. He had an empty seat next to him. I sat down, started a conversation about how much I liked his system of composing music and his techniques for enhancing brain and creative function. Dr. Wenger nodded, then said I had been recommended to him as a potential speaker for his upcoming Double Festival on Accelerated Learning and Problem Solving next month in May. And, would I be interested in speaking on the role of cultural anthropology related to the topic of making sense of and figuring things out?
I thought about this invitation, later submitted a proposal, and it was accepted two days ago, on Saturday, April 23. I’m now scheduled to be speaking at The Renaissance Project’s annual conference in May on what will be the subject of Truth or dare: Exploring paradoxes of relativity and absolutism in knowledge. This awareness of synchronicity as it was happening allowed me to make the connection and accept the opportunity; the coincidence meant it was right for me to say yes though I had to move things around to make it happen and there’s some amount of work in creating this presentation.
Below is a photo from an oracle reading from the Chaupin Oracle, done for me on March 22, 2011 by Elba Bravo, shaman from Peru who happened to be in NYC for a few days and it was arranged for us to meet: These cards indicate: Be calm and wait for the blessings, an insightful link with the idea of synchronicity
April 25th, 2011
As a cultural anthropologist, qualitative market researcher, and enthusiastic discoverer of insight and truths, I’ve long been fascinated with the nature of reality on both mainstream and esoteric levels. I’m now featuring a blog with two purposes.
The first is strongly connected to my business website. Some posts will be focused on the elements of qualitative research, i.e., to share “secrets,” ideas, experiences, and reportable case histories about planning, developing, and conducting breakthrough research for brands, companies, and concepts. It will benefit clients, colleagues, and independent researchers. There’s an emphasis on techniques using archetypal and projective devices like Tarot, collage, visual storytelling as well as the underlying philosophy behind doing authentic research.You’re invited to share your research experiences and ideas.
The blog’s second purpose is a self-experiment in synchronicity. The researcher is researching herself. Each day I begin with an oracle like Tarot and a definitive intent to become aware of meaningful coincidences, i.e., synchronicity, serendipity, and threads of interconnection, that I see and that occur during the day. I note early thoughts about the preliminary intention and oracle with pen or visual, and then review the results of synchronicity at the end of the day. I’ll report back my ongoing synchronicities, whether profound, superficial, intriguing, obvious, or in some form of intuitive process.
The experiment is intended to continue at least one year to learn how day-to-day perspectives and actual synchronicities related to oracle-induction and intentionality play themselves out. I will share the results as and when they unfold and invite you to share your own tales of synchronicity. You’re welcome to join me, on my Chariot of exploration, into the new world of synchronicity.
