 the eleven
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Hello and happy December. If this is your first isssue of The Eleven, welcome! In this newsletter I review what I've been up to for the past month, offer a call to action and share useful resources. If you'd like to unsubscribe, click the button at the bottom of this e-mail.
First, the music - for your listening pleasure click here. This is a mix that Stephen put together this summer for an ecstatic dance wave - it lasts one hour. Another version here.
My brother, Dan Kaufman, was featured in The Blade, a Washington, DC paper - he comes off so good (not as good as his cranberry muffins, but close!). Dan's imprinting business, DKG Promotions is another great part of his life.
The economy. It's on everyone's minds, mine, too. In a way, what's happening now is something I've been wishing for for most of my life - the lessening of consumption in the United States is one of the better ways towards slowing climate change. I joined the church of stop shopping years ago and the thought of thousands of stores closing all over the country does not upset me. At the same time I recognize that many of our lives are closely tied to making, selling and buying said stuff. We can do better than that. We can move from a consumer society that shops its way out of problems to one that's focused on avoiding our extinction as a species on planet earth via our role in increasing climate disruption and unfettered population growth.
Then, we might move on to how our societies can do a better job at taking care of everyone - feeding, clothing and sheltering everyone on the planet. So, as we watch consumer spending continue to plummet, and listen as the media tells us what a tragedy that is, I propose taking a different perspective - that this can be a good thing - that it may lead us to a world with less personal stuff and more quality time, less cluttered lives, less time spent focusing on things and more on relationships and our health, and a healthier planet.
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Action Items
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I created an "idea for change in America" on Change.org - A population policy for the United States - I'd love it if you'd click here and vote for my idea, sending it up the ranks.
Beyond that, I'd like to encourage you to help me shift the tone. Please take a few minutes today to think about what is going well in your life. Close your eyes for one minute and meditate on one thing that's going well. Our media does a very good job of painting a terribly grim picture of life in the US, and yet - you probably woke up today, had breakfast in a warm home, etc. Think of a way to add a voice of reason and cheer to the people in your life - write a letter to the editor about someone that's done something great in the world that you'd like to celebrate. There's lots to be grateful for. If we remind one another of this, we won't fall for the line that because consumer spending is down we should all be depressed. Yes, we have challenges ahead of us - there is no doubt about that - and it's a blessing to be alive and to have a chance to make a difference in this world. If nothing else, we have the inauguration of Barack Obama coming up on January 20, 2009 - replacing the least liked president in US History. Join me in changing the tone.
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Albertideation
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I've been plugging along at Albertideation for a little while now and it's been fascinating. I have shared with clients how social networking might help them grow their businesses, promote their services and spread their ideas. I've also used my website as a platform to house, develop and showcase the ideas I'm working on.
I've recently added
· A local healthcare directory
· Progress on an opt-out system for phone books
· A recommendations page
· News about the sunflower project
· and updated my resumes here & here
I've spent a lot of time this past month continuing to learn about social networking (SN) and have been using it to network and share ideas widely. I'm still learning how SN can be useful and I think the whole field is continuing to morph and take shape and it's interesting to be a part of its growth and development.
I offer individuals and businesses help
with social networking, marketing and ideation - brainstorming mixed
with marketing. My sliding scale is $30-90/hr. (Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin are some of the tools I use)
Albertideation also has new a logo  thanks to brother Dan!
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Re-evaluation Counseling |
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| This is a useful practice that I've been learning for the past 20 years. From the RC website
Re-evaluation Counseling is a process whereby people of all ages and of all
backgrounds can learn how to exchange effective help with each other in order to
free themselves from the effects of past distress experiences.
Re-evaluation Counseling theory provides a model of what a human being can be
like in the area of his/her interaction with other human beings and his/her
environment. The theory assumes that everyone is born with tremendous
intellectual potential, natural zest, and lovingness, but that these qualities
have become blocked and obscured in adults as the result of accumulated distress
experiences (fear, hurt, loss, pain, anger, embarrassment, etc.) which begin
early in our lives.
Any young person would recover from such distress spontaneously by use of the
natural process of emotional discharge (crying, trembling, raging, laughing,
etc.). However, this natural process is usually interfered with by well-meaning
people ("Don't cry," "Be a big boy," etc.) who erroneously
equate the emotional discharge (the healing of the hurt) with the hurt itself.
When adequate emotional discharge can take place, the person is freed from the
rigid pattern of behavior and feeling left by the hurt. The basic loving,
cooperative, intelligent, and zestful nature is then free to operate. Such a
person will tend to be more effective in looking out for his or her own
interests and the interests of others, and will be more capable of acting
successfully against injustice.
In recovering and using the natural discharge process, two people take turns
counseling and being counseled. The one acting as the counselor listens, draws
the other out and permits, encourages, and assists emotional discharge. The one
acting as client talks and discharges and re-evaluates. With experience and
increased confidence and trust in each other, the process works better and
better.
- through the website, you can find out how to join a class in your area, or feel free to ask me.
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Thanks for reading and I hope you have found something useful in this month's The Eleven. I'd be honored if you would share this with your friends and I look forward to moving our world to a better place together. Have a great December - Hannukah, Winter Solstice, Christmas, Kwanza and New Year!
Sincerely,
Albert Kaufman
Portland, Oregon 97232
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