I just read an interview of someone who describes themselves as “very passionate about personal development”. This young woman professes to have gotten great value from the Landmark Forum, and as a physical comedienne is looking at “developing a workshop series for performers wherein they gain a new connection to their commitment and passion for their craft free from their fears of failing”.
What I found most interesting about this blog, however, was how this woman wrote about what was really important to her in the world. She wasn’t just planning activities; rather it’s clear she has done a lot of conscious thinking about her dreams, what’s important to her, and how she can impact the world.
The website is also interesting – It’s called The Extra Mile Adventure, or TEMA, and according to the site, it’s about putting the Ideals of American president-elect Barack Obama into practice. Here’s the interview:
What is important to you in this world?
1. That people get how powerful they are and go for what they truly want in life regardless of their circumstances. “Some men have thousands of reasons why they cannot do what they want to, when all they need is one reason why they can.” – Martha Graham
2. Love, affinity, honest communication, compassion, acceptance, listening, freedom, and copious amounts of laughter.
3. Allowing others to have their realities.
4. Breaking out of the illusory world, being powerfully related to reality, and creating miracles for oneself and others from there!
5. Self-acknowledgement and love – if I could dig on myself as much as I dig on everybody else magic would occur! Now, imagine if everyone could love themselves for who they truly are – the world would look very different…
Your childhood dream; your adult dream?
When I was very small I would say, “I never want to grow up and I want to be Peter Pan.” (Interesting, he’s a flyer). Then a got a little older and thought, well if I have to grow up I at least want people to like me, so I said, “I either want to be an Olympic gymnast or a famous actress.” Now, I say, “I want to breath new life into large amounts of people, to be completely human in front of them, giving them the permission to be who they truly are. I want to bring people home to themselves.” I see opportunities to do this anywhere I go, but the one place I am continually drawn back to doing it is on stage.
What inspires you about TEMA and why are you contributing?
It’s a Peter Pan project in adults clothing! It’s a huge flight out of the normal routine of life, and into a world of making a difference. It’s being fully self-expressed, what ever that looks like to each individual, and being courageous enough to do something that is bigger than our day-to-day constructed identity we have gotten so very attached to. To be who we really are, to have our life used by something larger than our petty concerns of looking good or doing things right, is a huge contribution. To simply be in the presence of such a force gives others something that wouldn’t have been available otherwise. Now, imagine 18 individuals being who they truly are and being that together. Now, that is a something worth leaping for.
What are you passionate about?
“There is a vitality, a life-force, an energy, a quickening that is translated through you into action and because there is only one of you in all of time, this expression is unique. And if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium and be lost.” – Martha Graham
Here’s a link to this Extra Mile Adventure Blog.
