There are three reasons we wanted to have a memorial service for Wick in Amsterdam. First of all of because of his connection to the city. And secondly, to show his family how many people love him. They have had to endure his absence from many family gatherings, because he had to work. Or train for a triathlon. This changed in the last few months of his life; for once, family and friends came first. This brings me to the last reason we are gathered here today: we wanted to give everyone who knew him a chance to say goodbye to Wick.

Wick and I met in 2008, the year the first post-master’s course in Intervention Studies started. We were always open about having met each other on a dating website. His profile had said: “I love my job. Consider yourself warned!” Even though I tried to make him cut back on his work commitments, they only increased, eventually leading to me saying: “If you can’t beat them, join them.” I am so very grateful I made the choice of supporting you in your work from 2013 on, allowing you to fly even higher. You often called me your right-hand woman.

After your operation last August you were no longer aware of the left side of your body. When I arrived in the Recovery Room, you were holding your left hand in your right, bringing it to your mouth and kissing it. You thought it was my hand. You said: “You were my right hand, now you are my left hand too. You are everything.” And then you proposed… You were honestly wondering: “How did we manage it, getting this close…?”

If there is any one answer to that question, it is faith. Faith in always finding our way back to each other, faith in the love we have for each other, faith in how we view the world around us – even if that differs, faith in the fact that all will be well … You taught me that.

Just after his diagnosis Wick was looking at the process and its meaning, like the professional he was. But this time he himself was the process … something he found both intriguing and frustrating. Especially since he noticed that the brain tumour affected his cognitive abilities. And the same tumour caused his speech to become “uninhibited”, as the doctors say. Wick would say: “I need Mark [Lough] to tell me to shut up and help me to give meaning to all this.”

Because of the tumour and his medications, at first, Wick wasn’t aware of the severity of his situation. There was still strength in his words, but in fact he lacked the energy and focus necessary for recovery. When the surgeon told us he needed to recover in order to cope with the radiation that could prolong his life with a few months, Wick said: “That isn’t enough for me.” Unfortunately after all of the complications that followed the operation, we never had the choice.

Faith… At every step of this process we noticed we felt the same way. We wanted to spend the time we had left at home and in peace. In the video, Wick says that that is his essence: “Let’s do this – I am ready.” I discovered a deeper layer to this: LOVE and STRENGTH. The loving glances you shot me all the time, using your last ounce of strength to lift your arm to grab my hand – and to firmly hold on to it.… It was as if you wanted to say: “I am still here, I am holding on to life.” But also: “I am sending my heart’s strength to you, for you will need it when I am no longer here.” Such was Wick’s generosity of spirit.

Faith… The faith Wick put in me to make the hard decisions, such as going into a hospice to create even more peace in the last phase of his life. And even in the process of letting go, when we thought we’d said everything that needed to be said, Wick would wake up and we’d have a short conversation, giving me the faith I needed to guide Wick in his last days.

One of the last conversations we had was about dying. Wick had been awake a lot for a few days. I asked him whether he was afraid to go to sleep in case he might not wake up. But he wasn’t afraid. He did however feel that dying in your sleep would be rather boring. Curious to the last minute, he felt it would be quite exciting to consciously experience the process of dying.

For his last 20 hours Wick was asleep, but his breathing sounded like he was doing a triathlon. He wasn’t in pain, so without morphine or sleeping medication – as he had wanted – he ran his last race, with me cheering him on like I had during his triathlons: “You’re doing so well, I am so proud of you, you are so courageous. The finish is there where the great white light greets you. Go there now, calmly, at your own pace… Fall into the light…”

Simultaneously, in Amsterdam and at Odiyan Buddhist Retreat Center in California, ceremonies were dedicated to Wick with this intention:

Thank you, Wick van der Vaart, for all the wisdom and joy you have given to so many people around the world. Carry on your curiosity and appreciation to your next life to inspire many more.

Nathalie van der Vaart-van de Loo

How do we “speak” in the quest for Discovering, Dreaming, Designing and dwelling in our Destiny? What do we express? What surfaces in the verbal, written and visual symbols of communication? Do you sometimes reflect and wonder at the latent nuances of a conversation? How might we unleash sights, sounds and language to expand our stories? What are the processes, tools, and experience that make meaning bigger, bolder and more present on the journey of exploration and collective understanding?
(more…)

Call for submissions: Learning Leaders

We are looking for articles that connect your work with this emergent style of leadership called Learning Leaders. We want to have illustrations of Learning Leaders in a variety of contexts, organizations, and age cohorts. We encourage leaders of all ages and positions to contribute stories that define themselves or another as a Learning Leader. Creative contributions and formats are welcome.
(more…)

Originally, ‘politics’ was a means of resolving conflicts through conversation and negotiation, with the goal of finding common ground where a diversity of perspectives could exist. (more…)

Appreciative approach: The positive gaze upon our humanity

Vânia Bueno Cury

I have always been critical, and most of the time I have been driven by the desire for perfection. Thus, wherever I was or whatever I was doing, I always sought what was missing. As a foundation for this behavior, there was the justification that pursuing the best was a virtue.

My intention was good, but my extreme effort left a trace of tiredness and loss, especially in my relationships.

This mental model followed me in everything I did, and I have to admit that it helped me follow the challenging path towards self-development, seeking beauty and ethics with much persistence. I was self-demanding and wanted to do everything flawlessly at school, work and in life. My intention was good, but my extreme effort left a trace of tiredness and loss, especially in my relationships. Long years of therapy, meditation, courses and reading did not enable me to deal with the frustration of facing up to “imperfect and uncontrollable reality”.

This struggle was always present in my work as a journalist and as a young entrepreneur, setting up a communication studio. I have worked on PR projects with good clients and an engaging team for twenty years. This setting fostered the growth of the business and its recognition in the market.

In 2007, all was going very well: business was prospering, I was in a happy second marriage, and I had good clients. However, a strong cry for change came from within my heart. It had taken me some months of searching and anxiety until I could understand the reason for that recurring tiredness at the end of the day and for that disenchantment I had never felt beforehand. One day the answer came, crystal clear: I no longer wanted to invest my time and energy in just selling products and services. I wanted to work in assisting people develop through good communication and contribute to transforming the world.

This new clarity of purpose gave me courage, enabling a deep practice of detachment

This new clarity of purpose gave me courage, enabling a deep practice of detachment: in three months I referred my clients to other professionals, I out-placed my employees, and I left for a journey with no destination. I just knew I needed to be free, to go back to study and to find a new meaning for my existence.

Through a careful and unexpected weaving of synchronicities, I left Brazil: I was the second Brazilian to participate in the MPOD – Master of Science in Positive Organizational Development and Change at Case Western Reserve University, the cradle of AI. Nine years after this adventure, I can now very joyfully say that it was the best decision I have ever made.

Ever since, I have been working to connect communication and human development at organizations and schools. To my surprise, I became a university professor and the classroom has been the place where I feel the happiest and the most fulfilled. In conversation circles, I have been sharing the power of dialogue, conflict transformation, systemic vision, and emotional intelligence – always under the inspiration of the appreciative approach. As each process continues, I confirm the power that AI has for generating positive energy to foster change in projects, companies and communities.

Since the very beginning of each graduation group, one innovative intervention in my viewpoint is the use of the “4D AI cycles” for creating agreements for living together. In doing so, students and I have been able to create and support a more inclusive, respectful and collaborative culture. This contributes a lot to our co-learning and maturing.

Nevertheless, what most impresses me in the methodology is the potential to move people and generate inner dialogues. I very often hear feedback from participants like: “This experience changed my life” or “I will never be the same”. This is certainly very gratifying.

I should also say that I am still working on my transformation. For instance, in a recent dialogue with a dear and wise Brazilian professor of mine, Lia Diskin, everything made even more sense. Professor Diskin made me understand that the shadow of perfectionism withdraws us from our own humanity because it is the denial of our human nature. It is this human nature that makes us fail and make mistakes. For me, more than the efficient 4Ds methodology, AI is an enlightened lens through which to see and understand life. It is the way of compassion towards oneself and others, and a possible path for dreaming and gratitude.¹

AI: Creating magic for South African entrepreneurs

Judy Janse van Rensburg

Working with entrepreneurs as part of a business incubation program in one of South Africa’s poorest provinces has lead me to believe that AI might have magical properties. Entrepreneurs are dreamers, and AI is all about dreaming and making those dreams come alive. The combination of the Anticipatory principle, the Heliotropic principle and the use of appreciative language can lead to extraordinary results. Had I not witnessed these experiences first hand, I might not have believed it.

The poor survival rate of entrepreneurs is well documented and the evidence of broken dreams is often reflected in high unemployment figures. Trying to start a business with little or no funding in a poor province takes a lot of guts and determination, and most business owners will tell you that there are many times they have felt like giving up.

Understanding what ‘gives life’ to a system can mean the difference between success and disaster.

AI gave hope to entrepreneurs as they focused on their positive core. Getting to know themselves as entrepreneurs empowered them to see new possibilities and take positive action. Understanding what “gives life” to a system can mean the difference between success and disaster. When entrepreneurs are aware of what gives them life, and when they are at their best, they can harness that knowledge and create magic. When they are able to review their best experiences of dealing with clients, they become inspired to make more effective and strategic sales calls.

Knowing when they feel most energised and alive allows entrepreneurs to focus on their areas of brilliance and delegate the rest. Rapid business expansion then becomes possible, and to those on the outside it almost appears magical. The key is to spend enough time and go really deep with the dream – when the dream is clear and articulated, willpower becomes irrelevant and motivation is available in an instant.

The Anticipatory principle has two major elements: imagination and the  creation of a picture of the future. I witnessed the amazing strength and power of possibility when one of the entrepreneurs I was coaching was determined to pitch her business for funding, despite having started chemotherapy two days prior to the pitch. She made a conscious decision to focus on life-giving activities for herself as well as her business, as she had a very clear picture of the future.

‘In what ways could I attract more of my ideal clients?’

Teaching entrepreneurs about the Heliotropic principle (what we focus on grows) enabled them to focus on creating and approaching their ideal clients, instead of focusing on “not having money/sales”. Adopting appreciative language with entrepreneurs seemed, at times, to have almost magical results. With one entrepreneur in particular we reframed “I need to get more clients” to “In what ways could I attract more of my ideal clients?” Instead of making 100 sales calls per week, focusing on short term “jobs”, this entrepreneur could apply his efforts more strategically and focus his attention on attracting long-term, ideal clients, which saw him grow his business exponentially within a very short space of time. AI could be key to empowering more entrepreneurs in Africa.

Dear Friends

I invoke you to “a mother’s cry … a mother’s celebration” … the memoir-book of my “transcendental pilgrimage from grief to grace”, being offered to the Human Universe on 24th September 2016 (my son Utkarsh’s Transcendence Day). The eBook will follow shortly. For print copy, please use the ISBN – 9781945926983 to find it at online marketplaces:

Each of us has a Hero’s Journey to make. We heed calls once in a while that take us far beyond what we know of ourselves. There are trials, tribulations, death, grief and a maze of emotions. The crippling is particularly severe when one loses a child … Yet, there is a transcendent light beyond grief, one that glows on our path and rekindles our faith. We are blessed with grace, before and after grief. We receive a way to let our “cry” invoke “celebration” of the life before death comes calling. We come to kindle Presence in the void of absence … Have you ever wondered what your way is of avowing the confluence of life and death! I invoke you to join my quest and discover your own truth. I invoke you to the story of my transcendental pilgrimage from annihilation to awakening. Come, sing with me my poem and prayer.

My family joins me in thanking AI Universe for sending us strength from around the world.

With love & light

Neena Verma

drneenaverma@gmail.com

The European Appreciative Inquiry Network is meeting in Greenwich, London, on the 19th-21st October at the LABAN dance centre

For more information on the schedule for this event and to book please go to the European AI Network website
After the success of the meeting in Hasselt the next European Appreciative Inquiry Network meeting will be hosted in London, in the historic maritime borough of Greenwich. The area is the home of Sarah Lewis, who will be hosting this event along with David Shaked, Anne Radford, Terri McNerney, Lesley Moore, Nick Moore, Steve Loraine, Ann Shacklady-Smith and Julie Barnes.

The Network of practitioners from across Europe gets together twice a year to share experiences, knowledge and skills and to offer mutual support on work and life. The get together (or Network meeting) is held in the spirit of Appreciative Inquiry, which creates a unique atmosphere and experience. At this event we are hoping to attract positive psychology practitioners as well, to enhance the mix!

Some of the particular benefits of attending this event will include
The opportunity to spend time learning through focused dialogue with many experienced practitioners (rather than time in lectures)
 Plenty of purposeful networking time allowing for structured yet highly relaxed interaction with experienced practitioners from all over Europe, through engagement in focused trips and visits
 An invitation to you to regenerate, to flourish and to connect in ways meaningful in your own context as we work with our themes of Regeneration, Flourishing and Connecting
 The opportunity to access a wealth of experience of, and skill in, applying Appreciative Inquiry (and Positive Psychology we hope) in different contexts and countries through interaction with an established community of Peers
 An opportunity to experience the exciting and creative coaching and learning process of the Meta-Saga, developed by one of our founder members
 An opportunity to experience the Open Space methodology, our core meeting process
 And, we really hope, the opportunity to be part of a joint event of Appreciative Inquiry and Positive Psychology Practitioners, linking the two fields and facilitating learning from each other

The Venue
The borough of Greenwich and the surrounding area has a long and rich history, taking in shipbuilding and navigation (Captain Cook fitted out two ships in neighbouring Deptford, the Resolution and the Discovery, to use on his voyages of exploration), science (Greenwich is home to the Royal Observatory, the base of Greenwich Mean Time) and royalty. After extensive regeneration following the decline of the London Docks the riverside portions of Greenwich have been reborn as artistic and tourist hubs.

Indeed, this stretch of the Thames is an amazing blurring of the old and the new, with the beautiful buildings of the Greenwich UNESCO World Heritage Site (Greenwich Palace – birthplace of Henry VIII and Elizabeth I, and now the National Maritime Museum and the University of Greenwich – the Royal Observatory and Greenwich covered market) sitting just across the river from the skyscrapers of the new Docklands financial district, itself built on the wharfs and quays of the East India Docks, a self-contained city within the London docks and base of operations of the East India Company. There are even a few survivors of the intervening age of industry in the form of buildings like the riverside Greenwich Power Station and the London to Greenwich railway viaduct – the world’s first purpose built passenger railway line and still in use today.
The LABAN Centre in Deptford, a beautiful building and part of the Trinity LABAN Conservatoire Of Music And Dance, will be the venue for our event.

The Theme
Given these surroundings, so redolent of change and evolution, of finding new purposes for old strengths and always finding a use for the river – Greenwich’s gateway to the world – the hosting committee was inspired to base the event on the ideas of Flourishing Connections: Regeneration, Flow and Inspiration.
The hosts hope to attract newer practitioners of AI and positive psychology into this event to connect and so they will include an introductory Appreciative Inquiry session in the Open Space options.

Dates
The core dates for the event are from 3pm on the 19th to 3/4pm on the 21st of October (Wednesday, Thursday, Friday), with the Jedi Council meeting taking place after the closing ceremony on Friday 21st from 5-6:30pm.
Prices
Price for Members €240
Price for Non-Members €265
Limited to 30 places

For more information on the schedule for this event and to book please go to the European AI Network website

Editors:
Barbara van Kesteren
Ingeborg Koster-Kooger
Lysanne Beekhof

Theme:

Practice or preach?! Young practitioners co-creating AI of the future.
In our experience,  there are a variety of emphases across the AI spectrum, from using AI as a tool, a method to considering it a fundamental philosophy. We are curious about new thoughts and perspectives and would especially like to give voice to other young practitioners to co-construct AI of the future!

Focus of the issue:

Our peers. The new generation (30 or younger): young practitioners (students, recently graduated), renegades, children (<30) of experienced practitioners from the community with new or interesting projects, fresh perspectives (from exotic countries to modern organizational forms where an AI experiment project had been introduced: think of start-ups, network-organizations).

Questions for inspiration:

How do you use AI?

• Do you consider some practices as part of an orthodox or unorthodox AI approach?
• What is your latest AI discovery?
• What new ideas or tools do you recommend/want to share to other AI practitioners (e.g. using social media, creative forms such as graphic facilitation or new questions)?
• What is the most creative way in which you have practiced AI/seen AI being practiced or preached?

How can AI be made sustainable in the near and far future?

• Are there aspects of our modern world that call for adaptation within the AI community?
• How far can you go/do you want to go as a practitioner to keep it alive after you leave your client(s setting)?
• What would you focus on as new future paths for AI’s development (mixing methods, new definitions of appreciation, cross-cultural experiments with AI such as rebirthing in the west).
• What is your dream for AI for the future?

Starting a dialogue:

With which question do you want to close your contribution and start a new conversation?

Ways and forms to contribute:
All creative forms are more than welcome. Feel free to use emoji’s, pictures, graphic facilitation and notes etc.

Final written submissions will range from 500 to 2000 words. Art and diagrams should be high resolution and ready for publication. Poetry should be formatted for publication.

Making A Proposal / Draft:

Do you feel enthusiastic by the idea to contribute to this issue? Please contact us asap, and send a proposal of max. 300 words. By October 3 we would like to receive your first draft. If your draft is accepted, you should send your final work latest by November 7.

Send proposals to b.j.vkesteren@gmail.com