“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.” Dr. Seuss

Dr. Seuss was a wise man. I love to read, and on a broad range of subjects bringing the world just a little bit closer. I just finished reading Abundance: the Future is Better Than You Think by authors Peter H. Diamandis and Steven Kotler.  While Abundance focuses on important global issues (feeding the planet, clean water, energy, healthcare, and education to name a few), it does so from a positive perspective, offering research based facts which support being optimistic about the future. For anyone who cares about people and the planet, enjoys their life, has a passion for technology, and or has children or grandchildren, this book is for you.

After watching a 16 minute video clip that I saw on a friend’s facebook page of Peter Diamandis: Abundance is our future, I was quite excited. As a solution focused coach, it was so refreshing to learn how far we have come in terms of making progress on these important global issues. It’s the glass half full as opposed to half empty approach. From this brief video clip, I was also reminded of a favourite book we read in school for a sustainability course, Capitalism at the Crossroads by Stuart Hart. As it turned out, Stu Hart’s book is referenced in Abundance. Yes, it’s a small world and getting smaller with connections at every turn. Being personally motivated and inspired by meaningful work, doing work that matters runs deep within. I was curious to learn more and learn I did.

When I shared the Abundance is our future video, Lisa Larter, CEO of The Social Business Academy, commented that the book was fantastic which piqued my curiosity even further. Within a few hours, I had downloaded the book to my iPAD using the kobo e-reader. True confessions here. This was a first for me, and another reason for the title of this post. I’ve read countless academic journal articles lately and several short e-books online but up until that time, call me old fashioned but I had no interest in reading a book without a spine. Holding a book in my hands is like peanut butter to jelly. It’s quite ironic that Abundance was the first one I downloaded because Abundance speaks to the ability of technology to make the world a smaller place where accessibility creates opportunity for abundance. It was simply amazing to read about how the world has changed for the better with advances in technology. Specifically, how social entrepreneurs are popping up in remote parts of Africa with the invention of the smart phone. Furthermore, how the world will only continue to change for the better with inventions in healthcare for example “Lab-on-a-Chip” with a goal of zero-cost diagnostics, and advances in education with successful global initiatives such as “One Laptop Per Child”. These are not pie in the sky ideas. These are real and they are happening all around us.

Interestingly, I made many connections to coaching while reading this book. Primarily because when we focus on innovative and creative solutions, we are able to engage the cerebral cortex brain system which has the capacity for future visioning. This is very important and powerful when comparing it to “getting stuck” in the problems.  Often times these situations are fear-based, and engage the reptilian brain system based on fight or flight responses, and in the case of the emotional brain, clinging to sameness also known as our comfort zone. As Abundance points out, fear can be a very powerful motivator creating extraordinary risk taking. From a coaching perspective however, fear can also be completely paralyzing causing feelings of anxiety and thoughts of “I can’t” rather than “I can.” When we combine the learning from a book such as Abundance and engage the whole brain system however, our capacity for creating abundance on a global level is only magnified. Finally, we can see the forest through the trees. The best part? We all have this potential!  

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”  ~ Margaret Mead

Times have changed and the world is getting smaller. We have the ability to create change on the other side of the world without even leaving our living room. Global news travels across social media platforms in the blink of an eye. From individuals to organizations, people are doing some pretty amazing things to create change.

Are you curious? Want to make a difference? Watch the video, read the book, learn how to engage your whole brain system, and look for ways to do your part in making the world an even better place. Please, by all means, share your ideas here. I would love to hear them.

Best wishes for engaging your creative genius. Glo

(C) 2012 – True Bliss Coach Gloria Higdon