Twitter Background Image by Request
Posted on | April 28, 2009 | No Comments
I was asked to post my www.twitter.com/kevinhouchin background image. Here you go.
You can find out more about the symbology here:
Tags: twitter
Video from yesterday’s tweetathon with Joel Comm
Posted on | February 20, 2009 | No Comments
There were some technical challenges during my interview with Joel Comm during yesterday’s tweetathon2009 event. In the first video I’m talking about the Fuel The Spark book and in the second we discuss some of the legal issues to keep in mind while using Twitter.com (follow me @kevinhouchin) that are included in the chapter I wrote for Joel Comm’s new book Twitter Power.
The tweetathon created some internet history and raised over $10,000 for Water Is Life.
Live Video streaming by Ustream
Fuel the Spark available for Pre-Orders
Posted on | January 14, 2009 | No Comments
Fuel the Spark: 5 Guiding Values for Success in Law School and Beyond is now online for pre-orders at:
and
Everyday Vibration
Posted on | January 5, 2009 | 1 Comment
A good friend of mine (really, this is truly a friend story, not just a veiled self-examination) has recently started studying two of the most powerful books on the planet – The Kybalion, and The Tao Te Ching. I started him on this path, so I feel very proud that he has started this work. I believe these two books hold the core teaching of human spirituality between them. The Kybalion holds the Western spiritual teachings and the Tao holds the Eastern teachings.
I sum them up this way. The Kybalion (and Western tradition) teaches us how to “make it happen.” The Tao (and Eastern Tradition) teach us how to “let it happen.” Both are profoundly powerful and perhaps more powerful when their seemingly conflicting approaches are reconciled and used together.
Back to my friend. We were chatting yesterday and it came up that he’s having a difficult time with a co-worker. This co-worker tends to block projects and impose his will without a lot of thought, usually based on protecting turf and weilding power in irresponsible ways. It’s very frustrating to my friend who feels like his integrity is being attacked by each outburst of the co-worker. My friend doesn’t want to back down from any of these potential conflicts, thinking that he would be thought of as weak, or worse, that the goals of fulfilling his job requirements would be in jeopoardy.
It’s not a fun position to be in. I had a hard time trying to give advise on this so I tried to just listen and let the issue sink in. Of course I also said that he has the power to let these things pass around him without getting caught up in the petty issues, to pick his battles, and suck-up a bit if he has to because these are all elements of working for and with other people. I think that helped, but not much.
This morning I woke up thinking about the Tao and the Kybalion. The Tao uses the symbolism of water very frequently. Chapter 8 of the Tao starts:
The supreme good is like water,
which nourishes all things without trying to.
It is content with the low places that people disclaim.
Thus it is like the Tao.
Water is powerful, but it seeks the low places. It runs from the top of the mountains to the deepest levels of the sea. The deeper it goes, the more strength it has. Humans have changed the course of rivers, but we’ve never moved an ocean. The depths of the ocean are dark and quiet, and very powerful.
Keep that image in your mind, and then think about the Kybalion’s Principle of Vibration which states:
“Nothing rests; everything moves; everything vibrates.”
We’re all vibrating, everything is vibrating. My friend’s troublesome co-worker is vibrating at a high frequency, but low wavelength and amplitude state. Think of a little yippy dog. High pitched, frequent barks, but no power. Now, think of the ocean’s water. What waves have the most power? Answer: the waves that have long wavelengths and large amplitude. Little waves are just absorbed into the power of the bigger wave.
If my friend can center his power in the vibrations of long wavelengths of large amplitude, he should be more easily able to absorb the vibrational energy of the co-worker without getting upset. But how does one get into a state of long wavelength, high-amplitude vibration?
One word: “purpose.”
If my friend can keep his vision and attitude set on reaching the higher purpose, he will be like the powerful depths of the ocean. Sure, he’ll still be present, feel, and be effected by the vibrational energy of everyone around him, but he’ll be much better able to absorb those vibrations into and through hinself without losing direction or momentum toward his purpose. Low energy waves can’t hurt big energy waves. Purpose-inspired people may apear to be moving at a lower pace than people who are making a lot of noice, but purpose-inspired people are moving with a power like that of a mighty ocean wave. It may be almost impersecptable, but nothing is going to stop it.
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The books mentioned in this post are included in my Book Recommendations widget at the right – get copies for yourself and join the discussion.
COMMENTS WELCOME!
First Night Masonic Welcome
Posted on | January 1, 2009 | No Comments
This is the short essay I wrote for the First Night programs at the Masonic Center last night. There’s a little bit about the building and a little about Freemasonry in general.
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On behalf of the Masonic Family in Fort Collins, I welcome you to our historic Masonic Center. This building is truly one of the treasures of Fort Collins and we are very proud and happy to be part of the 2008 First Night festivities.
Take a few minutes to look around the building and feel free to ask questions to the Men and Women who are part of the Masonic Family and have volunteered to host tonight’s activities. They are happy to answer your questions about the building or the Fraternity and its related organizations.
A quick bit of history:
Freemasonry is traced back to at least 1717 in England, and Freemasonry has been active in Fort Collins since 1870, when Collins Lodge #19 was founded. The great history of the organization has truly mirrored the history of Fort Collins itself. The men of the Lodge met in several buildings prior to constructing the current building. The cornerstone of this building was set in 1925 and the building was opened in 1927. The total cost of the building and furnishings (many of which are still in use) was $144,990. That would be about $16,250,000 today.
The building is owned by the local Masonic lodges and membership on the Home Board is restricted to active members of Collins Lodge #19. The Home Board is charged with the day-to-day operations of the building as well as the long-term planning and preservation of this historic treasure. The group is actively planning for the future preservation and renovation of the building with the goal of keeping the building as a vibrant hub of community involvement.
What is Freemasonry about?
Many people ask me what being a Freemason is all about. The quick answer is “making good men better.” How is that done? Through a series of ancient symbolic rituals that teach moral and spiritual lessons. The Mason learns invaluable lessons of faith, hope, and charity in addition to being exposed to some of the richest and most meaningful symbols in the Western spiritual traditions. Masonry is NOT a religion, although members are required to affirm a belief in deity. Our members come from, and tend to be active in, a wide variety of spiritual backgrounds. Masonry is not about business networking either, although many relationships are formed outside the formality of the Lodge.
While “Blue Lodge” Masonry is for men only, there are opportunities for women and children to join the Masonic Family through organizations such as The Order of the Eastern Star, Job’s Daughters, Rainbow for Girls, and DeMolay for Boys.
Masonry may be best known today for it’s charitable work. For example, most people have heard of the Shriner’s Hospitals. Every Shriner is a Mason, and there are dozens of other very active Masonic charitable causes.
Finally, to be one, ask one.
Kevin E. Houchin, Esq.
Member, FC Masonic Center Home Board
Member, Fidelity Lodge #192 and Collins Lodge #19
Personal purpose statement:
Posted on | December 3, 2008 | 1 Comment
“My purpose is to help as many people as I can reach as much of THEIR potential as THEY can.”
Thanksgiving Blessing
Posted on | November 28, 2008 | 2 Comments
Creator,
Thank you for the blessings you have created for us.
Thank you for the blessings you have created with us.
Help us always to remember
That your infinite power
Is also our infinite power
Help us to share it freely,
And use it wisely.
Amen.
Thinking
Posted on | November 23, 2008 | 1 Comment
Thinking
People associate this stage with “creativity.” It’s glamorized in every TV show or movie about the advertising business. It’s perceived as the scene of funky 20-somethings and their aging boss (who always seems to look like Donald Sutherland) brainstorming wacky ideas. Usually they are trying to sell a product nobody needs to people who already have more than enough stuff, but not enough happiness. However, creative people in the real world are usually trying to provide real value.
I’ve been one of those 20-somethings, and I’ve been the Donald Sutherland character (without the slicked-back hair). In my experience, great creative ideas start with all the logical and obvious ideas. One must build a foundation for creativity based on the emotion experienced when accepting the problem as one’s own. Also use the knowledge gained to build a deep understanding of the problem, and to focus upon the vision of a successful solution.
“Creative meetings” always start with picking the low-hanging fruit – the easy, logical, solutions than anyone can come up with in ten minutes. This step always feels very un-creative. It’s almost as if the assertive, power-hungry left brain needs to speak it’s piece before the quieter, more caring introspective right brain can get in with some “soft” thinking. Soft thinking is ethereal. Soft thinking is the “creativity” most fundamentally manifesting through inspiration, imagination, intuition, hunches, metaphor, humor, fantasy, paradox, play, ambiguities, and unusual juxtapositions. Soft thinking is the “magic” behind a Super Bowl ad becoming the talk of the nation for a. This type of thinking is about being unusual.
The challenge with right brain, soft thinking is that we’re not trained to respect it. Today’s schools are focused on math, science, and other logical, linear, process-focused thinking skills. Logic skills can be tested. Intuitive skills cannot (at least not fairly or effectively). Imagine the difference between the soft skill of writing a musical piece and the hard skill of technically playing the piece.
A few years ago this difference was illustrated perfectly during a television program with pop star Billy Joel showcased some of his classical piano compositions. He had written the pieces, but to actually play the pieces, he brought a different pianist on stage (one who had the technical skills to actually play the works) because the music he had written was too difficult for him to play. It was still great creative product.
We need both skills.
I’ve worked with graphic designers who were wonderful artists, but no printer could produce their designs, which is definitely not a successful solution. I’ve worked with engineers who couldn’t think out of the box and squandered opportunity. As Dr. Roger von Oech said in his classic book on creativity A WHACK ON THE SIDE OF THE HEAD, “Soft thinking in the practical phase can prevent the execution of an idea; here firmness and directness are preferable to ambiguity and dreams. Conversely, hard thinking in the imaginative phase can limit the creative process.” Dr. von Oech’s book is a great resource for breaking away from preconceived notions and coming up with new ideas. It’s a book I go back to over and over whenever I feel I’m not making headway on a problem. It helps you create multiple possible solutions, get outside the logical conditioning of Western thought, break some rules, be playful and impractical for a minute, forget academic silos of training, embrace ambiguity, act a fool, explore potential mistakes, and start thinking of ourselves as creative. One thing the book, and most other Western books on creativity forget about this stage of the creative process, is to be still. Stillness is a more “Eastern” way to creative solutions. It’s a way of thinking by not thinking.
Tags: Creativity > focus > solutions > thinking > understanding
Stillness and the space between
Posted on | November 22, 2008 | 1 Comment
Stillness and the space between
Stillness is putting a muzzle on that monkey chattering in your mind to hear the great ideas that come from somewhere else. You can call that somewhere else “God.” You can call it “the Universe.” For the sake of argument, I’ll call it “the Source.” Telling the voice in your head to shut up is one thing. Making it shut up or ignoring it until it shuts up requires practice. That practice is the basis of meditation. Another way to think of it is what I call “The Space Between.”
There is an infinity in the space between thoughts. The wonderful ideas that can come from that space are limitless. Picture a ruler or a number line from your days in grade school. On that ruler or number line, “1” is followed next by “2” then “3” and so on in both directions into infinity. Later, you learn about fractions like ¼, 1/3, ½, 2/3, ¾ and so on. Think about that. When you understand that the numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, and so on are simply labels for concepts, and the same is true for each labeled fraction, then you understand that there is an infinity in the space between each number or fraction and its label. More importantly, there is an infinity between each label we choose for anything.
The infinity in the space between doesn’t apply just to numbers. “The space between” applies to anything you can label. So examining two words, phrases, or concepts that generally do not work together is a great creative tool – examining the space between things that we don’t even associate with one another creates something I like to think of as a “bigger infinity.” You could also think of it as a “richer” infinity for great ideas, because like a riverbed that has never been explored, a virgin piece of farmland, or an isolated lake in Canada, it’s resources have not been mined by others for their own purposes. When you understand the concept of “The Space Between” then you will never again experience a scarcity of ideas. If you’re stumped, you just haven’t mined the infinite spaces between thoughts, words, actions, feelings, senses, or labels.
In the quiet infinities of the space between we find inspired ideas.
The space between is not empty. The first occupants one generally encounters are the archetypes programmed into every human. Those archetypes are described in different ways. Joseph Campbell talked of them in his famous works including THE HERO’S JOURNEY and THE POWER OF MYTH. THE HERO’S JOURNEY inspired George Lucas’s storyline for STAR WARS, and is the outline of the human spiritual journey toward enlightenment. What it describes is found in practically every culture, in a virtually identical pattern. The hero hears a call to adventure, denies that call, experiences an event that requires him to engage in the journey anyway, finds a mentor, faces the challenge, achieves of the goal of the journey, then fights his way back home where his knowledge and experience are embraced for the benefit of the group.
We can also find the archetypes of our collective unconscious through the images of the Tarot. Now, don’t wig out and think this book has suddenly gone in the direction of some Satanic cult. (My mom would probably get that idea when someone mentions the Tarot cards.) It’s not. In addition to being easily associated with Gypsy fortunetellers, some interesting historic characters, and being unquestionably the fore-runner of the playing cards you probably have in a drawer somewhere, the Tarot is a really a wonderful creative tool. Through whatever Source you want to name, the cards have become associated with different parts of the “hero’s journey” and the archetypes of all human experience we find in the space between thoughts and labels.
The deck is divided into two major parts, the Major Arcana, and the Minor Arcana. The 22 Major Arcana cards directly parallel the path of the hero on his journey. It’s akin to Joseph Campbell’s outline, except that the 22 cards outline the journey in more detail. The Minor Arcana is the basis for our current playing cards and is divided into four suits with Ace through 10 and four Royal cards.
You’re probably thinking I’m going to tell you to lay a spread of cards to “divine” the solution through fortune-telling magic. If so, you’re wrong. The cards are a great creative tool, because you can randomly pull a few cards and then start exploring their meanings, which directly tap the subconscious images that cross age, gender, culture, and time. You can also use these cards as the labels for your exploration of the space between. You’ll generate some wonderfully creative, inspired, and effective ideas that will resonate with your audience at the level of their soul. The ideas will also manifest in every sensual form – editorial, visual, auditory, tactile – and you might even get some ideas for integrating smell.
Infinities know no boundaries.
Some people find the quiet in the space between to be a wonderful place to “receive” guidance. Many successful songwriters describe this experience as something close to “channeling” the music from a larger collective creative source. To tap in, they just get their egos out of the way and listen. This type of receiving assumes many names, from the “inspiration,” the fundamentalist church attributes authorship of the books of The Bible, to the Spirit Guides of tribal cultures, the “Holy Guardian Angel” of new age spirituality, and to actual angelic visitations as described in the Old and New Testament and Islam which many people all over the world claim still happen every day.
We’ve all had incredibly realistic dreams that seemed like messages. We’ve all had wonderfully creative ideas “come to us” as we are in the space between waking up and sleeping. We’ve all had moments of déjà vu. These are all experiences of finding the stillness in the space between thoughts. It doesn’t matter what label you place on the experience, or to what source you attribute the inspiration. The one thing that matters in the creative process is that you allow yourself to step out of the masculine energy of controlling the process and allow yourself to surrender to the feminine energy of receiving the inspirations that emanate from the spaces between.
Finally, those free-form ideas must be filtered back through the left side of our brain for some logical feedback on which specific solutions can be practically implemented.
Tags: meditation > quiet > space between > stillness
Secret #3: Creativity is not just about action.
Posted on | November 21, 2008 | No Comments
Secret #3: Creativity is not just about action.
History shows humans are always creating.
My wife and I have 3 wonderful children. My wife is a labor Doula (birth coach) and is currently studying to be a Midwife, so between my own children, and the stories of the many labors at which my wife has been present, I’ve about as much credibility as any man (other than an obstetrician) can have about the birth process. I’ll never understand the experience in the full sense that any mother has experienced and I’ll never be a member of that club. No man will. But my non-member status shouldn’t disqualify me from using birth as the perfect metaphor for the creative process.
The creation of children is the most profound act of creativity imaginable. It truly shows us how miracles happen when we work together with God and the tools nature provided. Making babies is not a solitary practice. It’s not done alone. It is an act of manifesting a combination of natural materials (DNA, water, carbon, etc.) into something more. Conception takes both a giving and receiving. It takes time for the baby to develop in the womb. There are signals of the approaching birth. The manifestation and birth can be a euphoric experience when embraced with knowledge and intention to enjoy the process, or the birth can be traumatic, painful, and frightening if the process is forced or a non-creative will is imposed on the creator.
It’s no different (although it’s arguably less miraculous – at least to this man) when we create a novel, a movie, a skyscraper, or a business. To create a successful business we have to give (the masculine element or “yang”) something of value to customers and clients. To enjoy a successful business, we have to receive (the female element or “yin”) something of value in return.
These events can happen in either order, like breathing in then out, but it’s better to think of them as part of the same or simultaneous thing – like a “breath” includes both the inhale and the exhale. To create a novel, we have to receive an idea, and then we have to give effort to bring the idea to the page. Like a woman in birth, we feel the effort. If we force it, creativity can be very difficult, but if we work with the process, it can be an intense experience we’re happy to remember for a lifetime. We remember the process of creation not only for the joy of what we created, but for what we learned on the journey and how the process of creating something new changed us.
There are many great books on the process of creativity. The core of all those different methods boils down to a few key steps, which apply to all creative endeavors:
1. Acceptance
2. Understanding
3. Definition
4. Gathering
5. Deciding
6. Acting
Before exploring these steps in detail, it’s important to remember that for truly creative solutions to any challenge, we need two equally important factors in mind: first, to be creative, we by definition need to have something unusual; second, to be a solution, whatever we end up with needs to work and solve the problem. The process necessarily plays back and forth with these sometimes-competing approaches to maximize the effectiveness of each. It can be messy. It can be ambiguous. It can be anxiety-ridden. Most of all, it should be FUN.
Tags: Creativity > spirit > yang > yin
Book Recommendations
About Kevin
Kevin E. Houchin is an attorney, artist, teacher, author, and principal of
Houchin & Associates, P.C. , a copyright, trademark, arts & entertainment,
business development, and branding firm located in Fort Collins, Colorado.
To schedule Kevin for keynote speeches, workshops, or seminars, call 970-493-1070
or email
kevin.houchin@houchinlaw.com.