Being Present and Story Pollution

March 20, 2008

How the assumptions we make about others are destroying our nation

The main problem facing our nation today is not the self-interest of our elected officials or illegal money in politics, its Story Pollution. Let me explain.

We live in a world of incredible technological advancements, lightning fast communication and ever-greater competitive pressures – all set against the backdrop of a rapidly changing global economic environment. Yet, we live and work in this brave new world guided by the same antiquated set of assumptions that have been passed down to us generation after generation. And frankly, we embrace these stories solely because someone told us that these are the ways things ‘ought to be.’

However, if you take an honest, fresh look at the world and how we interact within it, you’ll discover that many of these ‘stories’ no longer apply. They are simply perpetuated and reinforced everyday in classrooms, television studios, and boardrooms around the world. They affect how we think about everything, from business and family, to government, to how we live our lives. I refer to this phenomenon as ‘Story Pollution.’

The opposite of Story Pollution is ‘Being Present.’ Being Present (or as Eckhart Tolle describes it in the Power of Now, ‘Being in the Now’) is a state of consciousness where nothing from the past influences your thoughts, actions, or behaviors in any way. Only after I learned to let go of the past, to let go of the polluted stories of yesterday and ‘be present,’ was I able to understand and accomplish my goals.

Simply put, ‘being present’ or presence is looking at a situation objectively without influence from the past, without prejudice or assumption. It is not considering how something is ‘supposed to happen, ‘how we got there in the first place’ or ‘who initiated the idea’, but rather, ‘what is the best way to accomplish this goal?’ If you take an honest assessment of this idea, I think you will find that this is not something we do very often. In fact, Story Pollution is far more prevalent than Presence as we create our own stories every minute of every day.
And that’s how we pass it on from generation to generation—without even knowing it.

The Effect of Story Pollution on Politics

On a business level, Story Pollution keeps bright employees from proposing new ideas. On a spiritual level, it discourages people from even considering alternative points of view. And on a personal level, it frightens people into not being exposed to new philosophies that can expand the ‘typical human experience’. That’s truly a shame, since we only live once, and yet we’re still so stingy with our awareness in the finite time we have to use it.
In politics, Story Pollution is everywhere. It limits thinking, options, and possibilities. We have been convinced that we have no power, what we do will not matter, and that our lives are increasingly at the mercy of forces we cannot control. It prevents people from voting for candidates outside the 2 party system. We feel that we don’t have a choice. After all, how many times have we heard, “Voting for a 3rd Party is a wasted vote!”

Because most people believe this story, it pollutes the field of possibilities. Yet, virtually all American’s believe that the 2 party system is corrupt and neither party has our nation’s interest in mind. Since Republicans and Democrats created this catastrophe, why would we expect them to solve these problems; particularly when it was their policies that created the status quo in the first place? We can’t… yet we continue to support the 2 party system due to Story Pollution. It’s no surprising, therefore, that people feel helpless and underpowered.

Applying ‘Presence’ to Business

It’s the idea of ‘Being Present’ that‘s allowed AngelVision become what it is today. Egos, drama, and hidden agendas are rare in our world. We are a focused group of individuals who have the goal of transforming commonly held business practices. As a result, with a mere $47,000 investment, we are now likely the fastest growing advertising agency in the nation. We cause miraculous changes in people’s lives and we’ve won numerous awards for Innovation, Marketing, ROI and Management.

I began writing a book on Holistic Management Practices. It is tentatively titled “How to do things the Wrong Way and Achieve Extraordinary Results”. It describes specifically how Presence manifests itself at AngelVision. It’s a collection of real-world examples of how we ‘break the rules’ everyday, thereby enabling the enormous success that we have experienced. (In case you haven’t guessed, much of what you’re reading is the book’s introduction.) I describe what we do right, what we do wrong, and what we might do differently. (Unlike the Bush Administration, sometimes I make mistakes). I am very excited about sharing our unique business model with fellow enlightened business managers and entrepreneurs. However, the completion of this book was postponed due to the urgency to “RESET America!”

I’m dying to give you an example, so here’s a short one: the AngelVision Christmas Party. As I see it, the worst time to have a party is just before Christmas. It’s a very stressful time for most: shopping, traffic, kids out of school, mounting bills, year-end business taxes, and so on. Who wants the added hassle of attending a party?

So we had our Christmas Party in February. It is one of the dullest months of the year - so it’s easier and cheaper to rent a hall, coordinate catering, and book talent. Most importantly, people look forward to the event and are actually excited to attend. Imagine, a Christmas party that people are excited to attend!

In the larger scheme, consider what is most important in running a business. Ask any business executive what their most important job is. Nine times out of ten, they will reply, “hiring good people.” Ask any CEO what makes the greatest contribution to profitability and they will reply, “morale.” Yet, having graduated from two rather prestigious business schools, I never saw one single class offered on either ‘Hiring Good People’ or ‘Bolstering Morale.’ (This is one of the reasons why I felt compelled to write this book.)

From a ‘Business Intelligence’ point of view, Presence provides a powerful competitive advantage. Since I’m not concerned with ego, I solicit opinions from the entire team and then pick the best ideas. As a result, decisions are not based on the whims of a single (usually extroverted and opinionated) individual in a high position, but rather from the best ideas, reached through collaborative consensus. AngelVision is truly 50% smarter than most other companies our size. What a difference this makes!

In my opinion, most companies run at about 25% efficiency. At AngelVision, thanks to extensive productivity and efficiency training exercises, we run closer to 75% efficiency. This offers us another competitive advantage and allows us to charge Customers a fraction of what our service would normally cost.But, monetary benefits are only the beginning. Our people have a greater sense of accomplishment since they can contribute and accomplish more in a day. In addition, this productive mindset carries with them into their personal lives, making it possible for people to spend more time doing the things they like.

Letting Go of the Past

One of the most pervasive and destructive forces in our society is hate: the ultimate manifestation of Story Pollution. Instinctively, we carry judgments and biases about people. Most of whom we have never met. Ironically, most people are actually quite extraordinary.

Why do we distrust others? Back in the Stone Age, there was good reason to fear anyone outside of your tribe; they just might club you over the head, drag you back to their cave, and roast you for dinner. Now, we need to disconnect survival from fear.

Some would say that there is plenty to fear. “Just look at the news Michael!” This is so because television generally only covers ‘bad’ news. You’ll never hear the story about the woman in line at the grocery store who goes to pay with food stamps and finds out the big, burly biker ahead of her has already paid her bill. It is just not as interesting as a homicide (another assumption the networks foist on us). The media feeds us a steady diet of murder and violence. Moreover, with television viewing at record highs, we start to believe that all people are bad. It’s no wonder that so many people are afraid to leave their homes.

Even though we are all good, prejudice permeates our whole world, resulting in aggression and full-scale war. For example, as an Armenian (by heritage), I am supposed to hate Turks. Yet, all the Turks I have ever met are good people. Muslims hate Jews, Jews hate Muslims and war in the Middle East is out of control. Yet, they have more in common than they are willing to acknowledge. Imagine what would happen if we all suddenly realized that we embrace the same goals, hopes, and dreams as everyone else.

The idea of Being Present is not just a philosophy or New Age lingo; it is a concept whose time has come. It is the result of millions (and even billions) of people leaving the past behind and bringing peace and harmony to our world.

This is why RESET America! will succeed

Every reasonable American knows that the problems facing our nation cannot and will not be solved by the Democrats and Republicans. People are finally recognizing that the phrase “Voting for a 3rd party is a wasted vote” is perpetrated by those who profit from the status quo. We now realize that the opposite statement is true: that any vote for a Democrat or a Republican is a wasted vote!

Our only solution to fixing the problems facing our nation and our children is to RESET America!

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