The WellBeing Project Podcast
Ep 7: What Are The 7 Concepts?
[♪♪♪] Welcome to the Wellbeing Project podcast. I'm Rachel Bulkley. This is episode 7. What are the seven concepts? Course one of the project, the seven concepts, teaches these ideas in more depth. As I've said before, taking the courses isn't about getting access to special, secret knowledge. Listening to this episode will give you a pretty good general understanding of the project's message. But the course will help you really explore these ideas in a more thorough and personal way. If what you hear today sounds good, head over to the wellbeingproject.info to register for the course live with me. I'm so psyched that you're listening right now. Thank you. Let's dive in. The seven concepts are the cornerstone, the message of the project. They are an organized, practical way to understand how humans flourish. They explain what humans need, how to meet those needs, and how the needs of the individual are interrelated with the needs of the collective. The concepts are a way to not only understand what has typically been ill-defined, but also to create common language for sharing our experiences with one another. Since what we share as humans is far more than any perceived differences, it should not be difficult to understand one another. The reason we've had difficulty is because we've typically had our attention directed at the minor differences rather than the major similarities. When we perceive ourselves to be so different than those around us, logic suggests that our struggles and situations are also very different. But when we recover our identity as a part of a species, part of humankind, we discover insight and understanding that makes life so much easier to navigate. In brief, here are the seven concepts. Concept one. We all want the same thing. In this concept, we define what well-being is and what it isn't. We look at how our measures of success don't lead to happy and fulfilled lives. And we see how easy it is to accept poor physical health, poor mental health, and poor interpersonal relationships when we don't have a clear understanding of what it means to flourish. Although it seems we are all very different in reality, we all want the same thing. Well-being. Concept two. Humans are super nature. In concept two, we are reminded of our place in nature. We aren't just responsible for nature, we are nature. But we're also unique in nature because of our consciousness. The prefix super means above, over, or beyond. We are over nature in the ways that we can create, associate, arrange, and destroy at will. When we look closer at what being a part of nature means, as well as what it means to have such a powerful consciousness, we understand ourselves in a completely new way. We also understand why we fail to make sense of life when we disregard our nature and our consciousness. Concept three. Human purpose is universal. What's the purpose of a tree? A tree can be used for shade, for lumber, for toilet paper. But if that tree is an apple tree and it never grows apples, something went wrong. Possibilities don't define purpose. Our purpose is the unique potential that is baked into our genetic and conscious profile. Your purpose is to reach your potential. The purpose of all humans is to reach their unique potential. Though that may seem either too simple or too complicated, it's neither. It's just the inevitable outcome of meeting your needs. Your genes will express your eye color and height without conscious effort. Your hair will regrow every time you cut it. As long as you receive sufficient nutrition, rest, and exercise, your body is designed to reach its potential. The same is true of your consciousness. When your psychological needs are met consistently and well, you will develop to your unique potential, even if you don't know what that is ahead of time. Concept four. There is a map to your purpose. Throughout all times and in all places, there is a fundamental story that has been told, a monomyth. Joseph Campbell, a professor of comparative literature, explained it most comprehensively and called it the hero's journey. When we look past the surface of mythology, we find a story of human development. Humans have always needed stories to understand our place and path. We need them just as much today. The hero's journey gives us a template that we can plug our own experiences into and understand them deeper. The template helps us understand where we come from, where we are, where we have the opportunity to go, and what we can expect to experience along the way. I can't emphasize enough how much using this metaphorical map can shift your perspective and immediately impact your sense of well-being. Concept five. There's a method to undo madness. While stories have been the most enduring method for teaching wisdom, rituals have been the most enduring way to connect our practical lives with our beliefs. I like to say it like this. Humans need a big story and small tasks. The story gives our lives meaning and the tasks give our days meaning. The daily habits we keep connect us to one another and to the larger meaning we draw from life. Concept five examines the practical behaviors that cause us to flourish, tending. Like tending a garden or tending our young, humans who tend themselves well, flourish. Humans who do not tend themselves live in dysfunction and suffering. The way to exit the chaos we often perceive is to tend our needs with consistency and care. If you and I were walking down the street and I pointed and said, "Wow, that person really takes care of themselves." I just observed that they put effort into tending their physical body. I might have drawn that conclusion from signs like a muscular physique, good posture, clear skin, healthy hair, obvious grooming or stylish clothing. But what I can't know is how they tend their inner life. The being that animates their body, you've probably heard me point out that amputating my limbs would not make me less of a human. Who I am must be the immaterial part of me. And that part, the being, is what we never learned how to tend. How do you nourish yourself when you aren't referring to your body? How do you rest your being? How do you exercise your being? Concept five is all about clarifying and simplifying how we practically tend and maintain our inner lives as well as our bodies. Concept six, the goal of the individual is the goal of the collective. You can't have a healthy body if the cells are sick. You can't have a healthy society if the individual's citizens are sick. But when you have healthy cells, the body is healthy. And when you have healthy citizens, society is healthy. We often feel like cultural problems are entrenched and impossible to change. But what is missing is a recognition of how change takes place. Flourishing isn't something that can be mandated by a political party. But legislation could easily be changed when a healthy population decides to. Since well-being is something that all humans desire, we don't need to argue and convince one another. It's easy to dismiss what we disagree with in one another's agendas when we view our identities so differently. But when we recover our identity as a part of humankind, our goals naturally align. Concept seven, the way to make the world a better place is to be a better part of it. There are always competing messages blasting from society's megaphones. One camp tends to lead towards scarcity, greed, and competition. They say that we must protect ourselves and our resources from others who want to steal our security. Another camp says that we must look out for everyone and provide for everyone if we want a just society. They believe altruism is the necessary basis for the collective. The problem with both of these messages is that they fail to start with the reality that each human shares the same motivation, their own well-being. If we become fixated on what others may want to take from us or what we should be doing for others, without first taking seriously our responsibility to ourselves, we will inevitably fail to experience or contribute our potential in the world. Beyond childhood, you are the only person on the face of the earth who is responsible for your needs. If you don't take that job seriously, you can't reach your potential and you fail to achieve your purpose. But if you do take your needs seriously and meet them consistently, you will inevitably arrive at a place of transcendence. At that point, it becomes your need to meet the needs of others as a part of continuing to ensure your own needs are met. So, whether you care about making a difference in the world or not is beside the point. You don't have to care about others. As long as you care about truly understanding and meeting your needs, you are contributing all that is necessary to the world around you. Simple, right? That, of course, is a brief summary. But it should give you all you need to know to decide whether a deeper understanding of the concepts will help you flourish. The answer is yes, they will. I hope you feel that. If you're keen to dig deeper, you can sign up for my live classes that begin soon. Links are in the show notes and the project can always be found at thewellbeingproject.info. Thanks for listening, and until next time, tend well. [Music]