This book, written by existential coach Jim Lockard, talks about spiritual leadership and the qualities needed to build a secular, compassionate community around oneself.
The purpose of this community is to help individuals who request it to find their path and live in accordance with their values or belief systems, whatever they may be. The community has a leader whose role is to encourage and support participants in their search so that they transform their potential into actions while respecting the Other and the universe. To do this, the leader must know himself in terms of values, beliefs, motivations, but also limitations (the shadow that Karl Jung speaks of). This book discusses some tools that the spiritual leader (which does not mean religious) should know.
The first chapter describes the qualities that any spiritual community should have: awareness, vision, solidarity, compassion…. It would be an incubator where people sharing the same questions would feel safe and would come together at a certain point in their lives to take stock, grow, and start anew in life. The key words are 'Evolution (personal) and Emergence (of talents)'.
The second chapter discusses the obstacles that may arise: leader authoritarianism, participant expectations, limited level of awareness, fears, lack of vision, etc., while the third chapter discusses the qualities and skills that a leader should possess. The author uses concrete examples to show the signs that indicate leadership deficiencies, including co-dependence, lack of self-improvement, or lack of organization.
Chapter four discusses cultural evolution and the Spiral Dynamics model (evolutionary spiral) developed by Clare Graves between 1950 and 1970, which posits that human beings are capable of grasping increasing complexity as they evolve. Hence the following life stages (in very brief terms):
| 1st third of existence | |||
| Colors | Features | ||
| Beige | Instinctive | Individualistic | |
| Purple | Tribal | Community | |
| Red | Egoistic | Individualistic | |
| Blue | Traditionalist | Community | Current position of Western societies |
| Orange | Scientist | Individualistic | |
| Green | Egalitarian | Community | |
| 2nd third of existence | |||
| YELLOW | Individuation | Individualistic | Absence of fear as a driving force and limitation of the ego |
| Turquoise | Holistic | Community | |
| Note: this table should be compared with the model of S Schwartz values, described on this site |
We are born into a culture and family at a given level of evolution and are taught the values of that level. Some individuals may move up in level, but they remain influenced by their original or previous state ('transcendence and inclusion').
The point of this classification is to show that a community is built around values that are important to identify in order to achieve consistency and sustainability, just as it is important to understand the values of each participant (Chapter Five). The challenge then is to reconcile different values. Hence the importance for the leader to be able to identify the systemic values of the community and the level of each person in terms of personal development.
Chapter six introduces the notion of Presencing, as expounded by Otto Scharmer in his book, Theory U, which is described at length on this site and remains an essential tool for the spiritual or “inspirational” leader.
Chapter seven addresses the theme of multiple intelligences, including spiritual intelligence. Several videos have also been posted on this site. The author emphasizes the link between emotional intelligence (D. Goleman) and spiritual intelligence (see Cindy Wigglesworth's site and the SQ21 test). Another tool worth noting is 'Resonant Leadership' by R. Boyatzis.
All these references are resources for community leaders, defined in the broadest sense: associations, businesses, etc.
The author emphasizes the importance of creating a safe space for each member to develop and flourish. He explains the difference between mysticism and ethics by quoting philosopher Ken Wilber and his distinction between translation and transformation, or Joseph Campbell, the mythologist. Mysticism is defined as the existential search for meaning and significance.
A community acts (Chapter Ten) either by translating or by transforming (see above). Its fields of action are varied, but its foundation is always the same and can be summed up as compassion and love. A strong community always acts 'for' a cause and never 'against' something (for example, for equality and shared wealth, not against poverty). It is also always visionary.
Jim Lockard's words are peppered with numerous quotes, making the book a very enjoyable read. I therefore recommend this book (in English), which combines spirituality and pragmatism.
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