Collective
Intelligence
“We
obviously cannot confront the tangled world alone...It takes no great
insight to realize that we have no choice but to think together,
ponder together, in groups and communities. The question is, how to
do this? How to come together and think and hear each other in order
to touch, or be touched, by the intelligence we need.”
Jacob
Needleman (In: Centered on the Edge: Mapping a Field of Collective
Intelligence and Spiritual Wisdom)
Have
you ever worked as a member of a creative team? If so, you know the
magic of creativity that occurs when two or more minds are working
together and fueling one another. Throughout history, particularly in
the arts, pairs of writers, artists and musicians have conspired
together to produce some of our greatest masterpieces. Think J.R.R.
Tolkien and C.S. Lewis, Rogers and Hammerstein, Lennon and McCartney.
Individually, they were talented; together, they were brilliant. They
fed off each other, spurred one another to greater creativity,
competed, and in that competition, both were lifted to greater
achievement.
When
we gather with another, whether like-minded or different, new ideas
are stimulated, new possibilities generated, and we feel the kinetic
energy in the room. We are most productive when we bring our
intelligence and spirit together with another intelligence and
spirit; in that interaction a third entity is born and given potent
life. Some call this third party the “Holy Spirit” because it
inspires. We are simply better when we have collective intelligence
aimed at problem solving.
In
our world today, we have embraced radical individualism. I think,
particularly in America, where the remnant of our pioneering past
sits deep in our psyche, we are determined to “go it alone.”
Starting very young, this “I can do it myself!” attitude makes
everyday life a challenge. We don't admit our weaknesses nor our
dependency on others; we don't ask for help when we need it, and
consequently shut out the possibility of accessing collective
intelligence. We would do well to remember this: “When two or
three are gathered together...I am there also.” Spirit is always
present and available to assist.
In
the Spirit,
Jane
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