The Larsen Group

Circles of Change:  Conversations with Dr. Zara Larsen

 on Change Leadership and Career Fulfillment

March 29, 2009

“Wisdom Work: Poetry in Strategic Motion”

Anchoring Points:  

1. Wisdom work is what each of us does to find our true nature, align with that nature and progress along our life path.  It is everything that we do, including our paid jobs and all else we do. It is soul work!

2. My new creative pursuits (photography and poetry) are meaningful outlets for my spiritual energy. They bring out the observant, caring and compassionate aspects of my being.

3. My work is shifting in the direction of wisdom; that is a concern for what really matters in life – the people in our lives, relationships, the natural environment, and giving something back to others.

4. My creative work is turning into healing work. It’s no longer about just taking pictures and writing poems. It’s now about using my poetry and photography to help mentally ill patients and hospice patients find peace in their lives – helping them find resolution to their biggest life challenges.

5. My client mix has changed radically – from bottom line, operations concerned executives and their boards to people and organizations that want meaning and purpose, a commitment to align themselves and their organization with that meaning and purpose. My work with the Cherokees and the US Department of Labor is in this space.

6. I don’t know where all this leads in the long term and that doesn’t matter. The most important thing for me and others is to walk the right path – a learning path that includes many teachers and many who can learn from me.

7. I am completing a Masters Degree in consciousness studies which is basically about the inner work I need to do to move along my path. I have been exposed to the wisdom and work of 20 amazing teachers (tops in their fields) and they have helped me develop an educated understanding of spirituality, the human psyche, transformational leadership and conscious organizations.

8. Times are tough for everyone right now. The economy will recover slowly over the next couple years but the downturn is a major source of stress, tension, conflict and uncertainty for folks. This is the perfect time for doing the inner work needed to build more effective and ethical leaders in the world. The test of our strength is when times are tough and not easy.