36- Cultural Systems/Stories and How They Live In Us: The Follow-Up

In this episode, Charlotte and Patti debrief the homework given to them by Laura Hartley, founder of the Scintilla Centre, coach for changemakers, and all around brilliant thinker.First, we jump into our check-ins, and get updates on Charlotte’s journey to find an agent for her novel.Then, the question: would you want to know when and how you were going to die?Patti tells us about pool time with her (human) family, plus, her growing family of mini non-human animals.Charlotte updates us on her half marathon experience and the absolute miracle she witnessed.At about 25 mins, we get into the homework.The Homework:1. Notice every time you use the word “should.” Consider: What’s the story there? Is it true, does it benefit me, does it benefit others? What would happen if the story wasn’t true?2. Notice your body at the same time. What does the “should” feel like? What comes up when you consider what would happen if the story wasn’t true?3. Challenge your imagination. Ask yourself: Why not? What if? Let yourself dream.Here are a few of the (American) cultural stories we interrogate:If you’re passionate about something, you should try to be the best at it, you should try to monetize it.Not everyone gets or deserves to have their basic needs met.Bigger is better.More is better.Success has a static definition (money, numbers, etc)We also discuss:How the idea that anything could be possible can feel overwhelming, and consider whether that prevents us from dreaming up better ways of living.Seeding ideas, rather than trying to “solve” everything.Focusing on mindset and energy or approach.Talking to kids as an entry point to questioning our assumptions.Ways that we learn to discount our own intuition, and how can we can relearn how to trust ourselves.Example: Action St. Louis, a grassroots organization that arose to combat the failures of the government in addressing tornado damage in North City, St. Louis.Can we work within the literal system of capitalism without internalizing the cultural stories of capitalism?Which industrial complexes benefit from which stories?“Shoulds” that we actually should follow. (Warning: we go down some weird paths.)Level of Integration Scores (LOIS). Ways to continue engaging in this work.And, accessibility!Website: https://scintillacentre.com/Newsletter: https://www.scintillacentre.com/#newslettersignupInsta: https://www.instagram.com/laura.h.hartley/Action St. Louis: https://actionstl.org/Logo design by Marielle MartinSong: Upbeat Drums with Stomps and Claps by music_for_videoBlueSky: @canweinterestyouin.bsky.socialInstagram: @canweinterestyouinEmail us your interests! [email protected]: canweinterestyouin.com