I remember graduating highschool in 1989 and heading out into the world in the 90′s…  It was the era of the Seattle Bands, and while there was a lot of brilliant music that came from those bands, often the lyrics echoed the Seattle weather… mostly cloudy with a good chance of rain, rain and more rain.

The summer of 94 I spent with my brother Dave building my father’s ranch in Arizona.  It was he and I every day working 12 hour days in the Arizona sun–to the music of bands like Soundgarden… “black hole sun, wontcha come…”  Wow, brings back so many memories.

But there didn’t seem to be much revolutionary rock music.  Most if it seemed to take on a whiney attitude, as if the world is screwed up and there’s nothing we can do about it.  Lyrics like Beck’s “I am a loser baby, so why don’t you kill me,” and Nirvana’s “I’m half the man I used to be,” made me practically sick to my stomach.  What I didn’t like was that the artists themselves had such amazing talent and great airplay, and in my opinion they were wasting their power to influence positive change.

So, I tended to listen to many of the older bands, classic rock from the 60′s and 70′s like Led Zeppelin and The Doors, and hard rock and heavy metal bands from the 80′s like Metallica.

Of course then there was the band that gave me the theme music for my life during the 90s… Rage Against The Machine.  It was the music of a positive rebellion.  “Don’t stand on a silent platform, fight the war, f— the norm!”  In my head I made up my own lyrics to many of their songs, but the underlying theme was that we can do something in the world we live in–we can “take the power back.”

(Where has Zack de la Rocha disappeared to, anybody know?)

Of course, my musical taste ranged far beyond classic rock, hard rock and heavy metal–the common theme being music that gave me power to be the change, to stand up, speak up and make a difference.  In fact, I must have worn out almost as many Rocky soundtrack CDs and Chariots of Fire soudtrack CDs as I did RATM.
Anyway, I just came across a news article on CNN about how heavy metal is growing up and starting to bring forward more messages for change.  The same thing can be witnessed in the world of Hip Hop.  It’s a trend that is just beginning to emerge.

Sure, each genre has always had it’s visionaries and revolutionaries, but it’s the change in the percentage of artists using their medium for positive change that excites me.
And what really excites me is that great movements of social change tend to be preceded by artists by a few years (can someone quote me a study or reference?).

So, tis the dawning of a new day!

And I know the power of heavy metal to reach a large percentage of today’s youth–especially the young rebels who refuse to abdicate ownership of their minds to authority and the majority.  Heavy metal artists, welcome to the Vision Revolution–make yourselves heard!

And, soon the day shall come when the messages of change in the music are presented not from well-intentioned positionary artists, but visionary artists (the distinction is here).

Musicians – Be heard!  Post comments below.

VisionForce serves the ever expanding constellation of visionaries in the world. We know how tough it can be too keep extending yourself, to keep risking your time, your life, your money, your reputation for what you see is possible for humanity. Whether you’re an entrepreneur, a social entrepreneur, an activist, an artist, a teacher, a parent, an author, a visionary politician, a church group leader, etc–or you aspire to be in some kind of creative leadership role to make a difference–matters not. What matters is that you need the power to stand and keep standing. Not a small task in today’s world that still mostly honors those who fit in, follow, obey and conform.

You are the hope of our children. You are the hope of tomorrow. In addition to providing powerful tools for visionaries like you, VisionForce aims to fill your spirit so that you can keep going forward, doing what you do, being who you are.

And our new Visionary Interview series is meant for you. We’ll be posting an audio interview with an everyday visionary, for your benefit. You can listen right here on the website, download to your computer and burn to your CD, or subscribe to this as a podcast and listen from you iPod.

We’re not necessarily going to interview those who’ve made it to the top. Au contraire! We’re going to interview the people in the trenches, people just like you! You are NOT alone. There are countless millions living the visionary lifestyle–living by their vision and risking everything that the “normal” world offers to do so.

The world of the past offers us the rewards of comfort, convenience, approval, respect, safety and financial security. All we need to do is stay mostly within the boundaries of the existing systems (that are sooo NOT working!). You are one of the few who chooses not to go down with the ship! And you’re willing to risk your life and your reputation to swim to shore to save all the others on board, and raise humanity to the next level.

I honor you.

This week we’ll be taling to a young entrepreneur in the renewable energy industry. Learn the challenges she comes up against and see who she is in the face of those challenges. Note: You’ll see yourself in her. She is you. Later on in the week, we’ll be interviewing a young visionary musician, risking it all to change the world through his music.

I will make no promise as to the frequency of these interviews, but expect them!

If you have comments, thoughts or suggestions, please post them below. (Oh, and if you know of someone we should interview.. hint, hint… YOU? Then direct them to visionforce and have them comment below. Thanks!)

I just saw the much talked about documentary by Al Gore on global warming. And, I better first mention that I was skeptical. See, I’ve never been a fan of political force as an agent of positive change, and I’ve always seen environmental issues largely from the side of the entrepreneur. Not that I don’t value the environment, I do. I just 1) don’t put much faith in government solutions, 2) don’t typically trust politicians who give good sounding causes to expand government’s power (and their own), and primarily 3) see and feel the detrimental effect that turning to government for answers has on humanity. I’ll get back to all that later.

I loved the documentary. First, it really made me think. Second, Mr. Gore and his crew chose not to lampoon their adversaries with cheap shots, present the ideas as The truth or their solutions as The solution. Yes, it appears to be a marketing piece for a future presidential bid (and a brilliant one at that). But most of all, I was inspired by the stand this man has taken, the path he has walked and how he has leveraged technology to share his vision. He’s been laughed at for decades for his stand on this issue, turned on, rejected, etc., and still he’s standing.

You really couldn’t ask for a better campaign commercial, but I’m not turned off by that simply because at the same time its’ killer marketing piece for his vision of positive change. Brilliant. Further, it’s an excellent example of how a single visionary has the power to change the world.

I understand now more the deep passion (displayed as frustration and anger) a friend of mine has when she finds me with a door open and the AC on (and why she didn’t laugh when I said, but I’m cooling the earth’s atmosphere to help stop global warming). I have a newfound respect for all the visionaries out there who labor tirelessly to share their message–their call to action. If that’s you reading this, I honor you.

Beyond all of that, what I saw from this documentary is a great parallel between the environment of our planet and the environment of our minds. Few see the full magnitude of the extent to which our survival is threatened by other technologies run rampant. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., noted 40 years ago, “We have guided missiles, and misguided men.”

What is happening with global warming and the environment is but a microcosm of a much larger problem. Al Gore’s frustration in reaching his fellow human beings is the frustration felt by most visionaries–everyday people who choose to stand for something worthwhile and take bold action to make a difference. There is a great divide in humanity at present.

I submit that just like there is a direct correlation between carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere and the temperature of the earth, there is a direct correlation between a) the levels of power that political, military and other outside forces are given, and b) the amount of war, disease, crime, terrorism, poverty, depression, drug addiction, etc., we see. More specifically, the more we turn to technology-empowered external authorities to solve our problems, the less we look within to be the change and cause the change. And the less we look within, the more we suffer, and the more we turn to irrational excapes, actions and justifications.

Just as Al has found that people not only need to see and feel the magnitude of the problem, they need to see and feel there is actually something they can do about it; so too have we at VisionForce found that it’s not enough to present the problem in a way it hits home for the individual–we must communicate in a way that has people seeing and feeling that they can do something about it (yes, our boot camps are powerful in that regard, but the whole world can’t attend “boot camp!”).
I’ve a general aversion to looking outside ourselves to other forces for solutions, as it overlooks our greatest natural resource for positive change–the force within us. The force of our own conscience, consciousness and vision. There are ways we can “activate” the vision force (sounds like a super hero cartoon action) to cause a ground swell of change.

Because there are many more “inconvenient truths” out there that we are facing in these times of accelerating technology. The world doesn’t need more people to compromise their power, freedom, vision and self-reliance in order to fit in and be comfortable. The world needs more people willing to stand for what matters in the face of it all, and share a vision that lifts even their adversaries to greatness. More on all this later.

Comments? Post below.

1 – You are one of the few who can’t turn your back on the opportunity you have to do something great in this lifetime. You’re committed to doing something great–something born of your own vision (your vision for your life, your family, your company, your community or humanity).

2 – You’re frustrated in a world that rewards conformity and tolerates mediocrity. You’re compassionate to the situations of others, yet you’re unsettled by the way conformity and mediocrity has human beings staying small.

3 – You know that what stands between you and the better world you envision is really but one thing: your own limits. And you know those limits are but an illusion. Thus, you are committed to transcending your limits to be the change you seek in the world. Deeply committed.

4 – Thus, human development is not something new to you. You eat it up. You don’t just have an intellectual fancy for human development ideas, you do the work, you take the action.

5 – Having been someone who takes action to transcend your limitations, you see how much more is possible–not just for yourself, but for the world at large. The more you see your own evolution, the more you see for all of humanity.

6 – This vision, you know, is more than a dream. People in your life may see you as an idealist, a dreamer, a rebel or maybe even a nut. But their opinions of you are based on their own fears to live from their own vision–and you know that. So you don’t give much credence to their doubts and fears.

7 – Yet it bothers you. You give so much in life, you sacrifice, you work, you commit at such a high level that you may often find yourself alone, disheartened or even in despair. For you have no comfort zone to retreat to. You can’t pretend you don’t see a greater vision. You won’t pretend. You won’t turn around and live a “normal” life.

8 – Until your dying day, you will keep standing for the vision you see–for what you know to be possible. You are a visionary–a revolutionary. The world is born by those with your courage, your will, your love. There you stand, you can do no other.

9 – You know that if more people could but see even a little more of your vision, it would change their life. It would change the world. You sense something is deeply missing from traditional self-improvement methods. You don’t want to just succeed inside the prevailing system–you want to change the system or give birth to a new one. And you know that takes an entirely different set of tools for thinking, being and communicating.

10 – Words like “change,” “revolution,” and “transformation” don’t scare you. “Bring it on,” you say. You welcome the new, the different, the complex.

11 – You likely have little company. You have few you can talk to who really relate.

12 – The idea of arriving at a final truth or solution annoys you or humours you. You know it’s a fallacy that the fearful cling to. To be human, you’re sure, is to be alive with the quest and the question, learning and evolving continually. The thought of pretending you have the answer repulses you.

13. So you don’t try to sell people on your worldview. You don’t have a need to change their beliefs. You are comfortable in the question, in the unknown. That is your home. It’s where you live every day.

14. You know fear. You seldom ignore your feelings. Rather, you face them. You feel them. And yet you don’t define yourself as them. You define yourself by your actions.

15. You are someone I wish to get to know. Together, we can change the world. We can create a future where every human being naturally develops a healthy, free, independent mind. Where children are honored as the visionaries they have the innate potential to be. A world where human beings live at the edge of their potential as conscious creators in peace and prosperity.

Speak up! Use the comment link below.

The world can’t see your vision, yet you are out there in the land of being misunderstood. You could conform to their judgments, their laughter, their look of doubt, their skepticism… and retreat to a comfortable path, where you’re easily accepted in society and your communities.

Yet you choose to stand. You choose to be true. You can’t deny the vision you see, even if they don’t see it. You know the difference it could make in the world. And the pain of rejection and judgment is a small price to pay. You’ll pay it. All your life if you have to.

You’re a visionary. You are one of the few human beings in the early twentieth century who won’t deny your power to impact the world. And so, you have the power to move the world.

VisionForce.com is for the few, the courageous, the visionaries.

If you see such a vision, what’s in your way of stepping out, standing up, speaking up more than you do? Your conscious limitations are the greatest barrier to creating what you see. Your conscious evolution must be one of your highest priorities. We’ve designed the free Power To Stand on-line course for you to help you in your evolution from a position-based consciousness to a stand-based consciousness. It’s for the revolutionary who knows that yesterday’s ways of thinking about causing change just won’t work in the 21st Century.

If you’re not yet sure what your purpose or vision is… if you don’t yet feel deeply called to step into the unknown guided by a vision that moves you, consider that it won’t happen by staying comfortable. All there is to do is face what there is to face in a way that has your vision emerge. The Visionary Mind program was designed to have you experience your call to greatness–to have you experience your own vision on a level that calls to you so deeply that you find a new power and freedom, and with it a profound responsibility to “be the change.”

You gotta check this young man out.

I gave him the Vision Force 101 200 Mb download about 2 weeks ago (the precursor to Visionary Mind), and he’s already changing the world. Check out his blog today, and all the comments he’s getting.

I came across this letter in a post to the Power To Stand pod on Zaadz that I thought you’s appreciate. It’s a letter to you from Erika Harris of www.wordfire.net. Erika’s a spoken word artist in Chicago with something to say…

An Open Letter to Visionaries

“Today’s oak is just yesterday’s nut that held its ground.” (Author unkown)

Anyone who has ever accomplished anything of importance – especially to the benefit of others – has had to endure being misunderstood by those who just couldn’t get it.

There are some people who are actually driven by something much greater than self-absorption. These people have an Urge on the inside of them that haunts and compels them to make their Urge a reality. If you live with that incessant inner-pull, then this letter is for you. And if you’re someone who feels utterly pleased, or bored, with your life, and you have no idea of the Urge and Pull that I’m talking about… well, maybe you know a person like this. In which case, this letter will help you better understand and support the Visionary who is in your life.

So, at superficial glance, Dear Visionary, people may mistake you for a malcontent; as you’re always tinkering, exploring, creating and insisting upon the improvement of things. But that’s only because you so clearly see what can be. And you’ve accepted your participatory role in ushering in that possibility. You’ve taken responsibility for bringing it forth. And that really is the most important thing. Bringing it forth.

Whether you are an activist, artist, dreamer, entrepreneur, idealist, inventor, progressive parent, scholar, scientist, social reformer or some other wonderful label not mentioned (in which case, Name Yourself!), you owe it to the world to manifest your Urge. That Urge is not in you merely to disturb your sleep, take your mind captive, or make you appear preoccupied and restless most of the time. That Urge is in you to be developed and brought forth. A segment of the world’s population is in dire need of the Thing(s) you are meant to bring forth. And there is a degree of suffering that segment will endure unless and until you finish your Task.

Don’t let delays, criticism or alienation discourage you. Accept them as part of the course, and go on. Persist. Relentlessly. If you don’t do this, then you and the segment you were born to serve will remain unchanged. The Future, its History, and our Present, will all be a bit handicapped because of your withholding.

If you’ve been looking or waiting for a Decided Marker – a Sign – to legitimize your commitment to your Urge, receive this letter as that Sign. Receive these words as a big kick from the Universe telling you that NOW is your time. Now is your time to give yourself over to that Inner Task you’ve been carrying around for years.

Giving yourself over to your Inner Task is not a grand and dramatic gesture. It is, instead, precise and subtle. It is listening like you’ve never listened before. It is, maybe for the first time in your life, allowing yourself to be guided, taught and ignited by something only you can see. And because only you can see it, only you can validate it. You have to leave the safe shores of external affirmation, and go into the deep waters of self assurance. The only way you can convert your Inner Task into an Outer Contribution is to absolutely believe in its value and worth – perhaps years before anyone else will or can. You have to be confident in a journey that has no map. But you need no map, because your confidence doesn’t come from the paths blazed by others. It comes from a New Land only seen by you. And you have within you all that you need to take us to that New Land with you. We are ready and waiting. Waiting for you to bring forth your vision.