“In 1974, I found it difficult to teach elegant theories of economics in the university classroom, in the backdrop of a terrible famine in Bangladesh. Suddenly, I felt the emptiness of those theories in the face of crushing hunger and poverty. I wanted to do something immediate to help people around me, even if it was just one human being, to get through another day with a little more ease.”

Thus begins the story of Mohammad Yunus, the 2006 winner of the Nobel Peace Prize. In his Nobel lecture (watch the video and read the transcript here), he tells his story of how he came to found Grameen Bank and pioneer micro-lending to the poor.

The prevailing assumption of bankers and capitalists at that time was that the poor were not a good credit risk. Over the last 30 years, the Grameen (meaning “village”) Bank has given out loans totalling $6 Billion (US) to 7 million poor people, and the repayment rate has been 99%. Yunus proudly asserts that Grameen Bank routinely makes a profit, is self-reliant and has not accepted donor money since 1995. And, according to an internal survey of borrowers, 58 per cent have crossed the poverty line.

These results have say something about who we are as human beings, and what is possible for humanity going forward. Mohammad Unus sees a future where poverty only exists in museums! The path to get there lies, he sees, in questioning our assumptions about who we are as human beings and using free market principles to help the poor lift themselves from poverty.

“I am in favor of strengthening the freedom of the market. At the same time, I am very unhappy about the conceptual restrictions imposed on the players in the market. This originates from the assumption that entrepreneurs are one-dimensional human beings, who are dedicated to one mission in their business lives − to maximize profit.”

“…Human beings are a wonderful creation embodied with limitless human qualities and capabilities. Our theoretical constructs should make room for the blossoming of those qualities, not assume them away.”

“…By defining “entrepreneur” in a broader way we can change the character of capitalism radically, and solve many of the unresolved social and economic problems within the scope of the free market.”

In his speech, Mohammad Yunus introduces the concept of a “social business,” as a free market solution to end poverty, and as a vehicle for young revolutionaries to change the world.

“Young people all around the world, particularly in rich countries, will find the concept of social business very appealing since it will give them a challenge to make a difference by using their creative talent. Many young people today feel frustrated because they cannot see any worthy challenge, which excites them, within the present capitalist world. Socialism gave them a dream to fight for. Young people dream about creating a perfect world of their own.”

The FLOW Movement being started right here in Austin, Texas is forming an idealogical framework to provide a global context for tomorrow’s young revolutionaries. Michael Strong, Co-Founder of FLOW, sees how these new ideas about human potential, entrepreneurship and free markets can ignite a spark in University students, giving them a viable way to literally change the world for the better.

Mohammad Yunus says that we have poverty, because we accept it as part of the human condition. Once we raise our standards and refuse to accept it, we will easily find creative solutions to eliminate it altogether. The human mind has incredible power to solve problems, but only the problems that we refuse to accept.

“We create the world in accordance with our mindset. We need to invent ways to change our perspective continually and reconfigure our mindset quickly as new knowledge emerges. We can reconfigure our world if we can reconfigure our mindset.”

Of course, this is what we are up to here at VisionForce.com. The visionary mind of the future is one that evolves continually in ways that empower the individual to stand for more, see more as possible and create more. Our free Visionary Mind Shifts course by email is an introduction to this kind of evolutionary consciousness.

Our Visionary Mind home study program takes you much deeper, having you question the biggest assumptions about human beings, which keep us limited; and having you experience your “inner calling” to stand for a better world–your call to “greatness.” You can dive more fully into your visionary mind, and accelerate your evolution with this program by purchasing your hard copy here.

And if you’re already deep in the game of world-changing and conscious evolution, or if you are committed to living as Mohammad Yunus has lived, we want you to attend this event and be one of the 30 to step forward this spring and create a future that really works for everyone. The revolution starts now!

“In a time of drastic change it is the learners who inherit the future. The learned usually find themselves equipped to live in a world that no longer exists.” – Eric Hoffer

The Visionary Mind is not just a continually learning mind, but a mind not organized around psychological positions. Anyone can continually learn within the walls of their positions. The Nazi, the Roman Catholic, the Jew, the Environmentalist, the Rush Limbaugh Dittohead, the Marxist, the Dove, the Hawk, the Randian and the Patriot can all be continual learners, whose learning merely fortifies their existing positions. What marks the visionary mind is the quality of continual evolution, more than just continual learning.

And in these times of drastic change, it is the continually learning and evolving visionaries who shall not just inherit the future, they shall create it.

No matter your values, your beliefs, your cause or your level of learnedness, if your strength comes from your position, you will become less and less powerful to create the kind of life and world that will further your highest values and everyone else’s. It is your commitment and ability to evolve beyond your well-fortified positions and live from a dynamic stand that will empower you to create the kind of future that will really work for you and for all of us.

What we are talking about here is a complete yet subtle paradigm shift, one that we begin to explore in our free Visionary Mind Shifts course by email. It’s a paradigm shift, which is further rooted and explored with our Visionary Mind home study program, and deeply experienced inside of our 4-day intensives.

How can you see what your “enemy” is saying at such a level that you have the power to call them to stand with you?  This seemingly impossible task is not only possible, it’s quite simple.

Here at Vision Force, and inside of Visionary Mind Shifts, we make the distinction between a position and a stand.  If you’re still struggling to grasp this distinction, think of it this way… underneath every position is a stand.

Consider that every single person, even your enemies who you think you understand, are heroic human beings standing for their values.  Now, you may totally disagree with how they are going about standing for their values, and you probably judge them for it.  Your position is that they are wrong, immoral, evil, selfish or (insert your label here).  From this position, you cannot see them as human beings, and they cannot see you.  To protect themselves from your judgments, they form and protect judgments of their own–they form and maintain their own position, from which they cannot see you.

It doesn’t matter how smart you are, your power to create the best results is severely limited, because you lack the kind of vision that could make all the difference.

The key in us being able to move forward individually with powerful vision AND in us being able to co-create with the other side lies in our ability to so clearly see the others’ stand that we are deeply moved by it.  As we are moved and come from this place, the other side feels seen and then can open up to see us as well.  From this place “miracles” can happen, where previously compromise was the best alternative.

It’s a subtle yet incredibly powerful distinction and understanding it is not what makes the difference.  Successfully applying it makes the difference.  You must experience what it is like to first see the positions you didn’t even realize you had, then break through them and then experience the kind of vision that happens as a result.  That level of visionary training is not going to be found in leadership workshops, self-help programs, wealth mindset courses or any such thing.

You will find this revolutionary training is powerfully provided at Vision Force’s iStand Experience, otherwise known as the Vision Force Boot Camp.

At this very moment, Vision Force is searching for 30 to “be the ones” to walk a new path and lead the way for humanity.  If you think this might be you, apply here:

A First Lieutenant in the U.S. Army has taken a stand. Ehren Watada, a 28-year-old Hawaii native, faces a court martial next month and up to 6 years in prison. He is the first commissioned officer in the U.S. to publicly refuse deployment to Iraq.

Here’s the link to the blog and audio. Overy 100,000 people have commented on this man’s stand. Many of his peers call him a traitor and a coward. Others think he’s anything but that. (leave your comments below)

It’s easy to take a position on this young man’s decision, and that’s one of the fundamental problems with the world we live in. Actually, the problem lies within our methods of thinking, our consciousness. Yesterday’s consciousness is insufficient for the world we face today with all of it’s accelerating change, globalization, the advancement of technology, etc.

Someone thinking with yesterday’s consciousness, the “positionary mind of the past,” rushes to judgment without much honest inquiry. Rather than look to understand the person or organization they judge, they simply attack. It’s usually in defense of a position they formed long ago.

This is a very emotional issue, especially for those who chose to stand for their country by risking their lives by fighting at war–even if they objected to the war. To be inspired by this man’s stand, it’s assumed they’d have to turn on their own stand. They are proud of the stand they took to fight, and feel that those who stand for their country by not fighting are invalidating or dishonoring them.

Some soldiers, in going to war, might judge those who don’t as cowardly. This affords them more pride and confidence in their decision, but the judgment itself is what devolves their stand into a position.

In our eagerness to stand for something, we too easily form a righteous position, from which we can no longer think honestly about the situation.

Isn’t honesty the quality of not refusing to look at or think about something, when forming one’s thoughts, words or opinions? Yet, when we form our thoughts and opinions with yesterday’s positionary thinking, those very opinions become walls beyond which we cannot see. Beyond the walls of our position, we can not see the humanity, the courage, the stand taken by “the other side.” And then we treat and speak to them as less than human.

Is it any wonder the world is in such a state of crisis?

What we’re lacking is a new form of consciousness. A visionary consciousness, the likes of which have been rare throughout history. Gandhi is a great example of someone with a visionary consciousness. What we’ll need going forward, however, and what I see is fast approaching, is a much more sophisticated and developed visionary consciousness–higher level thinking methods that facilitate visionary thinking and make it much easier and more common place.

Eventually, evolution to a new kind of thinking will occur. Indeed, it must if we are to survive and thrive in this world.

Some are courageously undertaking the quest to evolve their consciousness even now, and are seeking out training for living as a visionary. Of course, that’s why VisionForce exists–to facilitate this conscious evolution of consciousness.

And right now, we’re looking for 30. We’re looking for those willing to live their lives standing for humanity, including men and women who are standing for peace and freedom even now in Iraq–at war.

If you are willing to live your life as a visionary, as someone who stands, as a hero for mankind, we’re looking for you. We need parents, teachers, entrepreneurs, lawyers, politicians, activists, artists–we need you. Are you willing?

We tell our children to dream, but what the world today and tomorrow needs is much more than children with dreams.  We need children with vision.  Just the same, our children need more than good parents with dreams.  Today’s and tomorrow’s children need great parents with vision.

A dream, like a dangling carrot in front of a donkey, can be enough to have a visionless person keep moving forward, obeying orders and following the system from one moment to the next.

But what if the systems we’re following are not working?  And what if the leaders we’re following have little vision?

Shall we just keep dreaming and being “good,” comforming to the prevailing systems?

Shall we just keep dreaming and being “good,” while blaming the system’s failure on those who are not being “good” and conforming, assuming that we just need to give our non-conforming children ( or students, citizens, employees, etc.) more Ritalin or more punishment?

Shall we just keep “dreaming” and conforming to the system, while blaming the “leaders” for not fixing the system?

Shall we each just keep pretending we have “the answer,” know “the truth” of a situation or see “the solution?”  Everyone has an opinion (and in a free system everyone has a voice), but few with an opinion have vision.

Democracy for visionless people of different blind faiths is a formula for civil war and destruction.  For a free society to function now and in the future, it needs free thinkers, not blind followers.

Consider that it is no longer enough for us to tolerate each others’ faiths.  Instead it is time for each of us to rise to the level of vision.  Every person of faith can rise to the level of vision, and at the level of vision a person of faith only becomes more virtuous, conscious, humane, tolerant, peaceful, prosperous and integrous at the level of vision.

Without vision, the good person of faith in a free society can only tolerate others and compromise with them.  Those who object to compromise on principle or in faith, resort to forming a self-righteous position with respect to others.

“If only everyone would see things my way and comform to the solutions I can clearly see would work.”  Such is the thinking of a person, who lacking vision, must cling self-righteously to his position (conclusions about what is true, what is right and what to do).

The world needs more than good followers with dreams and more than tolerant people with faith, we need each person to rise to the level of vision–to be great leaders of themselves, who think freely, honestly and openly, and who easily co-create with others.
Goodness has long been interpreted as that behavior which fits within the “good” or prevailing system or that which follows the “great” visionary leader of the time.  But what happens when the systems are failing and our leaders lack the vision to revolutionize those systems?  Is goodness good enough?
Radical change and evolution is the way of the future, and surviving in that future is going to require that we all shift our thinking and evolve from conforming to become “good,” “responsible” citizens, parents, children, employees, etc., to evolving to become great visionary leaders.  Each of us?  Each of us.

Every mother can be a visionary mother.  Every teacher can be a visionary teacher.  Every person can function at the level of vision, develop their natural visionary mind and live a visionary life.
This shift from dreams to vision, from goodness to greatness, is a shift in consciousness.  It’s time for each of us to make the shift, and for those who are ready to leap–apply to attend this event.

What does it mean to live your life from a stand?  How do people who try to stand for something fall into the trap of forming a position, from which they lose their vision, passion, compassion and power to cause the kind of change they intended?  What does it mean to live a visionary life–to think, speak and operate from a place of authentic power?

Embark on this journey inside of our Visionary Mind Shifts program, and continue it with the Visionary Mind home study program, an experiential program of self-inquiry and visionary thinking.
Then if you’re ready to be the visionary change agent that the future requires, then go learn how you can be part of the emerging One Million Visionary Campaign and possibly be one of 30 visionaries to lead the way in 2007.

What if One Million Visionaries took a stand for humanity? And what if they each had the wisdom, power and skills to create a world that worked for everyone?

Several Vision Force Boot Camp graduates have been asking these questions after experiencing the power of the Vision Force methods. The result? A non-profit initiative called the One Million Visionaries campaign.

It’s being launched this spring in conjunction with the next Vision Force Boot Camp. If you’d like to receive more info about how you can be one of 30 impassioned change agents in attendance, get on this list.