Follow me here and on Substack at “Sit with Chuck” as I share this deep change process.

#CultivatingCharacter
#NextBook

We’ve got to create the embodied conditions for deep change. And that happens beneath the level of words, thoughts, and behavior. The transformation of character begins when our bodies retune to the whisper of Eden - peace, wholeness, rest - from a survival orientation to a connection orientation.

All of these things can be helpful, but if they’re merely new behaviors on top of a taxed nervous system in survival mode, nothing substantial will change. We might see cosmetic change, performative change – but not deep change.

Even after 27 years of engaging my own work, I’m still surrendering to the mystery of it all.

See Ch 6 of my book Healing What’s Within for more.

Our bodies + souls respond best not to the glaring light of interrogation and exposure, but to the tender glow of curiosity.

Your life isn’t a problem to be solved…your story isn’t a frantic search for the missing smoking gun that - when found - will finally help you make sense of your pain.

May our own increasing connection allow curiosity to come back online within, and in our collective discourse.

(End)

So try this: cultivate your own peace – and be that peaceful presence, even in spaces of disagreement. Don’t abandon your convictions, but allow your convictions to arise from connection, not reaction.

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And nervous systems don’t see political parties – they just see threats.

We dupe ourselves into thinking social media posts will change people’s minds, but our nervous systems are incapable of curiosity in threat mode.
2/4

True freedom of voice comes from deep inner work - regulation, shadow/story work, connection to your true self, and discovering authentic agency and voice.

Absent that, it’s not transformation - it’s just another reaction.