There is a resistance in me to being told by others how to live my life or how to improve it. The resistance comes from my days as a clergyman when it slowly dawned on me that 'preaching' 'teaching' and the application of moral imperatives all worked as immediate interventions but usually failed the test of time. When I entered the health professions I found a different set of 'secular' attempts to persuade me about aspects of my life that were seen to be in deficit. I explored many of them including what were known as encounter groups and self awareness opportunities. A number of experiences followed in workshops promoting a variety of therapeutic modalities. They worked in the immediate sense and then failed the test of time. Now I notice an increase in the number of movements which claim to know the best pathways to self enhancement and the best principles to live by. They appear as seminar opportunities, quasi religious movements, movements based on religious fervour, formulae for changing behaviour psychologically and promises of enlightenment. They are in corporate environments, the therapy world, adventure, physical achievement arenas and in tempting processes for people who desire change in their lives. I notice they have an immediate positive effect for many people and many are spending extensive amounts of money and time as they invest in the promises. The question to ask is, "Will this stand the test of time?" Another important question is "Where and why did this movement begin, who benefits and in what manner?" If the process can be explained in detail before it begins, outcomes proven outside the movement as well as from within and no -one is expected to "wait and see in an atmosphere of faith" then the promise might be worth exploring. If there is acknowledgment that other pathways might be helpful at least the vision is expansive. As we search for answers we are easily persuaded. Perhaps, after all, the question is the answer.
