Making the Invisible Visible: The WOW Behind the HOW
Copyright © 2004 Harald Anderson

"We must be the change we wish to see in the world."
-Gandhi

When was the last time that you truly marveled at something?

Can you remember the exact time and place?

One of the characteristics that I find very attractive in people is an ability to nurture a sense of “wonder” about life. As fast as things occur today, as quickly as information changes hands we often become numb to the creative possibilities going on around us at any given moment. Wonder is that idea and sensation that a great deal of wisdom and beauty remains hidden behind the experience you are witnessing. It is a philosophy of possibilities that challenges our logic and expands our basic understanding and beliefs. It’s the WOW behind the HOW!

Wonder is a fascinating thing to research. We all seem to instinctively know what it is. In the movies they always depict a wondrous moment as being a supernatural experience. By Hollywood’s way of thinking we can only truly experience that sense of awe if something from the great beyond comes down and touches us. I am as big a fan of the great beyond as the next guy, but I am amazed how often the “here and now” can inspire us if we only let it into our life to challenge our current beliefs. That is what the WOW behind the HOW is all about.

So much of what I have researched when it comes to the topic of wonder can be summarized by the idea that someone simply disagreed with a limitation that was imposed upon them. Quite a phenomenal philosophy for living! In preparing to write this article I studied the Seven Wonders of the World as well as all of the Ancient Wonders of the World. Those topics are certainly marvelous areas to ponder the WOW behind the HOW. However, the more that I study them, I am most amazed by the simple fact that at the core of each of those incredible creations was 'somebody' who simply disagreed with what everybody else considered REALISTIC.

Think about that for a little while…. it seems that at the core of every great achievement is a disagreement of what the visionary believed was possible. When the visionary achieved that goal it literally changed the entire viewpoint of civilization of what was possible.

While civilization was content with the idea of gravity the Wright brothers saw the possibility of flight. In 1844 when everyone focused and thought about communication in terms of audible dialogue, Samuel Morse introduced the telegraph machine, which permitted communication to travel instantly between two distant locations. Later in the 1890’s just as civilization was getting accustomed to the idea of the telegraph Edison, Marconi and Tesla all pioneered inventions which allowed the wireless telegraph, the radio to serve and entertain humanity. At the core of each of these remarkable accomplishments was a disagreement with the limiting vision and understanding shared by the status quo. The list can go on and on…..

Thank God for disagreements!

We possess three essential abilities to develop greater consciousness, awareness and understanding. They are:
a) To reason,
b) To know that we know, and
c) To know that we know not.

Most people strive to live their lives demonstrating to others that they know, even if they don’t. Most of our educational system is focused on teaching us to reason and to know that we know. However, the artists and adventurers quickly gravitate to the arena “that we know not” and make the process of discovery the canvas of their lives. They disagree. It seems that the artist and adventurer feed off the idea of exploring unknown territory claiming it as the birthplace of all possibility.

In the book “The Art of Dreaming” Don Juan tells Carlos Castaneda, “….most of our energy goes into upholding our importance….If we were capable of losing some of that importance, two extraordinary things would happen to us. One, we would free our energy from trying to maintain the illusory idea of our grandeur; and two, we would provide ourselves with enough energy to….catch a glimpse of the actual grandeur of the universe.” This is the creative response to life. This is the WOW behind the HOW!

Is there anyone you know that effectively forecasted or predicted the Internet? I have researched the question quite intently and outside of science fiction authors it appears that this amazing thing called cyberspace evolved in spite of our limited understanding of what would be possible if we married a computer and a telephone together. Yet a handful of technologists steadfastly carried this vision of possibilities with them and that persistence enriches our experience so vastly today.

Cool, huh?

The very experiences we have online every day would have been considered impossible hallucinations of madmen 30 years ago. What is exciting is pondering the future with a sense of wonder knowing that we ain’t seen nothing yet!

If you will look at it creatively, limitation is the birthplace of possibility.
You just have to be willing to perceive it that way. What really creates WONDER is the idea that we all see different worlds but some blessed souls are focused on possibilities while the rest are entrapped in self-made limitations.


Last week I had one of those wondrous moments pertaining to my Internet business. However, it is the type of event that I could quickly allow myself to become numb to. Let me explain. While traveling in Florida, I had written an article on my computer notebook and using my wireless connection submitted it for syndication to a website in England. The article was picked up by an entrepreneur from Thailand who published it in her ezine in the Phillipines. People on the other side of the world were receiving my ideas and viewpoint within 12 hours from the time it left my mind! That’s the WOW behind the HOW! Upon first glance you might think I am mentioning this to edify my ego. Quite the contrary. This simple event which takes place thousands of times every single day has changed the way of what I think is possible regarding communication. For me the Internet has changed the definitions of time and space and really brought to life the energy that we are all truly connected. The Internet has challenged my idea of limitation. It is truly wondrous!

When I break down this simple event into its individual components it challenges me to ponder the possibilities and recognize how much potential lies within all of us. I love the experience of having something in an event “push the envelope” and challenge my logic. It elevates me by creatively transforming my limitations into possibilities.
I’ve learned that when wonder looks inward it becomes logic. When wonder looks outward it becomes possibility. When wonder looks upward it contributes to a better understanding of all that we consider real.

Technology and Art seem to be the tools that challenge the “status quo” and force us to redefine ourselves based upon the mere reflection of what they perceive is possible. Listen to a Louis Armstrong or Miles Davis solo. Do a complex search on Google. Look at a Picasso. It’s the WOW after the HOW! All of these adventurers and their contributions pushed the envelope a little farther along in making us all see what is possible when we rid our world of comfortable limitations.

Possibility or limitation. The choice is always yours!

Every thought that you think today will give birth to worlds of possibilities.

Every word that you murmur will unleash the power of pure potential.

Every action you take will remind us all that limitation is a choice.
Or not.

The Buddha taught that in our lives we can’t help but make the invisible
visible. Our exterior world is a perfect reflection of the invisible world of our thoughts, ideas, beliefs and considerations. Everything we do in life harmonizes with the invisible symphony of possibility. If you are not getting the results you want, be the change you wish to see in the world. When you get clear on the invisible you can create the impossible. To paraphrase Einstein, "The significant problems we face cannot be solved by the same level of thinking we used when we created them."

My advice to you is simple….realize that you are making the invisible visible with every passing second. That’s the WOW behind the HOW and it all starts with a disagreement of what others might consider REALISTIC!

I agree to disagree. How about you?

Might be time to focus on my favorite mantra again…”Be Careful What YOU Agree With!”

Harald Anderson is the co-founder of http://www.artinspires.com a leading online gallery of motivational and inspirational posters and art prints. “When Art Inspires, Dreams Become Realities. His goal in life is to become the kind of person that his dog already thinks he is. http://www.artinspires.com/
 

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