The Integral Stage

Join leadership guru Alan Watkins, a physician and neuroscientist known for his work on human performance, alongside psychotherapist Durwin Foster, a student of Ken Wilber and mindfulness expert. They tackle the crisis of trust in today’s leadership, debunk the seven dark arts of deception, and discuss how to spot dark triad personalities in various spheres of life. The conversation dives into the ethics surrounding truth, the impact of misinformation, and the importance of integrating diverse perspectives to foster genuine understanding and healing in a complex world.

For the eighth episode of The Soul of AI (or maybe this is episode 7.5), Layman sits down again with Jill Nephew to talk to her about her responses to some of the previous guests' positions on AI; the problems with scaling; and to go into more detail on her concerns about the limitations and dangers of this alluring technology. Jill Nephew is the founder of Inqwire, PBC a company on a mission to help the world make sense. The Inqwire technology is designed to enhance and accelerate human sensemaking abilities. The designing of the system required her to attempt to answer a fundamental question: how does technology interact with the mind's ability to do individual and collective sensemaking, and what are the principles that technology should follow to maximize these abilities? Jill's background includes developing tools, platforms, and meta-data-based software languages to help people find solutions to complex, real-world problems. She developed algorithms and models in the area of constraint-based optimization, drug binding, motion control, disease kinetics, protein folding, atmospheric pollution, human articulated movement, complex fluids, and most recently sensemaking. Personal website https://jillnephew.com/index.html Inqwire website https://www.inqwire.io/

Layman meets with Dr. Cadell Last to talk about a new philosophy anthology that Cadell co-edited with O.G. Rose, and to which Layman contributed as well: Abyssal Arrows: Spiritual Leadership Inspired by Thus Spoke Zarathustra. Through a review of a number of the essays in this volume, they explore the potential meanings and implications of the notion of Übermensch, especially in our times; the shamanic and tantric dimensions of Nietzsche's thought; the dynamics and scope of Nietzschean education; the relevance of Nietzschean spiritual transformation and leadership in a time of AI and VR; the importance of family and childhood, often missed by revolutionary humanist and transhumanist movements; and much more. Cadell Last, Ph.D., is a philosopher with an interest in anthropology and psychoanalysis, the creator of Philosophy Portal, and the author of Global Brain Singularity; Sex, Masculinity, God; Systems and Subjects; and Enter the Alien.

Layman meets with the co-authors of Human Work, Leanne Holdsworth and Naryan Wong, to explore the leadership mindsets that can help foster more livable, humanised workspaces (British spelling of humanized optional!). How can our work environments be transformed if learning and growth are regularly emphasized; if everyone is recognized as a leader in some capacity; if greater attention is paid to cultures of belonging, love, and care; and if we better digest the wisdom of human systems? How can indigenous ways of knowing, as Leanne is exploring with Maori colleagues in New Zealand, lead to greater connectedness between workers, and between workplaces and the rest of the living world? Leanne Holdsworth stands for a future where it is normal for work environments to be places where human beings thrive, enabling organisations to succeed whilst at the same time, building social capital through how those humans are able to show up with their families and communities. She is the co-author of Human Work: Five Leadership Mindsets for Humanising workplaces and author of the book A New Generation of Business Leaders and has spent 15 years advising organisations predominantly in the private sector (across most sectors including banking, primary sector, FMCG, tech, pharmaceuticals) as well as the public and not for profit sectors in sustainability strategy and leadership. Naryan Wong is fascinated by how individuals, teams, and organizations think and act in the world. He believes that humanity’s most complex challenges will be solved only through well-coordinated collective sensing and acting. By understanding how individual behaviour contributes to team dynamics, and team dynamics create organizational capacities, Naryan helps organizations and communities to act harmoniously to transform themselves and the world. Over the past decade, Naryan has practised the arts of systems change, network mapping, and organizational development in large corporate environments and not-for-profit community spaces. In 2018, he founded the not-for-profit ThinkBetter to better understand the feedback loops between personal growth and organizational culture. Nowadays, Naryan weaves his network at the nexus of various communities working to improve how humanity thinks and coordinates. Human Work network https://www.humanworknetwork.com/ https://www.amazon.com/Human-Work-Leadership-Humanising-Workplace/dp/B0C52JHK5P/

For the seventh episode, Layman meets with Game-B godfather, Jim Rutt, to talk about his recent experiments of using AI to help with screenwriting, the intersections of AI and the creative arts, the likely positive and negative impacts AI will have on human cognitive development, the alignment problem and the seven most likely challenges that AI poses to our civilization, and his ideal vision of an AI-facilitated era of human thriving. Jim Rutt is the former CEO of Network Solutions. The New York Times once referred to him as “the Internet’s bad boy” due to his reputation for creative mischief. He sold Network Solutions at the peak of the Dot Com boom and then went into scientific research. Jim has been affiliated with the Santa Fe Institute since 2002, serving as Chairman from 2009 thru 2012. Currently he hosts the Jim Rutt Show podcast, and is the gun-totin' godfather of the Game B movement.

Daniel Garner, co-author of the book Belonging Again, discusses the concept of belonging in our fragmented age. They explore the importance of tragic sociology, the role of altered states in engaging with the world, and the impact of spiritual bypassing on personal growth. They also delve into the influence of movies on group dynamics and explore the consequences of the existence or non-existence of God.

John Vervaeke, a psychology professor at the University of Toronto and creator of the insightful YouTube series on meaning, explores the intricate relationship between AI and human wisdom. He expresses concerns over the extreme claims about AI's potential and advocates for a balanced, interdisciplinary approach to understanding artificial general intelligence. Vervaeke highlights the need for ethical considerations in AI development and suggests that theology may regain relevance as we navigate these challenges. He emphasizes nurturing AI’s alignment with human values through wisdom and careful guidance.

Tada Hozumi, a cultural somatics practitioner, dives into the fascinating intersection of animism and AI. He discusses how a Shinto perspective can reshape our engagement with AI, encouraging a respectful dialogue between technology and spirituality. The conversation explores the ethical implications of AI on human identity, advocating for a techno-shamanist approach to online interactions. Hozumi also reflects on the significance of cultural practices in fostering ecological consciousness, proposing a new understanding of our digital landscape inspired by ancient beliefs.

Layman sits down with Branden Singletary, aka Nexumorphic, to talk about his metatheoretical model, Metaforma, and the philosophical and psychospiritual influences behind his singular and highly creative work. Branden is a designer and creator, focused on the demonstration of meaningful design – deliberate, purposeful construction, rich with context and meaning, executed with wondrous precision. Personal website https://www.nexumorphic.com/ Fathom app https://hello.fathom.fm/ Support The Integral Stage on Patreon! https://www.patreon.com/theintegralstage

The queer, liminal, and shamanic all point in their own ways to working fruitfully with 'betweens' and 'crossings,' and yet the possible relations between these worlds and their sensibilities are seldom discussed in the liminal / metamodern communities. Layman sits down with Rachel Hayden to explore these overlaps and to consider what might follow from their more conscious integration. Rachel tends to fret about what to write on a bio. Fortunately, her Personal Medicine of doing tai chi to become calmer is helping her at the moment. She has long been fascinated with mind-body practices, and uses many of these regularly - tai chi, Eastern and Western meditation and philosophy, and karate, to name a few. These have gotten her through some rough patches, kept her generally healthy, and pointed her toward greater insight and meaning. One of her other favorite things is music - listening, playing guitar, singing, and writing songs. Three years ago Rachel switched from being primarily a bodywork therapist and co-op grocery manager to being primarily a peer supporter. It has become part of who she is, and is probably the job she has loved the most, being with people through life's ups and downs. Being a queer trans woman herself, she often works with LGBTQIA+ people and others who are marginalized by society. Rachel became a CPMC to deepen and expand her approach to peer support, and help people find connections to their inner wisdom. She has a profound faith in authentic Personal Medicine, having realized its power in her own life. Remember to like, subscribe, and consider supporting The Integral Stage on Patreon to make more of these conversations possible! https://www.patreon.com/theintegralstage Special thanks and big love to the Limited Hangout guys, Shai Newman, Brandon LaChance, Mike McElroy, Brandon Norgaard, Brendan Graham Dempsey, Francesca, and all of our other Patreon supporters!