What is an important point to study English?

Now, I’m struggling with English every day because you know, I’m a foreigner, a Japanese. I always have some new discoveries here every day and some of them are not seen in Japan, so I’m sometimes puzzled.

How can I live in another country, America more comfortably? You may advise me a lot of things but I think that it is important for me to understand American culture and to use English better than what I do now.

What do you mean “to use English?” you may say so. I’ll divide “to use English” into three things. The first is reading and the second is writing and the last is speaking.

First, I suppose that reading is not so difficult because I’ve read a lot of English since I was a junior high school student. In addition, Japanese English education emphasizes reading but unfortunately Japanese English education tends to focus on only reading. Therefore, most Japanese can’t write and speak English very well.

Second, as for writing, I need to practice it more hard because I can write simple English but I don’t have enough confident to write academically. In addition, even if in simple sentences I sometimes can’t express fully what I want to tell. OK, I’m going to write English every day by blog or diary. Writing is the only way to improve my writing skill.

The last, about speaking…this is a most difficult obstacle for me! It is difficult to follow conversations and understand detail things. Hmm…but do I have to understand a conversation in detail? Yes, of course but it is not always important thing. If only I can understand a main point, I can keep participating in more conversation! Perhaps, is it most important to grasp the context of conversation?

Registered spring term courses!

I told you that I would take three courses: Integral Theory A, Integral Theory B and Research Writing this spring term at JFKU but I changed some courses today. Because Integral Theory A is not open this spring and if I want to take Integral Theory B, I have to take Integral Theory A as a prerequisite. Therefore, instead of these, I registered “World Religions” and “Psychosynthesis” this spring term.

Umm... to tell you the truth, I already read some reading assignments of Integral Theory B. It was not a waste of time to read “Integral Spirituality” because it provided me with profound insights and messages.

The Power of Unreasonable People: How Social Entrepreneurs Create Markets That Change the World:John Elkington and Pamela Hartigan

Short memo: This book shows nice guidelines to me like a beginner about social entrepreneurship. Actually, I’m interested in not only large corporation management but also social entrepreneurship activity.

- There are a lot of types of opportunities involved in social entrepreneurship, for example, health, environment, gender, financing, resource, nutrition, demographic, educational, digital and security, etc.

Allyn & Bacon Guide to Writing, The (5th Edition)

Product Description:

Solidly grounded in current theory and research, yet eminently practical and teachable, The Allyn & Bacon Guide to Writing has set the standard for first-year composition courses in writing, reading, critical thinking, and inquiry.

Short memo: This book is a required text of “Research Writing” class in this spring term. I’m expecting that this course will lead me a good research writer. The volume of this book pages is a lot, but almost of all descriptions are very helpful for me.

My psychograph: when I was a consultant (2009-2011)

I explain to you my psychograph using text book “Integral Spirituality.” As you may know, I was an international tax consultant while I lived in Japan. To tell you the truth, I officially retired from my company today!

Let’s get back to talking about my psychograph. I think that psychograph changes in accordance with promotion of position or what kind of job people engage in.

First, the below is my psychograph (I’ll use only Cognitive line and Interpersonal line to explain easily) when I was an analyst position. The title hierarchy of my company like this: analyst (3-4years)→senior analyst (3-5 years)→manager→senior manager→partner.

Each line’s numerical value is based on my work experience intuition. Why is my cognitive line high? That is because “business consultant job” requires me to think logically. I was trained to think critically in my job.

Next, if I get promoted to a manager, I think that my psychograph will change like the below.

Comparing with two psychographs, manager position needs more developed cognitive line and interpersonal line. That is because manager will be trained to think critically on the job training and he/she has to negotiate with clients and manage own team communicating with many people.

This is my brief memo and my own insight.

What do you think of your own psychograph in your job? What kind of psychograph can you draw?

Integral Spirituality: A Startling New Role for Religion in the Modern and Postmodern World: KenWilber

Product Description:

Integral Spirituality is being widely called the most important book on spirituality in our time.

Applying his highly acclaimed integral approach, Ken Wilber formulates a theory of spirituality that honors the truths of modernity and postmodernity—including the revolutions in science and culture—while incorporating the essential insights of the great religions. He shows how spirituality today combines the enlightenment of the East, which excels at cultivating higher states of consciousness, with the enlightenment of the West, which offers developmental and psychodynamic psychology. Each contributes key components to a more integral spirituality.

On the basis of this integral framework, a radically new role for the world’s religions is proposed. Because these religions have such a tremendous influence on the worldview of the majority of the earth’s population, they are in a privileged position to address some of the biggest conflicts we face. By adopting a more integral view, the great religions can act as facilitators of human development: from magic to mythic to rational to pluralistic to integral—and to a global society that honors and includes all the stations of life along the way.

Short memo: Needless to say, this Ken’s book is wonderful. This book describes clearly and plainly Integral Theory (AQAL, Integral Operating System).

This book is a required text book in the class of Integral Theory B in Integral Psychology Program. I recommend it for you who want to know most recent Ken’s theory because this book will be a good guideline of his philosophy.

The Living Organization: Spirituality in the Workplace

Product Description

In Spirituality in the Workplace, internationally renowned consultant and corporate trainer Bill Guillory unveils a powerful new approach to business that is both ground-breaking and highly practical. Through true life examples and well-tested learning models, the author reveals how to access and more fully utilize such key elements of spirituality as wisdom, service, creativity, and passion to ensure your long term success. The book also explores the driving motivations and needs of people today, while providing a revealing forecast of what the future holds for individuals and organizations alike. Praised by some of corporate America's most respected leaders, this book is considered by many as a survival handbook for business in the 21 Century.

Short memo: This book was very interesting for me because this describes corporation from integral points of view. In a word, this book considers using all quadrants approach, off course, as you see the title, this book emphasize UL quadrant.

- I think that a good definition of spirituality is written in this book. The author sad “Spirituality is our inner consciousness and it is the source of inspiration, creativity and wisdom. It comes from within – beyond our programed beliefs and values.”

- How to become an integrated person

- Quantum Thinking

- Subliminal Communication Model

- Very useful two charts in the Appendix: Integrating spirituality to your organizational culture