A Proposed Antidote to Current Cultural and Educational Quagmires in the United States—and Beyond

Dear Reader:

I was recently invited to (virtually) deliver a 20-minute presentation on Self-Action Leadership at SWPS University in Warsaw, Poland.  Today's post provides a published transcript of this address (see below).

Those interested in watching the video presentation can access it by clicking HERE.  

Self-Action Leadership

A Proposed Antidote to Current Cultural and Educational Quagmires in the United States—and Beyond.

To my good friends and esteemed colleagues at SWPS University in Warsaw, Poland—and beyond—I extend my warmest greetings to you from my home office in sunny South Florida, USA.

The title of my presentation today is: Self-Action Leadership: A Proposed Antidote to Current Cultural and Educational Quagmires in the United States—and beyond.

As a multi-generational American, I am a proud citizen of the United States—in the same way that I hope you are proud citizens of Poland. Despite the patriotism for my homeland, I am not ignorant of the veritable mess my nation has gotten itself into in recent years in the realms of POLITICS, CULTURE, and EDUCATION.

The purpose of my presentation today is to present what I believe is a fundamental and universal antidote to the core issues that make up my nation's current cultural and educational quagmire. I focus primarily on the United States simply because I am an American citizen and am therefore most familiar with the issues presently facing my country. However, I desire further to present this material as a similar antidote to comparable issues that exist in nations throughout the West, and to a lesser extent, the world at large. 

I am aware this claim may come across as audacious, if not downright naïve. And I recognize that my proposition is indeed daring. But whether or not it is dupable will be up to YOU to decide. 

Before proceeding, I wish to say a word to my wonderful Polish friends. It is truly an honor for me to speak to you today. Why? Because when a person speaks to citizens of Poland, they address an audience whose heritage includes a rare and special variety of audacity, courage, and resolve. Indeed, as deep, dangerous, and entrenched as America's past and present troubles have been and are—I feel confident in saying there is little (if anything) that Americans could ever teach Poland about national adversity—or the need to stand up, speak out, and fight against racial or ethnic hatred, tyranny, and evil.  

In this regard, yours is truly a unique and terrible, yet remarkable history. Consequently, I have great respect—and hold in high regard—the tremendous sacrifices your people have made in ages past, and the extraordinary resiliency YOU have shown in succeeding generations—as your beautifully rebuilt and glistening modern cities so proudly demonstrate. Thank You, Poland, for your example, both historically and contemporarily, of what it means to rebound from trials, never give up in the face of difficulties, and press on forever in the pursuit of individual and collective excellence.  

There are a variety of causes to my Nation's present political, cultural, and educational ills. And if you turn on any news channel in America, there is no shortage of sophisticated politicians, pundits, and cultural warriors ever-ready and over-willing to name those causes and point the finger of blame and shame upon their political enemies, their cultural adversaries, historical narratives, and whomever or whatever else they have targeted as being the driving force behind said problems. 

Unity is easily talked about; but not easily achieved

The purpose of my presentation today is to take an entirely different course. Rather than fight, I seek to UNITE on the altar of individual excellence and personal CHANGE and GROWTH.

This may sound simple enough in theory, but in actual practice, TRUE UNITY takes much more than mere rhetoric to accomplish. It requires sincere, genuine commitments and old-fashioned hard work over long periods of time to truly realize. No speech, no matter how eloquent or polished can come close to getting beyond a mere beginning to the extensive process required to achieve authentic unity, especially in a nation as large and diverse as the United States. 

Nevertheless, because of the importance of the cause, we believe it is entirely worth pursuing, come what may. But rather than start a new fight, perpetuate an old squabble, or point the finger of blame, my goal is to present a positive, productive, purposeful, and hopefully persuasive panacea—or at very least a palliative salve—to these many issues and deep wounds that afflict so many in my troubled nation—and beyond.

My antidote is called SELF-ACTION LEADERSHIP, and my entire purpose is to invite and encourage individuals everywhere to stop pointing the finger of blame outside toward someone (or something) else, and to start looking deep inside within one's own mind, heart, and spirit to see how each of us might begin the slow, gradual, and sometimes painful—but oh, so necessary and rewarding—process of SELF-CHANGE.

Professional pundits in America—in conjunction with legions of not-so professional lay citizens—often speak in inflammatory tones as if they have the power to change others by virtue of their own loud, angry, and embittered rhetoric. It's almost as though they believe that engendering change in another is simply a matter of out-shouting, or out-insulting, one's opponent. But cooler and wiser heads must always accede the FACT that SELF-CHANGE is, in reality, the only REAL CHANGE there is. As such, the only person on the planet that any of us can really control—and by extension, change—is ourselves. 

Thus, the only real solution to our deepest problems in America and beyond is to refocus our attention and our efforts within rather than without. This is not to say that problems do not persist without; of course they do—and always will! It merely aims to refocus our attention on that unique focal point where each of us maintains maximum control, which is within our own minds, hearts, and spirits. As individual men and women, boys and girls change, improve, progress, and grow as individuals, they will, by extension, become positive agents of change in families, teams, organizations, and communities as well. 

The time has come to stop putting the proverbial "cart before the horse." Micro changes must precede macro changes; that's just the way things operate in reality. Self-change is what SELF-ACTION LEADERSHIP aims to accomplish. It is that simple. And it is also that difficult!

Leadership begins with the leadership of SELF

SELF-ACTION LEADERSHIP—or just SAL for short—is the name of a new scholarly field of Personal Leadership studies. It is hewn out of the academic fields of leadership and character education, and more specifically, out of the pedagogical arenas of Self-Leadership, Action Research, and Autoethnography.

For those unfamiliar with these topics, SELF-LEADERSHIP refers to the cognitive and behavioral leadership of self; ACTION RESEARCH is a four-step, cyclical process of problem solving and change; and AUTOETHNOGRAPHY involves the academic study and scholarly scrutinization of one's personal history. 

SELF-ACTION LEADERSHIP acknowledges a great and primal truth; namely, that in order to effectively manage or lead a group, team, or organization, YOU must first be able to successfully manage and lead YOURSELF. It also openly confesses a difficult truth: namely, that all of us—including managers and executives at the very highest levels of an organization or nation—often struggle with their own Self-Action Leadership. 

That is the BAD news.

The GOOD news is that everyone can choose to learn, grow, improve, progress, and change over-time as an intentional SELF-ACTION LEADER.

But how?

How does one become an intentional SELF-ACTION LEADER who is determined to grow, improve, progress, and change in an ongoing, upward-cycling process throughout one's life?

The answer to this question lies in the Self-Action Leadership Theory, Model, and Philosophy.

Where can one find the SAL Theory, Model, and Philosophy? The short answer to this question is found in FOUR (4) scholarly papers that were recently published in the Journal of Leadership and Management. The long answer to this question is found in the Self-Action Leadership TEXTBOOKS, Volumes 1 & 2. Volume 1 contains the SAL Theory; Volume 2 contains the SAL Model. Both volumes can be purchased at Cambridge Scholars Publishing or by visiting www.freedomfocused.com. 

For generations now, higher education in America has been the envy of the world. But is it still? And will it be a generation from now at the current rates of American educational atrophy and cultural decline? There are, of course, differing opinions to this question, but at Freedom Focused, we believe and assert that the future of education in America (and beyond) remains bright. Moreover, we believe America's educational future lies not in becoming more nuanced, sophisticated, and partisan, but rather in returning to certain fundamentals of character development that have not changed since the ancient Grecian pedagogies of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle, which, interestingly enough, is where modern scholarly debates about character education first took root in Western Civilization. 

To address this belief and assertion, we present to the world the Self-Action Leadership Theory, Model, Philosophy, Academic Papers, and Textbooks. 

The SAL Philosophy reminds a student that he or she is ultimately responsible for everything in his or her individual world (meaning one's life and career), whether one's present circumstances are a direct consequence of one's own choices, or not. 

The SAL Theory takes students on a metaphysical journey through nine levels of holistic growth, progress, and change. These nine levels are represented metaphorically by the surface of the Earth and the various layers of the atmosphere on up to the deepest regions of Outer Space. 

Along the way, students discover the extensive and expansive potential they possess as a self-action leader—regardless of their "unchangeables" (viz. race, history, birth, socioeconomic standing at birth, natural aptitudes, actions of others beyond one's control, etc.)—to become a person of great capacity, contribution, and success. 

The SAL Model then teaches students how to apply ACTION RESEARCH to their own SELF-LEADERSHIP in an ongoing manner—a process that provides the fuel required to rise up to higher levels of EXISTENTIAL GROWTH as delineated in the SAL Theory. 

The SAL Academic Papers provide scholarly grounding points for—and add academic credibility and legitimacy to—the SAL Theory, Model, and Pedagogy. 

The SAL Textbooks, Volume 1 & 2 clearly and cogently articulate the SAL Philosophy before taking students on a detailed and motivating journey through the metaphysical adventures contained in the SAL Theory and Model. The SAL Textbooks further provide students with an opportunity to practically apply SAL principles and practices by completing 25 different homework assignments scattered throughout the texts. Students who complete all of these homework assignments, otherwise known as the "SAL Master Challenge" will receive a certificate, medal, and non-accredited diploma for their efforts. 

Most importantly, the Textbooks guide students in the drafting of their own Self-Declaration of Independence and Self-Constitution. In this process, individual men and women, boys and girls liken to themselves those powerful and non-partisan principles outlined in the founding documents of the United States—documents that nearly every other country on Earth have since imitated. The results of these exercises can be incredibly personal, productive, powerful, and motivating. I know because I've experienced all of these things in my own life and career as I've drafted—and then lived by—my own Self-Declaration of Independence and Self-Constitution. 

These incredibly meaningful exercises remind students everywhere that it was not political parties, or western culture, or favorable geography alone that gave rise to the Superpower of the last 75 years. It was a natural consequence of America's willingness—however imperfectly—to adhere to the core principles outlined in the Declaration of Independence and Constitution in a never-ending pursuit of establishing a "More Perfect Union." Just as America became great by striving to live up to the Standards set forth in its Founding Creed, it will only remain great by revisiting and recommitting to those same Core Principles and Practices. 

Where did the SAL Philosophy, Theory, Model, and Textbooks come from? 

Good Question!

That's where the AUTOETHNOGRAPHIC part of the scholarly formula enters the equation. 

I jotted down my first journal entry when I was SEVEN (7) years old. I was in grade one at the time, and was just barely learning to write, so typos abounded in that first attempt penned back in 1987. But I kept at it and got better!

Thirty-four (34) years, thousands of journal pages and letters, a 1,150-page Doctoral Dissertation, seven (7) books, and hundreds of published articles later, I have diligently studied and carefully scrutinized my own personal history with a conscientious, detailed, and disciplined intensity the likes of which very few humans have ever done. 

Along the way, I have learned and mastered whatever was necessary to overcome prodigious challenges and breathtaking personal and professional adversity in my life, relationships, and career. 

I'm still far from perfect, but as my friends and associates will tell you, I've come a long way... thanks in large part to the principles and practices contained in the SAL Philosophy, Theory, and Model. 

But this is not all. The good news is that there is nothing inherently special about me; but everything is special about the principles and practices contained in the SAL Theory and Model. As such, I concurrently turned this entire self-project into a programmed template that any other human being can potentially utilize and benefit from in like manner as I have. 

This SELF-ACTION LEADERSHIP package is now complete and ready for worldwide dissemination as fast as educators and students desire it and proactively seek it out. As such, we invite educators, scholars, leaders, parents, and citizens everywhere to investigate SELF-ACTION LEADERSHIP for themselves, their students, and their children. 

Don't take our word for it. But access the material. Carefully study it. Then ask yourself: is this what America—and the rest of the world—needs to rise above our current cultural and educational quagmires to enter that higher and nobler place we are capable of attaining?

If, after following this course, the answer is "YES," then we invite you to join us on an individual and collective educational and existential odyssey the likes of which this world has never before seen. 

It has been said that a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. The SAL equivalent to this aphorism might be: "The journey to world peace, prosperity, and unity beings when I choose to change my own mind and heart and concurrently dedicate myself to both self-improvement and to loving and caring for my fellow human beings around the globe."

Self-Action Leadership has the potential to change not only America for the better, but the entire world. Indeed, we believe the day will come when students everywhere will be studying the Self-Action Leadership Textbooks in the same way that they presently study language, mathematics, history, science, and technology. 

Perhaps the suggestion of such a profound and transformative shift sounds naïve and hyperbolic, to say the least. Maybe we are; and maybe it is. But we'll never know if we don't try. As Steve Jobs—the Founder of Apple Computers—once quipped: "The people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are [usually] the ones who do."

Thank you for listening to this presentation on Self-Action Leadership. If you would like to learn more, please visit our website at www.freedomfocused.com or www.jordanrjensen.com

-Dr. JJ

June 2, 2021

Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, USA

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