As some of you may be aware, my group coaching program is starting again at the end of July (so there’s still time to join up if you want to!) And while Brigid’s Path is the name I gave the framework I developed and use, people have been asking why I chose the word “collective” to describe the group. Well, now the time has come to dive a bit deeper into my thinking.
Meaning of collective
Usually at this point, I’d hit dictionary.com and give ye a meaning from there. But right now – that doesn’t really work. There are elements of the word “collective” that I want to parse out a bit given the focus of this group.
- a group of people acting as one
- a cooperative enterprise which we commonly call a collective effort
- a group of entities that share or are motivated by at least one common issue or interest
- shared by or involving every member of a group of people
It’s the group element that most stands out to me here. But also elements of cooperation. Working together. Striving together towards a common goal as part of a true collective.
It’s the idea that the enterprise is a group effort. That the people within the group support each other and help each other along the way. This doesn’t mean every decision is a collective decision – the times we can hold sessions are limited by time differences and availability.
Why though?
As humans, our greatest achievements are as a collective. Seriously – think of all the major achievements in human history – the vast majority weren’t single, stand alone efforts. Being blunt about it, most of us humans just aren’t cut out to be singles. We belong in groups.
And yes, I know – that’s rich coming from me! I stand by my need for alone time, but I also know the importance of the group in any difficult endeavour.
- mammoth hunts
- growing food
- building anything bigger than a shack
- developing supports for those less able
- collective bargaining/ unions
- United Nations
- European Union
- Ben and Jerry’s
Yeah, I know – possibly ice cream doesn’t belong on that list, but it does bring happiness to millions. And they’re good about ethics as well. So feck it.
From the dawn of time – or at least since humans climbed out of the primordial goo (yes, I know there was a bit of development in between!) – collaborative collectives work better. For most of us.
OK fine, but inner work is personal
Absolutely correct. Inner work is nearly always personal. But there are also a lot of trends and commonalities and it’s so much nicer to have someone walking the path alongside you. OK, it won’t be exactly the same path. I can pretty much guarantee that!
But it will be a similar one. Because we all go through the same shit when trying to grow. There’s pain. And there’s realisation. There’s growth. There’s all sorts of stuff, all made easier with the support of a collective.
If nothing else, having other people around you while you’re going through these exercises and the inner work, means there are people around you for support. For understanding. For even the vaguest comprehension of the types of insights you’re gaining. The laughter, the tears, the hugs, the shoulders… it’s all there.
Y’see, everyone walks their own path. Definitely. But walking Brigid’s Path is about more than your path. It’s about the collective path as well. If you look at the core tenets of pretty much any of the modern religions in the world, they look at the collective experience.
Yes, even Christianity. Despite what various fundamentalist sects are trying to claim. Please read the below post on Jesus.
And no – not everyone walking Brigid’s Path is or ever was Christian. It’s not a requirement at all. It’s just that a lot of the people I work with come from Christian backgrounds.
And it’s easy after a few centuries, or millennia, of patriarchal behaviour to forget the basics.
High control religion, again??
Yes, high control religion again.
The vast majority of those who chose to walk Brigid’s Path are coming from high control religions. And that doesn’t always mean a minority cult. That can mean mainstream religions.
It takes time to recover from these. I’ve described before what I consider to be a high control religion. I won’t repeat that list here, but I will say this: many of us have grown up in high control environments. Too many of us carry scars from that childhood.
This isn’t attacking anyone’s parents or upbringing. Most parents did and do the best they can with the knowledge and resources they had/have. But that also doesn’t mean we can’t unpack what we learned and suffered. And it’s a lonely road to walk on your own.
Something high control religion gets right is the comfort of the group, of the collective. The comfort in other people experiencing similar things to those you are experiencing. It’s enticing, seductive in ways we don’t even realise.
Yes, even those of us who are inherently introverted. Introverted doesn’t mean never needing company. It just means needing a different sort of company.
So… collective
Yes, a collective. A collective for me is a group of people working together on similar projects or towards a similar goal. It’s not a team in the sense that it breaks up after said goal is reached. The understanding that the “goal” might be changeable, or as different awarenesses are reached, might be completed different to that when we started together is key.
This isn’t failure. The whole aim here is to help people understand key aspects about themselves. To develop a path for themselves that is supportive and helpful, not contained and controlled.
There might be elements of control, but it’s self control, not control imposed from outside. It’s an agreement with self, in particular with the inner self. The bit that maintains the core of who we are. And the collective is as safe a space as I can make it to explore these issues and let each person decide for herself what’s right for her.
And it’s about taking action and being held to account for taking that action. There’s power in that as well. A collective action is only as strong as each individual member…
As I type this, there is still one place open on the collective for this year. Click on the link to find out more.
