What if change was essentially a movement of energy? It is. What if social and personal change was as well? What if it was a matter separate from philosophy, psychology, religion, or education? What if all of these are manifestations of how energy flows through them?
The Chinese believed this. The movement of energy through humanity and nature formed the groundwork of their theories of medicine, martial arts, and human relations. Just as life is a manifestation of sunlight, every endeavor from work to play is a movement of energy in and through matter.
In human endeavors, it is the leader-activist that activates change. Their workspace is found in the energy systems of work and life. These energy systems are often defined by people who have just enough energy to maintain the pattern and therefore resistant to change. Think of it as the conservation mode that your cell phone engages when energy is low and there is no new energy available. Over time, this energy conservation mode can develop into a costly pattern of non-change: A.K.A. the status quo. It can become a prison of comfort that impedes evolution to a more efficient and effective pattern.
Whatever the perceived cause of non-change, the leader-activist is called upon to extend their energy to inspire and manifest a change in the targeted system or pattern. When they can inspire the system to change and not get drained by the resistance in the system, then they are not only leaders, they are catalysts.
There can be no work or power or change without energy.
Recently, my friend Pete told me about the drills they use at his job and how they burn-out quickly under the demanding workload. He then told me about a friend of his who makes extra money repairing the burnt-out drills. His friend told him the drill motors are capable of meeting the workload, but they burn out because they are not getting enough energy (amps). Without ample energy, the motors burn themselves out in the effort to satisfy the work demand. However, if they had a bigger amp power cord and they would work fine. It merely is a matter of increasing the amps to the motor so the drill can powerfully do its work. Similarly with individuals seeking to create change, increase their energy and they are empowered to do more work and create more change.
There is no mention of energy in the definition of work. If you increase the work demand but do not increase the energy, the activist, like the drill, will burn out.
What if the definition of activism was expanded to indicate a process wherein a person, the activist, brought energy to a place where there was too little energy to evolve into a higher state of functioning? In the School of Kung Fu thought, Shen Shing Wu Chan, this is the purpose and method of training. Resilient Stress Management refines this and focuses it for stress, work, creativity, learning, teaching, etc. What we call a master in our lineage is an energy activist. We study the laws of energy and power so that we can intentionally extend beyond resistance to inspire change. We use our form and weapon training to clarify our body, mind, and spirit to build and use energy efficiently. If we need something done, we send inspiration energy first (Yi) and then we move to create change and do work while being mindful of our energy. When done correctly, we accomplish the task with a surplus of energy. It may sound strange to value energy in this manner, but you practice a form of this with your cell phone or car.
If to empower is to give power and power is defined as work done, or energy transferred per unit of time, then to empower the leader-activist is to teach them how to efficiently build energy and focus it into the power to create change. To empower the activist is to give them a sense of energy independence and belief in their ability to efficiently work toward manifesting their vision of a better world or a way of being.
In short, all change is a movement of energy and an evolution of function and form in a a static system (the status quo). The leader-activist inspires this change with their vision and energy. When they do this without being drained by the resistance in the system, they serve as Catalysts. `
We call this the Way of the Catalyst and the Gong Fu of Energy Activism.