In the 1970’s Werner Erhard (1935-) gave controversial seminars around the Bay Area as part of the Human Potential Movement. He pointed out how difficult it is to really change your life. He offered strategies that might help. Erhard believed that any form of personal transformation begins with language, with the stories we tell ourselves about ourselves.[i]

[i] Therapy, a major life crisis like a divorce or career change, going back to school are ways that people try to transform their lives. These too often involve changing our context or story. I’m using a summary of Erhard from the following book. Peter Block, Community: The Structure of Belonging (San Francisco: Berrett-Koehler Publishers, 2008), 14-17.