Take "The Other" to Lunch by Elizabeth Lesser

1. TAKE “THE OTHER” TO LUNCH
TED TALK BY ELIZABETH LESSER
Submitted By:
Mit Kotecha
PGP30207
Personal Branding

2. WHO IS ELIZABETH LESSER ?
• CO-FOUNDER OF OMEGA INSTITUTE, THE US’ LARGEST LIFELONG LEARNING CENTER FOCUSING ON:
• HEALTH
• WELLNESS
• SPIRITUALITY
• CREATIVITY
• SOCIAL CHANGE
• AUTHOR OF ‘BROKEN OPEN: HOW DIFFICULT TIME CAN HELP US GROW’ AND ‘THE SEEKER’S GUIDE: MAKING YOUR LIFE A SPIRITUAL
ADVENTURE’
• FOR MORE THAN 30 YEARS LESSER HAS WORKED WITH LEADING FIGURES IN THE FIELDS OF HEALING—HEALING SELF AND HEALING
SOCIETY.
• FOR THE PAST TEN YEARS, LESSER HAS SPEARHEADED OMEGA’S POPULAR WOMEN AND POWER CONFERENCES FROM AROUND THE
WORLD

3. TALK IN A NUTSHELL
Elizabeth explores
two sides of Human
nature within us
The Mystic The Warrior
This Talk can be harnessed to
elevate the way we treat each other
Elizabeth shares a simple
way to begin real dialogue
with “the other”
With someone who doesn’t agree with you
Ask three simple questions to find
out what is really in their hearts
Luncheon
Technique

4. ELIZABETH’S TWO CONFLICTING PERSONALITIES
The Mystic The Warrior
• Trying to peer beyond what
Albert Einstein called "the optical
delusion of everyday
consciousness.“
• Her years as a mystic have
made me question almost all my
assumptions.
• They've made me a proud I-
don't-know-it-all.
• When the mystic part jabbers on
and on like this, the warrior rolls
her eyes.
• This part is concerned about
what’s happening around in this
world right now.
• As a warrior Elizabeth has done
quite a few things in her life –
she has worked for women
empowerment, political issues,
etc.
It is crazy-making to house both the mystic and the warrior in one body.
Elizabeth has always been attracted to those who pull that off.
“THE OTHER”
This word is being demonized by
our culture and has created a
division amongst us.
The way one can become a Mystic
Warrior, one should also respect
and deal with “the other” in the
same way.
There shouldn’t be any “the
other” for anyone.

5. RARE PEOPLE TO WHOM ELIZABETH IS ATTRACTED
The Mystic The Warrior
Mystic Warrior
• Housing both the mystic and the
warrior in one body and have
pulled that off
• Who devote their lives to
humanity with the grit of the
warrior and the grace of the
mystic

6. Concept of
“Ubuntu” - "I need
you in order to be
me, and you need
me in order to be
you."

7. "The problem with
the world is that
we draw the circle
of our family too
small."

8. "I can never
be what I ought to
be until you
are what you
ought to be this is
the interrelated
structure of
reality."
Learning
These three Mystic Warriors were not born with any Saint Gene. In reality we
all have the same capacity as they did, we jus need to do their work now.

9. NEGATIVE OTHER-IZING: REASON FOR VIOLENT EXTREMISM
"Four-and-a-Half-Years of Struggle Against Lies, Stupidity and Cowardice."
This was the first title for the Adolf
Hitler’s book - “Mein Kampf”.
• "Mein Kampf" -- "My Struggle" -- the book that launched the Nazi
party.
• The worst eras in human history, whether in Cambodia or
Germany or Rwanda, they start like this, with negative other-izing.
• And then they morph into violent extremism.
That is why Elizabeth is launching this new
initiative of Taking “The Other” to Lunch

10. NEW INITIATIVE : TAKE “THE OTHER” TO LUNCH
• WHY THIS INITIATIVE ? --- TO COUNTERACT THE TENDENCY TO “OTHERIZE”
• WHY LUNCH ? --- AS WE ARE BUSY PEOPLE
• WHO ALL TO TAKE TO LUNCH ? --- IF YOU ARE A REPUBLICAN, YOU CAN TAKE A DEMOCRAT TO LUNCH, OR VICE VERSA
• WHAT IF ONE LOSES ONES APPETITE BY THIS IDEA ? --- START MORE LOCAL, BECAUSE THERE IS NO SHORTAGE OF
THE OTHER RIGHT IN YOUR OWN NEIGHBORHOOD.
Anyone whose lifestyle may
frighten you, or whose point of
view makes smoke come out of
your ears.
-Is eligible for this Lunch
The Luncheon
Technique

11. GUIDELINES TO KEEP THE CONVERSATION ELEVATED
• DECIDE A GOAL : EXAMPLE – YOU MAY WANT TO KNOW EACH OTHER AS YOU MAY HAVE
NEGATIVELY STEREOTYPED THE OTHER
• SET A FEW GROUND RULES AND AGREE UPON THE SAME WITH YOUR LUNCHMATE

12. INSIGHTS FROM THESE LUNCH SESSIONS
• HELPS IN ESTABLISHING TRUST ON “THE OTHER” AS THESE SESSIONS ALLOWS BOTH
PARTIES TO POUR THEIR HEARTS OUT AND UNDERSTAND EACH OTHER BETTER
• PERSON STARTS BELIEVING IN THE SINCERITY OF “THE OTHER”
• IT ACTS LIKE A FIRST-STEP TOGETHER TOWARDS THE ‘UBUNTU PLACE’ WHERE
SOLUTIONS TO MOST INTRACTABLE-SEEMING PROBLEMS CAN BE FOUND

13. SO ARE YOU TAKING “THE OTHER” TO LUNCH ???
Things one needs to know
before taking this Initiative
It is a Slow
Process
Difficult to
Initiate
Ubuntu work is slow
and reaching there is
even more difficult
Because
• It's two people dropping the pretense of being know-it-alls.
• It's two people, two warriors, dropping their weapons and reaching
toward each other.