• Faults Version
• Virtues Version

Future Authoring Program

Past Authoring Program

"The most intense conflicts, if overcome, leave behind a sense of security and calm that is not easily disturbed. It is just these intense conflicts and their conflagration which are needed to produce valuable and lasting results." (C. G. Jung).

It is difficult to know who you are, where you should go, or how you should get there, unless you know where you came from. The Past Authoring Program has therefore been designed to  help you write a structured autobiography. The program will help you:

• divide your life into  seven different time periods or epochs (using a page such as this one)
• identify the most significant events that occurred during each epoch
• describe how each of those experiences has shaped who you are today

It would be particularly useful to complete the Past Authoring Program if you have memories that are more than about eighteen months old that still intrude upon your thoughts, or that still evoke emotion such as fear, regret, shame or confusion. If this is happening, it means that your mind has not yet been able to fully process your past experiences, and that the brain areas associated with negative emotion still regard the past events in question as unresolved threats. This is not good, because your brain reacts to unresolved threats with emergency physiological preparation, including the production of stress hormones such as cortisol that can be very toxic when chronically elevated.

You may also want to complete the Past Authoring Program as a precursor to working on your present personality (Present Authoring) or identifying your ideal future (Future Authoring). It can be wise to clean up the past before attending to the present and future.

Present Authoring Program

"When an inner situation is not made conscious, it appears outside, as fate" (C. G. Jung)

The Present Authoring Program has been designed to allow you to do an in-depth analysis of your own personality, including its negative (Faults) and positive (Virtues) elements. The Program is based on the Big Five Personality Model, which assesses variation in

• Extraversion or positive emotion, dominance and enthusiasm
• Openness to Experience or creativity, artistic sensibility, and philosophical-mindedness
• Emotional Stability or the absence of negative emotion (anxiety, emotional pain, shame and guilt)
• Conscientiousness or orderliness and persistence
• Agreeableness or warmth, empathy and tender-mindedness (versus assertiveness and aggression)

You will be asked to choose whether you want to work on your faults or your virtues.

If you choose your FAULTS, you will be presented with a sequence of pages such as this one, which concentrates on faults of Extraversion, or this one, which concentrates on faults associated with lack of Conscientiousness. You will be presented with faults associated with all five traits. You will be asked to select faults that are typical of you from each trait. Then you will be asked to make a final list of faults, from those that you have selected. Then you will be asked to write about a time when that fault caused you trouble. Finally, you will be asked to write about what you could have done or how you could have acted differently.

If you choose your VIRTUES, you will be presented with a sequence of pages such as this one, which concentrates on virtues of Agreeableness, or this one, which concentrates on virtues of Openness. You will be presented with virtues associated with all five traits. You will be asked to select virtues that are typical of you from each trait. Then you will be asked to make a final list of virtues, from those that you have selected. Then you will be asked to write about a time when that virtue helped you attain a desired goal or cause a desired outcome. Finally, you will be asked to write about what how you might use that virtue more effectively in your present or future life.

Future Authoring Program

"Your vision will become clear only when you look into your own heart. Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakens." (C. G. Jung)

The Future Authoring Program is designed to help you imagine your ideal future, three to five years down the road. What would your life be like if you could set it up in the manner that would be best for you? You will be asked to consider the people you admire, things you could do better, your educational and career goals,  what habits you would like to improve, your family life, your social network, and your leisure activities.

Then you will be asked to write freely, without regard for grammar or spelling, for 15-20 minutes, on a page like this one. It is best to use your imagination, to daydream, during this process. After that, you will be taken through a series of exercises that will help you specify, in detail, your ideal future, by summarizing, titling and prioritizing your goals (like this), evaluating your motives, considering their personal and social impact, strategizing for their attainment, identifying potential obstacles and their solutions, monitoring your progress, and evaluating your decisions.
 

Back to Top

Purchase