Carlos Ghosn is a Brazilian born, French-educated son of Lebanese parents who has lived in Japan for 18 years. We both arrived in Japan in the same year.

He's had a little more impact than me!!!

BUT.

Like me, he uses interpreters all the time.* Morimoto-san is his gesticulating, passionate, interpreter. She follows Carlos everywhere "except the rest room." She's well known for capturing his mood and conveying that in Japanese.

Amongst the executive staff at Nissan’s headquarter in Yokohama, the saying goes:

Just 7 days ago, Carlos Ghosn stepped down as CEO of Nissan.

He had a remarkable run, from 1999 turning around an iconic company that was about to crash; then going on to produce a series of "zero-emission" electric cars for developing countries to protect our environment. He is doing good in the world.

In Japan they nicknamed him "7/11" in tribute to his prodigious working ethic.

One of the delights of my current life is working with a variety of teachers from all over the world. They often inspire my daily epistles - I swiped today's Subject line off a Texas gal just 10 minutes ago. (Thanks Julie, now put that gun away.)

Why do these teachers and students come?

Not to get rich. None of us are rich. Are you rich?

Perhaps we are philanthropists masquerading as professional teachers…

Here's what you've most likely already given:

I was in New York and it was the penultimate Christmas eve.

I was relaxing in Bill Walsh's Soho studio - site of many an interesting AT workshop - when I realized it was time to get to the airport.

I'd left it too late.

Miss this flight, and I'd lose out on a special Christmas with Michael, Lena, Rowan and his sweet son John-Michael (who later died) in California. It was a special invitation, and it turned out to be the last time I ever saw two of them.

A few weeks ago I was violently berated by one of my staff.

He didn't hit me or anything - I just rarely encounter real, live and angry people.

Then last night I was berated again for the same reason. By a different staff! At some point it's necessary to think - perhaps they have a point? If they have to shout to be heard, maybe I am not listening.

So what did I hear?

The game of BodyChance success continues to startle and challenge me.

It’s been 17 years now since I started in 1999, and for the first 15 years we experienced an annual growth of around 17%.

Until we didn’t.

When you have 2 trainees, and you add another two trainees, you grow 100%. That’s easy growth. When you have 128 trainees, and you add 2 more, you’ve barely grown more than 1%! Not so easy.

We are at that place now, and I don’t know the rules.

Which way do we go now?

Money never motivates you.

Sure, we love to have it. We think about it a lot. But it’s not money we seek – it’s freedom.

It might be freedom from a past. It might be freedom from a situation. It might be freedom from an identity.

Many successful entrepreneurs – enough to establish a pattern – have an origin story of epic proportions. Often one of their parents died or disappeared on them at an early age. Another is abject poverty: the “rags to riches” story. Another is a clever, misunderstood kid out to prove something.

Whatever.

On July 4th, 1907 Willie Keith stood helplessly in Battle Creek, Michigan watching a fire consume his precious factory.*

Willie was 46, yet he had launched his company barely a year before. He’d already worked for 25 years as the unofficial business manager for a famous Seventh-day Adventist Sanitarium (re-invented from the word ‘sanatorium’) under the shadow of his gregarious and extroverted brother Dr John Henry.

Once upon a time (it’s a true story) I was learning in a workshop with a respected colleague, and as she was demonstrating how the relationship between head/spine influences behaviour, she commented something to the effect:

“This is just a truth about vertebrates. We haven’t even got into Alexander land yet.”

I was startled.

First, I absolutely agreed with her.

Second, I thought: “If that’s not Alexander land, what is?!”

I know what it feels like to be awake in a nightmare.

Lying in bed, looking into the dark.

Frightened. Wondering. Uncertain.

What is going to happen to me?
Will I make the rent?
Will we be OK?
Can I keep living here?

Are you a teacher who is finding your practise shrinking? Or the influx of new students has slowed down, and you wonder how secure we are?

You are right to be concerned. We are in a new digital world.