Some of the Science

From Prof. Emeritus, Scott Frey

“Science is providing us with a clearer understanding of the factors that underlie these mental states, making it possible for us to increase their likelihood.”
“Learning to implement steps necessary to pave the way for transcendent experiences is an important goal of this course.”

Introducing You to Some of the Content Within our Master Practitioner Course

  • The function of the Default Mode Network (DMN) and why it might be helpful to downregulate sometimes.
  • How the DMN works and how one could "switch it off" sometimes.
  • Linking transcendence to the lack of presence of the DMN characteristics.
  • What is the hardware of the brain’s DMN?
  • The Task-Positive Network (TPN) is engaged when we focus on attention-demanding tasks directed at external sources of stimulation (e.g., solving problems, planning, taking action in the world) (Corbetta & Shulman, 2002; Fox et al., 2005).
  • Transcendent States are characterized by being out of one’s head, losing oneself, free from the inner chatter that comprises our default mode of life.
  • Quieting the DMN is a prerequisite to achieving a Transcendent State, and data supports a number of different ways to get there, including mindfulness meditation, psychedelics, and aerobic exercise.

The 15 Concepts Within the Client’s Transcendence Experience

Think advanced. As a Master Practitioner, you’ll go from being more than capable of teaching practitioner-level materials to clients. You’ll gain deeper and more profound knowledge about the science of Neuro Change and the conscious and unconscious mind. Knowledge will put you in front of corporations and sporting teams where excellence is a powerful pursuit—an additional total of 24 hours comprised of 16 hours of recorded lectures and 8 home studies.

Part 1: The Problem

Module 1

Master Practitioner

Module 2

Bad Faith and the Doing Obsession

Module 3

The Highest Stage of Personal Development

Module 1:

Master Practitioner

In this first module, we unpack Henry David Thoreau’s claim that “the mass of [people] live lives of quiet desperation.”

As our current social reality moves farther and farther away from the Industrial Revolution that birthed it, we are starting to see a new problem emerge. We see very successful people – people who have worked hard, hustled, and managed to “have it all”—who are experiencing a sense of emptiness. They realize that accomplishing all their goals doesn’t mean they have lived a good life. There is something missing.

It is this zeitgeist that Module 1 explores. In this module, we will:
  • Use the Hungry Ghost metaphor to explain the “doing obsession”
  • Consider how a lack of perspective leaves us feeling scattered and unable to rest
  • Explore why a lack of confidence and resilience leads to overwork
  • Argue that a sense of lightness can help us avoid the dangers of attaching our worth to our doing

Module 2:

Bad Faith and the Doing Obsession

In the second module, we consider how we lost sight of the good life and got caught up in the “doing obsession” in the first place. We know that our subconscious mind pays attention to things in our environment that further our interests. In the process, we end up affirming comforting beliefs that are false.

By averting our gaze from their falsity, we continue to hold these false beliefs. We are skilled at making sure that unwanted (but dimly and hazily perceived) truths never receive the “sustained, clarifying gaze” that would bring them to our conscious awareness.

By using the philosophical framework laid out by Jean-Paul Sartre, in Module 2 we will:
  • Examine self-deception and how we avoid giving uncomfortable truths a “sustained, clarifying gaze” ·
  • Learn about Sartrean facticity and Transcendence and how they impact bad faith and authenticity ·
  • Delineate how bad faith and the doing obsession overlap, especially in the context of busyness, self-discipline, and the denial of limitation ·
  • Highlight how self-awareness and a growth mindset can help us to overcome bad faith ·
  • Learn why transformational tools are not enough to get us to the highest level of adult development ·
  • Learn how Transcendence can give us the Copernican shift we need to change the way we know and understand the world

Module 3:

The Highest Stage of Personal Development

In the third module, we compare Transcendence with the other tools for transformation and personal growth that we already have in our arsenal. The highest level of adult development is unlike any of the other levels and needs a new strategy to reach.

The epiphany and insight gained during Transcendence catapult us temporarily into the highest stage of personal development. We can then incorporate the glimpse of a new way of being into our everyday lives.

In Module 3, we will:
  • Consider what the highest level of adult development looks like
  • Discover the correlation between personal growth and transcendent experiences
  • Unpack the qualities that Transcenders tend to value
  • Learn why transformational tools are not enough to get us to the highest level of adult development
  • Delve into how Transcendence can give us the Copernican shift we need to change the way we know and understand the world

Part 2: Transcendence

Module 4

Transcendent Experiences

Module 5

The Neurobiology of Transcendence

Module 4:

Transcendent Experiences

In the fourth module, we consider the form and features of Transcendent Experiences. Drawing on the descriptions of psychologists, cognitive scientists, and practitioners alike, we piece together what Transcendence is and how it differs from the related concepts of Peak Experience and Personal Development.

In Module 4, we will:
  • Elucidate the features that characterize a Transcendent Experience
  • Discuss the perspectives of the world and ourselves that are offered by Transcendent Perception
  • Discuss how Transcendence is a combination of peak affective experiences plus the lifechanging moments of insight
  • Identify the features of a Peak Experience and how we can trigger this experience
  • Discuss how Transcendence differs from Peak Experience
  • Identify the role of domain-general insights on Personal Development
  • Discuss how domain-general insights are a necessary condition for a Transcendent Experience
  • Differentiate between True Transcendence and “Fake” Transcendence
  • Provide some guidelines for seeking Transcendent Experiences
  • Learn how Transcendence relates to the Performance Mindset

Module 5:

The Neurobiology of Transcendence

In the fifth module, we delve into the nitty-gritty brain science surrounding Transcendence. Now that we know what the features of Transcendent Experiences are, we can examine the brain states that underpin these experiential features.

By examining the neural cascades, the experiential states, and the activities that trigger them, we propose some ways of making sense of the science of Transcendent Experiences.

In Module 5, we will:
  • Discuss brain states that prevent us from entering the Transcendent States ·
  • Learn about the function of the Default Mode Network (DMN) and why it might be useful to downregulate it sometimes ·
  • Examine the role of the Task-Positive Network that is engaged when we focus on attentiondemanding tasks directed at external sources of stimulation and how the locus coeruleus makes decisions about task engagement based on cost considerations ·
  • Explain why transient hypofrontality could explain the features of Transcendent Experiences ·
  • View Kotler & Wheal’s model for the neural cascades that happen during Transcendence ·
  • Discuss the correlation between the quieting of the DMN and the achievement of a Transcendent State as supported by data on mindfulness meditation, psychedelics, and aerobic exercise

Part 3: Lessons from Transcendence

Module 6

Seeing the Big Picture

Module 7

A Sense of Ease

Module 8

Lightness

Module 6:

Seeing the Big Picture

During a Transcendent Experience, your default view of yourself and your relationship with the world around you is disrupted, leaving you with a fresh perspective on life. It is disruptive in the most wonderful possible sense. Once experienced, you are never quite the same again.

You experience a shift in perspective that persists beyond the Transcendent Experience. In the after- glow of transcendence, you should act to incorporate the best parts of the Transcendent Experience into your everyday life.

This module examines Big Picture Thinking. This is a result of the Transcendent Perspective and can be purposefully incorporated into your everyday life. Moments of transcendence are often characterized by what Steven Kotler refers to as “selflessness” and psychologist Robert Kegan calls “the subject-object shift.” This shift in perspective allows you to see where your identities, goals, and efforts are situated in the big picture of your life.

By using the perspective of the Big Picture, in Module 6, we will:
  • Discuss how the Transcendent Experience of selflessness and the subject-object shift can lead to long-term perspective in your life
  • Explore the Mountain Metaphor as a way to understand the power of perspective in your life
  • Differentiate between drive and ambition
  • Define what it means to be “micro-ambitious” and how that can help free you from the “doing obsession”
  • Explore the Surfing the Wave metaphor as a way to get a new perspective on the ebb and flow of the processes in your life
  • Differentiate between productivity and perfectionism
  • Explore “The Art of Thought” and “Supercompensation” as two ways of conceptualizing the ebb and flow of the process
  • Create a framework for setting effective process goals
  • Discover how comparison can be used as a feedback mechanism for process goals

Module 7:

A Sense of Ease

In Module 4, we learned about the performance mindset that is resulting from Transcendence. One of the key elements of the performance mindset is effortless action. Practitioners of effortless action seem to have an ease about them, even when they are working hard, failing, and doing difficult things.

In Module 7, we examine the groundedness and resilience needed for effortless action. High performers make difficult tasks look easy. They enjoy them and revel in the challenge but do so with an enviable poise.

In search of a sense of ease, in Module 7, we will:
  • Examine the concept of resilience and how it can promote a sense of ease
  • Come to terms with the fact that sometimes days go off track, and learn not to attach our selfworth to these detours
  • Adopt the FABULOUS framework for building personal resilience
  • Cultivate resilience by learning the 7Cs: competence, confidence, character, connection, coping, control, and contribution
  • Discuss resilient failure and how high performers make challenges look easy
  • Eliminate the self-judgments and negative emotions we often attach to failure and whichstand in the way of our sense of ease

Module 8:

Lightness

In Module 4, we learned about the performance mindset that is a result of Transcendence. One of the key elements of the performance mindset is effortless action. Many high performers play in their work. They are not performing for want of praise or the fear of failure. Going the extra mile is a side effect of having fun and playing with the task.

In Module 8, we examine how play and playful rebellion can offer a viable alternative to the “doing obsession.” A transcendent perspective shows us that we can be playful with the “reality” of our everyday perspective. We should be curious about what we can tweak, change, andnudge. There is a joy and a lightness inherent in this way of thinking.

In search of lightness, in Module 8, we will:
  • Touch on the neurobiology of play
  • Discover the purpose of play
  • Learn how to effectively play to boost creativity and neuroplasticity, and promote a sense of lightness
  • Explore how playing with our societal roles and identities can help counter the “doing obsession”
  • Discuss how we step outside of normal life and break some normal patterns during play
  • Learn how to harness this rebellion to hold our goals lightly

Part 4: The Battle

Module 9:

The Battle

Transcendence is often presented as a lockstep progression. As though once we have achieved a moment of Transcendence — or glimpsed the big picture, had a moment of ease, embraced lightness — we’re done forever with concerning ourselves with the doing obsession. As if life were a video game, once we complete one level, we will never return to our previous ways of being.

Instead, we are always in a state of becoming. We all have the potential to live a transcendent life. But this potential is often weak, subtle, and delicate, very easily drowned out by learning, cultural expectations, fear, disapproval, etc.

In this module, we consider some of the common stumbling blocks that prevent us from integrating the lessons from Transcendence into our daily lives.

Practitioner Resources - Master Practitioner

The content of the Neuro Health course is designed for use by Neuro Change Practitioners with clients. Like the Neuro Change Practitioner Course, there is no fixed way of using the content. Instead, Practitioners should integrate it into their offerings in ways that make sense for their clients. To support Practitioners in this, there are resources that support the creation of a Transcendence program. The certification assignment provides scaffolding that Practitioners can use to get feedback on their curation.

To support this use case, the Practitioner gets the following resources:

  • The online course covering the content
  • Five recorded sessions with a Ph.D.-level facilitator
  • A Practitioner Workbook to be used in accompaniment with the live sessions
  • Interactive revision activities for each module
  • Two Practitioner-centered activities to assist with creating a Transcendence program
  • A PowerPoint slide deck (picture per slide plus presenter notes)
  • 35 client-facing activities to be used in person or online, with individuals or with groups

A Facilitator’s Guide that details:

  • The logical flow of the content
  • The most important points in each module
  • How and when to use the client activities

Client Resources -
Master Practitioner

To support the client in making the most of the full-day session, the following resources are provided:

  • An online course covering the vital content
  • Online self-assessment activities
  • 35 client-facing activities (as distributed and used by the Practitioner)
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