Who are you?

That is a deep question! But to keep it simple I am … a philosopher and a psychotherapist. As a psychotherapist, I help people transform their life difficulties, whatever they may be. And as a philosopher, I counsel and teach people the art of living well, a practice that for a long time in the West was known as philosophy.

One of my professional dreams is to help rebirth philosophy as this concrete and very useful practice of the art of living. Think of it as the art of applied philosophy, or wisdom, in the areas of everyday life: work, love, relationships, transforming personal difficulties, living a passionate life, finding happiness.

What do you do for fun?

I read, I go for walks along the sea, I have long meals with friends, I listen to the sound of rain pounding on the roof, I work, I observe Crows, I dance … I live!

What is your favourite community and why?

Broadly speaking I love all communities that actively promote care, compassion and social justice, in other words communities that precisely seek to bring people together and create a better world. My favourite community would therefore be all those who work for the common good, whoever they might be … teachers, writers, mothers nurses, environmentalists, leaders …

What is your superpower?

I must admit I have grown rather tired of my classic superpowers: x-ray vision, the power of flight, extraordinary might … Yawn. These days, I feel that my real superpower is Life Experience, acquired from having lived five lives or so (and for most of those lives, I was a “life crash-dummy,” exposed to all sorts of comical and not so-comical situations). I must be honest it’s a slightly painful superpower to acquire, but once it’s well-honed, it comes in quite handy.

How do you use it to build community?

Having lived a lot, and devoted most of my theoretical and experimental studies to acquiring this superpower, I think I have a real talent at helping people transform their difficulties and develop into their full potential. This in turn helps people to become more fulfilled and effective in their own lives, including in their own communities, whether it be family, work, or civic endeavours. In other words, I am an enabler of other people’s lives, including the communities to which they contribute. I also facilitate philosophy cafés, and “Art of Living” workshops, and in this sense I contribute more directly to creating communal spaces where people can get together, talk and learn about the things that matter most to them in life.

My Three Favourite Things about Dimitri are…

1. Artfully building community. Dimitri is a helper. From our correspondence, I’d also call him a “people-builder” or “happiness architect” or something of the like. His approach to teaching people about living artful lives is all about creating community, as it focuses on being happy in body, heart, mind, and spirit. Check out his website here. Also, I love how Dimitri observes crows…I dunno about you folks, but I think they’re up to something.

2. Hollyhock-Vancouver. Check out this mini-synopsis of a very cool upcoming opportunity to experience the Art of Living with Dimitri: “The central aim of the workshop is to help people learn better skills for the art of living. Participants will learn what the great philosophers from around the world, such as Socrates, Aristotle or the Buddha, have to teach us about how to live well in everyday life. They will also come away with concrete tools to live more gracefully in the realms of work, relationships, health and spiritual life.   Ideally, in turn, this will help them to enrich their own communities, whether at home, work or in civic engagements.”

For more on the day workshop please visit the Hollyhock website.

3. Rebecca Pearson. I suppose it’s common knowledge that the Law(s) of Attraction perpetually bring good/great people together. Such is the case with Dimitri and his wife/partner/fellow-superhero, Rebecca Pearson. At Vancity Capital, she manage’s the credit union’s Social Enterprise Portfolio, which provides innovative and interconnective financing for non-profit organizations, cooperatives, aboriginal ventures, social enterprises and sustainability-oriented businesses. Rebecca also introduced me to Dimitri, who makes my heart smile and my brain think in very different ways. Talk about a dynamic duo!