RYAN HOLIDAY ON HIS BOOK "THE OBSTACLE IS THE WAY"

Among the core principles of my Art of Connecting course is "The First Principle" from the Enchiridion by Epictetus. The essence of that passage is how to achieve happiness with a focus on those things that are in one's own power to control. 

The focus of my course are actions that lead to an excellent connection with oneself and others. 

"The Obstacle is The Way" is a book that I have come across, recently. It is one of the most practical and uplifting books about working Epictetus' "first principle" that I've ever read. 

Just like when I read Epictetus over 30 years ago,"The Obstacle is The Way" is having a transformative effect on my life, for the better. 

Its 27 year old author Ryan Holiday is featured in this video    

on THE ART OF CONNECTING WITH ONESELF

"Our actions may be impeded ... but there can be no impeding our intentions or dispositions. Because we can accommodate and adapt. The mind adapts and converts to its own purposes the obstacle to our acting." - Marcus Aurrelius 

"... use what really exists" (use everything) - Sanford Meisner

ON DAILY PRACTICE

On Daily Practice: 

The road to extraordinary results is not "business as usual." 

"A drum teacher once told his student, 'if you can't do it effortlessly in performance, you haven't practiced enough.'" 

Listening deeply and with empathy to another human being takes practice. If we cannot do it in life, how are we to do it in art?

Practice in life. - José Angel Santana 

AN ACTOR'S DAILY PRACTICE

The focus of the actor's attention on achieving "mutual understanding" in daily life with others, is the same as how the world-class writer, painter, and musician each engage in private daily practice to achieve there excellent works. Each engage in conscious and focused daily practice of the skills required to achieve excellence in their craft. - José Angel Santana

The first prerequisite of stage presence is the ability to control our own attention, to use our will-power to focus our attention on the object we have selected." - I. Rapoport, in Acting: A Handbook of the Stanislavski Method

"What is the essence of the actor's work and the theatre itself, inasmuch as the actor constitutes the essential part of the latter? The basis of everything is action...However, the very fact that these truths enter our consciousness does not assure their proper assimilation...A purely intellectual mastery of these ideas does not add anything to the actor...he will not be able to understand it unless he makes this knowledge a part of his living organism, unless he comes to feel it in 'his hide'..." - I. SUDAKOV, in Acting: A Handbook of the Stanislavski Method

REFLECTIONS ON THE ART OF CONNECTING

ELENA JULIA GREENLEE ON THE ART OF CONNECTING WITH COLLABORATORS WHILE PRODUCING JOSEF WLADYKA'S AWARD-WINNING "MANOS SUCIAS"

My friend and former student Elena Julia Greenlee at the San Francisco Film Festival talks about the process of producing Josef Wladyka's award-winning film "Manos Sucias" and using the "check-in" process I taught them throughout the whole time of making their film. 

This is an eloquent expression of the great value of "checking-in" and reaching and honoring "agreements" with one's collaborators. 

At (1:30) "... I was really open and honest with them about what do I want out of this . . . What will make this investment worth it for me and encourage them to also always be open with me about that . . . That's actually something that we learned in our "acting classes" . . . working on how to direct actors, to always "check-in" and to always reach "agreements." So we did that throughout our whole process and it made it such a joy to work together and something that I would never in a million years never regret a moment of. I do want to keep producing."

"...THEY LISTEN TO EACH OTHER, THEY LISTEN TO EACH OTHER."

 (:30) "This is the most amazing cast in the world every night at the Barrymore because they sit on stage and they listen to each other, they listen to each other." - Kenny Leon, 2014 Tony Award recipient for Best Direction of a Play, and Best Revival of a Play.

FOR TEACHERS: THE ART OF CONNECTING WITH STUDENTS

 Five great tips to enhance teacher student engagement and learning.

DENZEL WASHINGTON ON DREAMS & GOALS

It's been a long time since working with Denzel in our first professional stage play at the Delacorte Theater, in Central Park performing in William Shakespeare's "Coriolanus," that starred Morgan Freemen, Gloria Foster, and Robert Christian.

Since then, I've seen Denzel progress from a tremendously handsome "OK" actor, into a superb craftsman, then into an international movie star, delivering some dazzlingly unforgettable moments on screen, to arrive at accomplishing the deserved status as one of the finest actors that has ever lived.

However, I've never been more proud to say, "I knew him when," then upon watching this video. NEVER.

If you care about yourself as a person and/or an artist, at any level, please watch and listen to: every.single.word.

You.will.know.what.I.mean.

José Angel Santana   

Visit: https://www.artofconnecting.org/

Playwright Stephen Adly Guirgis talks about his close friend Philip Seymour Hoffman in 2010

Besides speaking so eloquently about his friend Philip Seymour Hoffman's artistry, Stephen Adly Guirgis expresses about the kind of devotion required to make "the work."  

Visit: https://www.artofconnecting.org/

THE ART OF CONNECTING: "PROFESSOR" IRWIN CORY

These are the final moments of "Professor" Irwin Cory's live comedy "act" after a screening of Jordan Stone's beautiful documentary "Irwin & Fran" about "Professor" Cory, and the 70 year marriage of Irwin and Fran.

During his career, Irwin was billed as "The World's Foremost Authority." He is 100 years of age at this time. His remarks about friendship here provide profound insight and perhaps a standard for measuring "trust" in any relationship.

Irwin's son, the painter Richard Cory sits in the second row behind José Angel Santana who is shooting. The "godfather of avant-garde cinema" Jonas Mekas is in the second row on the far right capturing the event on his camcorder.

Visit: https://www.artofconnecting.org/

HOW TO MAKE A SKILL SECOND NATURE

OUR ACTIONS IN LIFE & ART

THE POWER OF EMPATHY & NATALIE PORTMAN

"...Our job as actors is empathy. Our job is to imagine what someone else's life is like. And if we can't do that in real life, if you can't do that as a human being, then good luck as an actor." - Natalie Portman, winner Best Actress, 2011 Academy Award, for "Black Swan".  

(Video Source:http://blazenfluff.com/2013/12/the-power-of-empathy-animated-short-explains-the-difference-between-empathy-and-sympathy/

INTRODUCING: A DAILY PRACTICE FOR ARTISTIC EXCELLENCE

DAILY PRACTICE IS THE SECRET OF SUCCESS

A drum teacher once told his student, "if you can't do it effortlessly in performance, you haven't practiced enough."

Leading scientific research in the field of elite performance has determined that the key characteristic of world-class performance is,"10,000 hours of deliberate practice"  In their landmark paper, "The Role of Deliberate Practice in the Acquisition of Expert Performance" K. Anders Ericsson and his co-authors state that "deliberate practice is a highly structured activity, the explicit goal of which is to improve performance."

Source: http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/blogs/freakonomics/pdf/DeliberatePractice(PsychologicalReview).pdf​

 "Practice isn't the thing you do once you're good. It's the thing you do that makes you good." wrote Malcolm Gladwell in 'Outliers: The Story of Success" his bestselling book that popularized the "10,000-Hour Rule", based on Ericsson's research. 

Source: http://www.wisdomgroup.com/blog/10000-hours-of-practice/

"Deliberate practice consists of specific training activities, drills, and exercises designed to stretch the individuals skills and thereby provide growth. It is not business as usual." writes David Burkus in Fobes, about the "10,000-Hour Rule." 

Source: http://www.forbes.com/sites/davidburkus/2013/09/25/are-you-wasting-your-10000-hours/​

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​ THE ART OF CONNECTING  was created for the purpose of teaching a daily practice of specific training activities, drills, and exercise designed to establish and strengthen the specific skills needed to achieve excellence.   

Source: https://www.artofconnecting.org/

As some of you may already know, my life changed when I began working with adolescents with City@Peace in Santa Barbara, California years ago. This is a message I received today from Paul Griffin, founder of the National City At Peace Organization, which is known today as The Possibility Project. 

"Our foster care film KNOW HOW is competing for Project of the Year on IndieWire! Can you take a minute to vote for us? And can you share the link with your friends and get them to vote? We will need a lot of support to win. To vote, you click on the link below, vote for KNOW HOW, input your e-mail, and then confirm your vote when they send you an e-mail. If we win, it would be a HUGE help for our project!" 

If there is anything I believe in, and would support it is this project that is truly dedicated to helping adolescents who need the most help of all: Foster Care Children.

Please vote for this project: http://www.indiewire.com/vote-for-project-of-the-year

Please share this message!

Thank you.

Love
Jose

"LISTENING AND SOMETHING YOU REALLY FEEL IS HAPPENING BETWEEN PEOPLE" --- THE ART OF CONNECTING

Just before the 3:40 min. point in this video, which is extraordinary in its entirety, Peter Brook talks about how to avoid boredom in the drama: "In the theatre if there isn't life going on, in one subtle way or another… listening and something you really feel is happening between two people..." - Peter Brook

Annette Bening about The Craft of Acting...