The Zero Point Agreement: How to Be Who You Already Are

(Paperback)

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*Explains how we can only discover who we are by naming what we want to be and taking steps to make it a reality *Offers simple evidence-based methods to generate enthusiasm, creativity and direct spiritual experience and to co-create with the natural world as our ancestors did *Presents 11 core principles for living life from within, such as how to take full responsibility for motivation and effort, express gratitude and focus your intention Everyone wants to experience purpose and inspiration in their lives, but the search for meaning often leaves a seeker in the hands of fate. Offering a different approach to self-discovery, one where we create our meaning from within rather than seek it from the outside world, Julie Tallard Johnson shows there is a science behind personal spiritual experiences and creativity. She reveals simple evidence-based methods that can be applied to any situation to generate enthusiasm, inspiration and direct spiritual experience and transform the inner and outer landscapes of your life. Drawing from the Heart Sutra, the I Ching, indigenous wisdom and the teachings of the Dalai Lama, Joseph Campbell and the Kadampa master Atisha, Johnson outlines a practice centred on what she calls the Zero Point Agreement, the realisation that you are the zero point of your life, that life's purpose comes from within. She explains how to discover who you truly are by naming what you want to be and taking steps to make it a reality. Providing 11 core principles for the Zero Point Agreement as well as thought exercises, meditations and journaling practices, Johnson shows how we can tap in to the creative, creational power that lies within and around each of us. Johnson offers a spiritual technology for self-illumination, creative restructuring of your life and manifestation of your life's purpose. Also, how to break free from negative habitual states, liberate yourself from your attachment to the behaviour of others, take full responsibility for motivation and effort, express gratitude, focus your intention and learn to co-create with the natural world. She, also, explores how to transform repressed material and how to apply the Zero Point Agreement to heal both personal and global relationships.

Reviews

"In this beautiful book, Julie Tallard Johnson--a gifted teacher and writer--brings fresh insight to an ancient truth: each of us must live from the inside out. This book--full of resources that range from heart-deep insight to helpful, practical exercises--can help us reclaim the treasure-trove of our own experience and being." Parker J. Palmer, author of Healing the Heart of Democracy, Let Your Life Speak, and The Courage to "In The Zero Point Agreement, Julie Tallard Johnson intelligently presents elegantly simple yet remarkably powerful practices for personal and societal transformation. Through the masterful weaving of teaching stories that touch the heart and inspire, she helps foster the development of an authentic identity. This is what our children, our families, our communities, and the land need." Corinna Stevenson, ecopsychologist and creator of Dragonfly Healing "I was captivated by Julie Tallard Johnson's accessible treatise on how we are all charged with making meaning in our daily lives. I found The Zero Point Agreement dazzling because it is so packed with actual, practical wisdom. I can honestly say it has already changed my life." Meg Cox, author of The Book of New Family Traditions "The Zero Point Agreement offers a clear, practical path to taking control of what you are able to and living the life you want to live." Dinty W. Moore, author of The Mindful Writer: Noble Truths of the Writing Life "What a generous, wise, and useful book this is! Each chapter is so filled with quotes, anecdotes, hands-on exercises and more that help and inspire us to fully claim our own lives. There's enough here to guide and inform you for many years to come." Ruth L. Schwartz, Ph.D., award-winning poet, and author of Soul on Earth: A Guide to Living & Loving "Julie Tallard Johnson's The Zero Point Agreement is a brilliant resource for deep and lasting change. I have used the zero point agreement in my own life and have shared it with clients and students. It is not another pie-in-the-sky promise of change. It is straightforward and effective." Tamar Zick, LPC, RYT, licensed psychotherapist and registered yoga teacher "A delightful companion for those of us seeking greater levels of balance, meaning, and joy--this book offers many gems of inspiration as well as the welcomed reminder that the journey toward wholeness always begins within." Karen Horneffer-Ginter, Ph.D., author of Full Cup, Thirsty Spirit "The Zero Point Agreement is not only a book it's also a beautifully written love letter to the essence of who we really are." Radiah Nunez, hostess of the H2O Network "Julie's new book goes to the sinew from the beginning, reminding us of who we really are. She invites us to listen to ourselves, especially our demons, and shows us how to navigate from desire to the dreams that comprise our core. "Living life from my side" is an inspired, pragmatic concept that will change lives. Imagine a world where each of us takes 100% responsibility for our experience. This is Julie's offering: a spark of hope and a path of light." Prudence Tippins, owner/director of The Calliope Center for Reflection and Renewal and Wheel of Init "In this resource-rich book of practical wisdom and wise practices, Julie Tallard Johnson offers readers multidimensional insights, inspiration, and skills for living with greater authenticity, creativity, and happiness. Integrating science, spirituality, and art in an engaging and deeply thoughtful approach to becoming who you already are, this gifted teacher demonstrates how each of us can create more meaning and joy in our lives--in ourselves, in the world around us, and for our power to create and shape the stories we tell ourselves and others." Amber Ault, Ph.D., clinical sociologist and psychotherapist "Julie Tallard Johnson's The Zero Point Agreement is full of wisdom. We are invited to challenge our beliefs, habits, and assumptions and make ourselves vulnerable so that we can easily access the truth within our lives and experiences. Julie teaches us that by becoming our own meaning maker, we transform ourselves and the world in which we live. A true gift!" Amy DeLong, M.D., Ho-Chunk Nation Department of Health "I love that the big beautiful zero is a central tenet of this book. What I see is a big round open door through which we can all walk on our journey toward wholeness. It's a journey with no destination, of course, since wholeness is not a place as much as a perspective, ever-shifting. Put on your dancing shoes; this is not a book to be read propped up in your La-Z-Boy!" Claudia Schmidt, singer-songwriter

Author Bio

Julie Tallard Johnson is a counsellor, licensed clinical social worker and creative writing consultant. She has been studying the scientific basis of thought transformation, inspiration and creativity for 35 years. She is the author of several books, including Wheel of Initiation and Spiritual Journaling. She lives in Wisconsin.