Who you are is very much a function of what is present in your life space at a given moment.

I am a wife and soon-to-be mother of a little baby boy [Yay!] with a zest for life…and the changes that it brings.  I love to read, write, act, sing, dance, travel, organize, research, plan parties and create (among many other things!).  I am also a certified professional working toward a Master of Science in Organization Development Psychology.  As a graduate student, it is through my study of Kurt Lewin’s point of influence (among other personality theories) that I have arrived at a theme for my very own blog. 

Who is this Kurt Lewin guy I speak of and what is his point of influence?  He is universally recognized as the founder of modern social psychology.  According to Morley Segal in Points of Influence: A Guide to Using Personality Theory at Work, “Lewin’s point of influence is a figurative glass bubble around each individual, group, or organization that includes all that influences that entity’s behavior at a given moment.  Lewin called this life space, and it include[s] factors such as goal regions, paths to goals, barriers, threats, and social relationships (Deutsch, 1968, p. 414) (1997, p. 258).  Inspired by this abstract concept, each of my blog entries will focus on the factors that make up my life space at a particular moment in time.

Segal explains that “[m]oments of insight can profoundly alter our psychological environment, changing the way we look at people, problems, and situations.  In Lewinian terms, insight can restructure our life space” (Hunt, 1993, pp.292-299) (Segal, 1997, p. 261).  My hope (among many other hopes for this blog) is that writing about my moments in time will provide the additional insight necessary for me to continually restructure my life space, for I love self-improvement and have a lifetime commitment to it! 

Further intrigued by Lewin’s model, I read that “[i]ndividual personality is less a stable structure than a sense of continuity (‘genidentity’) imposed on a changing constellation of behaviors, attitudes, and affiliations (Back, 1986).  Who you are is very much a function of what is present in your life space at a given moment” (Segal, 1997, p. 264).  With the latter statement as the central theme for my blog, I want to speak candidly about my moments of falling away from my passions (such as reading, writing, acting, singing, dancing, painting, scrapbooking, photography, videography, etc.), and how I want to reshape who I am by changing what I allow to fill my life space in the present moment.  My targeted audience will likely be people with similar hobbies and interests or even professional goals who want inspiration with a dash of humor as they navigate through their own life space.  

In an effort to return to my passion for writing, it is on this 1^st day of the new year that I resolve to fill my life space with a new moment…the publishing of my first blog post.  I hope you enjoyed spending a few of your moments with me!