“This journey was born in the Nomzamo township in Lwandle in the Western Cape of South Africa. In February 2010, I was driving to work at Ikhwezi Clinic in a township where I was doing therapeutic work with a group of nurses. I was behind schedule and rushed to get through the traffic in time to meet the group.
As I drove into the parking area, my only focus was to get from my car to the front door of the clinic as quickly as possible. I got out of the car checking that I have my car keys, cell phone, wallet, notes as well as my portable CD player. As I was walking I suddenly felt an ice cold drop of water on my arm. I stopped. For a brief moment I checked where this was coming from – only to find that it came from an outside air conditioner on the pre-cast building. For a moment I paused to see what was around me. I saw a shack on my right with washing hanging from a hand-made washing line. I saw a mother sitting at the front door of the clinic with her sick baby on her lap. I saw kids playing in the street. For a brief moment, I stopped and became aware of my surroundings. My senses heightened. I heard, saw, smelled … for a moment, I was aware of everything around me.
I came out of the clinic after the group session an hour and a half later rushing to my next meeting. Walking around my car I remembered the drop of icy water that stopped me in my tracks. I chose to stop again – there behind my car. I wanted to observe and be aware.
This experience took me on a journey of awareness. A journey to reconnect with my values, a journey to live in the moment, more connected to God, myself and the world.
Not to give into the rat race that society offers as the norm. A few weeks later I picked up Brian Draper’s book “Spiritual Intelligence, a new way of being” and connected with him after I have read it. We started sharing ideas and in 2011 when I visited Danah Zohar (who coined Spiritual Intelligence) in Oxford, I met with Brian in Winchester for the first time. We had a soulful 2 hour conversation, sharing and connecting. After that we regularly shared ideas via skype and I visited him again in 2014. The dream of hosting events together in South Africa was born. We stumbled upon conversations about soulfulness and soulful living, shift that sometimes “just happens” in the moment, personal transformation and authenticity and how this is applied in organisations and in life.
His sentence in his book “Don’t just do something, stand there!” really helped me to create soulful moments in my own life and work.
I am so grateful for the journey that started with a drop of water on that summer day in 2010 and continued with SHIFT HAPPENS 2016 when we hosted Brian.
It is my hope that this journey will inspire, create networks and transform individuals and organisations by seizing meaningful moments together!
André Kilian
DR ANDRE KILIAN
André has 18+ years experience in people development through coaching, counselling and team processes with individuals, couples and corporate teams. He founded Soulful Leadership & Living in 2017 (rebranded to BeSoulful in 2023). He has a passion for the development & growth of people by creating space in a unique way.
His vocation is in different sectors, which includes NGO’s, corporate organisations, local government and community projects. One of his many focus areas is to journey with people in their quest for meaning towards more integrated and holistic living through the use of the construct of Spiritual Intelligence. Andre is spending a lot of his time with organisations and groups on the topic of soulfulness and self-management skills as well as culture.
André completed a PhD on the topic of Spiritual Intelligence and the practice of soulfulness in 2015 and completed a certificate with the Oxford Academy of Total Intelligence in 2011 with Danah Zohar. He published his first book in 2022 with the title: Water, live and lead with integrity.
When André is not working with other people, he enjoys time with his wife and four children – ideally camping where there is no wi-fi! He loves music.
In September 2016 I invited Brian Draper to South Africa for an event called Shift Happens.
We gathered organisations, coaches, psychologists, pastors and leaders to collaborate on the question: “how can we collectively and individually awaken to the bigger picture in life and work?” “How can we be part of the solution not the problem?” From this we’ve build a community that together thinks about soulful ways to do life and to respond individually and collectively in small sustainable ways wherever you are. Shift Happens 2016 was so encouraging (watch the video reflection between me and Brian). The journey continues.