Untangled:
Contemplation And Entanglement
by
Henry J. Sienkiewicz
BK:
Have you always known you wanted to write, or did it just happen one
day?
HS:
First, I want to thank you for the chance
to have a conversation with your readers. I
still struggle to think of myself as a writer. I’m very much an
observational, heterogeneous integrator. As an observer, I try to
ensure that I’m aware of what is going on around me, and where the
seams are in the fabric of what I’m observing. As a heterogeneous
writer, I try to pull inspiration from highly, highly diverse
sources. But, at the end, I try to integrate all of them into a
comprehensive work.
BK:
Untangled is meant to be thought-provoking. What sparked the idea to
write such a book?
HS:
On many levels Untangled was a reaction to
many of the things that we all deal with on a daily basis. It was a
reaction to the confusion caused by the stuff happening around us, or
in my words our daily entanglements.
BK:
Tell us a bit more about the 3 pillars of Contemplation.
HS:
You are hitting the heart of the book. The literature of
contemplation is wonderfully rich, from the mystics to the
philosophers to simply people with perspectives. In my own quest to
understand, I wanted to find some common pillars. Those pillars are
silence, stillness, and solitude.
Silence
is our embrace of a space that allows us not to just filter the
noises out of daily life but to remove the noise. We have white
noise surrounding us almost all of the time. We allow ourselves to
be constantly distracted by the ticking of a clock in the background,
the hum of the computer, the “bing” of an e-mail, or the siren’s
call of an instant message? To paraphrase the Swiss philosopher Max
Picard, silence is the mostly
unrecognized source of our own beings.
Stillness
is an intentional slowing down. Stillness slows us so we see
details. Stillness slows us down so we can see the nuances. Stillness
slows us down so we can see the depth of the world around us.
Solitude
means being able to find the space to think by yourself. Solitude
means finding yourself. Solitude means finding your own trail among
the entanglements.
All
three are necessary in life. All three are needed so that we can
engage in life rather than being merely entertained by it.
BK:
How complex is Untangled really? Can anyone use this book?
HS:
I wrote Untangled
to be approachable for anyone who is struggling with the complexity
of daily life. I’ve been absolutely astonished at initial
reactions. The immediate reaction when I describe the book is a
story about how much the other person relates to it.
The
readers’ reactions have been even better. I’m had many people
tell me that they don’t normally sit down and read philosophy. In
this case they did. For many, they read and have gone back to
re-read it. I constructed the chapters to be easily understandable
within a narrative that everyone could relate to and it appears that
I achieved my goal. Most of the readers found it a wonderful read,
that gave them a way to think differently.
While
it would be helpful to have a slight grounding in philosophy, I don’t
think that it is absolutely necessary. The book can stand on its
own or the reader can use the references and citations as a starting
point, and as a way that they can explore their own trails.
Additionally, the book trailer
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_A3Trh5BlEw)
provides a great introduction to the topic.
BK:
What do you hope readers will take away from your book?
HS:
I want to concurrently provoke and
inspire. I want the reader to put the book down, think about it, and
pick it back up in order to reread a passage that caused them to
pause. I want the reader to use some, not necessarily all of it to
make their lives better.
BK:
What do you like to do when you're not writing, or contemplating?
HS:
I truly enjoy the arts. I sit on the Board
of Governors for the Arts Club of Washington
(www.artsclubofwashington.org),
the oldest non-profit arts organization in Washington DC.
BK:
What is one thing readers would be most surprised to know about you?
HS:
In both books, I would like to think that
I’ve opened myself up a great deal to the readers. However, one
thing that most readers would be surprised how little I’ve been
able to travel in the last decade or so. When I was in the airline
industry I was able to travel a great deal more. The last ten years
have been focused on the first book, starting a software company, and
then going into federal service. I’m looking forward to a time
when I will be able to travel more.
BK:
Using your first name as an acronym, describe your book.
HS:
Can I use the French version of my name? H:
Holistic E: Engaging N: Nuanced R:
Respectful of the reader I: Insightful
BK:
What's next for Henry Sienkiewicz?
HS:
As I indicated, I’ve been a bit
overwhelmed by sheer amount of positive reaction to Untangled
(www.untangledthebook.com).
I’m starting to pull together the notes for
two more books. The third book is geared towards general management
principles. The fourth book is still in the very early stages, but
pulls some of the ideas that have surfaced in both Centerlined
and Untangled. Your
readers can follow me on Twitter at @hjsienkiewicz.
I
just want to close by, again, thanking you for the time to have this
conversation. Untangled is available in the major ebook formats, on
the major on-line bookstores, and on the book’s own website –
www.untangledthebook.com.
Henry
J. Sienkiewicz has served in multiple positions within the United
States Federal Senior Executive Service since 2008. His previous
commercial experience was as the founder and chief executive officer
for Open Travel Software, an award-winning software developer focused
on the global travel community, and in the chief information officer
role at three technology companies. He or his companies have
been the recipient of multiple awards for innovations or achievement
in the technology industry. He retired as a United States Army
Reserve lieutenant colonel in July 2008.
Henry holds a bachelor of arts from the University of Notre Dame and a master of science from Johns Hopkins University. He is also a graduate of the United States Army Command and General Staff College.
In 2006, he completed and published his first book, Centerlined, which dealt with interpersonal and organizational dynamics.
Henry resides in Alexandria, Virginia.
Website | Book Site | Facebook | Twitter
Henry holds a bachelor of arts from the University of Notre Dame and a master of science from Johns Hopkins University. He is also a graduate of the United States Army Command and General Staff College.
In 2006, he completed and published his first book, Centerlined, which dealt with interpersonal and organizational dynamics.
Henry resides in Alexandria, Virginia.
Website | Book Site | Facebook | Twitter
Genre:
Practical Philosophy/Self-help
Release
Date: April 2013
In a social media-centric, Twitter-driven world we live, the complexity created by the entanglements has caused an overload Called a Walden for the Internet Age, Untangled draws from the rich traditions of both Eastern and Western philosophy to tease apart the hyper-connected web of the modern world and challenges the reader to recognize and embrace contemplation as a way cope.
Through a highly approachable framework and the imagery of a journey through the heartland of Taiwan, Untangled provides the reader with the background of entanglement and contemplation, and identifies and discusses the three pillars of contemplation - silence, stillness and solitude. The book closes with a series of actions that allow anyone to untangled through active contemplation in daily life.
In a social media-centric, Twitter-driven world we live, the complexity created by the entanglements has caused an overload Called a Walden for the Internet Age, Untangled draws from the rich traditions of both Eastern and Western philosophy to tease apart the hyper-connected web of the modern world and challenges the reader to recognize and embrace contemplation as a way cope.
Through a highly approachable framework and the imagery of a journey through the heartland of Taiwan, Untangled provides the reader with the background of entanglement and contemplation, and identifies and discusses the three pillars of contemplation - silence, stillness and solitude. The book closes with a series of actions that allow anyone to untangled through active contemplation in daily life.
Excerpt:
UNTANGLED
A Big Ball of Twine
We learn the rope of life by untying its knots.
—Jean Toomer
As we reached the first stopping point, we opened
our packs and found chaos. The ropes that we had neatly packed were
completely jumbled. The gear we had carefully stowed had been shifted
around; it was an unrecognizable mess.
The jostling and shifting from the simple movement
of the journey caused our coils of rope to transform from a neat roll
to an entangled mess. We thought that we had taken care to pack them;
the journey ensured that we had a mess to deal with.
Our mental backpacks are similar. Sometimes,
regardless of the care we have taken, our world becomes a completely
entangled mess in ways that we had not expected. Our journey ensures
that we have a mess to deal with.
Many writers have used the terms connected
and hyperconnected to describe our current state. I think that
the term entanglement is more reflective of the state of our
condition.
Connection implies that there has been an encounter
but does not imply that the relationship is persistent. As will be
discussed later, entanglement means two or more “things” have
formed some type of permanent bond. This permanent bond is why I
think that the term entanglement is more expressive of our actual
condition.
Entanglement has many layers and many textures. It
may be accidental or intentional. Entanglement may be in ways that
may or may not be are attractive. Entanglement may or may not have
relevancy to our lives. Entanglement may or may not have real
meaning.
Entanglement may be the vines that catch your feet.
Or it may be the limbs that brush your arms. Or it could be the rope
that safely holds you onto the mountain.
Contemplation lets us mentally sort through the mess
of entanglement that we all carry with us and allows us to repack
meaningfully.
