Interview Dr. P. Ciaramicoli
Watch this new amazing interview with Dr. P. Ciaramicoli, a clinical psychologist with over 35 years of experience. He is a member of the American Psychological Association and a member of the Massachusetts Psychological Association.
Dr. Arthur is an author of several books like The Soulful Leader, The Stress Solution, Performance Addiction and The Power of Empathy and his latest book The Triumph of Diversity, which we will discuss in this interview.
Could you tell us more about yourself and how you ended up as a clinical psychologist?
Early in my life I think I was trained by my parents, who were always inviting people from different cultures and different countries . My mother was a very calm listener and my father was a motivator so I guess I learned a combination of both.
We would have my classmates coming over and my parents were encouraging these young people into getting good grades. At the time I did not know much about the word psychologist, but now it seems to all come together.
What is causing separation in the world, and why are there so many prejudices?
This is an excellent question and I think that to some degree it starts with leadership, we know from credible studies when leaders lead through aggression and fear it filters down to the population.
We know that when leaders are making sadistic or cruel comments about people unlike themselves about minorities and different races or people of different religions, it has a profound effect on nations. We know that nations with the highest level of empathy have people who are more conscientious and have a greater appreciation for diversity and are more pro-social.
When people are empathetic they look beyond the surface and they look into the heart of the soul of other human beings. Then eventually you will see that we aren’t dissimilar at all but when leaders lead in a black and white way, they lead from a position of “us” and “them.”
This differentiates one human from another and creates negativity on diversity.
Does separation has to do with how children are raised? From what age do we think like that?
When we are young we idealize our parents, so if you hear people making anti-Semitic comments or comments about Muslims or comments about people from other cultures or religions, children that in as if it is a gospel. I try to teach people and spent my entire career trying to teach people to reduce the prejudices toward themselves and others and I think we write a novel early in life.
We write a story about ourselves and others based on our experiences but it is a novel not a non-fiction book. As adults we need to edit that book and write a non-fiction to find out what is true and find out what isn’t true. This is a necessity to a peaceful heart and a peaceful culture.
“Dare to ask questions”
It is all about asking questions and investigate to find out the truth of others and yourself. I have had many leadership groups for over the last 30 years and people from many cultures come in and you get feedback about yourself.
Many times we are too subjective to know who we are. Some think they are not very bright, attractive or athletic, but so much of it is not true. My job is not about finding out what is wrong with people, it is to tease out what has always been right there and they haven’t been able to see it. Often this comes from their own conditioning and we all need feedback from other reasonable people that we can trust.
There is this old saying: “A good friend tells you what you need to hear not what you want to hear.” So when you have people in your life like that you can ask questions, be open to it and take it in. Like this you can re-write the book about yourself and others.
What do you think about the whole corona virus, how can people find their truth?
It is important that people ask questions and that you look at the actual facts. Do not automatically believe what has been said on the television and think about where the sources of information come from.
We hear a lot of politicians talking about the virus, but I am always saying, “What about the scientists?.” I encourage people to listen to the credible scientists and not to people who are trying to position themselves politically. When you start spending time on facts and what is true and what isn’t, this is when you start obtaining wisdom.
How can we recognize spiritual cult leaders or dishonest people?
I could provide you with a quick example, recently I had a man who came in and told me he was losing weight and he had a great diet he wanted to show me. I asked him: “do you find yourself urinating a lot? “He said “yes, all day and night long.”
I said that is because there are three types of diuretics in this product. He thought they were all herbs, but I told him that those three herbs are basically diuretics. So, yes you will lose weight, but it would only be water.
So basically the feedback we do not know if it is true or not, so it is important to make an assessment. It is important to slow down and learn more about the other person. Like this you can make an assessment like, is this person being honest to me? So very important is to have a look from the distance and observe. Something can look so great at first sight, but you only know more once you give it time and slow down.
Once we get disappointed it is important not to generalize everyone related to that person, because that person hurt you. Next time being mindful is to observe the situation.
Do you think a lot of bullying will be solved once we start embracing diversity?
With diversity there come different ideas. We know that children that grow up in and with diverse backgrounds are more strategic and creative thinkers. They feel safer in general and less prone to judgment.
When these kids see a Black person or an Asian person or any other person from other countries, they do not panic. They do not have the similar fear reactions as children who grow up in white schools or same race schools in any country. So when children are raised in different culture backgrounds, there will be less bullying and more embracing diversity. Also with diversity there comes a way of more expansive thinking instead of a narrow-minded opinions and thoughts.
What made you write the book The Triumph of Diversity?
I have written my previous book and this book because I am concerned about what is happening in the world. I am concerned about the level op prejudice increasing and I would like the leaders to lead with more empathy, integrity and authenticity so that the people who follow, want to follow in their footsteps.
I believe that we benefit from diversity as it expands our view on society and people. If you are interested in buying the book have a look at his website.
Conclusion Interview with Dr. Arthur P. Ciaramicoli
The take away from this interview is to embrace diversity, to be mindful and take slow action on judging people. Take your distance and assess what is happening around you.
If you would like to see the whole interview, please take a look at The Mindful Magazine youtube channel link here.
Thank you so much for sharing all your knowledge with us Dr. Arthur P. Ciaramicoli and we hope that you keep doing your wonderful work!