The Importance of Working Together

In Western culture, independence is a highly regarded quality. From an early age we are encouraged to learn on our own, and strive for personal achievement and self-sufficiency. This is a prime difference between “Western” societies and others. However, we must remember that units — be they familial, communal, societal, national, or even global – have been so important in our development, and are necessary if we want to continue to progress as human beings.

Communication Is Key

It was at the point in human development when communication was fully established and functioning that we started making great leaps forward. Communication allowed for tasks to be allocated appropriately so that all of the people in a group could perform the tasks that they were each good at. Working together made life less about struggling for survival, and thus fights — from tiny squabbles to larger battles — could be avoided. Once people had more time, they could do other things, such as solve problems collectively and come together to discuss complex, practical, and philosophical questions.

While we like to think that people, on their own, invent things (take Edison and the light bulb), inventions are actually the product of years and years of knowledge and research being passed along through many different people.

Confronting Present Day Issues

There are many complex issues that need our attention these days: economical, social, and environmental. However, if we can remember to think in terms of the common good and work together to see that everyone benefits, we can start to solve these problems. Bodhi Surf School aims to promote this in two ways. First of all, we want to run a business that, from its very foundation, is designed to be a social operation. We do not want to have the traditional client/customer relationship, rather we seek active involvement from our patrons. Second, we want to give back to the communities that we operate in, not just to be a business that aims to neatly collect a profit and keep it for itself. We aim to be both sustainable and responsible, as well as proactively involved in finding solutions for the problems that we see.

This is not an argument against independence, we recognize that it is very important and necessary in all aspects of life. Surfing and yoga are both independent activities for the most part, revolving around self-awareness as well as a personal observance of one’s surroundings. While independence is not to be forgotten or discredited, only if we have an overarching understanding of how important “the group” is will we be able to tackle some of the important issues that we face going forward.