Landmark Forum: Structure and Pedagogy
Back in 2018, Zahra went to a self-improvement workshop called Landmark Forum (the Forum), and when she was all done, I asked her what she had learned there. To my surprise, she started repeating what I had been trying to tell her for a while. Instantly I became interested in how this workshop could be so effective in conveying abstract concepts that I had been trying to convey to my wife for a while but had no apparent success beyond logical acceptance of them. I clearly lacked those skills that were necessary for successfully communicating what I knew to others. So I became interested in their pedagogical approach, but learning their teaching methods was not enough to justify the cost, especially knowing that I probably would not learn any new concepts. However, one of our friends kept suggesting it to me much longer after my wife gave up on my stubbornness. Finally, my friend’s persistence to the point of annoyance paid off, and here is my account of the Landmark Forum in terms of its core concepts and the workshop structure and pedagogy.
The Forum is structured as a three-day (Friday to Sunday) workshop that runs from 9 in the morning and goes to 10 in the evening, with four sessions in each day. There are two, half an hour breaks in between morning and afternoon sessions and one extended meal break (an hour and a half) before the evening session. There is also one last evening session on day five (Tuesday) which mostly serves as the “graduation ceremony” where students are supposed to invite their friends and family to attend the session with them so they can learn what the Forum is all about and perhaps register for it.
The Forum relies on four methods to achieve its educational goals. First, the theoretical and philosophical underpinning of the material that is being taught and practiced is delivered through lectures; the forum leader mainly reads through a given manuscript and supplies that material with examples of their own life where needed while utilizing the chalkboard when necessary. Second, the discussed concepts are explained further through the coaching of individuals who share their (almost always negative) stories, questions, and concerns publicly with all attendees. Third, the concepts are further practiced through the private sharing of stories between individuals sitting beside each other. It is highly recommended that attendees change their partners after each session by changing their seats. Fourth, the leader encourages attendees to contact (mainly through phone calls) those whom they hold negative feelings toward and practice what they have learned with them in order to complete that negative experience which is a necessary step in letting go of their story/feeling. There are incremental learning opportunities in each of these steps, and individuals get to learn the concept and master it further with each iteration and practice. Once a concept is fully understood and applied by individuals, they will have a “breakthrough.”
On day one, the forum starts with the notion of stories and the fact that what happened in the past was only a happening, void of any meaning of its own; thus, it is our stories of those events that gave meaning to them. It is our narration (story) of those events that is giving us either positive (joy, happiness, contentment, etc.) or negative (resentment, rage, regret, hate, guilt, etc.) feelings. The focus is almost inadvertently on negative and disempowering stories. The goal is for individuals to realize that it is they who give meaning to events so they can let go of the negative meanings that they have attached to events of their life. It basically helps individuals to purge all the negative feelings and stories that they were holding on to. What I mainly observed, the Forum was helping individuals to let go of guilt on day one.
Day two is mainly focused on explaining and mastering the concept of rackets, an unwanted but persistent behavior, while coaching people to further master the concept of stories and helping them with their breakthroughs or the lack thereof. Once rackets are explained and discussed, the Forum moves to a fear exercise in which the leader asks attendees to sit upright, close their eyes, and imagine a fearful situation. The forum leader asked attendees to imagine that they were scared to death of the person sitting beside them, then went on until it included all people in the room, city, country, and the world. Then followed with a reversed order, attendees were asked to imagine that the person sitting beside them was scared to death of them and followed until the situation included the whole world. I could hear many people wiping during this exercise. The day ends with the introduction of the winning formula concept. The winning formula is a reaction that an individual displays to get out of a bond or a bad situation. Supposedly each individual should be able to find 3 to 4 winning formulas that are essential to the formation of their personality and are reactions to monumental events that took place between 6 years of age to the end of teenage years. These reactions helped them to manage unpleasant situations and come out as winners.
Day three starts with practices and discussions (public sharing and coaching along with private sharing) related to the winning formula in the morning. The afternoon session tries to pull together what has been taught and practiced in the last two days — it is us who give meaning to happenings, and almost all of our decisions (what we do and choose) are the result of the interplay of our rackets and winning formulas — and fortify the concept that nothing really has any meaning. Nothing means anything and “that” doesn’t mean anything either! Then the concept of creation out of nothing with the power of language and the base of integrity is explained. The final focus of the forum is on the concept of choice. Since nothing means anything, then looking for a reason for why something happened (or is happening) is useless. We can either choose (own) our decisions or fight them (endlessly looking for reasons why). Fighting is disempowering and keeps us stalled in life. So I chose vanilla ice cream because I chose vanilla ice cream. I choose my mom and dad because I choose my mom and dad. To me, the Forum was designed to prepare attendees to understand and accept the concept of “choosing” what is happening to us and taking full responsibility for our doings and events of our life without feeling negative (guilty, frustrated, remorseful, etc.) about them.
The evening session of the third day is basically about recapping what has been taught over the last few days, appreciating of breakthroughs that individuals achieved and the story of those breakthroughs, telling stories of previous graduates of the forum, and providing information about the advanced course (format and content) and what individuals can achieve by taking the advanced course. And all while consistently encouraging (pressuring) attendees to share their breakthroughs/experiences with their friends and loved ones and get them to attend the forum. This encouragement happens throughout all days and stages of the forum, but it gets more pronounced on days 2 and 3.
The last session that happens on the evening of the fifth day (Tuesday) is an effort to wrap everything up and provide additional coaching to people who need it, but the main focus is on trying to get the guests to register for the Forum through showcasing the breakthroughs that graduates have been making and providing a relatable experience for guests so they can see what the Forum can do for them should they decide to participate in it.
Throughout the Forum, there have been times that I hated being in the Forum and resented my decision of signing up for it and there have been times that I absolutely loved being there. Overall, I am happy and grateful that I choose to take part in the Forum. The Forum turned what I mostly knew (through extensive readings and studies) to experience. It fortified what I knew by making me experience them, and no learning is better and more lasting than the one that happens through experience. Most importantly, it helped me to know myself much better, and to me, self-knowledge is the most precious one.
