How the tragedy of 9-11 changed my life
Steering me toward my major definite purpose
SOS #141 -- J. Morris Hicks -- (1-18-22)
Today, I want to tell you a story. it is the story of how I happened to discover some of the most important truths in the history of humanity. Maybe someday, one or two of my grandchildren will be able to write a happy ending to my story.
It began on 9-11-01. I had taken the early-bird Delta flight from Atlanta to LaGuardia on what looked to be a truly magnificent, late-summer day.

Just before landing, I remember looking out the window on my left and admiring the World Trade Center and all of Manhattan sparkling in the morning sun.

I had never seen the city look so beautiful and was really looking forward to the next few days. But my joy was short-lived. By the time our aircraft arrived at the LGA terminal ten minutes later -- the news was breaking that an airplane had crashed into the north tower of World Trade Center at 8:46 am.

Twenty minutes later, while in a yellow cab on my way to Manhattan, another jet crashed into the south tower -- a terrifying event that I witnessed first-hand with the driver.
Fast-forward a few months and I was back home in Atlanta, where, like everyone else, I was doing my best to show my American pride by draping my home with the largest flag I could find. FYI, my flag was the largest one on my street.

Meanwhile, back to the reality of earning a living. Two years earlier, In June of 1999 I had founded an executive search firm -- with HQ in Atlanta and a presence in Chicago, Dallas and New York. Now I was worried about that business.

As I flew back to Atlanta after 9-11, I was thinking about what kind of impact that terrorist event would have on our two-year old search firm. My gut was telling me that there would be much uncertainty in the world of business -- and that it would lead to much less hiring -- which was not good for the executive search profession in general.

Our Ansley Consulting Group was no exception. By mid 2002, we were all scrambling, trying to discover a way to continue making a living.
We were not alone. As a result of widespread uncertainty, executive search firms everywhere were having a tough time keeping their doors open and many of them went out of business.

One year later, in the autumn of 2002, I had an idea for how our Ansley team might be able to ride out this downturn in the executive search profession.
The idea came to me shortly after I delivered a speech to a monthly meeting of a subset of the Georgia Tech Alumni Association. The attendees were Tech grads who were out of work and/or just looking for their next career opportunity.

For my talk that evening, I decided to build on the fact that most people are not truly happy in their work. I chose this title:

Getting a Life; then Getting a Job…My Seven Secrets.

That night, I asked those 100 Tech grads in attendance to step back and consider the many important facets of their life and then choose a career path or future profession that would enrich their lives.

Their positive and engaging reaction to my presentation that evening greatly exceeded my expectations -- as did their wonderfully positive feedback the next few days via email. I received personal messages from 30 or 40 of the attendees—-sincere words of thanks for actually helping them that evening.

As I sifted through those e-mails in that post 9-11 era of extremely high unemployment, I had an idea for how we might temporarily resolve our lack of revenue problem at Ansley Consulting
Since I resided in Atlanta, home of the world's busiest airport, I came up with the idea of hosting a monthly, one-day "Get A Life" seminar at a hotel near our office in midtown.

The seminar, to be priced at $199 (from 10 am to 4 pm) -- would include a free lunch. Most attendees could easily make it a day-trip. We planned to feature seven, career-related 30-minute talks, along with a Q&A session at the end.

Next, we divvied up the topics and I chose these two that I would cover in those mini-seminars:

  • Getting real serious about becoming healthy and fit.

  • Sorting out your feelings about faith, hope and the things that motivate you to be all that you can be. A very important element -- as you assess your major definite purpose in life.

In preparation for our first "Get A Life" seminar, I began my research by re-visiting a question that had intrigued me for years:

What is the optimal diet for humans?

Within two months, I had discovered the works of John McDougall, Dean Ornish, Neal Barnard, Colin Campbell, and Joel Fuhrman. And they all agreed with Dr. T. Colin Campbell's simple definition of the optimal diet for humans:

The closer we get to eating a diet of whole, plant-based
foods, the better off we will be.

Spoiler Alert. That "Get A Life" seminar never happened, but the knowledge gained while preparing for it has defined my life and career ever since. (Click here for my complete article on this episode of life)

I have summarized below -- the first four chapters of my final/current career (health promotion & sustainability) -- a career that would likely have never happened -- had it not been for that 9-11 wake-up call.
Chapter 1: Awakening
Connecting Food Choices: Health/Environment
Between December of 2002 and May of 2003, initially while planning for that first seminar, I read many books and became 100% convinced that the optimal diet for humans consisted of whole, plant-based foods. Based on the startling information that I was learning about food, I never did get fired up enough to revisit the one-day seminar idea.

Then, over Memorial Day weekend, 2003, I read two books that primarily focused on the environmental impacts of the way we humans choose to eat. And, that’s when I had my blinding flash of the obvious, saying to myself:

“Oh my God, we’re eating the wrong food.” 

But I still had not solved our revenue problem at Ansley Consulting. So, instead of pursuing the “Get A Life” seminar idea, I decided to leverage my decades of experience in process improvement consulting and various senior executive roles -- to assist large corporate clients in saving hundreds of millions of dollars per year on healthcare.
After reviewing my ideas with a local friend who was the former chairman and CEO of Xerox, I was confident that, as long as we had the buy-in from the CEO of the client organization -- that we could employ many methods and incentives aimed at gradually helping and guiding the extended workforce toward a diet of whole, plant-based foods. 

What could be more rewarding than that? Helping people get healthy and saving the client millions of dollars -- all while doing some wonderful things for the environment. The more I learned about the crucial importance of our food choices, the more I concluded that that topic would play a primary role in all of my future endeavors.
Chapter 2: Juggling Two Careers
Searching for Corporate Clients and Beyond
Between 2004 and 2010, Ansley Consulting had recovered enough to keep paying the bills but the search business was no longer as satisfying as my envisioned health improvement/cost reduction projects with a few large corporations that were headed by enlightened CEOs. 

While looking for those corporate clients, we continued to improve the overall approach that included a system that we call ARCH, which is an acronym for “automatically reducing the cost of healthcare” -- an automated tool that you can read about here

Also, during those years, I continued to pursue my passion for promoting health, hope and harmony on planet Earth. I even set up a website at harmonyearth.net -- where I posted and organized all of the relevant information. That site was replaced by this one in 2011
As for actual, revenue-generating, corporate clients for reducing healthcare costs, we made lots of presentations and came very close to a deal with one Fortune 100 corporation.

But in the final analysis, we simply never found a CEO who had the personal conviction to provide the essential leadership needed to succeed in promoting dietary changes that could’ve led to a much healthier workforce AND a much healthier bottom line.

Although we never landed that first corporate client, we continued to add to the body of knowledge -- that has been well-represented in books, blogs, and public presentations over the past decade.
Chapter 3: Books, Blogs & Speaking
Promoting the Truth via Writing and Speaking
In early 2011, after completing the manuscript of my first book, Healthy Eating, Healthy World -- my publisher, Glenn, of BenBella Books -- suggested that I consider starting a blog to promote sales for the upcoming book.

So, I bought my first MacBook Pro, signed up with WordPress and started publishing a daily blog. Not knowing how long the streak would last, I would start my day at the local Starbucks in Mystic, CT, at 0600 -- and would not go home for breakfast until that day’s blog was done. 

My first one was posted on February 10, 2011 and was entitled “Barbara Walters…A Missed Opportunity. In it, I reviewed an ABC television special that featured her recent heart surgery. 

Fast-forward two years later to February 11, 2013, when I published my 737th consecutive daily blog. It was entitled: Keeping things simple -- after 737 consecutive days.
After ending that streak, I had the opportunity to publish my second book, with a family physician, Dr. Kerry Graff, in the Finger Lakes region of New York state. Entitled the 4Leaf Guide to Vibrant Health, it features 37 chapters -- about half of which were written by Dr. Graff.

She wrote about the success of her patients and I wrote primarily about the beneficial environmental impacts of a whole food, plant-based way of eating throughout the world. 

I continued blogging at a much more relaxed pace until June of 2016, when I decided to start a new kind of blog. I called the new series “Bite-Size Blogs” (BSB’s) and distributed them through the ConstantContact automated email delivery platform.

The first one was posted on June 6, 2016 and here is a link to it. Bite-Size Blogs for Busy Folks

Along the way, those blogs kept getting longer (no longer bite-size) -- while the world’s environment kept getting sicker. So, after publishing 196 of those BSB’s in less than three years, I decided to change the name to something that better represented the steadily-worsening dilemma in which we found ourselves. 

So, on April 11, 2019, I posted the last Bite-Size Blog. The following week, I posted the very first SOS Memo, named after the world’s most recognizable distress symbol.
Chapter 4: Weekly SOS Memos
Urgently Searching for Exceptional Leaders
You can find links to all of the BSB's and all of the SOS Memos at this page on my website.

This introduction also appears on that landing page.

Leveraging the most recognized distress signal in the world, these memos are aimed at continuously promoting globally coordinated, urgently executed “big picture” solutions for giving us the best possible chance of “Saving Our Species” (SOS). What could be more important than that?

On that page, the most recent SOS Memos are listed first. The first SOS Memo was posted on April 18, 2019 -- almost exactly one year before we published Outcry.

The title of SOS Memo #1 was: Doing our “best” won’t get it done.
I wanted to set the tone from the very beginning that we were rapidly approaching a survival emergency of epic proportions -- far worse than we had ever imagined.

While individual actions are admirable, without innovative systemic changes led by powerful leaders, our longterm chances for survival will continue to slip steadily away.

I mentioned my "major definite purpose" in the subtitle of this SOS Memo. Thankfully, I discovered it while I still have time to execute. It now feels like I have spent my entire career preparing myself for this SOS moment in history.
After writing twenty or thirty of those SOS Memos by the autumn of 2019 -- I realized that it was time to put all of that information into a carefully worded book that could be easily understood by the average 11th or 12th grader.

As you may know, this book is all about imagineering a future way of life for humanity -- one that Mother Nature would find acceptable. That book was published in April of 2020 on the 50th anniversary of Earth Day.

Although it has not been a commercial success, Outcry has been a personal success for me. It enabled me to leave a legacy for my own grandchildren and, indeed, all of the innocent children in the world.

It also helped me come to grips with the bigger picture -- and, it has helped me in explaining that all-important "big picture" to others. And, it has reinforced my earlier conclusion that the four most important elements in the foundation of sustainable living in the future are:

Knowledge, Integrity, Leadership & Leverage

In last week's SOS Memo, I wrote about a rare leader who has all four. It was SOS Memo #140: Our Best Chance to K.I.L.L. Climate Change.

In case you didn't notice, the acronym KILL in last week's SOS Memo refers to a powerful leveraging opportunity -- an opportunity to leverage the extremely rare knowledge, integrity, and leadership qualities of the new mayor of New York City.

As the mayor of the world's most influential city, Mayor Adams is in a rare situation that offers him the opportunity to literally change the world. In this SOS Memo, you can read about how we can help him get that done.
The Bottom Line
Our most knowledgeable leaders continue to fail us!
Last week, on January 13, 2022, former Vice President Al Gore was featured in a CBS News story about climate change. As the primary driver behind the 2006 documentary, An Inconvenient Truth, he has become perhaps the best known environmentalist in the world.


Al Gore on his hopes for the planet: "Job number one is to stop using the sky as an open sewer."

The sad part about that statement is that it does not convey to average citizens what they can do about climate change. What he should be telling the world is that JOB NUMBER ONE is to replace ALL animal-based foods with plant-based just as quickly as possible.

Another sad part here is that Al Gore actually knows the truth, having reportedly become a vegan several years ago -- but NEVER talks about it. Sadly, there seems to be a code of silence among many of the world's most influential leaders when it comes to sharing the truth about some of the most important issues.

Issues like surviving as a species.
Click on this image to watch the 7-minute video on YouTube. You can also click here to view the CBS news release.

Never once in the film did he recommend that the viewers walk away from the proven #1 driver of climate change.

He won't do it because he lacks the courage -- and the character. He knows that a stand like that would not be good for business -- or for his own popularity.

After watching the video, I reached out to my friend and colleague, Dr. Sailesh Rao who actually worked on Al Gore's team in the years when Gore was seemingly telling the world the truth about climate change.

Knowing that Sailesh would be as disgusted with Gore's performance in the video as I was, I emailed him last week and asked him this question: "If you had 15 minutes with Al Gore, what would you tell him?"

Sailesh responded brilliantly as I knew that he would AND he gave me permission to share that response with you today.
January 18, 2022

Dear Mr. Gore,

Would you like to work with me on a total system transformation from our current system of normalized violence to a new system of normal nonviolence?

I know that you are aware of the enormous land use opportunity cost of animal agriculture and the aerosol cooling opportunity benefit of fossil fuels. Therefore, your singular focus on fossil fuel reduction -- while ignoring the cow in the room of animal agriculture -- might seem perverse to any thinking person.

However, it is perfectly in alignment with your often stated objective to preserve "civilization as we know it." 

I also know that you are a thoughtful and compassionate human being. Therefore, I would like to make the case to you that "civilization as we know it" is not worth preserving.

This civilization is a speciesist, colonialist, racist, ableist, patriarchal Rube Goldberg contraption based on an economic system that: 

  • One. Monetizes everything so that when dead trees have more economic value than living trees, it chops down trees. When dead animals have more economic value than living animals, it kills animals. Finally, when sick people have more economic value than healthy people, it sickens people.

  • Two. Endangers life on earth through such biological annihilation, climate change and pandemics.

  • Three. Addicts everyone into compulsive behaviors in the pursuit of endless economic growth.

  • Four. Lies to our children about the protein myth, the calcium myth, Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny to promote such addictions.

  • Five. Steals from the poor to enrich the wealthy in a reverse Robin Hood ecological Ponzi scheme.

This violent civilization was perhaps appropriate for the climate heating phase of humanity, but it is time to move on to our next climate healing phase. I invite you and other Climate Reality Leaders to join us at Climate Healers in this revolutionary endeavor.  

Sailesh.
Like me, Dr. Sailesh Rao completely understands that, in order to survive for much longer as a species, we must totally reinvent the way we live.

In short, we must replace our civilization with a kinder and gentler way of living in harmony with each other and in harmony with all of the natural world.

We made the case in Outcry for completely re-designing the way we live on this planet -- as illustrated in the chart below.

Sadly, Mr. Gore chooses to ignore the single most powerful step that most citizens of the world could take quickly and easily -- within a year or two: shifting to a whole food, plant-based way of eating.

For our health, for the health of the ecosystem that sustains us and, most importantly, for the future of all innocent children in the world -- we must never stop asking ourselves this question:
One more thing. Please share today's timely SOS widely. It is #141 on this list of all of my SOS Memos.
****************************
Finally, contact me directly at the email address below with any questions you may have.



J. Morris (Jim) Hicks

*********************

The section below will continue to provide you with handy reference materials on this most crucial of all topics.
"Big Picture"
Data and Info Section
This section has been appearing at the end of my weekly SOS Memos for several months. It contains links to relevant information that form the foundation of what our options for responding quickly and appropriately to our global crises appear to be.

In order to respond appropriately, we must first grasp the all-important "big picture" regarding how we got to where we are in the first place. The various links below will help you do that.

This first one, that I just discovered recently, is a free YouTube video by Michael Dowd, a non-scientific researcher like me who does a very fine job of explaining the many facets of the obstacles standing between us and survival as a species.

Dowd has a pretty good handle on most things, but he seems to be unaware of the simple weapon that we can all use to fight the leading driver of climate change. Our forks.

That said, he does a terrific job of describing our ever-worsening dilemma. Click the link below to view this very informative 33-minute video, entitled:

This next item is a free 83-minute documentary film that is all about the findings that were documented in Dr. Stephen Emmott's 2013 book. TEN BILLION.
This powerful film will certainly help more people grasp that all-important "big picture." Just click on the hourglass image.

I will continue sharing this TEN BILLION link in future weekly SOS Memos
More Data re Leading Driver of Climate Change.

Beginning in September of 2021, I have been including links to world-changing scientific information that thought leaders everywhere should read and and share with others.

What can you do? For starters, you can buy the new documentary -- Eating our way to Extinction for $6 on Netflix -- and watch it often with your friends and family.

Also, you can:

  • Share this SOS Memo with everyone you know.
  • Get an e-copy of OUTCRY. Visit Outcry page on Amazon and get a much bigger understanding of the situation in which all humans find ourselves.
  • Inform all the young people in your world that you are deadly serious about this topic. Urge them to read these SOS Memos and our latest book, OUTCRY.
  • Completely stop eating meat, dairy, eggs and fish today and tell everyone why you are taking such a "radical" step. You're doing it for the innocent children of the world.

  • As noted above, do yourself a favor and make sure that your plant-based meals of the future consist of whole plants -- the kinds of foods that prevent or reverse most chronic diseases AND enable your body to effortlessly seek its optimal weight.
A final word. Hopefully, the kind of crucially serious situations expressed in these SOS Memos will soon replace meaningless and trivial topics that dominate a ridiculously large percentage of all of the conversations in the world.

We must all start talking much more about what's really important. That is , we must start doing everything possible to maximize the chances of a meaningful and pleasant life ahead for the young people of the world.

I volunteer to help you do that. For Free. Invite me to collaborate with you and your group via Zoom. To help you jump-start that all-important conversation, I will be happy to present and discuss this topic at length. Here's an advance link to my standard presentation: 62 slides.

“Food, protein, pandemics and the future of humanity” This is the latest title slide that I am currently using for those kinds of sessions:
The image above is a clue regarding the essence of my "family game plan" that is revealed only in my talks. I do not put that in writing.

Want to share some of my SOS Memos with others? Visit my SOS Memos page where the most recent ones are listed first.

Finally, I am confident that if a few million people carefully read and digested OUTCRY, that there might at least be a more robust conversation taking place about our grossly unsustainable way of living in the developed world -- and what it will take to get us focused on maximizing our chances of survival as a species.

To be sure, we must do a lot more than change what we eat -- and OUTCRY helps explain the "why" and the "how" of that proposition. 

To my knowledge, OUTCRY remains the only book ever published that features an envisioned, totally-green, ultra-sustainable, super-desirable, future way of living for humans -- along with ideas for how we might get there as quickly as possible.


Regarding the free Zoom conferences with your group,
Send me an email and let's get started.
Our book, for a host of environmental reasons, is only available as an e-book on Amazon. As such, it contains hyperlinks to hundreds of references and videos, is less expensive, does not kill any trees and does not have to be manufactured and delivered. 

The links below to earlier SOS Memos will help you understand how these ideas unfolded since 2018.
You can join my mailing list and/or find all of my previous postings by visiting the SOS Memos page on my website. 
As always, I am just trying to help spark the all-important "conversation" about what is needed. By sharing a vision of what I believe is possible, I hope to influence others to think bigger, faster, better and bolder. 

You will find that there aren't many books that cover both the health of your body and the health of your planet. This is one of them -- a book that my son Jason assisted me in writing. It was published ten years ago this month.
Order e-book on Amazon
Promoting health, hope and harmony on planet Earth
Want to see earlier SOS Memos? Click here
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