A different paradigm with Don Tolman
Posted by webmaster 29 March 2007
Today Don Tolman addressed 210 CIN members on the topic of “Improving health, energy & vitality, naturally.” Don is an author, public speaker, trainer, educator and nutritional eating researcher who has spent a lifetime researching ancient wisdoms in health and learning.
Don provided an alternative and often controversial message which kept members engaged throughout his seventy five minute speech where he spoke of the importance of ’self care’ and becoming more healthy and vital by incorporating the seven principles of healthy living into our daily routines, which are:
Eat whole foods (not processed foods), get out and about and get plenty of fresh air, sunshine, walk every day, drinks lots of water, have healthy relationships and have a passion for what you do.
The CIN would like to thank Don for his time and insights that have already prompted numerous spirited discussions on the subject of our health – which can only be a good thing.
For an excellent description of this session see Luke Naismith’s blog. http://knowledgefutures.wordpress.com/
Attached is the mind map of the session kindly provided by Richard Yiap of Beyond Paradigms.
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March 29th, 2007 at 3:59 pm
This was a fantastic session with really useful information for personal well being. Don demonstrated an excellent knowledge of the origins of many of todays ailments. Very useful. thanks
March 29th, 2007 at 4:01 pm
What timing. I have just moved house (yesterday), so my life has been pretty hectic. Today has come at the best time for me – time to change. Tonight is my shopping night and I am going to swop my salt and vinegar chips for a stick of celery. Thoroughly enjoyed the session – something different, but just what I needed to get me motivated. Keep going CIN, your workshops are unique, motivational and inspiring! If only we could get everyone thinking that happiness, laughter and health are what matters in life!
March 29th, 2007 at 4:02 pm
So much of Don’s message really felt right. It fitted with what we already know about health and wellbeing but have “forgotten”. I really enjoyed Don’s entertaining talk and the healthy food for lunch. Thanks for the opportunity to hear Don’s fresh and challenging ideas. Its made me determined to try following his simple health care principles.
March 29th, 2007 at 4:08 pm
Oh yes, I forgot to mention the healthy food (thanks Sue), I really enjoyed it – OK I was surprised that I liked having lumps in my bread. Thanks Don simple ideas can lead to great changes.
March 29th, 2007 at 4:14 pm
Don’s storytelling abilities really enhanced the message, that was more than simply about health but about living with vitality. I found his style very inspiring, even if some of his statements seemed a bit extreme (only 5% of medical treatment is really necessary?) It is good to be challenged and Don’s session has really provoked me into a higher state of consciousness about what I eat and how it may be affecting me. It was great to have the opportunity to attend this session.
March 29th, 2007 at 4:21 pm
Thanks to all at the CIN for all the recent opportunities you\’ve given the VPS to think more about their health and wellbeing.
This was an interesting and informative session and for me Don\’s main messages were to think more about what I put in my body and ask questions about what I\’m eating and to listen to my body and the messages (symptoms) it\’s giving me.
Thanks again for another great session.
Jacinta
March 29th, 2007 at 4:23 pm
Don gave so much information, which if anything will challenge people the “think” for themselves. A lot of what he spoke about in relation to drug companies I already knew as I had been questioning since I was a teenager. Modern medicine has a place in our lives (I have 2 healthy babies that would not have survived in another era), but ultimately Don reminded me that I was responsible for my own health. This was totally complimentary to other VPS CIN seminars I have been to. They make you think differently and challenge perhaps that all we are told is true. Continuous improvement wouldn’t exist if we don’t challenge ideas about how to do things differently. Most successful companies have had to challenge themselves to improve, even if it means that McDonalds has healthier choices! Thank you for an inspiring session.
March 29th, 2007 at 4:27 pm
This was my first lunchtime semiar and I enjoyed it thoroughly. Don was a delightful speaker and very thought provoking. I\’m looking forward to delving more into his train of thought.
Thanks for the opportunity to attend.
March 29th, 2007 at 4:28 pm
Just a quick comment to say that I really enjoyed today\’s CIN seminar – Don Tolman was terrific!
Also just to let you know that I think the seminars both last year and the 2007 ones that I\’ve attended so far have all been inspiring, well organised and provide a very welcome opportunity to step away from the desk and the usual pressures of work in order to reflect on various relevant themes as well as to meet with different colleagues from across government – all very important components of the relationship building that we all need to do in order to both enrich our working lives and ourselves.
Thanks for your efforts.
Despina
March 29th, 2007 at 4:39 pm
The seminar today was really interesting and eye opening. I thoroughly enjoyed listening to Don’s views on the way we look at what we put into our bodies. I thought the 7 principles of health and the importance of drinking at least 1 litre of water and walking was most helpful.Thanks Don
March 29th, 2007 at 5:06 pm
Fantastic presentation which opens people to being reflective on their own health and being more proactive about their health and well being. passionate, complecity simplified, interconnections presented and symbols used to bring ideas together.
Inspirational and mindful in connecting with his audience. Don reached out and touched each of us.
March 29th, 2007 at 5:07 pm
Brilliant – now I need to let it all sink in !
March 29th, 2007 at 5:07 pm
Pity it wasn’t for longer – I could have listened for a week
March 29th, 2007 at 5:08 pm
Fantastic, now how do all people get this message ?
March 29th, 2007 at 5:09 pm
Don Tolman\’s presentation was provocative, inspiring and stunning in the simplicity of his message – we need to nourish ourselves mentally, emotionally, physically and socially each day. Don\’s passion and tireless quest to unearth the knowledge and wisdom preserved from ancient cultures and bring this to our awareness had an almost Indiana Jones feel to it. How fabulous that he persevered!
Thanks for the opportunity to look at how I sustain myself from a new perspective.
March 29th, 2007 at 5:09 pm
I came because I am interested in the healing affects of certain foods. I found the speaker talked about many areas of interest.
March 29th, 2007 at 5:10 pm
A very inspirational presentation that provided many points to think about regarding diet and the impact diet has on your well being.
March 29th, 2007 at 5:11 pm
Outstanding and outstanding.
It opened my eyes to so much. I will be looking more into this !
March 29th, 2007 at 5:12 pm
Listening to Don was absolutely fascinating and stimulating – certainly made me think about what I need to focus on in my life.
March 29th, 2007 at 5:14 pm
Great Speaker. Also great venue.
I would be interested in coming to more and encouraging more of my staff to attend if there is space. Today I brought three of them and I think they will get a lot out of it.
March 29th, 2007 at 5:16 pm
Fabulous – and well done in bringing Don Tolman here.
I found it really motivating, profound and life enhancing. I feel I could do it, it’s worth the shift and change.
March 29th, 2007 at 5:23 pm
Its just too much to process just for now, other than it was very very special.
March 29th, 2007 at 5:25 pm
I really enjoyed this session. Fascinating and I wanted to learn more. it reminded me to think simply and laterally and don’t always believe what you hear.
2 years ago I did a living in balance program through the Gawler foundation. Ian gawler has helped to heal cancer through meditation and healthy eating (check him out!)
March 29th, 2007 at 5:26 pm
Another brilliant session – thanks.
This has been a great opportunity to challenge the conventional wisdom regarding health.
March 29th, 2007 at 5:27 pm
Great !
It made me think and it is time to take action.
March 29th, 2007 at 5:28 pm
Don is a very exciting and inspiring speaker.
Today’s session may have changed my life. I’ll be a lot more conscious of everything relating to my health from now on.
March 29th, 2007 at 5:30 pm
It was very intellectually engaging and challenging. I was reminded of some of the basic truths that are important to me but which I neglect.
I have been re-inspired to take action.
March 29th, 2007 at 5:33 pm
My take home message was that story telling is an extraordinary way of imparting information. I’ve thjought so for a long time and tried to use it myself (so far not nearly as well as Don’s skill and panache.) there are some poor habits in the public service such as formulaic approaches – powerpoint for example !
March 29th, 2007 at 5:34 pm
I felt like I wanted to hear Don all day long, a very powerful presenter providing breakthrough information.
Thanks very much.
March 29th, 2007 at 5:36 pm
Very enjoyable and interesting.
Speaker is fantastic even though I had difficulty understanding his american accent !
Lunch was scrumptious and the venue pleasant. Thank you to the organisers and keep the CIN events going through the year.
March 29th, 2007 at 5:37 pm
Interesting to take time out to from work to think about wholistic well being.
The problem is though the people that most need to hear this stuff will not allow themselves to come to a session like this.
March 29th, 2007 at 5:41 pm
Interestingly enough, in the time it has taken to moderate these comments and get them onto our site I have received in excess of 100 spam emails touting about 20 different types of drugs at bargain basement prices!
March 29th, 2007 at 10:53 pm
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A delightful and most thought provoking session. Certainly made me sit up and take notice. Don\’s a very persuasive presenter and the logic of his message can\’t be faulted and has forced me to do further research. If he can patent his remedy for obesity, I\’d like to buy shares in his company. His thoughts on vegetarianism brings us back to the reality that creatures must me sacrificed so we can continue trying to kill ourselves quicker than necessary.
A really great presentation, thanks again. You just may have saved some lives in the process!
March 30th, 2007 at 7:50 am
It is through the power of stories that we can become enlightened. It is in fact story that makes us human. We try to make sense of our world by connecting ideas and thoughts and words to create stories. Don Tolman reminded us that stories can be good and storeis can be evil. He reminded us to think. \”What if\” he kept asking. And so we should ask. What if all those well meaning doctors or chemists were trained under curriculums influenced by pharmaceutical companies to ensure their products made their shareholders billions more? What then? What if disease was our friend reminding us of something that is simply not right? What then ? Don, your message needs to be heard bo those who don\’t know how to listen. Lets find a way to spread your story.
March 30th, 2007 at 10:44 am
Thanks again to the VPSCIN organisers, this was a thought provoking seminar. I have worked in health and in particular with a cancer support group and have seen some improvements in people\\\’s health without traditional medicine.
I\\\’ve been looking into this sort of thing so was delighted to see Don on the VPSCIN list of speakers. He didn\\\’t let me down as his presentation was witty, challenging and interesting.
I\\\’m really enjoying the VPCIN\\\’s focus on body as well as mind.
Thanks again.
March 30th, 2007 at 10:44 am
Thanks to VPSCIN for the excellent opportunity to hear Don. Don highlighted the fact that most pharmaceutical companies are out there to make money, and how important it is to avoid falling in the habit of \”going to the chemist to get a quick fix\”. It made me realise once again that health is my responsibility and that enjoying good health is in our hands! A fantastic luncheon!
March 30th, 2007 at 11:16 am
This is the fifth time I\’ve been blessed with the opportunity to hear Don speak at a seminar. And I\’ve found that each time he gets better and really must do a lot of research in between because he adds new things each time that I\’ve known for years ( but neglected to take a real lot of notice until I had to or die). He is one smart, cool dude who delivers a life changing message in his story telling.
Congratulations to the VPSCIN on getting Don here and on your continuing improvement programs.
March 30th, 2007 at 11:57 am
GREAT WORK CIN An alternative (and non acedemic)perspective on the most important topic of our lives – ourselves!
March 30th, 2007 at 12:04 pm
I really acknowledge VPSCIN for presenting Don in such a powerful and inspiring way. I have also heard Don a few times and I gain invaluable knowledge every time. Don is just Magical in how he delivers his wonderful message that vitality and vibrant health is available to all of us – we are all now free to choose it if we desire through your seminar yesterday. Don’s ideas should be heard and acted upon by everyone, M P’s included.
What a difference it would make to the cost of health car, State and Federal when they do listen – especially sick leave in VPS’ case.
Please organize more of Don. WOW!!
April 3rd, 2007 at 9:51 am
Thanks CIN for inviting us to an insightful presentation, by a high profile speaker, about our health. Having completed the detox program based on Don\’s self care principles, and now eating a mostly whole foods diet, I am more energetic and have improved concentration. Don\’s presentation was informative and inspired me to continue eating whole foods.
April 3rd, 2007 at 11:50 am
More enlightened ‘thought for food’from outside of the packaged cereal box. Many thanks to VPS CIN for this opportunity to hear Don Tolman share his wisdom in his own unique, & thoroughly entertaining way. Free-thinking, intelligent, passionate, & outspoken men like Don are priceless, & exactly what a ‘healthy’ society needs to remain healthy. I recently participated in the 28 day juice fast & clay cleanse program based on Don’s principles, & gained significant personal benefit from it (which I’ve documented elsewhere on this site). Thanks again to the VPS CIN for this, & the many other opportunities for learning, growth, & self-improvement, that they provide.
April 5th, 2007 at 8:01 am
Many thanks to C.I.N. for bringing to us this brilliant and powerful message. I am a professional master coach, we currently work with people at various levels of Goverment. Recently I had a near death experience with my weight ballooning to a stagering 126KG’s. Through similar principles shared by Don Tolman, i now weigh 112KG’s, now with abundant energy and brilliant health. I would like to share the powerful positive effects of living with Don’s health regime. Automatic weight loss, a substantial increase in energy, the positive ripple effect in the workplace and family are outstanding, all attained without drugs! Thanks again to the C.I.N. team for this most valuable contribution.
April 5th, 2007 at 2:36 pm
What an awe inspiring session this has been. Quite an eye opener. Thoroughly enjoyed it. I liked Don’s challenge to traditional thoughts and beliefs with regards to medicines and modern science. It is time to open our eyes to reality and make the right choices for ourselves.
April 5th, 2007 at 3:12 pm
Many thanks for organising this session. Truly informative and inspirational. Don rocks!
April 5th, 2007 at 9:49 pm
How old is Don Tolman? Does he look and act his age?
What did you guess? Well Don is in his mid 70’s.
Taking action on this really works. I have just lost 15 Kg in approx 24 days on a Juice Cleanse program based on Don’s research and feel the best I have ever been. I am 57 and full of beens (excuse the pun).
April 6th, 2007 at 12:29 am
Don’s message was quite simple. Ditch the fear, unclog your tubes, and be responsible for your own health and education. The self-education path that I have trodden over the past 5 years has taught me that Don’s messages are the key to happiness, longevity and being “well-thy”.
His presentation style was full of alacrity, humour and anecdote. One day we will look back at people like Don Tolman, Phillip Day, Samuel Epstein, Eve Hillary, Sherril Selman and others in the same way we think of people like Rachel Carson – as voices that railed against the prevailing paradigm and were eventually listened to once the weight of evidence and opinion tipped in their favour.
And for those who missed out on hearing the message directly, start doing some digging and get educated yourself, if not for your benefit then for your kids or someone else’s kids.
April 12th, 2007 at 9:15 am
[...] Don Tolman on Improving Yourself Naturally I was fortunate to attend a VPSCIN talk by Don Tolman recently. He was a most impressive speaker as he related his life story that directed him towards how we can live healthier and more vital lives. He gave a similar message to others that I have heard and read including Phillip Day, Sherril Sellman, Rob McIntyre, and Samuel Epstein as my family has been on a pretty strong natural health kick over the past few years. We then went along to his evening session which helped sink in many of the points that he made earlier. [...]
April 12th, 2007 at 8:20 pm
I’ve been following the principles espoused by Don for 8 months now. (When I first heard them some seemed a bit ‘out there’ but they resonated somewhere inside me just the same.) Not only have my regular headaches ceased (along with my need for medication for the pain)but my joint pain (knee) has also gone – as a result I am more active now than I have been for 15 years.
I think I’ll wait another 15-20 years now before I bother to shuffle off my mortal coil.
April 16th, 2007 at 10:32 am
I was unable to make the lunchtime session, but I went to an evening session held on the same day. Don offers a radical perspective on modern medicine, something that is very important to all of us.
His thought provoking presentation was full of energy and enthusiasm. The contents of his presentations itself, although very different seemed so simple, especially considering how society has evolved to what it is today.
I would like to thank CIN for holding this event, great work!
July 1st, 2007 at 2:30 pm
3 months down the track I have put the priciples that Don spoke of into practice and can confirm the following:
I now have more energy daily and exercise more as a result.
I\’ve stopped eating processed and take away foods and now eat 200% more fruit and veg.
I have not taken a single drug (nurafen, asparin etc..) or prescription drug in this time – nor have I needed one.
This lifestyle change has in turn impacted on the rest of my family who are all now eating better.
I\’m going to live longer as a result !!!
When can we get Don back ? Everyone in the VPS deserves to be exposed to these positive messages of self help.
October 5th, 2007 at 11:35 am
Dear Mr. Tolman,
I find, Encyclopedia of Whole Food Medicine absolutely unbelievable, you have some much knowledge and you have changed my life completely, I thank you very much.
Someone like you has been blesst by so much knowledge. Being that there is so many that will not tell the truth because, if they do, as you state in your books they wouldn\’t make any \”MONEY\”.
Being that I am from a sporting background I have always maintained my health so when someone like you comes along it feels like a breath of fresh air.
So far as I know I\’m a very healthy person, but I have friends around me that are not so fortunate, for some reason or another. Well we know the reason?
You see I am a sports psychologist and a sports nutritionist. So I understand where your coming from.
I have only a few role models, as far as people like (Mother Teresa) and now (Don Tolman).
I guess I am one of those people that believe in the truth, logic, and integrity. I believe you have those qualities.
August 9th, 2008 at 9:35 pm
[...] ” Take responsibility – it’s up to me.” The event I will use as an example is the Don Tolman Seminar in 2007. Don has unearthed some interesting learnings about health and learning through his life [...]
June 21st, 2009 at 3:43 pm
[...] CIN is very pleased to announce the return of Don Tolman to the CIN stage. Since Don’s last appearance with the CIN we have had constantly been asked the question “When are we getting Don [...]
August 10th, 2009 at 9:38 pm
[...] for another great and challenging session and if the responses to this session are anything like the last, we will have many stories coming back on how members have achieved vastly improved health [...]