A Conversation with Jim Cook, President of AsiaWorks, on his 60 th birthday

Marcus: Happy Birthday! So when did you decide to be a Basic Trainer and why did you make that decision?

Jim: I decided to become a Basic Trainer during my own Basic training in 1984. Why? Well, it may sound a little clichéd today but I really wanted to make a difference with my life. I was 37 years old and I realized that I had lost sight of my youthful dreams. I had a great family, I was doing very well in business, I was earning good money… I was living the dream … but then I realized it was not my dream!

There was something fundamental missing: and when I saw my Basic Trainer touch, inspire and move human beings in the way that he did, I knew what I had to do!

Marcus: So you became a Trainer in Training? How would you describe that process and what were the biggest challenges you had to face in that part of your journey?

Jim: Yes. I jumped in and dared to live MY dream: I became a Trainer in Training. I would describe it as “The Best of Times and the Worst of Times” (borrowing from Charles Dickens!)

It was an exhilarating year … incredibly difficult and immensely rewarding. The biggest thing I had to face was that although I have an image, I am not my image. My image does not have to define me and dictate to me. I can be present and alive with people and still have my image. It was a very freeing experience, but it took a while to really ‘get it’.

Marcus: And then you went on to be a Basic Trainer. Where have you delivered the trainings and what differences do you see in the different places in which you have trained?

Jim: I have delivered the Basic in China, USA, Russia, Asia, South America, Europe, UK, Holland, Japan and Korea! Everywhere I go people say to me: “Its different here, you will need to make some changes” … But you know what? The Basic is The Basic is The Basic! It does not change but people transform.

Marcus: Why do you think that is?

Jim: I believe that underneath all the cultural effects of any society there is an unchanging human dignity that is fundamental to us all. Life matters, we all want to love and be loved, and we are all in this existence together. That is true wherever you are in the world and it is at that level which the Basic Training operates.

Marcus: What do remember about the early days of AsiaWorks?

Jim: What I remember the most is sleeping on a mattress in Chris Gentry’s apartment! My family was back in the USA and we had 30 people in the Hong Kong Basic Training! I remember thinking “What the hell am I doing?” … It was really only then, in that moment, that I got that “If it is to be, then it is up to me” This was what “Taking a stand” meant in reality. I also realized that I could build this vision on my own.

I was the most scared I had ever been AND the most alive I had ever been. I was UP to something … and it was something big, that mattered – not just to me but to many others as well.

Marcus: As you look back now, what is it of which you are most proud?

Jim: So many things! But I am especially proud of the talented team of people that we have attracted over the years. This stand is bigger than any one person. It always was, and it always will be. The next stage is a move to Partnership, where the company becomes owned by the senior team. They are now personally at stake – just like Chris and I were in 1993.

Marcus: What role does AsiaWorks have to play today?

Jim: I think AsiaWorks has a bigger role today than ever before. Asia is becoming more and more powerful on the world stage. Individual and social responsibility is growing all the time. Therefore the role AsiaWorks can play is to support people to raise their consciousness and to bring harmony to their relationships, communities, countries and ultimately the world. If you are not right with your self, then everything else is disjointed.

Marcus: And looking forward? What do you see?

Jim: I really believe that the future is wide open, like never before. The future of AsiaWorks lies in the hands of its partners, its staff and the graduates.

The future really can be whatever we think it can be. That is true for AsiaWorks and that is true for the world!

Marcus: Any last thoughts?

Jim: Yes. If I could give one piece of advice to anyone reading this it would be:

“Think big, think the unthinkable and then act. Never give up and never take ‘no’ for an answer”

Marcus: Thank you