Coco Nkrumah - Allow This Moment To Be As It Is

Episode 39

46 mins

Coco Nkrumah - Allow This Moment To Be As It Is

November 25, 2018

Coco Nkrumah is a Meditation teacher, podcaster and the man behind Reality Based Mindfulness.
In this episode, we learn about Coco's background growing up in inner city Melbourne. We hear how he discovered meditation through martial arts and Qi Gong. We learn how Coco developed his reality-based style of teaching and practising meditation, and how he facilitates his sessions, both in the community and the corporate sector.
Coco also shares about his work as a volunteer live-in mentor for an at-risk youth program with Concern Australia.

Coco is of West African descent and is passionate about creating accessible spaces for people of colour to explore mindfulness and meditation. Jo and Rane both truly believe that practices such as yoga and meditation should be both welcoming and accessible to everyone, so we were really excited to talk to Coco and get his perspective on this and many other issues.

Links:

Reality Based Mindfulness: http://www.realitybasedmindfulness.com.au/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/realitybasedmindfulness/
The Meditation Collective - A Safe space for people of colour - all welcome: https://www.artswellbeingcollective.com.au/events/the-meditation-collective/
Concern Australia: https://www.concernaustralia.org.au/
Reality Based Mindfulness on Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/realitybasedmindfulness

Highlights

Click on a timecode to play from that time in the recording.

2:02 Coco tells us about his background growing up in Melbourne
2:36 How was Coco introduced to meditation?
3:21 Did sitting meditation come easily to Coco, or did he need intense physical practice?
5:00 How did Coco’s early experiences of Martial Arts and Qi Gong affect the way that he teaches meditation?
7:12 What does the Daoist style of practising entail?
11:15 Intention and its role in practice
13:35 Conversational Mindfulness
16:05 Mindfulness and assertiveness
17:47 Coco describes his work as a volunteer live-in mentor for an at-risk youth program for Concern Australia.
20:22 Coco shares his insights on why creating accessible and inclusive spaces for people of color is important
21:25 The Meditation Collective at the art centre in Melbourne
22:43 Are there any unique challenges in bringing meditation to people of colour?
23:30 A short break
24:03 How Coco communicates meditation through his blog.
26:06 How does Coco come up with subject matter for his blog?
27:17 Coco’s podcast on soundcloud (Reality Based Mindfulness)
28:04 How important is social media in spreading his message?
28:50 On authenticity in social media.
31:06 Does Coco have any strategies for staying on track with his own practice?
33:56 The Darebin council Get Active program
35:27 Is there a difference in how Coco presents a community program from his corporate work?
37:04 How does Coco provide space for silence during his meditations?
37:58 When does Coco know to add extra instructions? Is it intuitive?
38:42 How does Coco manage his time?
40:02 Did Coco always have an interest in communication in general, or is it something that developed as a byproduct of wanting to share his message?
40:38 On confidence in speaking in front of groups
44:42 Coco’s one core lesson.

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