To ‘Lead’ Or Not To ‘Lead’ (Part II)

To ‘Lead’ Or Not To ‘Lead’ (Part II)

Jul 7, 2024 | Leading Change

What does social purpose mean in the context of my life? How do I apply my belief in a social purpose? How I answer these questions may provide insight into the extent to which I have retained my systemic sensibility:

Living in a relational world is an evolutionary context into which we are born. Becoming conscious that this is our birthright is another thing, it seems. This is a challenge, as coming to be aware of relational dynamics is the essence of a systemic sensibility needed for our living. (Ison & Straw, 2020, p. 110)

According to Ison and Straw, our respective systemic sensibilities can be framed within the concept of resisters, revivalists, and remainers (p. 110). In what ‘camp’ do you/I fall? How might an identification with a particular group inform ‘our’ personal leadership theory? Is it likely that we fall into one camp or another?

Such ‘either-or’ framings of questions are challenging because they lead to absolute thinking and (metaphorical and real) dead-ends. In trying to advance objectives within an organization, leaders must consider the present external landscape, which is fraught with deep uncertainty, anxiety, and fear. We are living in an ecological crisis (Canty, 2014), and this recognition can help all leaders develop a deeper appreciation for the impact this crisis may have on the people they lead.

Bernstein (2005) says there is “a craving for moral certainty and absolutes” (p. 26), and there can be “a desperate search for metaphysical and religious comfort” (p. 26), which he contends is based on illusions. As a leader—we must be mindful that the skills we develop is not mistaken for knowledge or at least the kind that confers a sense of ‘rightness’.

At the other end of this one-way road is ‘wrongness’, and so where do we to go in any conversation if we toggle (back and forth) between such large, amorphous concepts? Discussions of right versus wrong represent penultimate examples of reductionist thinking, which are inadequate in a complex world.

What is a leader to do, then, in a complex world? In part 3 of To ‘Lead’ Or Not To ‘Lead’, I answer this rhetorical question.

References

Bernstein, R. J. (2005). The abuse of evil: The corruption of politics and religion since 9/11. Cambridge: Polity.

Canty, J. M. (2014). Walking between worlds: Holding multiple worldviews as a key for
ecological transformation. International Journal of Transpersonal Studies, 33(1), 15–26. https://doi.org/10.24972/ijts.2014.33.1.15

Ison, R. L., & Straw, E. (2020). The hidden power of systems thinking : governance in a climate emergency (Ser. Systems thinking). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781351026901

About Spaciology

Spaciology is not abstract theory; rather, it is a practice you can feel.

  • Inside: Pause, breathe, notice.
  • Outside: Design rooms, rituals, and agendas that slow the spin and invite care.
  • Between us: Make dialogue a place where different truths can live together long enough to teach something.

Ultimately, leadership is the art of making space for what’s important (for everyone) and letting that clarity shape the next step. When we change the spaces from which we lead, our strategies change with them.

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To ‘Lead’ Or Not To ‘Lead’ (Part I)

To ‘Lead’ Or Not To ‘Lead’ (Part I)

Jul 4, 2024 | Leading Change

Is the past really past, and is the future somewhere ahead of us? The realization that past trauma, for instance, has a direct bearing on our mental health lends credence to the notion that yesterday is alive, a consideration that leads to a cybernetic complementarity that the future is equally real today.

Can we hold two seemingly disparate ideas?

The potentially contradictory nature of the above question serves as my segue to a discussion on how systems thinking enhances leadership. From a systems perspective, I do not believe a leader necessarily leads at all, but rather works to create a space within which as many inputs can be included as possible. This is a space in which people are allowed to make mistakes, an idea Ison & Straw (2020) indicate is a critical aspect of systems thinking in practice, as they rhetorically note, “Otherwise how will they learn” (p. 101)?

I find this question profound, because isn’t it the responsibility of a leader to create opportunities for people to learn? The answer seems obvious (at first), but this is not how businesses, including my own, Exponential Squared, on many occasions, are often run. If I am to step out on a proverbial limb and comment on the experience of other leaders or business owners, I believe it is fair to say it is a struggle (for many of us) to understand outcomes in context. I set due dates on various projects, and many of my decisions as a leader are directed to deliver them on time.

Am I creating enough space for my staff to not only learn, but to also make mistakes? Mistakes cost me money, and that is not a small consideration.

Systems thinking in practice can help me reframe my objectives as a leader, which could lead me to redefine the outcomes. Is completing a project on time the outcome I seek for every project, or is there something larger at work (play)? What is the social purpose of my company?

Systems thinking

As a leader or business owner, it is incumbent on me to help create environments within which my staff and clients are inspired, right? I am not just a business owner, however. I am a dad, a teacher, and a researcher among many other roles.

Do all my respective roles demand that I lead (and act) differently? Is the idea of a social purpose one that can bind all aspects of myself (and my many roles)?

Ison & Straw indicate that social purpose has different meanings in different contexts. One question I need to answer, then, is what does social purpose mean in the context of my life? A related question is how do I apply my belief in a social purpose?

A sense of purpose, claim Ison & Straw (2020), is “a common thread across the Blue Zone communities” (p. 86). Blue Zones, according to Talbott (2007), is the description given to areas of the world where communities have very long-life (age 100+) expectancies. Ison & Straw say that some of the health benefits that result from social purpose include a reduction of mortality risk, increase in resilience, and improvement in sleep among many others.

Ison & Straw indicate that social purpose has different meanings in different contexts. In part two of To ‘Lead’ Or Not To ‘Lead’, I explore not only what social purpose could mean in the context of our lives, but how to apply it.

References
Ison, R. L., & Straw, E. (2020). The hidden power of systems thinking : governance in a climate emergency (Ser. Systems thinking). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/9781351026901

Talbott, S. (2007). Devices of the soul: battling for our selves in an age of machines. ” O’Reilly Media, Inc.”.

About Spaciology

Spaciology is not abstract theory; rather, it is a practice you can feel.

  • Inside: Pause, breathe, notice.
  • Outside: Design rooms, rituals, and agendas that slow the spin and invite care.
  • Between us: Make dialogue a place where different truths can live together long enough to teach something.

Ultimately, leadership is the art of making space for what’s important (for everyone) and letting that clarity shape the next step. When we change the spaces from which we lead, our strategies change with them.

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Wading at the Edges

Wading at the Edges

Jun 23, 2024 | Big Questions

All my life, I have essentially waded at the edges of the proverbial pools of life–a condition that does not lend itself to transformation, an idea I recently gleaned from Braiding Sweetgrass (2013) by Robin Wall Kimmerer. A book that weaves Indigenous wisdom, scientific knowledge, and the teachings of plants, Braiding Sweetgrass is stunning in its simple wisdom that is really not that simple at all.

Is parenting simple? Is love simple? Are the truths peddled by various experts in any number of fields (business, marketing, real estate, etc., etc.) actually simple? Must every question have a definitive answer? Must every question beget a (pick your number) step solution? Is anything linear?

Perhaps the answers to these questions lie in the waters around (and within us). Am I speaking metaphorically? Kimmerer certainly is not when she says the following:

Among our Potawatomi people, women are the Keepers of Water. We carry the sacred water to ceremonies and act on its behalf. “Women have a natural bond with water, because we are both life bearers,” my sister said. “We carry our babies in internal ponds and they come forth into the world on a wave of water. It is our responsibility to safeguard the water for all our relations.” Being a good mother includes the caretaking of water. (2013, p. 94)

Kimmerer says, “Transformation is not accomplished by tentatively wading at the edge” (p. 89), and I cannot help but interpret this statement as descriptive of my approach to life. It has been easy to hide in my role as marketer, pitching ideas in service of systems and processes developed by others–and yet, what is my responsibility to others, to Earth, to myself now that I have completed my doctorate in Transformative Studies. Am I not transformed? Am I not now charged with a (sacred) responsibility to be of service to others?

“In one short life where does responsibility lie” (Kimmerer, 2013, p. 95)? Indeed, how do I answer this question? Perhaps, I can look to the apple tree for this answer:

The apple tree leans out over the water and makes for a shadowy arbor. In spring a drift of pink and white blossoms send plumes of fragrance wafting down the hill and a rain of petals on the water. For years now I’ve watched her seasons, from frothy pink blossoms, to gently swelling ovaries as the petals fall away, to sour green marbles of adolescent fruit, to the right golden apples of September. That tree has been a good mother. Most years she nurtures a full crop of apples, gathering the energy of the world into herself and passing it on. She sends her young out into the world well provisioned for their journey, packaged in sweetness to share with the world. (2013, p. 95)

I’m not sure I will ever look at a tree (or mother) the same way again. I also cannot imagine I will remain content to continue to wade at the edge(s). What can I offer? What can any of us offer? Questions like these speak to a scarcity paradigm, a concept explored at great length by Canty (2022) in Returning the Self to Nature.

References

Canty, J. M. (2022). Returning the self to nature: Undoing our collective narcissism and healing our planet. Shambhala Publications.

Kimmerer, R. (2013). Braiding sweetgrass: Indigenous wisdom, scientific knowledge and the teachings of plants. Milkweed editions.

About Spaciology

Spaciology is not abstract theory; rather, it is a practice you can feel.

  • Inside: Pause, breathe, notice.
  • Outside: Design rooms, rituals, and agendas that slow the spin and invite care.
  • Between us: Make dialogue a place where different truths can live together long enough to teach something.

Ultimately, leadership is the art of making space for what’s important (for everyone) and letting that clarity shape the next step. When we change the spaces from which we lead, our strategies change with them.

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Development In Nonprofits

Development In Nonprofits

Oct 24, 2023 | Leading Change

Development should entail ‘buy-in’ from the organization’s leadership, whose vision helps to paint the proverbial picture the fundraising and development professional is ‘selling’ to donors and philanthropists.

Effective development also entails that the fundraising/development professional solicit internal support from program managers, for instance, who can provide insights into ways in which financial support can ‘transform’ some aspect of what they do or the lives served by their program.

Development may also entail reaching out to individuals served by the organization through the staff who have directly worked with them.

At its core, effective development relies on internal relationships throughout the organization that result in actionable information that enhances every aspect of the fundraising and donor stewardship process.

About Spaciology

Spaciology is not abstract theory; rather, it is a practice you can feel.

  • Inside: Pause, breathe, notice.
  • Outside: Design rooms, rituals, and agendas that slow the spin and invite care.
  • Between us: Make dialogue a place where different truths can live together long enough to teach something.

Ultimately, leadership is the art of making space for what’s important (for everyone) and letting that clarity shape the next step. When we change the spaces from which we lead, our strategies change with them.

Spaciology Learning Commons

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Self-Reflection in Marketing

Self-Reflection in Marketing

Aug 20, 2023 | Marketing

Marketing is a business domain not only for promoting brands, products, and services but also as a platform for organizational self-reflection, engaging the entire staff in the process.

Why the need for self-reflection? Frankly, Western society shies away in general from genuine self-reflection, which I contend cannot be captured in a social media self-post curated in a local Starbucks. Maybe it can, of course, but let’s assume it cannot happen there.

The kind of self-reflection to which I am referring–at either the personal or organizational level–begins with simple questions, such as, “Why are we doing this?” Honestly, I have sat in many conference calls during which it occurred to me that several key elements were not clear to me (and obviously to others, too).

Let me use a specific example. Staff have developed what they believe is an incredible program, priced it according to what they feel is its value, and now present it to the marketing “guy” or “gal” to promote it.

The incredible part of this true story is that the marketing person was never consulted during program development or in any discussions related to its hypothetical value. Yes, I said “hypothetical,” because “value” is not something that exists “out there” in space and time, independent of our perceptions, preconceived notions, or cultural framework.

In many cases, value is quite arbitrary. Why can one museum charge $20 admission, whereas a seemingly similar institution cannot move anyone’s proverbial needle at half that price? Perception is reality.

While I am not a big fan of the word, “should,” I believe it applies here in that marketing should never be the final step in any process where revenue is concerned. When done well and from a systems perspective, marketing can invite deep self-reflection BEFORE (as opposed to after) money and time are spent.

About Spaciology

Spaciology is not abstract theory; rather, it is a practice you can feel.

  • Inside: Pause, breathe, notice.
  • Outside: Design rooms, rituals, and agendas that slow the spin and invite care.
  • Between us: Make dialogue a place where different truths can live together long enough to teach something.

Ultimately, leadership is the art of making space for what’s important (for everyone) and letting that clarity shape the next step. When we change the spaces from which we lead, our strategies change with them.

Spaciology Learning Commons

Want to go further? Join the Spaciology Learning Commons.

Membership gives you free access to community conversations, courses, introductory resources, and the complete Field Guide.

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