Common Purpose International Navigator London

Dreams, the future and new beginnings

2011-03-08T07:48:00.000-08:00

It could be the sun streaming through my window and the onset of spring, it could be my upcoming wedding, it could be the conference call I'm chairing tomorrow on dreams and what we want from our lives with leaders in Johannesburg, it could be the end of another emerging leaders course, it could be my new role in a month, or it could be all of these things... but I've been thinking a lot about dreams, the future and new beginnings.

I've emerged from a period at the end of last year of head down get the work done cling on to whatever little energy and health you have, as you reach the end of the year with a cold and exhausted. Now with the start of a new year, and 2 months later the start of spring, with a real focus on me, what I'm doing, what I want, and on the flipside the people around me, how are they doing, what do they want and how can I help. Regaining this perspective has done wonders for me and now I really can dream and think of the the future, I'd forgotten what it was like when everything is coming together and you're firing on all cylinders.

I had a great conversation with three people on my emerging leaders course about Time, and how we create time for ourselves in this non stop 24/7 world and world of wor. It was really empowering to hear how they were trying to focus on the whole self, really work out what mattered to them and focus on that and prioritise that above anything else. How they had ways of working out the non-negotiables and sticking to them no matter what pressures were put on them. I take my hats off to them, it was a real eye opener and reminder to keep perspective and do what matters to you and those that you love.

That course finished last week, a wonderful bunch they were, and it could be a time to see things as having come to an end, but rather I'm thinking about what they are going to be doing, the difference they will be making, for many years to come and wishing them well. Their futures will be rosy and I'm sure their dreams will be fulfilled.

So i guess I'm embracing the sunshining through the windows, the opportunities the future holds, while remembering to keep perspective and what's important and matters to you firmly at the centre of everything. Onwards and upwards to new things and adieu.

A

Risk, caution and skepticism: an exchange of views from London to Bangalore

2010-07-30T06:14:00.000-07:00

Risk, caution and skepticism: an exchange of views from London to Bangalore

This morning I had the pleasure of engaging with a group of emerging leaders in London and also in Bangalore on a course module on ‘Courage and Caution’.

Working with my group as always is a pleasure, and will continue to be throughout the final day of the course tomorrow and beyond.

Interacting with the Bangalore group was a pleasure personally as I have always found India a fascinating and enchanting country. I went there 10 years ago on my gap year and since then have developed a real passion for the country fuelled by taking modules on India throughout my degree in Social Anthropology (Politics of Identity in South Asia being a true highlight), reading Indian literature (Rohinton Mistry being a favourite) and now working with my colleagues in India and the participant group there.

At the start of the event we shared our quote for the event, a lovely little piece kindly provided by my colleague in Bangalore which was: your life shrinks and expands in proportion to the courage you have.

We spent some time exchanging views on Courage and Caution and I was struck by how our participants saw Courage as a long term ‘drip drip’ affair and not defined by single acts of courage, such as jumping out of a plane. When we started to discuss different elements of courage, in terms of physical vs moral courage, it was interesting to see how for some physical courage was much easier to exercise as it was just a single act potentially with a risk of physical pain, compared to moral courage which is based on your beliefs and values, which are so personal, and so hard to compromise.

There was general agreement that we need a greater culture of risk taking, which has been hindered by the recession, but it needs to be coupled with support from your bosses to be able to make mistakes, to be helped in judging how to play it and trust.

We were very lucky to hear from a gentleman from Bangalore who joined us in London who shared his leadership journey in relation to Courage and Caution, from investment banker to founder of a charity which helps 3000 slum children. He talked of the courage it took him to forego the path that was laid for him being brought up in a middle class life to do an MBA, enter the financial sector and become a millionaire. He made the realisation that he shouldn’t accept the inequality in Indian society, and that he needed to move away from the ‘it can’t be changed, what can I do?’ attitude and said, ‘well actually I can and I will’.

He was truly inspirational with a wonderful blend of humility, self belief and passion, and really did resonate with the group. He went on to discuss many things and it reiterated for me that while the context of his journey is very different to mine, the personal issues and challenges he faced are ones that I have, am and will continue to face.

After our time with our speaker we linked up with the Bangalore International Navigator group via video conference. I wouldn’t be exaggerating when I say the were truly buzzing from their time with the UK Prime Minister. They had in depth small group discussions with him and he was very forthcoming by all accounts in discussing Courage and Caution in Leadership and shared with us their perception of him.

They said that he was an authentic and compassionate communicator who really could relate to the audience’s context. This led to general mood of surprise with London participants.

We did then discuss the difference between perceptions being due to many reasons, such as the difference between seeing someone ‘out there’ on the TV, in the media, versus in the flesh, does that affect the way that you receive them, how they can resonate and appeal to you?

It also threw up the question: are we, in the UK, too cynical and quick to judge people and not listen to the content of what they are saying because we’ve already made our mind up? Have our judgments been made and can our minds be changed? We explored what extent cynicism and skepticism borne out of disenchantment with politics and politicians means. Are that we are the harshest of judges, maybe not taking people on their face value and merit?

One of my participants did share with me after the event that he had found the event challenging on a personal level due to him having to reassess how he judges people. He was questioning whether he is too cynical, and if he gives people he has a certain view of a fair shot? A question that I won’t answer for him, but one that I hope he continues to reflect on.

The question was posed by a Bangalore participant: does having a young Prime Minister mean that more young people are getting involved with politics? It’s a fair and logical question to ask. However it was felt generally that this wasn’t the case, but there has been a huge increase in young people being interested in, involved in, and passionate about political issues in the UK.

New Years Resolutions

2010-01-08T07:27:00.001-08:00

It's that time of year again when the dreaded 'New Years Resolutions' get bandied about and I start to dread being asked, so what are your resolutions? Now don't get me wrong I'm not being all bah humbug about them, if you can come up with them, stick with them and achieve them then hats off to you, it's quite the achievement in my book. My issue is that whenever I have felt the calendar proscribed push to come up with some I generally pick something generic that my heart isn't really into, I think you can guess what happens with them......

I'm a big believer in setting yourself goals, ambitions, dreams and working your way to achieving them, they are key and something to be taken with the utmost respect and dedication. I just struggle when I feel I should come up with some because everyone else is. It does get me thinking and reappraising, maybe refreshing, my goals and aims though, so for that I guess I do owe new years resolutions something.

At the end of 2008 I decided that one of my goals was to finally do something that I had been thinking about for a while, and with some 'encouragement' from my other half, well more like a firm push and kick, embarked on becoming a mentor to a young lad. This has been a long drawn out process of training, interview, matching and so on and didn't start till June last year. It's for a year and will finish in June this year. Now I don't intend at this point going into the details of this, I shall save that treat for a later date, but it did occur to me that my resolution to do it will take over a year and a half to complete. Due to the drawn out nature of it, and actually doing it at the moment, I haven't really thought about what next, and as time passes and the end becomes closer I find myself thinking about the next step.

What do I want to do? Where does mentoring take me? I'm not too sure at the moment, but maybe my "New Years Resolution" for the want of a better term is to keep thinking about this, so it isn't quite the 'get fit' goal that I have but haven't quite got round to starting (blaming the snow at the moment, what will I blame when it all goes?), but it's a start and hopefully will take me somewhere.

So what are your resolutions, aims, goals, dreams, plans, and how are you going to make sure you get there?

A

Passion and Values

2009-12-10T06:34:00.000-08:00

I had the pleasure last week of exploring Passion and what role it plays in leadership, and I was really struck by people's thoughts on their Passion being about values, who you are and authenticity.

I couldn't agree more, my passion for young people is to do with my values, upbringing and life experiences and is something that does drive me massively, albeit outside of my day job.

But what really resonated, as I think about it now, is a something slightly different and a lot more personal (although values and who you are being clearly personal). In my last blog I mentioned that things for my family have been tough of late, the loss of two very dear relatives struck us deeply, knocked us off kilter and did all those things that those things do.

It's been tough, and it's been tough thinking about how christmas would be given the last 5 months, the thought of christmas joy and happiness seemed somewhat distant and unobtainable, and maybe even unwanted. However, over the past week, things have moved on. Looking at the Thames, Eye and Big Ben from the window last Thursday evening, doing some xmas shopping (well it was online but still), seeing xmas around you has first of all reminded me it's happening (and oh so soon).

I had a good chat with my folks about xmas plans, and the whole family is descending on our house, and that really gave me some xmas cheer. Somehow at that point I knew it would all be fine, that the xmas cheer would be there by the bucket load, that we would all be fine, and rejoice in each others company while remembering those that couldn't be there.

Last week we discussed what happens when you lose you passion, or when it changes dramatically because things aren't quite what they seemed. I don't have an answer to that, but I do know that my passion for my family went through a tough time as we went through a tough time (it didn't go, but it had a wobble shall we say for the want of a better way to put it), but has come back even stronger, so I guess for me, while it may be tough at times, the smallest things can put things back into perspective and remind of your passion, values, and who you are.

A

Old, New and Unknown

2009-10-30T09:35:00.000-07:00

I have spent a lot of time over the last month away from friends as have been spending time with my family after a sad loss. While it has been necessary to be with my family, and is amazing to see everyone pull together, I have been away from London and friends for a while. Now I don’t mean to be insensitive, seem self absorbed, or “all about me”, the nature of a blog can be that that’s the case. It just struck me how much you miss that stimulation, good times, jokes, messing around and talking inane rubbish.

This may seem a no-brainer, and I guess it is, but I was surprised how just over a few weeks I have really noticed this.

So where to from here I hear you shout (although is the internet like space, where nobody can hear you scream/shout?), well it got me thinking about the old, new and unknown.

I have missed the old (friends) while spending time with the really old (family), and have many new and unknown to get to know on the course. While the old (friends and family) are like a pair of old slippers, although having never worn slippers I wouldn’t know, but I get the sentiment, I am really excited about the new and unknown, and the process of the unknown becoming the new, and then wherever it takes us.

The nature of my role is one of unknown becoming new, becoming known, becoming old, I add that I am not being ageist, but rather the process of meeting, getting to know, knowing, understanding, and then seeing what next. This is one of the best parts of the role for me, walking into a room of 50 emerging leaders, who you will spend the next 5 months with, who you know to those that are unknown is so exciting and interesting, and is a real honour, you don’t find yourself in that situation everyday.

For all of the people on the course, the unknown will become the known, and the people the unknown then the closely known, I look forward to it.

A

2009-10-09T08:00:00.000-07:00

I had the pleasure and honour to spend the final day facilitating the final core day of the emerging leaders course a week ago and have wanted to share my thoughts on it, reflect on the good times, and share my experience of the day.

Where to start? Well I guess first and foremost I was amazed by people's ability to go 12 hours plus straight with a smile on their face, inquistiveness on their tongue, and self reflection and challenge etched on their brow, while all I felt was exhaustion etched all over me. I don't think I need to go into details of the day, this is rather a random collection of thoughts from the day as they have sunk in.

The 'tribe', thanks Houston, really shared their learning, and hopes for their leadership future in such an open and trusting way, as they shuffled, hopped and skipped into the circle as and when what was shared resonated with them. Even the close proximity of the exercise, as people hopped ever closer into a ball, really struck me as indicative of the group and the way they bonded and respected each other. I'm not one for huge sentimental gushings, well sometimes, but it really brought home to me what 5 months of challenging, supporting and working together can do for 40 strangers.

So what is the leader they want to become, as we asked them at the end of the day? That I look forward to finding out as they go out and take London, the UK and the world by storm, and I hope they continue to do it with a smile on their face, inquisitiveness on their tongues, and reflection and challenge etched on their brow.

Diversity of Networks

2009-09-11T08:24:00.000-07:00

I spent a very enjoyable evening watching, listening to, and interacting with a group of London's emerging leaders around the topic of the Power of Networks and Social Capital. The energy in the room was exhilarating, and while a lot of what was discussed is still bouncing around in my head as thoughts and ideas form, debate with each other and evolve, I thought I would put 'pen to paper' as it were.

What struck me was that the old saying, or should I say cop-out, of one person can't change the world, really is a cop-out and quite frankly ludicrous. One person is never just one person, they are part of something so much bigger, surrounded by different people, and are never 'an island'.

What they choose to do as part of the greater I, the networks they are in, the people who look to them for leadership and direction, family friends, colleagues etc is up to them. But it is so refreshing to hear people say that a seed has been sown and that they want to work together, pool their collective social capital, and make real change happen.

Long may it last, long may they surround themselves with diverse networks, long may they offer inspiration, stimulus, drive, challenge and friendship to each other.

A

Information is Power

2009-08-28T02:39:00.000-07:00

An often quoted phrase is, “Knowledge is Power”, which got me thinking this morning about knowledge, information, and leadership after reading Chitham’s blog. This sparked off a train of thought about how in this modern age of instant news, new media, and technologically enabled immediate transfer of knowledge, where do we get our information and knowledge from? Where do we get our stimulus, resources, drive and inspiration from?

There’s an ever expanding wealth of information and knowledge out there, and it’s instant. Think back to the demonstrations in Iran, news and pictures were being instantly uploaded to Twitter in a way that made it immediate people driven news that spread like wildfire across the internet. The traditional news sources were miles behind, granted they weren’t aided by the powers that be, but still they were shown up.

I have been using Twitter and doing my best to embrace social media, and the one thing I have really noticed and been impressed by is that they are an amazing resource of news, views, information and debate from sources and people I would never come into contact with otherwise. It’s really opened my eyes to the wealth of information and knowledge out there which is now accessible, from the far flung corners of the world.

So where is this going I ask myself? I think that it resonates with a conversation I had with my flat mates fella who we regularly mocked for reading the tabloids as being politically driven ‘news’ (while also reading a broadsheet), but he made the valid point that we were confining ourselves to one worldview by only reading one paper and getting our online resources from one site. As much as it pained me to admit it, and I didn’t to him, he was right. Social media has allowed me to find news and information from new sources, and the effect is that I have a much more balanced and critical view of goings on and viewpoints.

So how diverse are your sources of information, knowledge, views, thoughts, stimulus, resources and inspiration? If you always go to the same places, where does the new, challenging and critical information come from? While I understand people’s point about the internet being full of unsubstantiated information, is that a reason to not look for information online? As long as you cast a critical eye over it I think it’s worth the risk, and helps you to broaden your understanding of the wonderful diversity of views, news and information out there. If leadership and information run hand in hand, then the effective leader needs diverse information and inspiration to lead.

The same holds true for the team and people you have around you, if they are the same as you, work in the same field as you, where will you get the diversity of views that make you a more rounded leader? I’ll save that for another blog though....
A

2009-07-27T08:34:00.000-07:00

Leadership - the space to fail?

In my previous leadership experience, one thing I struggled with was: how do you develop people - allowing them space to fail and learn and grow but at the same time not jeopardise your project / client / funding ? Where do you draw the line? Where do you allow space for failure so that your ‘mentee’ can learn and where do you act with the sustainability of your organisation in mind?

At the previous employer I worked for I was an External Relations Manager, in charge of a department of seven people and of a project that brought in 70% of the annual budget of our organization. Moreover, on the success of this project depended the future budget over the coming years as well.

One of the people in my department I was mentoring was elected the leader of this project. The crucial element for the success of the project was excellent marketing: attracting the right audience and footfall to the event and meeting the KPIs according to the sponsors. My mentee’s key challenge was to motivate volunteers to get them to recruit the right number and type of people to attend the event.

At the beginning of the project I was very nervous about this person’s performance- it was clear to me that he was failing. His planning was not good, he was not keeping volunteers motivated and as a result, the project was suffering. I wanted to step in all the time and I couldn’t let go of the way I normally dealt with things. I kept thinking that if I did things myself it would be easier, faster and better. I had to keep myself from taking charge all the time.

In the end I decided that I had to sit back and give him space to lead and fail. I made myself a ‘Servant Leader’ (as Stephen Covey describes the concept in his works) and waited for him to call upon my help. When he finally did, he wanted me on the ground, with the volunteers. I called in the rest of the experienced team and created a fun, friendly competition to pull in the audience.

The result of the project was not the best we ever had, but the project leader’s self esteem was intact, the team pulled together to achieve the impossible so they were motivated and the funders was happy as the project came within the KPIs of the contract.

The reason why I am thinking of this now is because I am now in the mentee position. It’ s my turn to be coached to step into the next role- the shoe is on the other foot. I am now the one scared to fail and disappoint.

One of the leaders I admire said to me: “Fail early and fail a lot so that you can learn quickly, adapt to a new environment and evolve fast”. So I find myself asking now- in order to learn quickly and gain experience: is failure an option? Will people still support me if I fail? Can I recover from it? Or as Noam put it on a recent 'Raid' session: How can I learn to fail better?

C

Change - how often do you get to write the story?

2009-07-08T04:45:00.000-07:00

I was reading an article from the McKinsey Quarterly on change management which was discussing how despite the huge amounts of work done on understanding and implementing change programmes, only a 1/3 of them were successful.

This struck me as a very low percentage given how much expertise and resource has been dedicated to change management in theoretical and practical terms. In the article it’s argued that there are 4 basic areas that need to be considered to make change successful, there needs to be: a compelling story, role modelling, reinforcing mechanisms, and capacity building.

They go onto talk through these 4 points arguing that there needs to be a re-evaluation of them, they aren’t wrong per se but the thinking within these areas needs to be reflected upon. The piece that really stuck for me was with regards the compelling story, as they argue that often the story is of the change manager and not of the employees, what motivates them will not necessarily motivate the employees.

A famous behavioural experiment was undertaken using lottery tickets. Half the group were given random “Lucky Dip” tickets and the other half were asked to choose their numbers. They were about to draw the winning numbers (cue images of a minor celebrity starting the National Lottery draw), when they offered to buy back the tickets. They found that regardless of geographical or demographic matters, those that chose their numbers had to be offered 5 times as much to sell them than those who had a Lucky Dip.

So what?

This suggests that when you chose yourselves you are much more committed to the outcome.
What does this mean for change management?

That to succeed you need those involved and affected by the change to play a part in creating the compelling story, and to own the change through investing their time, thoughts and energies in it.

This really resonated with me with change I am going through, in terms of making sure that everyone involved is writing the story, which in turn, fingers and toes crossed, will make it an effective and smooth transition.

I have heard a lot of people's personal experiences of change, and it's often said that the issue with the change is that is has been implemented from the top to the bottom, and that it doesn't resonate with anyone apart from those that designed it. Poor communication of the compelling story doesn't help either, but would the dissonance be lessened if they had let others write the story?

How often do you get to write the story? How often are you involved in the change? How often are your motivations taken into account?

A

http://www.scribd.com/doc/14545157/The-McKinsey-QuarterlyThe-irrational-side-of-change-management

Leadership, Boundaries and Cultural Difference

2009-06-26T03:29:00.000-07:00

I was at our all staff day in Birmingham this week and was truly inspired by the work of our international colleagues. We heard about how we run our programmes in different international settings, which while were definitely 'Common Purpose', were very much based in their local contexts.

In India we finished our Bangalore senior leaders programme, and one of the speakers was telling us how it was distinctly (and rightly) Indian in style, design, delivery and focus. This has sat with me and left me pensive for the past few days. It really had to be based in the local and national cultural context, it had to be Indian in all ways possible.

So why so much pondering about this? It led me to reflect on Core Day 2 on the theme of courage and leading across boundaries, in that when leading across boundaries, be they geographical or cultural, you need to place yourself in their context, and understand and navigate cultural difference.

While studying social anthropology at university we were challenged from the outset to leave our cultural preconceptions and worldview at the door, which isn't something that historically the discipline was particulary good at (or even considered it could be argued). We reflected, discussed and did our best to not view other people, spaces and cultures through our cultual lens, but to what extent did we ever really do that? Is it enough to be aware that you are doing this, and to bear it in mind?

As leaders how often do we reflect on our abilities to understand contexts and leave our cultural baggage behind? If we don't, can we ever be truly effective leaders across geographical and cultural boundaries?

A

Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes

2009-06-09T04:30:00.000-07:00

This morning, as every morning I woke to the sounds of my 1 year old god-daughter clanging about in the living room next to my bedroom. I rose, wandered to the bathroom, and re-appeared in the living room doorway to rapturous smiles from said god-daughter. (One of the best bits of my day.) During the usual routine of getting ready for work I was interrupted by a rather excited housemate who came knocking on my door with news, “quick, come and see what M can do. She can point to the mouse in the book. It’s her new thing. It’s brilliant!”. Dutifully I wandered into the living room and observed M point to the mouse in her book as her Dad repeatedly asked her “Where’s the mouse?” as he turned the page.

Later in a quiet moment, M and I were alone together. On impulse I sat down with her on the floor. We had another go at the “point at the mouse” game, and again M scanned the pages and pointed to the little mouse hiding behind things in the pictures. How did she learn this? I don’t especially remember hours of mouse pointing in the house. Why a mouse? How does she understand “mouse” when she can’t even say it yet?

Not content with the mouse feat, on impulse I started the game of “Head, shoulders, knees and toes” intending on teaching M to recognise the different parts of her body. After about 5 mins, we both got bored and moved on to joyfully building and knocking down bricks.

On the bus in to work this morning I returned to the mouse recognition game and it got me thinking… How did M learn “mouse”? How did M learn pointing at “mouse” was the required response to “where’s the mouse”?

As young learners we learn by repetition. Learning by repetition is hard work. It requires determined intent. It requires consistent commitment. It requires absolute dedication. When was the last time as an adult I had that amount of intent, commitment & dedication to something I wanted to learn?

Perhaps last year when I lost lots of weight, but it’s creeping back on so my consistent commitment and absolute dedication are questionable. Perhaps when I learnt to scuba dive last summer, but it’s not something that I do everyday so again I’d question my dedication.
What about in my leadership? When was the last time that I learnt a new skill or behaviour and really put in the work to make it part of my everyday vocabulary and repertoire. Hmm…? Now that is a tough question…

All this reminded me of a really interesting article I read on the net “Passion and deliberate practice results in great leadership” by George Ambler on Wednesday, November 1, 2006. http://www.thepracticeofleadership.net/2006/11/01/passion-and-deliberate-practice-results-in-great-leadership/ The article reflects on the work of a psychologist at Florida State University, Anders Ericsson, on what makes a superior performer a super performer:
“But it isn’t magic, and it isn’t born. It happens because some critical things line up so that a person of good intelligence can put in the sustained, focused effort it takes to achieve extraordinary mastery…… These people don’t necessarily have an especially high IQ, but they almost always have very supportive environments, and they almost always have important mentors. And the one thing they always have is this incredible investment of effort.”

Passion is just one of the magic ingredients but you can’t make it happen without the hard graft. According to most self-help / self-improvement programmes it takes 21 days of consistent repetition to form a new habit and the minimum effort to form the new habit is 15 mins a day. (There are lots of resources on the net about this. The best summary I have found is via Google Questions http://answers.google.com/answers/threadview/id/786165.html )

So the ultimate question for me is, if M can master “mouse”, then what leadership skill or behaviour could I master with just 15 mins investment per day?
R x

Creative Dissonance

2009-05-26T03:30:00.000-07:00

I was reading a really interesting blog post by Rob in response to the practice that was sent out on the need to be courageous, where he discussed his journey with courage and conflict. He went from avoiding conflict at all costs, often to his own detriment, to seeing how conflict opens doors to explore difference and have open and safe discussions with others.

This really resonated with me and reminded me of a very interesting discussion I heard a few months ago which was about the importance of creative dissonance. The person in question was discussing how a behemoth of an institution had to re-invent itself and do new things to try and resonate with people, as everyone had so many preconceptions of it. To do this required creating a time of creative dissonance which is confrontational and a risk, but ultimately constructive as they reassessed matters and asked themselves some very difficult questions. But to do this took the courage to step up, create dissonance and deal with the potential ramifications.

I know I shy away from dissonance at times, and know I am not on my own on that, but am I missing the opportunity to have creative and constructive dissonance and conflict, I think I probably am. So I think I will be taking a leaf out of Rob and the other person in questions book and saying yes to creative dissonance.

Andy

2009 is coming!

2008-12-10T04:57:00.000-08:00

2009 is coming and this got me thinking about the past year, reflecting on what I have learnt, sometimes too late and to my detriment and thus need to master next year. Thinking about this I found the below quote which poses an interesting proposition.

Year's end is neither an end nor a beginning but a going on, with all the wisdom that experience can instill in us. - Hal Borland

Assuming that Hal is right I must take all of my learning from the last year into 2009, even that which I would like to leave behind, those situations I would have handled differently, those decisions I would have made differently. If I must take them with me how do I take them with me positively rather than as something I have sworn never to do again and have identified as a poor quality in the picture of a perfect leader I have in my head.

Perhaps I need to spend some time thinking about what made me make those choices in the first place. Were those actions a result of my personal traits? If I made those choices because it was my gut reaction, something that frequently gets me into trouble, should I try to lose that quality completely or find a new way to use it? Can I take that gut reaction, a feature that is so intrinsic to my personality, consider it and re-evaluate before acting on it to achieve more positive results?

I would challenge all of you to think about a situation in the last year when you were not at your best and think about how you can take that into the new year in a way that is productive and still gives you that sense of self.

Intuition and Planning: How to lead change

2008-11-27T04:19:00.000-08:00

We had an interesting conversation recently when discussing how to lead change through either intuition or planning, or both. The consensus seemed to be that when using intuition you are often basing that on evidence from your experiences, so that it is more calculated intuition rather than blind gut instinct.

An interesting point was raised however that if your frame of reference, for instance your job, changes then you don’t have any experience to guide your intuition. So what are you to do?

If when leading beyond authority you are crossing silos, sectors or worlds, how can you trust your instinct? What might hold true in your world might not in another, and so you need the planning and rational rigour to inform your decisions in order to be effective.

Or, as was pointed out you need to make sure that you surround yourself with people who are strong in areas where you are weak, be that they are more methodical planners, or instinctive leaders, or that they know the world you are operating in better than you.

This is a pertinent point, which has come up in a lot of discussions of late, and when I look around the workplace I see that it holds true here as well. Have you surrounded yourself with the right people? Is your network turbulent and diverse enough to allow you to transcend worlds effectively?

A

2008-08-26T08:50:00.000-07:00

The fine art of being patient

Patience was the subject of our most recent practice along with the below quote from Edward G. Bulwar.

"Patience is not passive; on the contrary, it is active; it is concentrated strength"

This got me thinking about the speed at which I do things and I have to admit that my approach is very much to sprint until you can’t anymore which, I am now beginning to realise may mean that I am missing out on something. This is particularly pertinent considering that I have spent the quiet summer months reminding myself that I must be patient because in fact not everyone is beavering away at their desks trying to meet my deadlines but are in fact, probably sunning themselves in Spain.

Whilst travelling across London to various meetings recently, spending time in cafes, schools, businesses, boardrooms and even Dorothy Perkins, I have been forced to trust that despite the fact that other people have other demands on their time, if I am patient, at some point, on the whole, they will make the time. It is then that I need to be ready to sprint and not to be in a heap on the floor out of breath and out of ideas. I have to allow time for the opportunities to appear and to materialise as much as to hunt them down and force a conclusion.

But, how do I ignore the overwhelming desire to get those ticks on my list and to instead allow things to develop, perhaps not on my timescale, in a way that could produce something that is beyond what I could have expected to get?

I think it is at this point that you have to trust yourself as a leader, trust the work that you have done and take part in the fine art which is being patient.

The people you meet, the places you go, who you become

2008-08-01T09:39:00.000-07:00

“I am who I am because of everyone.
I am my mate who never speaks and the one who won't shut up. I am my older sister and unfortunately my younger brother. I am all the girls I've kissed, and all the ones I will. It’s the people we meet and the experiences we share that make us who we are.”
Orange current global advertising campaign
http://www.i-am-everyone.co.uk/

I saw this advert recently while out and about in London meeting leaders to invite to join the next emerging leaders programme in November 2008. I was in the middle of the daily grind thinking about a million and one other things: targets to hit, objectives to meet, 1:2:1 meeting to hold, team meeting to organize. However, as I sat on tube it got me thinking. Not about all the boys I have ever kissed (although that was a lovely walk down memory lane), but all the people I have ever met and the experiences I have had to date that have in some way helped form me as a person, a professional and a leader.

In the last two weeks I have met two leaders who have reinforced Orange’s idea that we are sum of the experiences and the people we have encountered in our lives. I’d like to share their stories with you…

The first shared with me her story of how she set up her own business and now runs an organization with 140 staff in 2 countries. What was really interesting about the conversation with her was the story she told about the three places she had worked before deciding to strike out on her own. She painted a very vivid picture of 3 completely different organizational and leadership cultures and what she learnt from operating in all three. The first was a place of true inspiration and inclusion, the directors knew all their staff and talked to them daily – not just about work but about everything else as well. The second organization was extremely hierarchical, the senior management didn’t even talk to their people at the water cooler / in the kitchen – the attitude was “why would I, (s)he is only the (fill in the blank here for whichever job role). The final organization was a poor imposter of the first. The directors outwardly professed to run an inclusive culture, but didn’t walk the talk internally. What she took away from these 3 experiences was a really clear idea of how she was going to lead the people in her own organization – adopt the good and reject the bad from her role models.

The second leader talked more generally about the dark times in his career: when things were really tough, things went badly, he made mistakes and failed. His point was that you have to experience the dark in order to fully appreciate the light.

What it made me reflect on a number of interactions in my life. There are three people who I would like to acknowledge:

The dark times, when I have really struggled, have made me a much stronger person, a better professional and well-rounded leader. The stress, disappointment and despair at the time, and perhaps the fug of the immediate aftermath, have often masked the overall learning and overall benefits. A holistic health practitioner once told me “you are stronger than you realize”. I think of him every now and then, and his words of encouragement, especially when I am going through a dark patch. Thank you, T.

Someone special, but sadly all too briefly in my life, told me a story of when he was in the regular British Forces and through a circuitous route found himself signed up for the weekend training course for the Parachute Regiment. On the assault course section of the programme, he was really struggling. Other trainees were dropping out left right and center and he knew he was lagging behind and wasn’t going to make the qualifying time. And yet, he decided to stay, to finish the race, knowing that he was going to be the last one to cross the line. When I’m going through it, I think of him and whisper to myself – “finish the race, no matter what”. Thank you, J.

A couple of years ago I went on a Laughter workshop, the programme was run by a wonderful woman who really refreshed and reinvigorated my lust for life and laughter. Her own story was one of overcoming mental health problems, including a period of hospitalization, out of which experience eventually emerged a successful business, teaching people the art and benefits of laughter. Thank you, K, for relighting the dying embers, and for being a delightful human example of trusting your inner voice and self, and that the right path will emerge over time.

I suppose the at the route of it all is one word choice: the choice of experiences you let into your life, the choices of the people with whom you chose to interact, the choice of what you take with you from each interaction, the choice of how respond to every interaction, the choice of who you want to be.

Another extract for you from the Orange campaign…

“I am an encouraging family, four dragons who said no and The Prince’s Trust who said yes. I am manufacturers who laughed and 400 retailers who didn't. I am the kids who say 'I want one', and the parents who say 'okay'. I am happier families at airports. I am Rob Law inventor of Trunki, the ride-on suitcase for kids.
I am who I am because of everyone.”
http://www.i-am-everyone.co.uk/

The power of the RealEdge network

2008-07-17T06:31:00.000-07:00

Now that we have nearly finished half of the course I have been reflecting a wee bit on what has passed, and how interesting it is watching everyone discovering that someone has a similar passion/project or interest and the buzz that it creates.

This was really reinforced by a conversation I had with Natalie as we discussed the power of the networks within the group. She mentioned how pleased she was to have access to such a diverse group of people, organisations and passions, which she would not normally be able to access. Through her website, Changeboard, she has been contacted by international Corporate CSR Companies who are looking for causes to support, and as a result some of your group are hopefully linking up the corporate companies.

It really is great to see how she has been able to put people together to help all parties, and if this sounds appealing to anyone please look at the marketplace and discussion boards so you don’t miss this great opportunity. Likewise if you have any great opportunities that might interest the group please do put them on the marketplace.

So as we move on I challenge you all to make sure you meet and greet everyone in your group, find out what people are up to, and let the magic happen! Ok so that was a bit cheesy but the message still stands, so I hope to hear a lot more conversations on Tuesday at the Forum and for the rest of the programme, which ring with the sound of pleasant surprise and excitement about your common ground, and common purpose…… ok so now I am getting very cheesy, apologies!

Andy

2008-07-02T08:18:00.000-07:00

Starting again tomorrow

A former colleague of mine gave me a quote when was in the midst of a project and needed some faith that we would ever get to where we wanted to be. Since then I have stuck this quote to my computer and coloured it in pink so that my eye is drawn to it when my concentration is lacking, usually I hasten to add when things are not quite working out quite as I had intended. The quote is as below;

“Courage doesn’t always roar. Sometimes courage is the little voice at the end of the day that says I’ll try again tomorrow.”

Now don’t get me wrong I am not morbidly focussed upon the inevitable collapse of everything and the impending doom that is coming. But I find that it is often in those difficult situations, conversations and circumstances during your day that you have to remind yourself to have courage. This may not be the courage to force yourself or others to act but in fact to have the courage to keep trying or the courage to re-evaluate.

The last two Practices pick up on the theme of having the courage to have those difficult conversations, to make mistakes and accept them, as well as forcing yourself into uncomfortable places and looking at things from all angles even those unfamiliar to you.

http://realedge.commonpurpose.org.uk/home/staffpractices.aspx

It occurs to me that it is not just about having the courage to challenge yourself when things are going wrong and look at them differently but actually to give those around you the same courage to stop and review, to go into the unfamiliar or in fact to push on regardless.

p.s. there will be another practice out next week!

Bacon Butties and Birdsong

2008-06-19T07:01:00.000-07:00

Every now and then I take a little time out on the way to work. I buy myself a bacon butty and a cup of black coffee and go and sit in the park local to the office. it's a good way to start the day, a bacon butty and some birdsong in the middle of hectic London: some rocket fuel for the body and a break for the mind and soul.

This morning my mind (and eyes) wandered over some gravestones nearby where someone had left a bunch of flowers and a potted fern. (To explain the local park is Bunhill Fields, an old cemetery and park, located near Old Street Tube.) On closer inspection I realised that this was no ordinary grave, but that of William Blake, Poet and Painter, 1757 - 1827. Next to him (and his wife Catherine Sofia) was a rather grand obelisk monument dedicated to Daniel Defoe, author of Robinson Crusoe, 1661 - 1731.

According to the inscriptions on the side of the monument to Daniel, it was paid for from a collection from 1700 boys and girls through a campaign organised by the Christian World Newspaper in 1870. Another note informs the visitor that Lilian Eveleigh Nash restored the monument in 1948.

The discovery of greatness resting in peace so close to where I work everyday was quite a revelation and got me thinking.......

Who had left the flowers for William, 181 years after his death? What was it about William, or his works, that had so moved someone to leave him a tribute? What was it about Daniel, or his creation of Robinson Crusoe, that had provoked 1700 children to donate money to a memorial fund? Was it the same thing that motivated Lilian in 1948 to restore the obelisk?

It made me think about legacy: what we leave behind when we are gone.

I'm not talking about that which we leave our loved ones in monies and material goods, more what we leave as our leadership legacy to the wider world.

As a 30 year old, it's not often I am jolted to reflect on my own mortality and what I will leave behind. It is (hopefully) a far distant event in the future. However, the decisions and actions I take now will carry me forward on a journey towards that certain destination.

What will I do on the journey? What state will I leave the path in for those that follow after me? What's going to be my leadership legacy? The honest answer is that I don't know.

And that's ok: I have a better idea than I did 2 years ago, and in another 2 years I know I will be 2 years farther down the path. It's a journey, not a destination.

Something I'm slowly getting my head around - I don't have to have the final answer to the legacy question right now. Having a compass heading is enough. That, and the odd bacon butty and birdsong time-out to reflect on the journey so far, and the next ports of call.

Someone close to me has 2 pieces of ribbon stuck on his office wall, a short and a long one. The long one represents the amount of life he has lived so far, the short one he has left. It's not morbid. It's a visual reminder to make every decision, every action, and everyday count. He oft quotes to me Stephen Covey's 2nd Habit of Highly Effective People - begin with end in mind. Good advice.

In addition, I would to offer up - take regular time out to reflect. A bacon butty and birdsong break works for me. What do you use?

Further reading to ponder: from "Presence: exploring profound change in people, organsations and society", Peter Senge, C.Otto Scharmer, Joseph Jaworksi, and Betty Sue Flowers. 2004. Nicholas Brealey Publishing. pages 25 -6

Several years ago in one of our leadership workshops, a Jamaican man from the World Bank named Fred told a story that moved people very deeply. A few years earlier he had been diagnosed with a terminal disease. After consulting a number of doctors, who all confirmed the diagnosis, he went through what everyone does in that situation. For weeks he denied it. But gradually, with the help of friends, he came to grips with the fact that he was only going to live a few more months. 'Then something amazing happened,' he said. 'I simply stopped doing everything that wasn't essential, that didn't matter. I started working on projects with kids that I'd always wanted to do. I stopped arguing with my mother. When someone cut me off in traffic or something happened that would have upset me in the past, I didn't get upset. I just didn't have the time to waste on any of that.'

Near the end of this period, Fred began a wonderful new relationship with a woman who thought he should get more opinions about his condition. He consulted some doctors in the States and soon after got a phone call saying, 'We have a different diagnosis.' The doctor told hime that he had a rare form of a very curbale disease. And then came the part of the story I'll never forget. Fred said, 'When I heard this over the telephone, I cried like a baby - because I was afraid my life would go back to the way it used to be.'

It took a scenario that he was going to die for Fred to wake up. It took that kind of shock for his life to be transformed. Maybe that's what needs to hapen for all of us, for everyone who lives on Earth. That could be what a reuim scenario offers us.

There was silence for a moment.

'You know,' said Joseph quietly, 'When all is said and done, the only change that will make a difference is the transformation of the human heart.'

Website done!

2008-05-21T08:27:00.001-07:00

Hi all,

I think I have finally finished the website so by the time you read this it will be up and running smoothly and you will all be booking your modules and hopefully blogging and discussing away.

I am the programme co-ordinator for RealEdge and my responsibilities are the general running of the programme in the office and the actual days, I have been working on recruitment as well for this programme but Harriet will be taking that over once this programme starts leaving me to concentrate on the events, the curriculum for the events, and as the main point of contact for participants. If you have any questions, or if I can help in any way please do get in touch, I look forward to meeting you all on the 3rd.

Andy Coxall

Welcome!

2008-05-12T07:39:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the Common Purpose International Navigator blog!