Change

In every organization (and at some point, in every life) there is a cry for change; people within the organization will have an overwhelming feeling that systems, structures, cultures, missions, purpose, or products must change to remain relevant in the world today. And, as this cry for change goes up, these same organizations will find that there an undeniable resistance to change within the organization that will confound the process.

Where does this resistance to change come from? And, why do we experience this polarity within the organizations we serve, and even within ourselves?

Richard Beckhard and Ruben Harris, in their book Organizational Transitions (now out of print), have boiled this phenomenon down, and created a little formula that helps us understand resistance to change:

Here is how this formula works:

• LD - This is the level of dissatisfaction with the status quo. If you are very dissatisfied with how things are right now, you are motivated to change. However, if dissatisfaction is low, or even Zero, change will not be possible.
• DC - This is the desirability of the proposed change or end state. If the end state is very desirable, then change is possible, however if a person cannot see the value in the new state of affairs, or the end state is undesirable, change will not be possible.
• PV - This represents the ability of the person who is considering the change to hold the vision that change is possible. If the task of undertaking the change is possible, even if it is difficult, then change can occur. But if the task seems impossible, or out of the reach of the people who are involved in the change effort, change will not happen.
• Xc - This part of the formula represents the cost of change. This cost can be in dollars, personal energy, self respect, any form that is of value to the organization or person involved in the change.

When we take the level of dissatisfaction times the desirability of the end state, times the vision of whether the task is possible or not, we get some sense of the importance of the change to the organization or person. These factors must be greater than (must out weigh) the perceived cost of the change before any change effort can successfully move forward.

Trying to apply real numbers to these variables is difficult at best. You will not be able to simply apply the formula and come up with an answer that tells you whether or not change can occur.

However, what you can do is evaluate each of the three factors on the left side of the equation. If you are experiencing resistance to change it is likely that the resistance is related to one of these three factors. Also, if any one of these factors is Zero - change is seen as a having no value - then the driving forces that would bring about change will always be less than the perceived cost of change.

If you can find a copy of Beckhard's book, look at page 98 for a description of this concept. (When I last checked, you could get a used copy of this book for $0.40 at Amazon.com.)

The Courage and Vision to Innovate

Rob Here, 1st time caller to the Leadership Blog...

Innovation is a topic of thought in my mind recently and in my reading and mulling I can see Diamond implications worth discussing- so here it goes.

Systems and analytical thinking are beneficial in many organizations. In these types of Organizations the Reality point on the Diamond is sharpened with Logic to make objective decisions free of wishy washy emotion. New ideas are purified in the crucible of past experience and cost benefit analysis. This mindset works great for maintaining a status quo, for avoiding risk, for remaining consistent and predictable.

This Reality heavy bias can also produce a looming barrier for innovation.

Truly "new to this world" innovation requires Courage and trust to review the idea with new eyes and an intuition bias. An idea that is new to a Reality based organization will be judged severely if it does not fit within past proven methodology - this is a barrier to innovative thinking.

In the Book "Breakthrough! Innovation Management Practices" (Thanks for the book Jim) a concept to combat this Reality bias is described as;

"Experimental Thinking" The definition is An approach to thinking about challenges that demand change, problem-solving, unique solutions and encourages the individual to avoid evaluation of new ideas and concepts, while building upon the ideas of others, and considering the positive aspects of ideas.

An innovative process gives time for visioning, dreaming, and intuition while experimenting with an avoidance of evaluation and judgment until a much later stage in the process.

Courage and Vision need to be emphasized to be innovative, when added to a strong base of Reality the Diamond of the Organization can be enlarged leading to an opportunity for true "Greatness".

Rob.

(OK Jim, I did it, I posted on your Blog, now please loosen the thumb screws!) ;)

Polarities

In the introduction to the book Polarity Management - Identifying and Managing Unsolvable Problems, Dr. Barry Johnson says that the bad news about life is that we all face a large number of unsolvable problems. However, the good news is that, in many cases, we can stop trying to solve these problems and begin to manage them by addressing these problems as Polarities.

According to Dr. Koestenbaum, the concept of polarities is at the heart of the Leadership Diamond model. From his perspective the points of the Leadership Diamond can cause conflict and create unsolvable problems as described by Dr. Johnson. However, this conflict brings us tension, and with the tension comes the energy necessary to manage polarities.

For example, lets take a quick look at Vision and Reality. Vision implies looking into the future, imagining what could be, creating something that does not currently exist, and not being limited by barriers. On the other hand, Reality can imply being focused on what currently exists, understanding barriers, knowing what tools and resources are available, and not being blinded by any wish or day dream that takes you away from the truths of life.

The conflict between vision and reality is not a problem to be solved, it is a polarity to be managed. Dr. Koestenbaum tells us that the ability to hold the conflicting concepts of vision and reality in your mind simultaneously is an essential part of the leadership mind. Being able to identify polarities, understanding the gap between two polar concepts, and feeling the tension created by the pull of both is part of being a leader. Koestenbaum suggests that we:

Ask for clarity, but accept ambiguity, demand certainty, but adapt to surprises.

Here are a few of the common polarities that we face as leaders:

• Team - Individual
• Democracy – Dictatorship
• Work – Play
• Life – Death
• Reality – Fantasy
• Rich – Poor
• Man – Woman
• Active – Passive
• True – False
• Us – Them
• Proactive – Reactive
• Centralized – Decentralized
• Principles – Rules
• Flexible – Inflexible
• Empowered – Powerless
• Internal – External
• Organized - Unorganized

When you objectively view each side of a polarity you find that each contains positive and negative qualities. The challenge for the leader is to work to maximize the positive, while minimizing the negative characteristics of both ends of the spectrum.

In this process of understanding polarities, a leader discovers that life is rarely entirely in one camp - the world is not "organized OR unorganized". It is "BOTH organized AND unorganized" at the same time. Businesses are not "focused on teams OR individuals", they are "focused on BOTH teams AND individuals". Life is rarely Either/Or, it is usually AND.

What we experience is that life is a balance between polarities. Constantly moving. Shifting from one form to another. Offering first the positive and negative qualities of one side of the polar equation, and then moving toward the other pole.

The strong leader is one that is prepared to work in this world of ambiguity, and help others navigate through the confusing waters filled with polarities.

In the book The Art of Happiness at Work, the Dalai Lama points out that in western society we are taught to choose between polarities - we are schooled to pick between "either/or". However, in a world that is consistently filled with "both/and" a choice between "either/or" will be frustrating because neither choice will satisfy. Learning to hold competing thoughts simultaneously, and to understand the positive and negative qualities of both is necessary to be a successful leader.

If any of you (my faithful readers) are interested in doing a post analyzing a polarity that you are facing, post a comment with your email address and I will set the blog to allow you to be an author. I would love to have your contribution to the discussion.

In a future blog post we will look at how to use a Polarity Map to help identify true polarities, and understand the positive and negative attributes of each side of the polarity.

Asking the Right Questions

If you have read much of Peter Koestenbaum's work, you have discovered that Dr. K teaches by asking the right questions rather than handing you the right answers. Although he is diligent about explaining many complicated concepts, much of the work of translating concepts into action is left to you, the reader. And, this is as it should be.

In his book The Answer to How is Yes - Acting on What Matters, Peter Block says

Getting the question right may be the most important thing we can do. We define our dialogue and, in a sense, our future through the questions we choose to address: Asking the wrong question puts us in the philosopher's dilemma: We become the blind (person) looking in a dark room for a black cat that is not there.

Block adds that "The right questions are about values, purpose, aesthetics, human connection, and deeper philosophical inquiry. To experience the fullness of working and living, we need to be willing to address questions that we know have no answer."

Both Koestenbaum and Block challenge us to find the right questions.

Within a business or government organization the questions that are most often asked are about things that are near the surface of our existence. We ask how to make the greatest margin or profit on our product, how to attract and serve customers and gain market share, how to motivate people; in short, we ask how to be successful (however we measure success) in our chosen field.

Although Peter Block would perhaps disagree with me, I believe these are all important questions that need to be addressed. However, I agree with both Koestenbaum and Block in that these are not the first questions that should be asked by an individual or group.

When viewed through the Leadership Diamond, the most important questions become those that take you more deeply into the individual's or group's purpose for being.

In the opening section of Kevin Cashman's chapter on Personal Master (see Leadership From the Inside Out - Becoming a Leader for Life) there is a story that sums up, at least for me, the value of asking the right question:

I once heard this story about a priest, who was confronted by a soldier while he was walking down a road in pre-revolutionary Russia. The soldier, aiming his rifle at the priest, commanded "Who are you? Where are you going? Why are you going there?" Unfazed, the priest calmly replied, "How much do they pay you?" Somewhat surprised, the soldier responded, "Twenty-five kopecks a month." The priest paused, and in a deeply thoughtful manner said "I have a proposal for you. I'll pay you fifty kopecks each month if you stop me here every day and challenge me to respond to those same three questions."

Therein lies the beginning of a very deep and valuable discussion with yourself, your business, or your organization: "Who are you? Where are you going?", and "Why are you going there?"





References:
The story of the Russian priest and soldier is from Kevin Cashman's Leadership From the Inside Out - Becoming a Leader for Life.

Other references include:
The Philosophic Consultant, by Dr. Peter Koestenbaum
The Answer to How is Yes, by Peter Block

Peter Block - Servant-Leadership

Peter Block is an author, lecturer, and organizational consultant who has some very intriguing thoughts about service. Below you will find excerpts from the keynote address Peter gave to the 2005 International Servant-Leadership Conference in Indianapolis Indiana. Links to the full address, and the Greenleaf Center for Servant-Leadership are included in the text below. (Visit http://www.peterblock.com/ for more on Peter Block and his work)

Note:  I realize that some of the links on this post are broken.  At this time I do not have links to the text for the full address given by Peter Block.  If you would like more information, I am sure Peter would be happy to share his thoughts with you directly.  You can reach him through his web page http://www.peterblock.com/ .


Excerpts from the Keynote address, 2005 International Servant-Leadership Conference, Indianapolis, Indiana Published in The International Journal of Servant-Leadership, Volume 2, Number 1, 2006, by Larry Spears and Shann Ferch (Gonzaga University in collaboration with The Greenleaf Center for Servant Leadership).  Unfortunately this information is no longer available on line.  
More information on Servant-Leadership can be found at http://www.greenleaf.org/

Servant Leadership: Creating an Alternative Future

Change the conversation, change your thinking, change your life.

…[M]aybe the audience creates the performance. Maybe the listening creates the speaking. Maybe citizens create leaders, maybe employees create bosses, maybe students create teachers and children create parents. Maybe the purpose of problem solving is to build relationships.

The only way the future gets created … is through invitation.

I’d rather have two people in the room who chose to be there than a thousand who were sent.

…[T]he idea of invitation is very powerful. What constitutes a powerful invitation? One that says, “Please come, and if you come here’s what’s required of you.” Most invitations are too soft, there are elements of begging: “Please come, it’s going to be great, nothing much will be required of you, it’s not going to take long, we’ll be fast, it’ll be organized, Robert’s Rules of Order, there’ll be food, there’ll be drink, the seats will be comfortable, and if you can come late, come at all, leave early, whatever, please come. God bless you.” A powerful invitation is one that says, “We want you to come! Now if you choose to come, here’s what will be demanded of you. You’ll have to show up. You’ll have to engage with your peers in powerful conversations. You’ll have to leave your interests at the door. We didn’t come together to negotiate; the future’s not created through negotiation, it’s created through imagination. It’s created from a dream… [A] possibility creates an alternative future. We’re not coming to negotiate. Leave your interests at home. You’re coming to engage in the primary actions between you and other citizens, you and other people who came. If you’re willing to live by these requirements, please come.”

To me servant-leadership… is a leadership that confronts people with their freedom.

… [T]he act of love is to confront people with their freedom, is to assemble, lead, in a way that says the choice resides in all of us. What greater gift can you give somebody than the experience of their own power, the experience that they have the capacity to create the world?

The skill of servanthood to me is to get good at questions that no matter how you answer them, you’re guilty. No matter how you answer this question you’re on the hook for being a creator of the future. You’re on the hook for being accountable. You create questions so people will choose accountability. We can’t hold each other accountable. We think we can legislate accountability. We can do performance management, we can have rules of the road that we’re (going to) enforce, but people talk about empowerment when all they really want to talk about are boundaries and limits, what will happen to me; we talk about consequences, there’ve got to be consequences; all of these are forms of patriarchy and they have no power. They have no power to create an alternative future. They have no power in the world. The question is, “How do I engage people so they choose to be accountable?” Well, questions do that. There are certain questions that if you start to answer them, you’re in trouble. No matter what you answer, you are responsible for creating an alternative future. The task of servant-leadership, in my mind, is, “Change the conversation, change the future.”

…[T]he questions have to be ones that have embedded in them the notion that choice resides in the world. It doesn’t reside in leaders; it doesn’t reside in the cause. It’s not in the performer, in the parent, in the teacher; cause resides in people’s connectedness to each other, in individuals.

Most of our organizations and communities are parent-child, boss-subordinate, mayor-citizen conversations — we think that matters. We think the boss-subordinate relationship matters, but I don’t think it does.

We think bosses are responsible for the emotional well being of their subordinates. If they have a depressed, low-morale team, it’s their fault! ...Maybe people are responsible for their own emotional well-being. What would it be like to be in a world where individuals were responsible for their own emotional well being, and we didn’t pretend that the boss was cause and subordinate was effect?

Here are some thoughts about conversations that have the power to create an alternative future. One’s the conversation of possibility. What’s the possibility I came here to live into or to create?

There’s a conversation of ownership. Take whatever you’re complaining about and say, “What have I helped do to create that situation?” Beautiful question. “What’s my contribution to the problem? What have I helped do?” It means I’m an owner. Whatever I complain about, let me turn that question and say, “How have I created that thing?” It’s a conversation of ownership.

There’s a conversation of commitment. Commitment means, what’s the promise I’m willing to make with no expectation of return? That’s a commitment. …“What’s the promise you’re willing to make with no expectation of return?” … Now who do I make the promise to? To peers. If you’re in a leadership spot and you want to create choice, engagement among people working for you, then you say let them make promises to each other. Let them sit in witness of those promises, peers, and say, “Okay, is that enough?” and that shifts the focus from boss-to-subordinate to peer-to-peer.

[W]hy not ask each individual, “What are you here to create? What’s the vision you have?” Now people get nervous: “Suppose we don’t have agreeable, compatible visions,” but I’ve never heard a vision that wasn’t embraceable. I’ve never heard an individual say, “The possibility I’m living into is to walk over people. To succeed at the cost of others.”

“Well, suppose my only purpose in leading would be to bring the gifts of the margin into the center. I just love that thought. I have no idea what it means, but I love the thought. And suppose when we come together we agree for the next six months we’re only going to talk about gifts. And we do it in the moment. We do it with each other and say, “You know, here’s the gift I’ve gotten from you in the last ten minutes.” And you teach people to breathe that in. Most people, when they’re given love or given a statement of gifts, exhale. And they begin a story. And so that’s the thought. And then you devise ways of doing that. So the gift conversation has a lot of power to it.

…[H]elp is just a subtle form of control. People want to give advice to each other. They want to tell you what they did when they were at your stage of life. They have an answer for you, and it’s called generosity; for me it’s mostly a conversation stopper. Whenever you engage people in powerful questions you have to set them up very carefully and tell them, do not help each other. Do not give advice. Do not mask your advice in questions: “Have you thought of this, have you thought of that?” Do not tell them what you did at this stage.

I want you to substitute curiosity for help. Every time you have the instinct to be useful, helpful, to have an answer, to give advice... Ask the other person, “Why does that matter to you? What’s the meaning that that has to you? What’s at stake for you?” In a deeper sense you say, “I came here to serve you by valuing meaning over speed. Meaning over efficiency. Meaning over problem solving.” People say, “I’m a problem solver.” I know you are, but it’s only a part of who you are. You have to inoculate people against the search for the quick answer, by asking them: “What does this mean? Why does it matter to you?”

Going Deeper

The terms vision, ethics, reality and courage are relatively easy to understand. When we hear the words we quickly understand what they mean and can readily bring to mind images that provide a context for each concept. We know what it is to have vision, to behave ethically, to be connected to the real world, and to act with courage.

However, over the ages many wise and thoughtful authors have challenged humanity, both as individuals and collective societies, to examine this tendency to live life at the surface. They have taught those who chose to be students that it is necessary to think more deeply about our values and assumptions, to study our beliefs, to question facts, and to carefully inspect our fears, our motivations, and the very core of our being.

This all sounds very ominous, dark and a little frightening.

But, there is hope. Taken in small doses you can get in touch with your inner being, and see into the nooks and crannies that make you who you are, without having to hire a psychiatrist.

What you gain from this introspection is a better understanding of what drives you, what you value, what core beliefs shape your thinking, and why you react the way you do in certain situations. (This is a way for you to "Get into the Balcony" on a more personal and intimate scale. See the post below for more information.)

What you lose is the ability to live at the surface. You can no longer mentally hide out. You will find yourself examining your thoughts, what you say, the things other people say, and the world that is presented to you by others at an entirely new level. Admittedly, this can be a little scary because you find that you hold yourself to a new standard that can be difficult to maintain.

To help you on your journey, I would like to recommend a few resources:

• Leadership from the Inside Out, by Kevin Cashman, is a great book for introspection, and self-examination. If you follow Cashman through the process, and do the exercises he describes in the text, you will discover many things about yourself, and gain a new understanding of what drives you, what makes you behave the way you do, what you value, and how to put this new knowledge into action. If you click here you will find a short article from Fast Company magazine from 1999 that talks about Cashman and his approach to developing a leadership mind.
  
• Organizational Culture and Leadership, by Edgar H. Schein, gives you some insight into the culture of organizations. Although Schein's approach is very different from Cashman, the ultimate goal is the same - to gain an understanding of what drives an organization, what it values, and what beliefs and assumptions the organization as a whole makes about itself and the world around it. The first couple of chapters will give you the flavor for Schein's approach to understanding organizational culture. Click here to see a quick overview of Schein and his concepts.
  
• The Philosophic Consultant, by Peter Koestenbaum, is probably the best of Dr. K’s books on leadership principles. He covers all aspects of the Leadership Diamond model, and the deeper meaning of each concept in a way this is accessible to all. In 2000 Fast Company Magazine did an article on Dr K that gives you a feeling for his philosophy and his theories, as well as his desire to look deeply into the concept of leadership.
• The Answer to How is Yes - Acting on What Matters, by Peter Block, briefly touches on the idea that the inward journey is a necessary part of being able to do meaningful work. It is an easy read, with a perhaps a less easy message about the need to focus on purpose rather than methods, and on doing what matters rather than on tools and techniques. You can read an interview with Peter done by the National Staff Development Council by clicking here.
• The Heart Aroused - Poetry and the Preservation of the Soul in Corporate America, by David Whyte, is perhaps the most philosophical of the books on this list. David is a poet, author, and lecturer of some renown. In this book, David invites you, the reader, to bring your fears, loves and dreams into the workplace. Of course, this cannot happen without first discovering what it is that you fear, love and dream. I recommend this book for your more reflective moments, when you are not in the mood to do the work that Cashman puts you through.

If any of you have recommended books or articles, please post a comment with the information. Maybe I can add a new post with additional resources based on your suggestions in the near future.

What is Real?

Reality is the fully integrated recognition that there is a world around you that is in essence different from you, does not care about you, but is a world that you desperately need.  (Dr. Peter Koestenbaum, Philosopher, author and Mentor)

The first principle is that you must not fool yourself.  And, you are the easiest person to fool. (Richard P. Feynman, Physicist, 1918-1988)

Reality is all around us. And yet, we rarely stop to examine our perceptions, or critically examine the conversation that goes on inside our head.

We tell ourselves that we know what is real, that we live a life well grounded in reality. We assume that our reality is what matters. And, therein lies the problem.

Unfortunately, a connection to reality is not as simple as forming our opinions and living our lives within our self-created perception. Nor is reality based on accepting a dogma that is espoused by our political party, religious leaders, or teachers.  Reality demands an examination of perceptions and teachings, and a drilling down until we reach the facts that underlie all that exists around us.

Reality can be a hard master. Money, laws, physics, culture, and time do not change to accommodate assumptions. However, a great leader will understand the realities that apply to a particular situation, and will use this knowledge to select the path that leads to success.

Don't confuse reality with current conditions. For example, existing laws may prevent you or your business from entering a certain market, or your city from providing a certain service. But laws can be changed. So the reality that may be most important is not the present law, but the process for changing the law and the likelihood of success.

External realities are sometimes easier to deal with than the inner realities of the soul. We all have an inner vision of who we are, how we interact with others, and how our coworkers, bosses, classmates, teachers, families and friends perceive us. We find ways to make our inner selves comfortable with the fact that we did not complete our work on time, did not attend a class, or did not deliver on a promise or commitment. We separate our inner selves from reality in order to make ourselves comfortable with who we are and how we behave.

Ignoring the reality of who you are, how you are perceived by others, and living in a fantasy world is just as dangerous as ignoring external realities to anyone who wants to be an effective leader.

As you apply the concepts of reality in your leadership life, a clear understanding of both external and internal realities will help you develop the two critical characteristics of great leaders - Authenticity and Competence. (There is more at this Blog Entry - Authenticity, and this entry - Gaining Competence)


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PS - If you can't deal with reality, you might be interested in a world called Second Life. Take a look at this short summary with links to the Second Life web site. There are people that now spend as much (if not more) of their time in a virtual reality, as they spend in the so-called "real world".

Gaining Competence

Learning any new skill, or becoming competent in any new subject takes time an effort. And, it comes as no surprise that the same applies to learning to apply the concepts of leadership to your life at work and home.

One way to understand this is to use the metaphor of learning a new sport. For a moment, lets say you have never ridden a horse. As you move through the process of mastering the skills and techniques that will allow you and your mount to float effortlessly over even the highest jumps (or fences), you move through the four stages of competence:

1. Unconscious incompetence - At this stage you don't know what you don't know. You have no idea that there are muscles you have never used, or that there are signals you send to the horse through your seat, legs and hands. You have no concept of the depth of the knowledge you will need to master the sport.
2. Conscious incompetence - At this stage you become conscious of the vast amount of learning necessary to master the sport, and that you do not yet have the skills that will make you a successful rider. But, the good news is that the world of possibility has opened before you, and you are ready to take on the challenge.
3. Conscious competence - Now you have learned the skills, but each time you apply them it takes significant conscious effort to remember the correct position, command, sequence, and subtle nuisances of the relationship between your and your horse. After completing a ride, you are exhausted from the effort of having to think through every muscle movement, and correcting every error.
4. Unconscious competence - And finally, you have reached the stage where you have mastered the sport. You and your horse communicate without even having to think about commands or analyzing feedback. You flow together around the course as if you are one. No conscious effort is required to apply the skills that only a few months or years ago seemed so foreign and difficult.

It is the same with leadership. The concepts of leadership initially seem difficult and cumbersome. It is difficult to hold all that you have learned in your mind at the same time. And it is particularly hard to call on the concepts when you are under stress, or on a tight deadline, or the proverbial waste material has hit the rotating blades.

However, comfort comes with practice. Every time you apply the concepts of leadership you take a step toward unconscious competence. And, at some point in your future you will find that you are able to apply a leadership perspective to the challenges of life.