KINGSTON, Ont. - A recent day with Margaret (Meg) Wheatley was like a mental and emotional spa betwixt the sessions of my life that so often feel like what I imagine white-water rafting to be — rapid paddling over surging waters.
First of all, I felt some release as the world-renowned thinker shared her view that many of us are feeling a growing strain on our personal and professional lives, and it’s not necessarily all our fault.
Meg proposed that global dynamics like increasing polarization, distraction due to technology (think ubiquitous texting) and “morbidly obese bureaucracy” are in fact shooting their arrows of influence into our lives.
She went on to suggest some responses, including abandoning what she called absurd heroism which is getting sucked into thinking that the problems are so great, “I’ll just work harder and harder and harder; I’ll do it because others are so overworked and I don’t want to put anything else on their plate; I’ll do it alone.”
Meg’s alternate proposal is to live as a “host” of people.
The leader as host believes it’s in human nature to want to contribute, to want to work well together and to be generous-hearted.
And so his/her commitment is to create the conditions to evoke leadership from everyone.
Meg had a great suggestion for beginning to evoke that leadership in organizations: open-agenda meetings to think and learn together, especially from our past failures and mistakes.
I’d certainly like to test interest in this from my colleagues.
The day was like a spa for other reasons: intentional times for reflection, gentle live music at various intervals and even a couple of prayers to begin the day and lunch.
Finally there was the “smell” of the culture of the place that hosted Meg — Providence Care, a health-care facility based in Kingston.
The welcoming, respect and enthusiasm coming from those gathered drenched the experience in a beauty and elegance I’d be happy to relive. I understood that this culture is no accident, that a leadership program created by the organization’s leadership and learning services director Lauri Prest is at the root. By Lauri’s own admission, the program has the wisdom of thinkers like Meg, World Café co-founder Juanita Brown and community activist Peter Block sprinkled all over it.
A warm warm thanks to Lauri for the invitation to be part of this day.
I went to understand and to observe. I came away renewed, refreshed, reassured and committed to trying some new things.
