Wednesday, May 14, 2008
Friday, February 1, 2008
LEADERSHIP
Interview with Cleophas about his view on leadership.
LEADERSHIP
When you hear the word leadership, what is the first thing that comes to your mind?
When I here the word leadership, proper management of oneself lingers in my mind before I could go to the second -personality. Everybody is a leader of his/her own, and has to extend it beyond. One must have self direction on any leadership dimension.
In a family for example there will be a person responsible for the issues governing that entire family. This does not entail a bad reflection on leadership as from this level as it is a self approach.
In the whole world, almost everybody have ambition of grasping a chance of being a leader, however due to constraints and limited chances only few people end up lucky occupying them. They are either chosen or elected as in the case of political arena and development organizations. The kind of leadership one may employ will depend on the influence of self or inner feeling. This is a primary evaluation on leadership set up which proceeds to be vested in the groups of people in question or the entire nation.
When did you last experience good leadership and what was so good about it?
Good leadership, which is always not the case with everybody, is very difficult to acquaint with as this depends on an individual and different group of people. Everybody have a say on this depending on several aspects. First good leadership I experienced was in the year 1995 when our school chairman Mr. Josephat Odongo resuscitated it from collapsing. Management under the previous chairman was turbulent and had no pronounced vision. No committee and general meetings were held to update the community on the way forward. Buildings deteriorated, teachers parents’ relationship flopped, indistinctness and corruption was encouraged among others.
With the introduction of new leadership skills and management of Mr. Josephat, things turned not to be the same with the high profiled reconciliated bureaucracy. Within a period of two years, community including me was commemorating on the achievements. The drawbacks had been solved and cohesive relationship between the stake holders of the school was maintained. This stimulated the general education performance which was a success to the whole community and beyond.
If you were to give three advices on how to do good leadership, what would it bee?
Qualities of leadership depend on an individual, and are always not the same from place to place, time to time and from a leader one know to others we do not know.
One, to me a good leader should be transparent and accountable to the people he is leading. Most leaders keep all issues to themselves which makes it very difficult for other members to access important activities. Everybody within a given organization should be at liberty, and be updated appropriately. All members rely on their leaders when it comes to representation in all official functions, they should be ready for this without discrimination of a section of the members. This is a vital responsibility in leadership.
Two, a good leader should not be dictatorial, lead as per the wish of the members but not one man’s decision. Dictatorial leaders asphyxiate freedom of members by imposing a one way leadership style. This kind of leadership is highly discouraged in the current societies. It impedes development and good leadership structures yielding frictions and poor performance of organizations, states etc. In most cases, this kind of leadership is experienced with state leaders who monopolize all the activities for themselves but occasionally backfires due to pressure from members/citizen resulting in chaos and bloodshed for years.
Three, a leader should be corruption free. Funds are always mismanaged by leaders who are untrustworthy and dishonest. Most of projects, organizations etc cannot stand firm on their own due to financial scandals. Members cannot feel the positive impact of the project as they may end up with negative balance sheet at the end of the year. Such kind of leaders should be replaced once they are noticed. Donors are scared in funding such kind of projects and countries.
If you were to give three advices on what to defiantly avoid if you want to be a good leader?
Most leaders have a propensity to keep vital information of their leadership to themselves; this usually brings mixed reaction as a section of the members are sidelined in some effective participatory issues. The common advice I may pass to leaders so as to observe good leadership include discrimination of some members in any stage of participation. Two, avoid mismanagement of funds allocated for development or running projects.
What is the biggest difference between an employee and a leader?
Employee is anybody hired to offer services in return of payment. He/she is usually paid in terms of money or barter system. A leader is any person who guides, or rules others. An employee can be selected to lead his/her co workers within the region of work.
What questions would you have asked around leadership?
Why do most leaders neglect those whom they guide or lead? They tend to work with minority resulting in dictatorial type of headship. Do they honor the oath they take when taking up the functions of office? When a group, citizen etc achieve positive impacts, who do we praise, the leader or the members? These are some of the questions I would ask around leadership.
If you were to compare leadership with an animal what kind of animal would that be?
Animals have different behaviors, whether domestic or wild. A good leader portrays characteristics of giraffe.
Bad leaders tend to forget easily like the animal bellow.
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
Good questions
Several times during my internship i had one of my big assumptions confirmed yet again.
One of the most important things for opening up to the good discussions is asking the right questions.
But also asking these in the right way.
To help myself and other find the right questions, i made a prototype for a public list of good questions. tjek it ud
http://blog.kreativproces.dk/
for a more comprehensive guide to asking good questions read this book
http://www.amazon.com/Encyclopedia-Positive-Questions-Organization-Appreciative/dp/1893435334
One of the most important things for opening up to the good discussions is asking the right questions.
But also asking these in the right way.
To help myself and other find the right questions, i made a prototype for a public list of good questions. tjek it ud
http://blog.kreativproces.dk/
for a more comprehensive guide to asking good questions read this book
http://www.amazon.com/Encyclopedia-Positive-Questions-Organization-Appreciative/dp/1893435334
Uncertainty and ambiguous situations
Ambiguous
Pronunciation: \am-ˈbi-gyə-wəs\
Function: adjective
Etymology: Latin ambiguus, from ambigere to be undecided, from ambi- + agere to drive — more at agent
Date: 1528
1 a: doubtful or uncertain especially from obscurity or indistinctness
Uncertainty
Pronunciation:
\-tən-tē\
Function:
noun
Date:
14th century
1 : the quality or state of being uncertain : doubt 2 : something that is uncertain
synonyms uncertainty doubt dubiety skepticism suspicion mistrust mean lack of sureness about someone or something. uncertainty may range from a falling short of certainty to an almost complete lack of conviction or knowledge especially about an outcome or result
Learn more about "uncertainty" and related topics at
Dealing with uncertainty and ambiguous situations is a valuable skill in modern society. A lot of the things we do gives us experience in during this. But how offend do we focus on training this ability ?
Do you but down a person in front of a piano and hope that he will gain enough experience with playing that he knows how to play, or do you give him tools and techniques that can help him and evaluate his performance and give advice for improvement ?
Clarification of expectations
One of the first tings we learn as kaospilots is
” when entering into a project, be sure to make a:
CLARIFICATION OF EXPECTATIONS
After the first project I took part in we jointly said:
“ we could have benefited from a more clear
CLARIFICATION OF EXPECTATIONS”
In most of the projects I have taken part in during my 2 and ½ years at this alternative flying school, I have had one learning after most projects:
“In some areas we should have had more:
CLARIFICATION OF EXPECTATIONS”
During my internship the was a nagging thing. Something that was not completely right. I tried to talk with my contact person about this and he tried to talk to me about it, but we didn't seem to be able to. When we finally cracked the bobble and talked about it, we agreed:
“a big part of it was, the lack of:
CLARIFICATION OF EXPECTATIONS”
when will i learn ?
” when entering into a project, be sure to make a:
CLARIFICATION OF EXPECTATIONS
After the first project I took part in we jointly said:
“ we could have benefited from a more clear
CLARIFICATION OF EXPECTATIONS”
In most of the projects I have taken part in during my 2 and ½ years at this alternative flying school, I have had one learning after most projects:
“In some areas we should have had more:
CLARIFICATION OF EXPECTATIONS”
During my internship the was a nagging thing. Something that was not completely right. I tried to talk with my contact person about this and he tried to talk to me about it, but we didn't seem to be able to. When we finally cracked the bobble and talked about it, we agreed:
“a big part of it was, the lack of:
CLARIFICATION OF EXPECTATIONS”
when will i learn ?
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
Lens: Epitaph (your leadership story from the past 8 weeks)
Kaospilots:
You have been far from home collecting observations, insights, stories, and artifacts. Last week, we looked at the stories that leaders tell. Now that your internship is ending, what is your leadership story? Some sample starting points: What have you learned about yourself? Business? The world?
I know "Epitaph" seems morbid -- you aren't dead -- but the image of an inscription, the words you would carve in stone to commemorate a rich life, won't leave my head.
Curious to see,
Ben
You have been far from home collecting observations, insights, stories, and artifacts. Last week, we looked at the stories that leaders tell. Now that your internship is ending, what is your leadership story? Some sample starting points: What have you learned about yourself? Business? The world?
I know "Epitaph" seems morbid -- you aren't dead -- but the image of an inscription, the words you would carve in stone to commemorate a rich life, won't leave my head.
Curious to see,
Ben
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Friday, December 7, 2007
Thursday, December 6, 2007
Leadership according to George Heyman, President of the BCGEU
I had the oppoortunity to talk to the president of the union, where I am for his thoughts on leadership. He's an experienced player in the game and you can read his thought here:
What is leadership to you?
I don’t think you can separate leadership from the way “leaders” interact with people. On the surface I guess you would say: “people they’re leading”, but I think it’s really people you’re representing, people you’re interacting with and people you’re working with. Good leaders have the ability to inspire both through what they do and what they say. I don’t think you can separate those two things, although I suppose there are leaders who talk a good line, but don’t actually do what they talk about. I’d argue that they may not be very good leaders – at least in a complete sense. I think leaders lead by example and take a broad view of things.
I think one of the things that inspires people about leaders is that leaders see things in a context. They don’t see things as isolated events or issues, but see the links between things and are able to bring these links to life for the people they’re talking to.
I think good leadership is active listening. Not only listening when you’re being in a position where someone’s talking, or you’re in a meeting where people have something to say, but putting yourself in positions where you’re there to specifically hear from other people. To listen to them, to get in touch with them, to find out what’s important for them, to find out what they think needs to be done. I think you have to respect what people are saying and you have to respect what’s important for them.
Along with listening I also think you have to share a vision with people, and sometimes push them to think bigger than they have before. Challenge their assumptions. Not in a hostile and argumentative way, but I think there are ways to do that which don’t appear invalidating to them, but instead link what they’re thinking or saying to other things they may not have considered or thought about. Things that you think are important. Because what’s the point of assuming a leadership position if you don’t actually believe something – and this won’t always be exactly the same as the people you’re talking to.
I think good leadership is the ability to move people or organizations in a new direction, or at least a slightly new direction, and do it in a way people understand, support and – at best – even think they suggested to you. Which is not easy. It’s really a process of figuring out if you believe in something and you believe that people in the organization need to think about something. How do you get people to think about that in terms of their own experience? How do you get them to arrive at the same place that you did, maybe with quite a bit of help and gentle direction, without actually saying “Here’s the new program A-B-C-D-E and that’s it. Do you believe it or not?”
I don’t think that means hiding what you think from people. I think it means trusting people’s own intelligence and their ability to figure things out in their own way. They maybe can’t articulate it in the same way you can. They may not get there as quickly. They may not see all of it, but most people have the ability to understand things that are important and just make good common sense for how we can live together better.
I think good leaders are open to new ideas. In fact I think good leaders seek out new ideas and look for new challenges. I think they pay attention to the world around them, so that they’re aware of new things that are happening. They’re aware of what’s happening outside their immediate sphere of interest.
Do you distinguish between what is outer work and what is inner work personally?
I do, but they are not entirely separate – but it’s a good point. I suppose you could be a leader that people looked up to and personally be completely out of touch with your own feelings and emotions and be a complete disaster in your own interpersonal relationships. But at some point people are going to figure that out - especially the people who are close to you. To relate to people in a way that isn’t condescending, but genuinely interested in them, you have to be in touch with yourself and have the ability to be self-aware and self-critical.
You have to recognize when you’ve made a mistake. Whether one on one or in large groups, you have to be absolutely unafraid to admit when you’re wrong and apologize for it. You also can’t continue to be wrong and apologize, but instead I think you have to stop and change your behavior.
Common traits of leaders:
I think most leaders with the exception of, probably the rare exception of, some people who are genuine spiritual leaders have some common traits. Some of these would be a strong sense of ego, desire to be a center of attention and can be a bit arrogant. But those are traits that can be channeled in a positive way. I don’t know if they’re positive in a personal sense. I think every human being struggles with those and probably has to wrestle with them if we’re going to be more at peace with ourselves. And in order to be more at peace in one’s relations to other people and to connect with other people in a more genuine way, you do have to be more at peace with yourself and you do have to at least let some of these personally driven qualities settle down a bit. I don’t think they’re necessarily bad qualities, if you’re self-aware about them and you understand them in context and you don’t let them control your life.
Are people born leaders or can you train to become one?
If you had asked me in my early twenties or my teens if I was going to become a leader, I would have said no. I often tell people that I was very shy in high school. I’m basically a very shy person. People who know me now simply don’t believe that, since I speak in public all the time and I campaign for election. It’s true nonetheless, and I taught myself to be outgoing. I do still have lots of times when I don’t want to be around anyone, I just want to be very private, quiet and shut things out. That’s a piece of me that remains.
A person I knew once did my Chinese horoscope and said: “This says that you’re an actual leader. How do you feel about that?” And I just said: “Me? – You’ve got to be kidding. I have no desire to be a leader at all.” But it’s funny – I never forgot it and within a couple of years I found myself in a position where, if I wanted to do what I wanted to do, it involved putting myself more forward. So I think the outward skills can be learned. The inner skills, being somebody who is interested in what other people think, cares about them, wants to talk to them and more importantly wants to listen – they’re not learned skills. You either have them or you don’t. I think we all have the personality we have. We can change a bit and we can learn a bit. I don’t think we can ever completely change. I think people who have no innate desire to be a leader can’t learn to become leaders.
Do you have any role models?
People ask me that question occasionally and it’s a difficult question to answer. I am often embarrassed, but I don’t seem to have a lot of role models, but there are people I respect. There are a lot of historical figures I respect for what they did, but are they role models? I don’t know. I think of people who were active in the civil rights movement and people who took a lot of risks to help other people in dangerous times.
Of people, who I know and have met, there’s Bob White, who was president of the Canadian Labor Congress. I respected him a lot and one of the things that I respected about him was that he didn’t look through you to see if there was somebody more important that he should be talking to. I am not proud to admit this, but often when I’m talking to people I have to remind myself of what I learned from Bob. When you’re talking to somebody, give him or her your full attention. If you only have four minutes, tell them at the end that’s all you have and don’t spend six minutes looking around nervously for the next person to talk to. Bob really did listen - even if he didn’t know you or had any reason to think it was important to talk to you, other than that you obviously wanted to talk to him.
What is leadership to you?
I don’t think you can separate leadership from the way “leaders” interact with people. On the surface I guess you would say: “people they’re leading”, but I think it’s really people you’re representing, people you’re interacting with and people you’re working with. Good leaders have the ability to inspire both through what they do and what they say. I don’t think you can separate those two things, although I suppose there are leaders who talk a good line, but don’t actually do what they talk about. I’d argue that they may not be very good leaders – at least in a complete sense. I think leaders lead by example and take a broad view of things.
I think one of the things that inspires people about leaders is that leaders see things in a context. They don’t see things as isolated events or issues, but see the links between things and are able to bring these links to life for the people they’re talking to.
I think good leadership is active listening. Not only listening when you’re being in a position where someone’s talking, or you’re in a meeting where people have something to say, but putting yourself in positions where you’re there to specifically hear from other people. To listen to them, to get in touch with them, to find out what’s important for them, to find out what they think needs to be done. I think you have to respect what people are saying and you have to respect what’s important for them.
Along with listening I also think you have to share a vision with people, and sometimes push them to think bigger than they have before. Challenge their assumptions. Not in a hostile and argumentative way, but I think there are ways to do that which don’t appear invalidating to them, but instead link what they’re thinking or saying to other things they may not have considered or thought about. Things that you think are important. Because what’s the point of assuming a leadership position if you don’t actually believe something – and this won’t always be exactly the same as the people you’re talking to.
I think good leadership is the ability to move people or organizations in a new direction, or at least a slightly new direction, and do it in a way people understand, support and – at best – even think they suggested to you. Which is not easy. It’s really a process of figuring out if you believe in something and you believe that people in the organization need to think about something. How do you get people to think about that in terms of their own experience? How do you get them to arrive at the same place that you did, maybe with quite a bit of help and gentle direction, without actually saying “Here’s the new program A-B-C-D-E and that’s it. Do you believe it or not?”
I don’t think that means hiding what you think from people. I think it means trusting people’s own intelligence and their ability to figure things out in their own way. They maybe can’t articulate it in the same way you can. They may not get there as quickly. They may not see all of it, but most people have the ability to understand things that are important and just make good common sense for how we can live together better.
I think good leaders are open to new ideas. In fact I think good leaders seek out new ideas and look for new challenges. I think they pay attention to the world around them, so that they’re aware of new things that are happening. They’re aware of what’s happening outside their immediate sphere of interest.
Do you distinguish between what is outer work and what is inner work personally?
I do, but they are not entirely separate – but it’s a good point. I suppose you could be a leader that people looked up to and personally be completely out of touch with your own feelings and emotions and be a complete disaster in your own interpersonal relationships. But at some point people are going to figure that out - especially the people who are close to you. To relate to people in a way that isn’t condescending, but genuinely interested in them, you have to be in touch with yourself and have the ability to be self-aware and self-critical.
You have to recognize when you’ve made a mistake. Whether one on one or in large groups, you have to be absolutely unafraid to admit when you’re wrong and apologize for it. You also can’t continue to be wrong and apologize, but instead I think you have to stop and change your behavior.
Common traits of leaders:
I think most leaders with the exception of, probably the rare exception of, some people who are genuine spiritual leaders have some common traits. Some of these would be a strong sense of ego, desire to be a center of attention and can be a bit arrogant. But those are traits that can be channeled in a positive way. I don’t know if they’re positive in a personal sense. I think every human being struggles with those and probably has to wrestle with them if we’re going to be more at peace with ourselves. And in order to be more at peace in one’s relations to other people and to connect with other people in a more genuine way, you do have to be more at peace with yourself and you do have to at least let some of these personally driven qualities settle down a bit. I don’t think they’re necessarily bad qualities, if you’re self-aware about them and you understand them in context and you don’t let them control your life.
Are people born leaders or can you train to become one?
If you had asked me in my early twenties or my teens if I was going to become a leader, I would have said no. I often tell people that I was very shy in high school. I’m basically a very shy person. People who know me now simply don’t believe that, since I speak in public all the time and I campaign for election. It’s true nonetheless, and I taught myself to be outgoing. I do still have lots of times when I don’t want to be around anyone, I just want to be very private, quiet and shut things out. That’s a piece of me that remains.
A person I knew once did my Chinese horoscope and said: “This says that you’re an actual leader. How do you feel about that?” And I just said: “Me? – You’ve got to be kidding. I have no desire to be a leader at all.” But it’s funny – I never forgot it and within a couple of years I found myself in a position where, if I wanted to do what I wanted to do, it involved putting myself more forward. So I think the outward skills can be learned. The inner skills, being somebody who is interested in what other people think, cares about them, wants to talk to them and more importantly wants to listen – they’re not learned skills. You either have them or you don’t. I think we all have the personality we have. We can change a bit and we can learn a bit. I don’t think we can ever completely change. I think people who have no innate desire to be a leader can’t learn to become leaders.
Do you have any role models?
People ask me that question occasionally and it’s a difficult question to answer. I am often embarrassed, but I don’t seem to have a lot of role models, but there are people I respect. There are a lot of historical figures I respect for what they did, but are they role models? I don’t know. I think of people who were active in the civil rights movement and people who took a lot of risks to help other people in dangerous times.
Of people, who I know and have met, there’s Bob White, who was president of the Canadian Labor Congress. I respected him a lot and one of the things that I respected about him was that he didn’t look through you to see if there was somebody more important that he should be talking to. I am not proud to admit this, but often when I’m talking to people I have to remind myself of what I learned from Bob. When you’re talking to somebody, give him or her your full attention. If you only have four minutes, tell them at the end that’s all you have and don’t spend six minutes looking around nervously for the next person to talk to. Bob really did listen - even if he didn’t know you or had any reason to think it was important to talk to you, other than that you obviously wanted to talk to him.
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Lens: Stories.
One of a leader's most important roles is that of storyteller. Stories can create points of contact, provide context, and convey passion. They can also do the opposite if delivered and/or positioned poorly.
You have been in your internships for several weeks leading and following. Spend the next week listening, watching, and recording the leaders.
What are the stories that the leaders of your internship organizations are telling?
For this particular lens, please act as a spy -- don't ask the leaders for their stories directly. See the way that they use stories in the regular course of their roles as leaders.
How do they function? What is the substance? The messages? The outcomes?
You have been in your internships for several weeks leading and following. Spend the next week listening, watching, and recording the leaders.
What are the stories that the leaders of your internship organizations are telling?
For this particular lens, please act as a spy -- don't ask the leaders for their stories directly. See the way that they use stories in the regular course of their roles as leaders.
How do they function? What is the substance? The messages? The outcomes?
Statements and Reflective Questions
90% of the designers are designing for the 10% of the world’s population. What do you think about this statement?
Nigeria’s growing film industry, is considered the world’s third largest after Hollywood and India’s Bollywood. What to you think about the growing film industry in the developing world? How important is this for the countries and it’s inhabitants?
The $100 laptop has gone up to $200 (it costs $45 to produce). What do you think about that? Do you think that the laptop is the right way to educate (and invest money in) the children of the developing world?
South Africa's Gautrain is the biggest railroad project in the world, an R25-billion rapid rail link between Johannesburg, Pretoria and the International Airport and will transport 135,000 passengers a day when it’s finished in 2011. The tickets will be way expensive for the poor commuter, those who might need the train the most? What are your thoughts around this?
Dr Mo Ibrahim is the founder of Celtel International and one of Africa’s most successful business leaders. The company has invested more than $750m in Africa, helping to bring the benefits of mobile communications to millions of people across the continent. In what way do you think mobile phones could improve life for poor people?
Congo Republic is on it’s way of producing biofuel from sugar cane and palm oil. Africa produces a range of crops that can be used to make biofuel, including sugar cane, sugar beet, maize, sorghum and cassava -- all of which can be used to make ethanol -- and peanuts, whose oil can be used to power diesel engines. What do you think about making environmentally friendly gasoline out of food, when Africa already suffers from starvation?
Nigeria’s growing film industry, is considered the world’s third largest after Hollywood and India’s Bollywood. What to you think about the growing film industry in the developing world? How important is this for the countries and it’s inhabitants?
The $100 laptop has gone up to $200 (it costs $45 to produce). What do you think about that? Do you think that the laptop is the right way to educate (and invest money in) the children of the developing world?
South Africa's Gautrain is the biggest railroad project in the world, an R25-billion rapid rail link between Johannesburg, Pretoria and the International Airport and will transport 135,000 passengers a day when it’s finished in 2011. The tickets will be way expensive for the poor commuter, those who might need the train the most? What are your thoughts around this?
Dr Mo Ibrahim is the founder of Celtel International and one of Africa’s most successful business leaders. The company has invested more than $750m in Africa, helping to bring the benefits of mobile communications to millions of people across the continent. In what way do you think mobile phones could improve life for poor people?
Congo Republic is on it’s way of producing biofuel from sugar cane and palm oil. Africa produces a range of crops that can be used to make biofuel, including sugar cane, sugar beet, maize, sorghum and cassava -- all of which can be used to make ethanol -- and peanuts, whose oil can be used to power diesel engines. What do you think about making environmentally friendly gasoline out of food, when Africa already suffers from starvation?
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Thinkertoy
Collective imagination.
The task was to build fast and build big.
It allows going from abstract thinking to making the concept tangible.
It is a realizing tool, it can help processing, sharpen and adjust your own thoughts around a concept or an idea.
It gives space for further development: What stops you from going from this level to that corner? What could be the middle piece? Should it be a loose structure? How flexible should it be? Should it be able to move from place to place? And if – what are the wheels made from?
Leadership is balance
135.000.000 hits is what you get when you google the word leadership. It’s a term we use in many aspects, both at work, private and as individuals.
To be a successful leader today is not an easy task, because the demands from the top, the employees, the customers are often in contradiction. A successful leader needs to balance these demands if he strives for success.
He needs to be able to balance between, structure and flexibility, control and motivation, decision power and corporation, and between power of penetration and involvement.
A good leader needs to be able to balance the hard values, the business economy, the hardware, with the soft values, the ability to interact and motivate employees, the software.
One could say that in our modern society the software has become hardware. People have become more self-driven and the competencies from the old school leader is no longer of use.
As Signe writes in her blog contribution about leadership, the challenges of the leader today, is the leader himself. It is who we are that determines the leadership.
Two different leaders in the same circumstances doing the same thing can bring about completely different outcomes, depending on the inner place from which each operates, meaning that successful leadership depends on the ability to understand the inner space of our-selves.
This again leads me back to balance. A successful leader needs to be able to balance the intelligence of both the heart and the hand, not just the head.
To be a successful leader today is not an easy task, because the demands from the top, the employees, the customers are often in contradiction. A successful leader needs to balance these demands if he strives for success.
He needs to be able to balance between, structure and flexibility, control and motivation, decision power and corporation, and between power of penetration and involvement.
A good leader needs to be able to balance the hard values, the business economy, the hardware, with the soft values, the ability to interact and motivate employees, the software.
One could say that in our modern society the software has become hardware. People have become more self-driven and the competencies from the old school leader is no longer of use.
As Signe writes in her blog contribution about leadership, the challenges of the leader today, is the leader himself. It is who we are that determines the leadership.
Two different leaders in the same circumstances doing the same thing can bring about completely different outcomes, depending on the inner place from which each operates, meaning that successful leadership depends on the ability to understand the inner space of our-selves.
This again leads me back to balance. A successful leader needs to be able to balance the intelligence of both the heart and the hand, not just the head.
Millennial generation reflection!
Since I'm working with leadership issues and mainly issues concerning young managerial staff that's what I reflect on most right now. I found this qoute the other day. It's reflection from a person in a high position talking about young leaders and their values. Or the people in the generations referred to as the generation X (born in the 70's) and the millennial generation (80's).
Translated into english:
"We know quite well what the new generation of bosses/managerial staff demands, that means the ones born back in the days when I worked in the Eastern Hospital (just a hospital in sweden). They are individualists that want to see the managerial role as a creating act, as a project similar to starting your own company. They are thousands of miles from yesterdays visions concerning collective struggle and victory. On the other hand concepts such as "life project" and "win-win" fits well. The insight that we are all not created equal and not interchangeable, yes it's as obvious as unproblematic."
The original text in swedish:
"Vi vet rätt väl vad den nya generationens chefer kräver, det vill säga de som föddes på den tiden jag var på Östra sjukhuset. De är individualister som vill se chefskapet som en skapande akt, som ett projekt inte olikt att "starta eget". De befinner sig så där tusen mil från gårdagens visioner om kollektiv kamp och seger. Däremot ligger begrepp som "livsprojekt" och "vinn-vinn" bra på tungan. Insikten att vi alla varken är skapta lika eller är utbytbara, ja den är lika självklar som oproblematisk."
I'm not sure if I agree or disagree. Well personally I think i disagree but it seems to fit with other reasearch made on this topic.
When hearing what people think and reading research on people born in the 80's it gets really distressing for me. Is this how other generations view us? Wow? This is of course taken from a very general perspective.
The thing that makes my head spin a bit when reading this is that it is not all bad and not all good. It feels like I can take different perspectives on the words and get both. Very torn here. Maybe it's because it's to close and I can't see how this fit because IT IS part of my generation and I'm standing in the middle of it.
I think the part I have most problems with is the last sentence. When I grew up I was taught that everybody is created equal but at the same time I can see the benifits for society if we stop viewing ourselfs as created equal but having equal rights. That differences are okay.
Please tell me how you interpret this. And it's not for my work, I'm genuinly curious.
Take care
Peter
Collective Imagination
Collective Imagination
Or: Issues around applying western business trends in Bangla context.
“It has happened so many times now: I get these new graduates down from Denmark. They arrive, filled with self-confidence, knowing the newest and finest theories of management and organizations, and their objective is usually to completely revolutionize the production processes at either our factory, or some of our partners. Then three months passes, and the same people are completely broken: all their ideas and theories has proved not to work at all; nothing of their communication is reaching further than the main office; their career in Bangladesh has been a complete failure; their faith in themselves been broken”
- The managing director of a Danish textile import company in Dhaka
I have to admit it: I had absolutely no idea about what to write, when I saw the lens for the week.
Collective Imagination. … Written so it would interest (western) business life… In Bangladesh…
I was completely blank, and a bit annoyed which usually happens to me when I don’t know what to do.
Because, really, collective imagination as we understand it, with people from all layers of the organization coming together on equal terms, inventing, refining, perfecting the business, is just not happening here.
Focus, priorities and mentality here are so different that most people coming here from the West to take advantage of the ridiculously cheap labor and wide legal frames for business are bound for not-so-positive surprises.
I doubt it will be possible to, for instance (these examples are all from real life, either from personal experience or from managers of multinational companies in the area) to find anything in any management book about the following subjects:
• How to make people understand basic hygiene, as in: not peeing on the floor (the person I spoke with about this had to send all his Bangla employees to classes in toilet-use, as several of his quality controllers (!) would pee on the floor rather than in the toilet. In the end, he also had to threaten the employees that they wouldn’t be allowed in the toilet at all, if their behavior didn’t change).
• How to bribe the vice president of the national bank of Bangladesh. A managing director I spoke with had to, in order to be allowed into the financial system for large businesses here, pay a “fee” to the vice president of the central bank of Bangladesh. The amount of the “fee” was rather miniscule: only 3000 Taka (about 40$), per document served by him. And this is something that, probably, all international companies need to pay, in order to be able to do business in the country.
• Teaching quality control managers that it does matter whether a shirt is 3 millimeter longer on one side than the other.
• Dealing with suppliers of various services, who will bluntly demand 3 times the real value of every service, because you are foreigner. This applies to the rickshaw driver, taxi driver, shop owner, cloth manufacturer, construction company representative, state official, etc.
• Bridging the gap between what we, as westerners, understand as quality, and what people here perceive as quality. This gap is huge. So big, that to thoroughly describe it would require either the help of a poet, or an airplane, so people can experience it for themselves.
• The Bangla, as a people, seem to be characterized by fear of doing anything wrong. Thus, a request that would be easily accomplishable, but not specified in the work-description, will often be met by a “not possible” and a Bangla with scared, confused eyes, completely out of pedagogic reach of understanding the simplicity of the task. This requires constant attention from “decision makers”, or supervisors, as they are called here. Generally, it is quite hard to, in both direct and abstract meaning, order anything that is not on the menu.
• Understanding that many of the basic principles we in the West take for granted simply do not apply here. One of these is the notion of “Work”. Here, “to work” usually means being at a place physically for a certain period of time. While this is not an unusual attitude for Western people, the magnitude of this “value”, as one might call it, means that people will apathetically sit idle, or socialize if possible, for a duration of time that would make even the laziest Danish teenager go absolutely bananas. Indeed, the practiced approach by most successful companies here is the one of strict Taylor-ism, monitoring the workers on their every move. So far, this has proved to be the approach that works the best. But the Western managing directors, being from cultures celebrating equality (YES they are!), will usually have to adopt a paternalistic approach to the companies they are responsible for, or perish.
Along with the above-written, understanding that the relations of equality and maybe even friendship between leader and lead seen in the West, just will not work here. All the ones I have talked with on this issue has expressed the same conclusion: don’t get involved with the “staff” in any relations other than strictly hierarchical business. The majority of people here are just not capable of handling that. Whenever someone in a boss’ position (or just a white person) starts treating people from below the power pyramid like equals, and perhaps even start visiting their homes, something changes inside the recipient of the friendliness. The person will start calling you brother, call you at odd moments (like: three AM) “just because he missed you”, tell you that he will be your best friend forever, and will think about you “till he is no more”, and more along these lines. He will also begin to make unreasonable request and expect special treatment, from coworkers and from you. Amongst the coworkers you haven’t visited, or the coworkers whose birthday cake you didn’t taste, in contrast to the “favored” employee’s (Again: YES, this is from real life), hostile rivalry begins, polluting the work atmosphere, reducing productivity.
And apart from that, it is just annoying.
Should the person be of the opposite sex, one can almost be certain that she will eventually start writing you romantic poems and expect you to love her forever (This has happened to me three times in five weeks now). As a consequence, platonic relationships between the genders is a rarity. I for one, have no desire of entering new ones.
Why is it like that, I don’t know. But an assumption is that people are simply socialized to not being able to deal with friendly relations to superiors and inferiors. Already from school, the students are taught not to ask questions and to accept whatever they are told. And this will go on all the way from family life, where the patriarch rules, to the job, where the boss solemnly calls the shots. So when someone from a superior position treats an “inferior” person as equal, the person reacts with a joy resembling winning the lottery jackpot.
I just realized that I broke my writing-discipline, and started to describe many different things in the same paragraphs. … Sorry about that. .. This subject is just so enormous and complicated that it could compose walls of books. Of course the above-written does not apply to everyone in the country. But I will claim that you will most certainly be faced with the issues if you behave as you would normally do in your own country.
I hope that what I have written have not offended you or annoyed you in any way. As a citizen of a country where equality is praised higher than anything else, observations included, I know that I am touching a subject that many will have a natural negative reaction to. My hope is that this will not apply to you.
Rather, I hope you will take this for what it is: a list of a number of the issues you will most likely face if you have interactions with Bangladeshi people in Bangladesh, especially is you plan to run a business in the country.
Thank you for reading
- Anders
Or: Issues around applying western business trends in Bangla context.
“It has happened so many times now: I get these new graduates down from Denmark. They arrive, filled with self-confidence, knowing the newest and finest theories of management and organizations, and their objective is usually to completely revolutionize the production processes at either our factory, or some of our partners. Then three months passes, and the same people are completely broken: all their ideas and theories has proved not to work at all; nothing of their communication is reaching further than the main office; their career in Bangladesh has been a complete failure; their faith in themselves been broken”
- The managing director of a Danish textile import company in Dhaka
I have to admit it: I had absolutely no idea about what to write, when I saw the lens for the week.
Collective Imagination. … Written so it would interest (western) business life… In Bangladesh…
I was completely blank, and a bit annoyed which usually happens to me when I don’t know what to do.
Because, really, collective imagination as we understand it, with people from all layers of the organization coming together on equal terms, inventing, refining, perfecting the business, is just not happening here.
Focus, priorities and mentality here are so different that most people coming here from the West to take advantage of the ridiculously cheap labor and wide legal frames for business are bound for not-so-positive surprises.
I doubt it will be possible to, for instance (these examples are all from real life, either from personal experience or from managers of multinational companies in the area) to find anything in any management book about the following subjects:
• How to make people understand basic hygiene, as in: not peeing on the floor (the person I spoke with about this had to send all his Bangla employees to classes in toilet-use, as several of his quality controllers (!) would pee on the floor rather than in the toilet. In the end, he also had to threaten the employees that they wouldn’t be allowed in the toilet at all, if their behavior didn’t change).
• How to bribe the vice president of the national bank of Bangladesh. A managing director I spoke with had to, in order to be allowed into the financial system for large businesses here, pay a “fee” to the vice president of the central bank of Bangladesh. The amount of the “fee” was rather miniscule: only 3000 Taka (about 40$), per document served by him. And this is something that, probably, all international companies need to pay, in order to be able to do business in the country.
• Teaching quality control managers that it does matter whether a shirt is 3 millimeter longer on one side than the other.
• Dealing with suppliers of various services, who will bluntly demand 3 times the real value of every service, because you are foreigner. This applies to the rickshaw driver, taxi driver, shop owner, cloth manufacturer, construction company representative, state official, etc.
• Bridging the gap between what we, as westerners, understand as quality, and what people here perceive as quality. This gap is huge. So big, that to thoroughly describe it would require either the help of a poet, or an airplane, so people can experience it for themselves.
• The Bangla, as a people, seem to be characterized by fear of doing anything wrong. Thus, a request that would be easily accomplishable, but not specified in the work-description, will often be met by a “not possible” and a Bangla with scared, confused eyes, completely out of pedagogic reach of understanding the simplicity of the task. This requires constant attention from “decision makers”, or supervisors, as they are called here. Generally, it is quite hard to, in both direct and abstract meaning, order anything that is not on the menu.
• Understanding that many of the basic principles we in the West take for granted simply do not apply here. One of these is the notion of “Work”. Here, “to work” usually means being at a place physically for a certain period of time. While this is not an unusual attitude for Western people, the magnitude of this “value”, as one might call it, means that people will apathetically sit idle, or socialize if possible, for a duration of time that would make even the laziest Danish teenager go absolutely bananas. Indeed, the practiced approach by most successful companies here is the one of strict Taylor-ism, monitoring the workers on their every move. So far, this has proved to be the approach that works the best. But the Western managing directors, being from cultures celebrating equality (YES they are!), will usually have to adopt a paternalistic approach to the companies they are responsible for, or perish.
Along with the above-written, understanding that the relations of equality and maybe even friendship between leader and lead seen in the West, just will not work here. All the ones I have talked with on this issue has expressed the same conclusion: don’t get involved with the “staff” in any relations other than strictly hierarchical business. The majority of people here are just not capable of handling that. Whenever someone in a boss’ position (or just a white person) starts treating people from below the power pyramid like equals, and perhaps even start visiting their homes, something changes inside the recipient of the friendliness. The person will start calling you brother, call you at odd moments (like: three AM) “just because he missed you”, tell you that he will be your best friend forever, and will think about you “till he is no more”, and more along these lines. He will also begin to make unreasonable request and expect special treatment, from coworkers and from you. Amongst the coworkers you haven’t visited, or the coworkers whose birthday cake you didn’t taste, in contrast to the “favored” employee’s (Again: YES, this is from real life), hostile rivalry begins, polluting the work atmosphere, reducing productivity.
And apart from that, it is just annoying.
Should the person be of the opposite sex, one can almost be certain that she will eventually start writing you romantic poems and expect you to love her forever (This has happened to me three times in five weeks now). As a consequence, platonic relationships between the genders is a rarity. I for one, have no desire of entering new ones.
Why is it like that, I don’t know. But an assumption is that people are simply socialized to not being able to deal with friendly relations to superiors and inferiors. Already from school, the students are taught not to ask questions and to accept whatever they are told. And this will go on all the way from family life, where the patriarch rules, to the job, where the boss solemnly calls the shots. So when someone from a superior position treats an “inferior” person as equal, the person reacts with a joy resembling winning the lottery jackpot.
I just realized that I broke my writing-discipline, and started to describe many different things in the same paragraphs. … Sorry about that. .. This subject is just so enormous and complicated that it could compose walls of books. Of course the above-written does not apply to everyone in the country. But I will claim that you will most certainly be faced with the issues if you behave as you would normally do in your own country.
I hope that what I have written have not offended you or annoyed you in any way. As a citizen of a country where equality is praised higher than anything else, observations included, I know that I am touching a subject that many will have a natural negative reaction to. My hope is that this will not apply to you.
Rather, I hope you will take this for what it is: a list of a number of the issues you will most likely face if you have interactions with Bangladeshi people in Bangladesh, especially is you plan to run a business in the country.
Thank you for reading
- Anders
Monday, December 3, 2007
Sunday, December 2, 2007
reflection schmection i say.... i never know what to write in Blog titles....
Friday I decided to hijack one of my two colleagues from his other work, and forced him into a brainstorm with me as I kept running my head against the wall just sitting alone coming up with ideas for my self. I am to a large extent working entirely on my own... and am alone at the office most of the time.
Scenario: Simon sets the frame for a brainstorm: Be postive, build on each others ideas, quantity over quality, anything is possible and with a set timeframe.
Following this 2 minute explanation and assuring my brainstorming partners accept, I launch into heaping ideas on the table. Soon we have traveled far and wide, with many outrageous ideas, my specialty, and pages full of drawings, notes suggestions etc.
The time limit was of course broken, but that didn't matter as we were on a roll, or were "we"? At this point, I looked at the ideas in between us and they were all mine, barring maybe 2-3...
I had tried to nurture the ideas of my worthy companion but to no avail it seemed. And looking at them critically afterwards, they just did not seem to have the "stuff" to make it as a great idea. In fact my colleague had in this instance been subjected to a good portion of idea barfing from my side for a full 45 minutes!
I was kind of annoyed by this over the weekend, but then talking to Helene this evening, who is here visiting, it struck me that as a kaospilot i am nothing without an organistion with other people. All the tools and belief systems we are introduced to are entirely people dependent. Without people around to braistorm with, create visions, values, ideas, projects we are kind of worthless. Artists without any material. And what then when you like working alone like myself.....
In any case, the brainstorm had, with myself being the very active part with, to an extent, disregard for the other persons role in the game we were playing, turned out great from an idea result point of view. I was not able to come up with as many good ideas while working on my own. But when i took my kp tools and subjected another person to them, results came knocking on the door. Had the participation level been more equal, I am sure the ideas would have been better.... but thats besides the point. I went from having zero ideas to having a bundle because I involved another person..... elementary my dear Watson. Sometimes one is so quick to forget.
Scenario: Simon sets the frame for a brainstorm: Be postive, build on each others ideas, quantity over quality, anything is possible and with a set timeframe.
Following this 2 minute explanation and assuring my brainstorming partners accept, I launch into heaping ideas on the table. Soon we have traveled far and wide, with many outrageous ideas, my specialty, and pages full of drawings, notes suggestions etc.
The time limit was of course broken, but that didn't matter as we were on a roll, or were "we"? At this point, I looked at the ideas in between us and they were all mine, barring maybe 2-3...
I had tried to nurture the ideas of my worthy companion but to no avail it seemed. And looking at them critically afterwards, they just did not seem to have the "stuff" to make it as a great idea. In fact my colleague had in this instance been subjected to a good portion of idea barfing from my side for a full 45 minutes!
I was kind of annoyed by this over the weekend, but then talking to Helene this evening, who is here visiting, it struck me that as a kaospilot i am nothing without an organistion with other people. All the tools and belief systems we are introduced to are entirely people dependent. Without people around to braistorm with, create visions, values, ideas, projects we are kind of worthless. Artists without any material. And what then when you like working alone like myself.....
In any case, the brainstorm had, with myself being the very active part with, to an extent, disregard for the other persons role in the game we were playing, turned out great from an idea result point of view. I was not able to come up with as many good ideas while working on my own. But when i took my kp tools and subjected another person to them, results came knocking on the door. Had the participation level been more equal, I am sure the ideas would have been better.... but thats besides the point. I went from having zero ideas to having a bundle because I involved another person..... elementary my dear Watson. Sometimes one is so quick to forget.
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Why I like this blog
Because I am actually using the stuff written by everybody in my work right now, and therefore I found it brilliant and great. So thanks to all of you for giving inspiration to me.
A 'winter'version of Atlanta
Today I have send a little ‘winter’version of Atlanta home to Mejlgade, even though it is not winterish here at all.
In the office there is a whole collection of snow globes, there is one for every out-of-town-place they have been doing research.
The collection looks a bit like a tourist version of our google map: they are all displayed and telling a story about a project, e.g. once they did toilet observations, not just any toilet but the toilets in the Tower of London, so of course there is a globe from there.
Lens: Reflection.
I am just returning home from 48 hours of AMAZING thinking with 25 people from the University of North Carolina. Sorry to be posting so late. Thanks to Anna Lena for being anxious and guessing at a lens. And thanks to Kaospilot Tora Sefeldt Weltzer for helping me out this morning. That brave woman talked to small groups of 3-4 complete strangers every 15 minutes for over an hour via Skype. She gave them some fabulous inspiration for their objective, which is turning their undergraduate scholarship program into something that is MUCH more than an educational experience -- something that changes the world and creates a pipeline for people who follow their passions.
At the end of the entire session we asked them each for "One Word", words that they can't get out of their heads. The responses ranged from "inspired" and "excited" to "spinning" and "grateful". They were changed by the experience of open, honest discovery. And Play was changed in the process.
I am starting to feel the same way about Groundswell.
Cheers to the Kaospilots and all that you do. Your participation in this experiment gives me faith in the future of humanity. And I am not kidding.
With the Kaospilots as inspiration, this week's lens is Reflection. Let's take a week to reflect. What are we doing here? What were our expectations? Our goals? Our fears?
In the spirit of many recent postings, let's turn this blog inside out. What does this discussion, this experience, these words -- whatever Groundswell is -- mean to its stakeholders (Kaospilots, Your internship organizations, Play, Business, the World)?
What are doing well? What could be better?
Nothing is sacred here.
Let's play.
***And for your enjoyment, I submit a photo that I took of myself VERY late at night after all my guests had left the Halloween party I hosted at my home last year.***
Lens?
Are we getting a new lens soon? I'm so curious :)
Mmh, what could it be? Maybe we can open up a little guessing game till the lens is published and whoever is closest gets to Julefrokost for FREE because Kasper is paying for it. Sounds great?
I just got home from work and right now and Elisabeth is in the kitchen making dinner for the two of us. Her guess the lens will be sth about wrapping up.
My guess will be more to the challenging side - conflicts and how to deal with them.
Next guess, please?
Mmh, what could it be? Maybe we can open up a little guessing game till the lens is published and whoever is closest gets to Julefrokost for FREE because Kasper is paying for it. Sounds great?
I just got home from work and right now and Elisabeth is in the kitchen making dinner for the two of us. Her guess the lens will be sth about wrapping up.
My guess will be more to the challenging side - conflicts and how to deal with them.
Next guess, please?
Leadership and Power
In my reflections upon leadership I have started to ponder about it's close relationship to power. With leadership comes power. Power in itself is not intrinsically good or bad. It depends on how you use it. On our intentions. Some of the challenges we are facing today as a planet is the result of a misuse of power. And some of the greatest events in history were the result of the use of power.
Brian Arthur from the Santa Fe Institute is known for the quote "the success of an intervention depends on the inner state of the intervenor". Otto Scharmer calls this inner state "the blindspot from which we operate" and further suggest that this blindspot is what determins the nature our leadership.
To me that is pretty much the same as saying that it is who we are that determins the nature of our leadership. The sum of our values, beliefs, intentions and experiences. That it is who we are that determins how we choose to use power.
Some of the greatest leaders in my perception - Gandhi and Martin Luther King - both had a very strong perception of who they were and what purpose they were here to fulfill. They had a cause they fought for and very particular ideas about what measures they were willing to use to reach the goals of those causes. That was the place they came from. They used their power to serve.
I guess - altough I'm not intirely sure - that what Im suggestion is that it is important to become aware of where people operate from if we want to understand their leadership and it is equally imporant to understand where we come from ourselves if we want to understand what it is we are bringing into the world. What is the purpose of our leadership? How do we use the power available to us? What intentions do we operate from?
On an end note I would llike to share with you a quote on the relationship between power and love from a speech by Marthin Luther King given at the Last President Address at the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in 1967.
“Power properly understood is nothing but the ability to achieve purpose. And one of the great problems of history is that the concepts of love and power have usually been contrasted as opposites - polar opposites - so that love is identified with a resignation of power and power with denial of love.
We’ve got to get this thing right. What is needed is a realization that power without love is reckless and abusive and love without power is sentimental and anemic. Power at it’s best is love implementing the demands of justice and justice at it’s best is power correcting everything that stands against love. It is precisely this collision of immoral power with powerless morality which constitutes the major crisis of our time.”
Brian Arthur from the Santa Fe Institute is known for the quote "the success of an intervention depends on the inner state of the intervenor". Otto Scharmer calls this inner state "the blindspot from which we operate" and further suggest that this blindspot is what determins the nature our leadership.
To me that is pretty much the same as saying that it is who we are that determins the nature of our leadership. The sum of our values, beliefs, intentions and experiences. That it is who we are that determins how we choose to use power.
Some of the greatest leaders in my perception - Gandhi and Martin Luther King - both had a very strong perception of who they were and what purpose they were here to fulfill. They had a cause they fought for and very particular ideas about what measures they were willing to use to reach the goals of those causes. That was the place they came from. They used their power to serve.
I guess - altough I'm not intirely sure - that what Im suggestion is that it is important to become aware of where people operate from if we want to understand their leadership and it is equally imporant to understand where we come from ourselves if we want to understand what it is we are bringing into the world. What is the purpose of our leadership? How do we use the power available to us? What intentions do we operate from?
On an end note I would llike to share with you a quote on the relationship between power and love from a speech by Marthin Luther King given at the Last President Address at the Southern Christian Leadership Conference in 1967.
“Power properly understood is nothing but the ability to achieve purpose. And one of the great problems of history is that the concepts of love and power have usually been contrasted as opposites - polar opposites - so that love is identified with a resignation of power and power with denial of love.
We’ve got to get this thing right. What is needed is a realization that power without love is reckless and abusive and love without power is sentimental and anemic. Power at it’s best is love implementing the demands of justice and justice at it’s best is power correcting everything that stands against love. It is precisely this collision of immoral power with powerless morality which constitutes the major crisis of our time.”
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Defining you DNA.
I have a cool experience I would like to share.
As part of developing the branding strategy for MylifE, I needed to create a clear common understanding of the organizations DNA. I chose to approach the task by trying to answer the question “What business is MylifE in?”
This turned out to be tricky stuff since the organizations vision, values and goals are inherent in the answer. We attacked the problem from many different directions and have produced an incredible amount of great content that creates the foundation for communicating the brand.
The result of two days of process work is this sentence:
MylifE is in the business of social change through youth empowerment.
A fantastic positioning statement illustrating what MylifE does and why they do it. Gave me goose bumps.
The truly impressive thing is that the sentence came form the French intern Thomas, who struggles to speak and understand English. Amazing what a different perspective does for creativity.
As part of developing the branding strategy for MylifE, I needed to create a clear common understanding of the organizations DNA. I chose to approach the task by trying to answer the question “What business is MylifE in?”
This turned out to be tricky stuff since the organizations vision, values and goals are inherent in the answer. We attacked the problem from many different directions and have produced an incredible amount of great content that creates the foundation for communicating the brand.
The result of two days of process work is this sentence:
MylifE is in the business of social change through youth empowerment.
A fantastic positioning statement illustrating what MylifE does and why they do it. Gave me goose bumps.
The truly impressive thing is that the sentence came form the French intern Thomas, who struggles to speak and understand English. Amazing what a different perspective does for creativity.
The Blog and The Real World
What inspires us right now is Russell Ackoffs idea of 4 different ways to approach a problem.
1. Ignore it: Pretend its not there
2. Re-solve it: Fix the problem right now and here
3. Solve it: Find the best possible solution to it
4. Dissolve it: Make it irrellevant, by re-designing the organisation that has the problem.
With the first 3, the problem symptoms are handled while the underlying issues stays the same. In a dynamic environment, a problem never stays solved over time and will pop up again.
Applying this lens to this blog we're curious as to how the liveliness problem of the blog can be dissolved?
Being a organisation with an intern from the kaospilots, we have felt inspired to contribute a little to the blog and there's probably more organisations that feel the same. What would happen if they were allowed to contribute? Would you loose control - probably yes, will the blog become more alive?
With love,
Carl and Thomas
Strong Bright Hearts
Entrepreneur v/s the leader
Are you the “leader” or the “entrepreneur”?
You can’t be both…
•Entrepreneurs tend to have high energy while leaders have moderate to high levels of energy.
•Entrepreneurs generally have fair to poor listening skills. Leaders are good listeners.
•Entrepreneurs are average to fair teachers. Leaders are fair to good teachers.
•Entrepreneurs have average to fair emotional intelligence. Leaders have average to good emotional intelligence.
•Entrepreneurs are always willing to take risks and are reasonably good at dealing with crises. Leaders are moderately willing to take risks in 'normal' times but are great with crises.
•Delegating. Entrepreneurs have very high control needs and can't delegate. Leaders have only moderate control needs and can delegate.
•Entrepreneurs have a wide range of networking skills, from poor to great. Leaders generally have great networking skills.
//Jane Hilburt-Davis
President, Family Firm Institute
Cambridge, Mass.
Are you the “leader” or the “entrepreneur”?
You can’t be both…
•Entrepreneurs tend to have high energy while leaders have moderate to high levels of energy.
•Entrepreneurs generally have fair to poor listening skills. Leaders are good listeners.
•Entrepreneurs are average to fair teachers. Leaders are fair to good teachers.
•Entrepreneurs have average to fair emotional intelligence. Leaders have average to good emotional intelligence.
•Entrepreneurs are always willing to take risks and are reasonably good at dealing with crises. Leaders are moderately willing to take risks in 'normal' times but are great with crises.
•Delegating. Entrepreneurs have very high control needs and can't delegate. Leaders have only moderate control needs and can delegate.
•Entrepreneurs have a wide range of networking skills, from poor to great. Leaders generally have great networking skills.
//Jane Hilburt-Davis
President, Family Firm Institute
Cambridge, Mass.
Christmas is coming soon...
Just wanted to share it with you. No lense, no purpose, just sth that made me smile when I checked my RSS feeds this morning. Via BoingBoing.
Leadership in Africa
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, ”the iron lady”, Liberia
Is Liberia's first elected female president, as well as the first elected female leader on the continent. The Liberian elections commission announced her victory on November 23, 2005, Mrs Johnson-Sirleaf says her top challenge is to maintain peace, law and order after 14 years of civil war. After a quarter of a century of war and misrule, Liberia's road network is in ruins, there is no national telephone network, no national electricity grid and no piped water. A further challenge is to reintegrate the 100,000 ex-combatants, including many former child soldiers, into civilian life. She describes as the woman that is going to “save” Africa and she is often referred to as “the iron” lady.
Wangari Maathai, Kenya
Dr. Wangari Maathai was the first African woman and the first environmentalist to receive the Nobel Peace Prize (in 2004). She started The Green Belt Movement (GBM) in 1977, what began as a grassroots tree planting program to address the challenges of deforestation, soil erosion and lack of water is now a vehicle for empowering women. The act of planting a tree is helping women throughout Africa become stewards of the natural environment. By protecting the environment, these women are also becoming powerful champions for sustainable management. Today, more than 40 million trees have been planted across Africa. The result: soil erosion has been reduced in critical watersheds, thousands of acres of biodiversity-rich indigenous forest have been restored and protected, and hundreds of thousands of women and their families are standing up for their rights and those of their communities and so are living healthier, more productive lives. Her goal in the next decade is to plant one billion trees worldwide.
Is Liberia's first elected female president, as well as the first elected female leader on the continent. The Liberian elections commission announced her victory on November 23, 2005, Mrs Johnson-Sirleaf says her top challenge is to maintain peace, law and order after 14 years of civil war. After a quarter of a century of war and misrule, Liberia's road network is in ruins, there is no national telephone network, no national electricity grid and no piped water. A further challenge is to reintegrate the 100,000 ex-combatants, including many former child soldiers, into civilian life. She describes as the woman that is going to “save” Africa and she is often referred to as “the iron” lady.
Wangari Maathai, Kenya
Dr. Wangari Maathai was the first African woman and the first environmentalist to receive the Nobel Peace Prize (in 2004). She started The Green Belt Movement (GBM) in 1977, what began as a grassroots tree planting program to address the challenges of deforestation, soil erosion and lack of water is now a vehicle for empowering women. The act of planting a tree is helping women throughout Africa become stewards of the natural environment. By protecting the environment, these women are also becoming powerful champions for sustainable management. Today, more than 40 million trees have been planted across Africa. The result: soil erosion has been reduced in critical watersheds, thousands of acres of biodiversity-rich indigenous forest have been restored and protected, and hundreds of thousands of women and their families are standing up for their rights and those of their communities and so are living healthier, more productive lives. Her goal in the next decade is to plant one billion trees worldwide.
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Feedback for the blog
I have the feeling that a lot of communication about the blog is either made on the team list or directly to Kasper and Ben. I suggest we move all communication, feedback and suggestions about the blog to the blog. Otherwise it is a bit difficult to know what is going on and it stops the co-creation and collective imagination.
I have two things on my mind.
First of all I have been think about what a lens actually is. Right now it is a theme, a word. How can we play with that some more? Imaging if it was a role. “For the next week you are leaders. What do you see?” or if it was even both a role and a theme: “For the next week you are leaders and will be looking for integration.” Then the following week we could be followers looking for integration. Could be interesting to see the difference.
For me the lens is about finding the balance between being open for what is out there and at the same time set a frame that fosters creativity. For me personally I think that they are a bit to open right now. They don’t really foster that much creativity. (Maybe this also have something to do with the low contribution? For me at least it has something to say.)
Let us play around a bit more and try to further develop the form of the lenses. This is an experiment, so let us experiment.
Secondly I want to share an experience. Last week I visited something called the Beal Institute for Strategic Creativity. All the employees work with their own little passion project. But once a week they meet up to share knowledge and input. They do it having only one project in focus each time. I.e. when I was there it was a project about avatar. Then everybody has got the assignment to bring five slides of what they perceive as an avatar. They spare, come with new input, ask questions and so on. That way they get an insight in what each other are doing and the one which project is in focus get new insights and perspectives. What if we tried to do something similar?
I don’t know if Peter L posted the Leadership lens or what, but if he did it could have been useful to hear a bit more about his project and thoughts about it. Then it would have started my reflections and I would have Peters project present in mind when I was looking for Leadership both this week and the coming.
What do you say?
I have two things on my mind.
First of all I have been think about what a lens actually is. Right now it is a theme, a word. How can we play with that some more? Imaging if it was a role. “For the next week you are leaders. What do you see?” or if it was even both a role and a theme: “For the next week you are leaders and will be looking for integration.” Then the following week we could be followers looking for integration. Could be interesting to see the difference.
For me the lens is about finding the balance between being open for what is out there and at the same time set a frame that fosters creativity. For me personally I think that they are a bit to open right now. They don’t really foster that much creativity. (Maybe this also have something to do with the low contribution? For me at least it has something to say.)
Let us play around a bit more and try to further develop the form of the lenses. This is an experiment, so let us experiment.
Secondly I want to share an experience. Last week I visited something called the Beal Institute for Strategic Creativity. All the employees work with their own little passion project. But once a week they meet up to share knowledge and input. They do it having only one project in focus each time. I.e. when I was there it was a project about avatar. Then everybody has got the assignment to bring five slides of what they perceive as an avatar. They spare, come with new input, ask questions and so on. That way they get an insight in what each other are doing and the one which project is in focus get new insights and perspectives. What if we tried to do something similar?
I don’t know if Peter L posted the Leadership lens or what, but if he did it could have been useful to hear a bit more about his project and thoughts about it. Then it would have started my reflections and I would have Peters project present in mind when I was looking for Leadership both this week and the coming.
What do you say?
INTEGRATION
INTEGRATION.
I will just briefly share some thoughts on the integration of change in organizations and companies.
I work in a huge company that for the past couple of years has tried to implement innovation in their company.
Big corporations has these tendencies to grab a buzzword in the air, and desperately pour a lot of resources into projects in order to be known as the business that thinks innovative, or the business that works towards sustainability or globalization or other huge subjects that will take years to implement and years to understand.
I am not saying that these themes are not relevant, because they are highly relevant, but simply acknowledging that they are huge subjects that will take many years and resources to understand and practice. They are complex themes that have no defined result and are very difficult to measure.
I realize that making changes as individuals or as a huge corporation is probably the most difficult task we can take on.
Edgar H. Schein says. “The natural reaction to change, even in the best possible circumstances, is to resist it”
This does not make the task of integrating an innovative mindset easier, but face us with the fact that it is complex and it will take a lot of time and resources to start a process in the desired direction.
The company I work for is a classic example of a well functioning business that earns and profit more than we can ever imagine.
A visionary CEO is smart enough to know that some of this profit should be used on developing new ways of creating value for both his customers and his employees.
Innovation is now the lens that is used, but I experience that, even though a lot of resources is poured into the process, it still is a side running project that is initiated because of a surplus at the bottom line.
It is not an integrated part of the business strategy, and so it feels like it is a project of its own. It has its own life until it is forgotten and left behind.
Soon to be replaced by a new lens.
Many of these projects lack a real commitment. We want it, but are we at all aware of the scope of the projects we undertake? And are we willing to risk successful behavior, in order to find new paths that is unexplored and not yet defined?
There is produced a lot of great tools and theories, steps to consider etc. when it comes to making successful changes. There are hundreds of surveys and cases from organizations, companies and countries attempt to implement innovation or other changes, both successes and failures.
My recommendation is to use these, when dealing with the change, as guidelines or parameters to evaluate the change, but be aware that these can only be used as inspiration and help in the process, not as a template for successful change.
All systems are complex and if you want to change a system, you must as John Kao says it, “find it?” the thing that motivates and makes your organization strive for change, and when you have found it, then make sure to figure out how you do it again and again and again.
To find it? Is though not an easy task, but who has said that making real change is easy?
I will just briefly share some thoughts on the integration of change in organizations and companies.
I work in a huge company that for the past couple of years has tried to implement innovation in their company.
Big corporations has these tendencies to grab a buzzword in the air, and desperately pour a lot of resources into projects in order to be known as the business that thinks innovative, or the business that works towards sustainability or globalization or other huge subjects that will take years to implement and years to understand.
I am not saying that these themes are not relevant, because they are highly relevant, but simply acknowledging that they are huge subjects that will take many years and resources to understand and practice. They are complex themes that have no defined result and are very difficult to measure.
I realize that making changes as individuals or as a huge corporation is probably the most difficult task we can take on.
Edgar H. Schein says. “The natural reaction to change, even in the best possible circumstances, is to resist it”
This does not make the task of integrating an innovative mindset easier, but face us with the fact that it is complex and it will take a lot of time and resources to start a process in the desired direction.
The company I work for is a classic example of a well functioning business that earns and profit more than we can ever imagine.
A visionary CEO is smart enough to know that some of this profit should be used on developing new ways of creating value for both his customers and his employees.
Innovation is now the lens that is used, but I experience that, even though a lot of resources is poured into the process, it still is a side running project that is initiated because of a surplus at the bottom line.
It is not an integrated part of the business strategy, and so it feels like it is a project of its own. It has its own life until it is forgotten and left behind.
Soon to be replaced by a new lens.
Many of these projects lack a real commitment. We want it, but are we at all aware of the scope of the projects we undertake? And are we willing to risk successful behavior, in order to find new paths that is unexplored and not yet defined?
There is produced a lot of great tools and theories, steps to consider etc. when it comes to making successful changes. There are hundreds of surveys and cases from organizations, companies and countries attempt to implement innovation or other changes, both successes and failures.
My recommendation is to use these, when dealing with the change, as guidelines or parameters to evaluate the change, but be aware that these can only be used as inspiration and help in the process, not as a template for successful change.
All systems are complex and if you want to change a system, you must as John Kao says it, “find it?” the thing that motivates and makes your organization strive for change, and when you have found it, then make sure to figure out how you do it again and again and again.
To find it? Is though not an easy task, but who has said that making real change is easy?
Leadership
There are a lot of buzzwords connected to leadership right now. Sometimes I feel that managers rather to sound smart and not to get smart from them use them. They talk about the importance of coaching, networks and mentors. They tell me that they practice situation management, change management and visionary leadership.
And that’s great. It’s actually fantastic. The only thing I’m a bit afraid of is that we’re hiding behind the words. If these buzzwords were actually carried out, the workplaces would already have less burnouts, more equality and a less conflicts. Not that the buzzwords is the remedy for exactly these issues but I think it’s some of the byproducts if they are being used. And I don’t see it happening.
I also get the feeling that these buzzwords bring us further away from the essence of leadership. The simpler and more recognizable words behind the buzz would make me actually believe that people are using them. Listen, ask, help and advice could be a start. At least I have an easier time relating to them.
I’ve conducted interviews with managers in Stockholm and they all seem to boil down to one thing. Experience. Either you have it and put great value in it or you don’t and really want it.
So is experience the prerequisite to being a good leader or manager? And in that case what kind of experiences give you that security and clarity when leading? What is it we need to go through and learn from?
And maybe the most important question. Is it worth it? It seems to be very lonely at the top. I’m hearing a lot that you need to distance yourself from your co-workers in order to survive as a manager. It doesn’t sound sweet to me. And it doesn’t sound like it’s up to speed with the process angle Glorious suggests in his entry below.
But what happens if the manager role is taken out of the equation and a facilitator takes on the leadership. Does it mean that we create a shared ownership for the work carried out and everybody gets to lead? Do we get rid of an old and rigid hierarchy system? What do we loose and what do we gain?
What other challenges will surface?
Monday, November 26, 2007
Working with leader-less-ness
Leader this and leader that, leadership this and Guilliani that.
This is what I propose:
Leadership is a demonstrated set of behaviours.
These behaviours influence a group, either by example or by force, to shared action.
Shared action can also be influenced by shared process
Therefore, leadership = process.
So throw that word a way, take a chance like the wise people of ABBA once told us, and try it out. Instead of leader, have a facilitator, whom has no other tasks than create good and purposeful process.
Get back to me when you have tried it..
This is what I propose:
Leadership is a demonstrated set of behaviours.
These behaviours influence a group, either by example or by force, to shared action.
Shared action can also be influenced by shared process
Therefore, leadership = process.
So throw that word a way, take a chance like the wise people of ABBA once told us, and try it out. Instead of leader, have a facilitator, whom has no other tasks than create good and purposeful process.
Get back to me when you have tried it..
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Visual collective imagination...
This is a video from TED this year showing a technology, that synthesizes massive amounts of pictures tagged 'Notre Dame' from Flickr and makes it into a 3D version! + Some other cool stuff.
Shows some of the capability technology can have in enhancing our collective imagination..
Shows some of the capability technology can have in enhancing our collective imagination..
Creative Commons Challenge
I think that Collective imagination can be generated and initiated through challenges and healthy competition. We see it all over - I have to mention the founding principles for VISA once again as a good example. And it worked for me this time - thank you for the challenge Elisabeth and this is what I got to bring home from Berlin!
Saturday, November 24, 2007
LEADERSHIP
Again I´m privileged to have one of my co - workers taking time to answer my questions, this time around leadership.
This is Joseph. He is a 29 year old man from a tribe called Kamba in Kenya. This tribe is the fifth largest tribe in Kenya.He works as a personal assistant.
1.When you hear the word leadership, what is the first thing that comes to your mind?
When I hear the word leadership I think of the action of leading others or of commanding others
2.When did you last experience good leadership and what was so good about it?
I have experienced good leadership on several occasions but the last time was in the year 2003. I was working in an organisation that was for helping farmers and it was just a pioneer project. The person who was entitled to make sure that the project became self sustainable and handed over to the community was a good leader. It was dubbed a white elephant project and doomed to fail within the year. But with the skills of the leader it never failed and was self sustainable within a year and even handed to the community and its still working to date.
3.If you were to give three advices on how to do good leadership, what would it bee?
three advices I would give for good leadership is to listen to others, motivate others, have good initiatives.
4.If you were to give three advices on what to defiantly avoid if you want to be a good leader?
three things I would say to avoid are ignorance of others, jealousy, impatient.
5.What is the biggest difference between an employee and a leader?
I would say the big difference between a leader and an employee is that the employee has to do what the leader says.
6.What questions would you have asked around leadership?
I would ask a leader : Why most of them act outside a team while they are supposed to be part of the team?
7.If you were to compare leadership with an animal what kind of animal would that be?
If I would compare leadership with an animal I would compare it with lions, while for them to succeed in hunting they wait for the pack leader to make and show them the right moves.
This is Joseph. He is a 29 year old man from a tribe called Kamba in Kenya. This tribe is the fifth largest tribe in Kenya.He works as a personal assistant.
1.When you hear the word leadership, what is the first thing that comes to your mind?
When I hear the word leadership I think of the action of leading others or of commanding others
2.When did you last experience good leadership and what was so good about it?
I have experienced good leadership on several occasions but the last time was in the year 2003. I was working in an organisation that was for helping farmers and it was just a pioneer project. The person who was entitled to make sure that the project became self sustainable and handed over to the community was a good leader. It was dubbed a white elephant project and doomed to fail within the year. But with the skills of the leader it never failed and was self sustainable within a year and even handed to the community and its still working to date.
3.If you were to give three advices on how to do good leadership, what would it bee?
three advices I would give for good leadership is to listen to others, motivate others, have good initiatives.
4.If you were to give three advices on what to defiantly avoid if you want to be a good leader?
three things I would say to avoid are ignorance of others, jealousy, impatient.
5.What is the biggest difference between an employee and a leader?
I would say the big difference between a leader and an employee is that the employee has to do what the leader says.
6.What questions would you have asked around leadership?
I would ask a leader : Why most of them act outside a team while they are supposed to be part of the team?
7.If you were to compare leadership with an animal what kind of animal would that be?
If I would compare leadership with an animal I would compare it with lions, while for them to succeed in hunting they wait for the pack leader to make and show them the right moves.
Friday, November 23, 2007
Thursday, November 22, 2007
Collective Imagination and leadership
Imagine that we right now are facing the failure of the old systems and together we are creating and leading each other into these new systems. A new paradigm.
The drawings are borrowed from an article by Margeret Wheatley called Supporting Pioneering Leaders as Communities of Practice - How to Rapidly Develop New Leaders in Great Numbers. Read the article here
Integration and Collective Imagination
I know Integration and Collective Imagination actually are two different lenses. However it made sense to me to unify them. First of all for the obvious reason that I only would have to create one lens. But secondly becaue the words to me have a significant thing in common. They are about breaking down walls that keep us in separation instead of relation. They are about connection.
From what Im picking up around here more and more companies realize that they aren’t capable of creating the phenomenal results needed to stay afloat in an increasingly competitive global economy. Old structures of hierarchy and top down management limits the growth of the creative cultures and innovative solutions needed to set new standards.
So how do we create cultures that can create innovative solutions and phenomenal results?
Debra Meyerson, adjunct professor at Stanford University, says that first step is to create an environment with profound psychological safety. To have psychological safety means feeling accepted, seen and not having a fear of rejection. We foster an environment of psychological safety by seeing failures as learning opportunities, encouraging initiative and recognizing people for their work. My mentor Anne Murray Allen and new friend Dennis Sandow call this focusing on building an environment that generates social and biological well-being. Where Debra’s argument is psychological theirs is biological. However, the message is the same. If we build organizations that reflect our natural way of organizing, as seen in other eco-systems, we build the path for great results. Why? Because by choosing this focus we establish the structures of natural collaboration and in living systems that is how work really gets done. Daniel Goldman writes in his new book Social Intelligence that it is scientifically proven that we are wired to connect. That it is our nature. Buddhists have known this for thousands of years and describe the experience of separation as the primary source of suffering.
The words integration and collective imagination thereby become words that to me illuminates a significant characteristic of the time we are living in. Some years ago it was popular to characterize this time era as the era of individualization. I strongly disagree with that. I believe we are in an era with increased awareness of integrated thought, co-creation, collaboration and connection. And I believe those practices will lead to innovations that bring forth a more sustainable world– economically, socially and environmentally. And that is something to get really excited about.
From what Im picking up around here more and more companies realize that they aren’t capable of creating the phenomenal results needed to stay afloat in an increasingly competitive global economy. Old structures of hierarchy and top down management limits the growth of the creative cultures and innovative solutions needed to set new standards.
So how do we create cultures that can create innovative solutions and phenomenal results?
Debra Meyerson, adjunct professor at Stanford University, says that first step is to create an environment with profound psychological safety. To have psychological safety means feeling accepted, seen and not having a fear of rejection. We foster an environment of psychological safety by seeing failures as learning opportunities, encouraging initiative and recognizing people for their work. My mentor Anne Murray Allen and new friend Dennis Sandow call this focusing on building an environment that generates social and biological well-being. Where Debra’s argument is psychological theirs is biological. However, the message is the same. If we build organizations that reflect our natural way of organizing, as seen in other eco-systems, we build the path for great results. Why? Because by choosing this focus we establish the structures of natural collaboration and in living systems that is how work really gets done. Daniel Goldman writes in his new book Social Intelligence that it is scientifically proven that we are wired to connect. That it is our nature. Buddhists have known this for thousands of years and describe the experience of separation as the primary source of suffering.
The words integration and collective imagination thereby become words that to me illuminates a significant characteristic of the time we are living in. Some years ago it was popular to characterize this time era as the era of individualization. I strongly disagree with that. I believe we are in an era with increased awareness of integrated thought, co-creation, collaboration and connection. And I believe those practices will lead to innovations that bring forth a more sustainable world– economically, socially and environmentally. And that is something to get really excited about.
Creative Commons & Collective Imagination
Collective Imagination - at first thought, vague and intangible.
I think of the city I live in, Berlin, and I really sense the creative collective. But how is it manifested? What is the artifact that represent the atmosphere here?
One night my eyes rests at a small arm band I received a month ago, a Creative Commons rubber band, courtesy of one of my colleagues.
The Creative Commons or just plain CC is 'a non-profit organization devoted to expanding the range of creative work available for others legally to build upon and share. The organization has released several copyright licenses known as Creative Commons licenses. These licenses, depending on the one chosen, restrict only certain rights (or none) of the work.' (Source: Wikipedia)
The whole concept of sharing your artistic work and regulating other people's use of your work, by licensing rights, instead preaching prohibitions; CC is challenging an outdated copyright-regime that is now fighting a losing case against piracy.
That is collective imagination made concrete. It is collective contribution, offered freely and openly.
I realize the CC rubber band is just the thing for Kasper. Until...
Until I enter the "Creative Commons Swag Competition". An initiative to involve the community to promote the concept of CC. Shoot your favorite CC-Swag in any surrounding.
(The use of the word swag is also cool, as it is slang for stolen goods.)
So I spend Saturday afternoon, walking around Kreutzberg, merging my rubber band and alternately a CC sticker with the surroundings - and here are the candidates:
As you see from the pictures, my camera ended up with the rubber band - and it just fits too well.
So what is Kasper getting?
By coming to Berlin, Kasper had the opportunity to visit the Newthinking store, an open source boutique in Mitte, Berlin, and guess what? A new CC-object was generously handed over, and is now in the possession of our dear team leader. Curious of what it is?
Kasper, shoot your swag please! We all want to see it.
Yeah!
Mostly out
I think of the city I live in, Berlin, and I really sense the creative collective. But how is it manifested? What is the artifact that represent the atmosphere here?
One night my eyes rests at a small arm band I received a month ago, a Creative Commons rubber band, courtesy of one of my colleagues.
The Creative Commons or just plain CC is 'a non-profit organization devoted to expanding the range of creative work available for others legally to build upon and share. The organization has released several copyright licenses known as Creative Commons licenses. These licenses, depending on the one chosen, restrict only certain rights (or none) of the work.' (Source: Wikipedia)
The whole concept of sharing your artistic work and regulating other people's use of your work, by licensing rights, instead preaching prohibitions; CC is challenging an outdated copyright-regime that is now fighting a losing case against piracy.
That is collective imagination made concrete. It is collective contribution, offered freely and openly.
I realize the CC rubber band is just the thing for Kasper. Until...
Until I enter the "Creative Commons Swag Competition". An initiative to involve the community to promote the concept of CC. Shoot your favorite CC-Swag in any surrounding.
(The use of the word swag is also cool, as it is slang for stolen goods.)
So I spend Saturday afternoon, walking around Kreutzberg, merging my rubber band and alternately a CC sticker with the surroundings - and here are the candidates:
As you see from the pictures, my camera ended up with the rubber band - and it just fits too well.
So what is Kasper getting?
By coming to Berlin, Kasper had the opportunity to visit the Newthinking store, an open source boutique in Mitte, Berlin, and guess what? A new CC-object was generously handed over, and is now in the possession of our dear team leader. Curious of what it is?
Kasper, shoot your swag please! We all want to see it.
Yeah!
Mostly out
Wednesday, November 21, 2007
Servant Leadership
"In the happiness of his subjects lies the king's happiness, in their welfare his welfare. He shall not consider as good only that which pleases him but treat as beneficial to him whatever pleases his subjects" - Kautilya.
TED Prize Winners 2008
TED announced its TED Prize winners for 2008. Yippieh!
Click on the picture (it's not a video, just a screenshot), then you'll be redirected to the site.
Get inspired :)
Top 120 of work worth doing
I think the collective imagination lens is very challenging. I haven't found something to send back home to Mejlgade yet, but I will keep looking. I want to share with you a list with 120 examples of work worth doing that has already been done or are in the air. The list was created by some of the major designers and people within the filed in Toronto. So I guess you can say it is a result of collective imagination... I think it is very interesting to read through, you really get inspired by it and find new cool initiatives you didn't knew of. Anyways, I just wanted to share it with you. http://workworthdoing.com/?p=14
At the picture you can see how it is presented at the gallery here. Lots of picures of the different examples.
Lens: Leadership
We were waiting to throw this lens into the mix until you all had the chance to really dig into your new environments and your internships. The format for this week is open, but I would encourage you to seek out fresh perspectives from other people. Talk to your peers, your leaders, your followers, your opposition. What knowledge and stories are available to only you because of your unique internship opportunity?
Thoughts on Groundswell.
Hello Kaospilots:
The American economy is about to shut down for two days to celebrate the Thanksgiving Holiday. It's a time for us to eat a lot of food and think about the things for which we are thankful.
One of the things that I am most thankful for this year is this partnership between Play and the Kaospilots. We are creating a new kind of conversation with this experiment and it is exciting to watch it evolve over time. Some lenses have been clear and fruitful. Some have been confusing and challenging. Thanks for your patience. I know that you are all busy with your internships and we are very busy here at Play this time of year, but Groundswell has become a resource for me to explore new ways of thinking and get a jolt of energy. As we further develop these doses of inspiration, they will have great meaning for business leaders all over the world.
For the rest of this pilot program, I will be focused on making more comments, raising more questions, and posting my own thoughts around each of the lenses. I will also push the rest of the folks at Play to become more actively involved. As I have told my teammates, "Bloggers survive on comments alone. If you don't feed them, they will starve!"
Thank you for all your time. And please take notes on how to make this entire experience better in the years to come. My plan is to come to Denmark in January and we can talk all about what worked, what didn't work, and what we need to do to make all this content perfectly relevant for business leaders.
Keep finding cool stuff!
The American economy is about to shut down for two days to celebrate the Thanksgiving Holiday. It's a time for us to eat a lot of food and think about the things for which we are thankful.
One of the things that I am most thankful for this year is this partnership between Play and the Kaospilots. We are creating a new kind of conversation with this experiment and it is exciting to watch it evolve over time. Some lenses have been clear and fruitful. Some have been confusing and challenging. Thanks for your patience. I know that you are all busy with your internships and we are very busy here at Play this time of year, but Groundswell has become a resource for me to explore new ways of thinking and get a jolt of energy. As we further develop these doses of inspiration, they will have great meaning for business leaders all over the world.
For the rest of this pilot program, I will be focused on making more comments, raising more questions, and posting my own thoughts around each of the lenses. I will also push the rest of the folks at Play to become more actively involved. As I have told my teammates, "Bloggers survive on comments alone. If you don't feed them, they will starve!"
Thank you for all your time. And please take notes on how to make this entire experience better in the years to come. My plan is to come to Denmark in January and we can talk all about what worked, what didn't work, and what we need to do to make all this content perfectly relevant for business leaders.
Keep finding cool stuff!
On the eve of a workshop
Collective imagination
collective |kəˈlektiv|
adjective
done by people acting as a group
imagination |iˌmajəˈnā sh ən
noun
the faculty or action of forming new ideas
People acting as a group to form new ideas. Sounds like a task for a KaosPilot. Sounds fantastic!
This Friday I’ll, together with Ellen host a workshop for MylifE. The aim is to discover what business MylifE is in, what problem are they the solution to, what is their purpose for being.
The need comes from the fact that the organization network (which is huge!) are all sending different messages. Some say MylifE is about empowering youth, some say building villages and some just say saving the world (all depending on how late in the evening it is and how many glasses red wine they’ve had…: )
The workshop will be a quite diverse scene with participants from all walks of life, including youth still living in the street.
I’ll publish the broad stokes of the outcome when we are finished, hopefully a great example of collective imagination.
collective |kəˈlektiv|
adjective
done by people acting as a group
imagination |iˌmajəˈnā sh ən
noun
the faculty or action of forming new ideas
People acting as a group to form new ideas. Sounds like a task for a KaosPilot. Sounds fantastic!
This Friday I’ll, together with Ellen host a workshop for MylifE. The aim is to discover what business MylifE is in, what problem are they the solution to, what is their purpose for being.
The need comes from the fact that the organization network (which is huge!) are all sending different messages. Some say MylifE is about empowering youth, some say building villages and some just say saving the world (all depending on how late in the evening it is and how many glasses red wine they’ve had…: )
The workshop will be a quite diverse scene with participants from all walks of life, including youth still living in the street.
I’ll publish the broad stokes of the outcome when we are finished, hopefully a great example of collective imagination.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
