Symbols Lab

Symbols Lab is back. I am offering this lab this time along with Janaki Venkat, a friend of many many years. I am hoping that some of you who read this blog will find it interesting to attend the lab.

Working with symbols has meant much to me - a way of connecting with myself at a deeper level, giving in totally to a faith in the ability of the psyche to bring up that which is most relevant and needed for my life at any point in time etc etc. This year, I am hoping to bring in some work with the great Chinese Book of Changes or I'Ching that I have referred in an earlier blog.

For what joy ?

In the course of my recent interventions and meandering in organizational spaces, I am witnessing a new facet in people - new not as in spanking new, but new as in "coming out from the dormant in a strident form" - the question that people have of "What's in it for me" or WIIFM ... Granted, this has always been there, and many an OD practitioner has neglected this to their peril. What seems new is the strident and virulent form it seems to be taking on in today's times.

Perhaps we live in an era of consumerist culture, perhaps people are tiring of "the larger systemic cause", perhaps there is a collective angst of people having given unto the system and not received in return ... whatever ... what does seem undeniable is the lurking question of WIIFM, or "Why do I need to change". My son uses a term often these days, in jest - especially when I ask him to do something - he asks, "For what joy ?" - I hear that same question from people inside organizations - "For what joy ?". Except that the jest is missing. In its place, I see suspicion, mistrust, fear of being exploited and extracted from ...

I then wonder, what have organization spaces become these days ? Is belonging to systems replenishing anymore ? Or are we caught in extractive matrices, filled with an ambience of instrumentality and lulling ourselves to believe that its ok to be instrumental for some time in life ?

So, to these participants and organization members, I do not seem to have answers - instead I have more questions - and they seem to tire of my questions - almost like saying - "ok, give me the answer, you know it already, so don't make me work to find MY response - just give me the final line .."

Makes me wonder sometimes if I am chasing a romanticized version of OD - that somehow someday the limbic brain WILL change in the collectivity, and that people WILL change, and that the coin WILL drop ...

Will it ?

I Ching and then some more

Almost twenty years after I purchased, I picked up my first of two books on the I' Ching a couple of days ago. After that, I have not been able to put it down. Such a wealth of wisdom. It seems to complement my own work with the Tarot, and Dreams - that I offer in my annual Symbols Lab. Now, my resolve is to add the I' Ching to the lab. If any of you who happen to read this blog has any experience with the I' Ching, pls email me.

Recently, Gagan, Shabari and I did some interesting work with the young leaders of India's largest telecom operator. Interesting because we integrated so many different approaches - some approaches from the Tavistock frameworks, some from Sumedhas' approaches, and some our own creations ... I think we learnt a lot. In may ways it was like a Carnatic Music concert - three artistes (I like THAT word for OD consultants - artistes !!! wow!!!) coming together - no major rehearsals - yet they click together because of the anchoring in the centuries old "shasvatam" of Carnatic Music - that is more or less how we worked. We did prepare, but never rehearsed (will never have to, I pray). Loads of learning and fun ...

kartik

Character Resistance

I have been reading some work by Galinsky, an erstwhile Univ of North Carolina Prof in OD, and have been fascinated by some of his thoughts on what he describes as "character resistance". Upon reflecting on what I understood of his writing, I am trying to capture here some typical instances of the ways by which people (and groups) exhibit resistance to exploring themselves at a deep level. I see some of this in my leadership coaching work, as well as in process consultation work in leadership teams ...

As I understand it, character resistance is a phenomenon whereby a person presents themselves in a "typical" way to the world, which has potential to "save" them from being connected with at a deeper level than their interface allows - a kind of flight really ...

Here are some types -

1. The cool detached type - Gives an air of largely being disconnected with the tumults and turmoils of life. Escapes airing deep thoughts, does not engage in confrontations in a direct manner, prefers to avoid the spotlight.
2. The polyanna - Sees the world thro rose-colored glasses. Tends to adopt a pseudo romantic air. Invariably gushes. Everything is a fairy tale. Sees gnomes, pixies, fairies and the like. This cloyingly sweet view of the world serves to perhaps anesthetize the pain and receipt of any form of turbulence.
3. The overtly adulatory but covertly hostile-demanding type - Fawns over, lavishes praise and professes abundant love, demonstrative also. In reality and often in private, often ends up masking a tendency to be extremely demanding. Passive-Dependent. The external adulatory behavior covers up the fear of engaging in depth conversations and self-reflectivity.
4. The masochistic - Tends to distract away from deeper engagement by beating themselves up or by being excessively self-flagellating, self critical.
   

Can you spot some of these ? Any other "distractors" ? In my next post, I wish to add a few more to this list, but feel free to add what you see, in your responses ...

kartik

What are you reading ? What are you writing ?

Isn't reading an absolute must ? It certainly is, for me. Can't get by in life without it. My last read was a very interesting book somewhat presumptuously titled "The Future of Management" by Gary Hamel. He has a compelling style, that guy does. I am now reading some rather old (yet timeless) articles by the Late Pulin Garg - particularly on human processes, identity level exploratory work, and the like.

I also realized that I have more unread books in my personal collection than I have of books that I have read. What are YOU reading, dear avid BlogReader ?

That brings me to my next question - what are you WRITING ? Very few of us write, and I wonder why ? I realise that writing is actually therapeutic, and it fosters expression (but of course), and it keeps me feeling alive and creative. I am happy to note that I have been writing more these days - have signed up for a 12 article series called "An Ode to OD" for the Human Capital magazine, of which one has been published ...

Now, WRITE. You really do not need to be a famous writer to write (and most famous writers were not famous writers when they started writing). The coming in of technology - like these blogs - gives you unfettered space. Write, even if your sentences do not seem to make sense, even if you sound like an oddball (I often think I do, and my daughter definitely believes I am), just write. I am convinced that the world needs more expression - sure you can express in analog terms - music, dance, painting - yes, (and there are all sorts of media to get your expression fanned out to the world ...), but the very digital medium of words and language has its place under the sun too ...

Past-Future & Internal-External Orientation

Had a great session with a client system (telecom mobile value added services space) today. My experience of the group at a point was of some people rooted in the past, and some rooting for the future, and of some people having an inside-out perspective, and some others having an outside-in perspective, and all of them all over the place.

I did a floor exercise - a 2 by 2 created 4 quadrants - past-internal, past-external, future-internal, and future-external. Asked people to identify with any of the quadrants, and physically get into them. Then got them to dialog amongst themselves to speak of the realities of their quadrants, and then dialog with the other quadrants, speaking "as the quadrant".

Interesting idea, this. I think it got them to understand different realities of the organization from a time and location perspective, and built greater reflexivity besides throwing up several interesting "positions" that people were taking. We also spoke of the positives and the pathologies of each of the quadrants, which in a sense were also the positives and the pathological trends of those people themselves.

While the exploration themselves were somewhat limited today by time and dialoging capability of the participants, I sense a great opportunity in this exercise for use in other organization spaces ...


kartik

More on passion

The one other trigger I can identify for my passion is "ownership". I own my sense of enterprise - I have a passion for it that no one else can equal. I "own" my children in a sense - I have a passion for them that is distinctive. I own my capabilities, I have a passion to deploy them ... And so on ...

Now getting back to the question posed by the CEO - and let us ruminate her for just a moment - can anything be done to truly bring ownership to the roles that leaders play in organizations ?

Sure, organizations can "do" things - MNCs have (at least in the high tech industries) been passing on more "value" work to India, so much so that the phrase "cost arbitrage" is seen as a lesser unkind cut these days, at least in the conversations that I have been having.

What else can be made to happen (rather than what else can be "done") to create and foster a sense of ownership ?

Passion follows ownership, I am now comfortable in saying. My friend, my old friend called Mr.Voice-in-the-head jumps in to say "and obsession follows possession / possessiveness ..."

with an amused smile,
kartik