Ahead of my Time…the biggest lie…
Imagine a Butterfly believes it is before its time…
This article is dedicated to all visionaries, futurists, free thinkers, catalysts, changemakers, change agents, change leaders, leaders…thank you for your incredible contributions to the world…you are not ahead of your time, this is y/our time!
Where my story began
Receiving 500 no responses a month from organizations relating to Inspirational Leadership Development and Inspirational Talent Development Programs, an incident almost paralyzed me. A marketing guru with a limited view of the world I was contributing to, impacted my life in a devastating way. His view was that I was completely ahead of my time, larger than life, completely outside the box, and that my key messages will not be embraced by those not ready to give up control, as I was going to empower their people to think creatively and to fulfil their potential. Likewise, I will expose leaders’ inadequacies, which was not true. I bought into the story on a subconscious level.
Under this influence, I thought that the world will respond differently to me when I surround myself with other visionaries, futurists, forward thinkers, creative thinkers, free thinkers, catalysts, activists, changemakers, change agents, and those who want to make the world a better place. Only to discover that most of them subconsciously believed the same. Likewise, many saw themselves as separate from those who have different mindsets. This separation creates a chasm and fear, and directly causes a misalignment, distrust, and hampers the ability to articulate a change message in a coherent, aligned, and resonant way. The way we see ourselves is very important, as the world will see us and respond to us in the same way. It is called our self-presencing intelligence. Likewise, the way we see others is how they respond to us. There are 8 other such esteemed intelligences that impact change interventions and when we introduce the new to humanity and organizations.
I was always fascinated during my corporate consulting days why change initiatives did not instill the intended change. This was applicable regardless of incredibly honorable intentions, sophisticated approaches, powerful methodologies and frameworks, integrated project plans, talented change leaders, dedicated change managers, and elaborate training programs, no matter the type of environment or context. Why was change management and transformation efforts, born in the latter part of the 20 century — whether organizational, systemic, or community-based — not well received? And why did it create so much fear, which in turns create control, resistance, and suspicion? My position and roles allowed me to have a unique relationship with our clients and to also have a multifaceted view — both a big picture bird’s eye view and a detailed perspective, and similarly, the opportunity to look from the inside out and the outside in, and to be observant, receptive, and creative.
Passionate about human and organizational potential realization, leadership and self-leadership awareness, and embodied innovation, I studied advanced human potential, embodiment, creativity, innovation, consciousness, energy, and many other modalities, which impact organizational potential realization and every aspect of our lives. A body of wisdom started to emerge, contributing to the next level of organization and the next level of being, relating, creating, working together, and sharing.
Applying this body of wisdom when working with leaders and executives in a variety of contexts, in different parts of the world, gave life to a different story. Not only in terms of my curiosity about change initiatives and introducing the new, but also the lie I believed about being ahead of my time.
What else is possible?
What was this different between the change interventions in my consulting career and applying this body of wisdom related to human and organizational potential realization when introducing the new to leaders and executives? The most notable differences were that one was fear based and the other not, one was a direct approach and the other one not, one was using unfamiliar frames of reference and the other not, one was change from the outside in and the other not, one was standardized and the other not, and one was using outdated vocabulary and the other not. Furthermore, a new role emerged, one of a catalyst and a bridge, instead of being a change agent, manager, or facilitator.
We live in a world filled with fear, uncertainty, distrust, insecurity, and overwhelm, where it is more important how fast we can respond to rapid changes, navigate unexpected events and disruptions, harness opportunities emerging, realign our visions and goals, and create coherence in a trusting, aware, and confident way, than to manage and control. Instead of catalyzing more fear we need to look at fresh approaches and explore other possibilities to soften the edges of change.
Softening the edges of Change
You are welcome to join us on 17 March 2021 at 17h00 UTC, via Zoom during an interactive workshop, Softening the edges of Change, hosted by the Change Management Network. Change is a fear strategy. Fear sub-consciously drives control, resistance, and suspicion, which impacts how leaders, organizations, communities, and individuals approach change initiatives, embrace emerging paradigms, and navigate the unexpected.
In this interactive workshop we explore how to harness and transform this fear on 4 different levels, how it impacts the Future of Organizational Change, and which practices and vocabulary are supportive during 21st century change initiatives.
You can register here to join www.changemanagement.network/posts/11974627