{"id":35179,"date":"2024-01-23T20:57:19","date_gmt":"2024-01-24T04:57:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/?p=35179"},"modified":"2024-01-23T20:59:54","modified_gmt":"2024-01-24T04:59:54","slug":"who-to-become-when-you-really-dont-know-whats-coming","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/who-to-become-when-you-really-dont-know-whats-coming\/","title":{"rendered":"Who To Become When You Really Don’t Know What’s Coming"},"content":{"rendered":"

Praxis leaders<\/span>[1]<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0Dave Blanchard and Andy Crouch presented a webinar in the Summer of 2020 called, \u201cLeading Without a Forecast: What to Do When You Really Don\u2019t Know What\u2019s Coming,\u201d<\/span>[2]<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0on the heels of their timely article, \u201cLeading Beyond the Blizzard: Why Every Organization is Now a Startup.\u201d<\/span>[3]<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0 In their introduction, Andy tells the story of the team who presented the meteorologist forecast to the staff of allied powers during World War II. \u00a0The generals were very concerned about the weather and wanted to know the forecast two weeks in advance but realized how difficult this would be. \u00a0The meteorologist team realized their reports were incredibly inaccurate and relayed this to the staff of generals. \u00a0In response, the generals sent a message back to the meteorologist team saying, \u201cPlease continue your inaccurate two-week forecasts because they are absolutely essential for our planning.\u201d \u00a0Andy Crouch admits to the absurdity of the story as if they were saying, \u201cIt doesn\u2019t really matter! We just need something to plan against.\u201d \u00a0As I read Annabel Beerel\u2019s book,\u00a0<\/span>Rethinking Leadership: A Critique of Contemporary Theories<\/span>, I have the sense that her work is one of prediction based on a thorough understanding of cultural change in the face of its unpredictability. \u00a0Might she be saying between the lines, \u201cIf what I am predicting is inaccurate, it doesn\u2019t really matter\u2013leaders just need something to plan against?\u201d \u00a0And in this case the planning is for a leader\u2019s ability to transcend themselves, their skills, and their ego.<\/span>[4]<\/a><\/sup><\/p>\n

\u00a0Dr. Beerel is a highly capable and experienced international leader who specializes in leadership and ethics: She is an expert on looking back at leadership theories and looking forward to what leaders need now, based on her comprehensive examination. \u00a0Her book provides a detailed review of the key leadership theories and skills required during times of crises and radical uncertainty, how these can be developed, and how they can be applied in practice.<\/span><\/p>\n

Skills Necessary For Leadership<\/span><\/p>\n

In my mediation work with families and leaders, training and competency benchmarks are required as part of my on-going certification for effective conflict resolution. After each mediation, I discuss my cases with an attorney, ask for feedback, and participate in an hour-long meeting listening to how other mediators handle a similar case. No matter how many hours I give in preparing for and researching on behalf of clients, uncertainty and unpredictability abound. Just when I think I have mastered the skills of helping people see the root of their conflict or negotiating a parenting plan for a complex family scenario, I come up short when I lose myself in their story,<\/span>[5]<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0or I become too caught up in my horizontal learning.<\/span><\/p>\n

My leadership becomes ineffective.<\/span><\/p>\n

One of the goals of mediation is to help parties flourish by embracing their changing reality. When I ask myself what skills I lost or stopped relying on, I identify the two most crucial for my work to be effective: Becoming a Neutral and Active Listening. Without these, I am in danger of working against my inner qualities Beerel lists in chapter 5.<\/span>[6]<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0I realize that a mediator cannot be compared to a global leader, however, I see several parallels between required mediation skills and Beerel\u2019s skills necessary<\/span>[7]<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0for leadership: I will briefly explore two:<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n

Beerel:<\/span><\/p>\n

An ability to create clarity amidst a<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

sea of confusion where clarity <\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

does not mean certainty<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n

\n<\/td>\n

\n

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 Mediator:<\/span><\/p>\n

\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 Becoming a Neutral<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

In Chapter 14, Beerel introduces Transpersonal Leadership where she suggests leaders might expand one\u2019s identity by having the courage to step out of one\u2019s normal role expectations.<\/span>[8]<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0This is similar to Simon Walker\u2019s idea of how certain skills enable mobility in leadership, \u201cThere are certain mechanics involved in moving from using one strategy, one kind of power to another and [you] can master them.\u201d<\/span>[9]<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0Both Beerel and Walker differentiate this approach to leadership by emphasizing self-awareness, the integration of intellectual, emotional and spiritual intelligence along with stillness, an inner security, a personal freedom. \u00a0The focus on mobile leaders, transpersonal leadership or what Mark McCaslin coined as potentiator,<\/span>[10]<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0calls for more than just technical skills and knowledge. It\u2019s important to take care of the soul and spirit; this is what allows a leader to be open to other possibilities when solving problems. \u00a0The skills learned in mediation are similar to Transpersonal leadership and are transferable for those leading organizations, families and ideas.<\/span><\/p>\n

In mediation training, mediators learn what it means to become a neutral, a person who enters a conflict or discussion to help find a solution. The complicating piece of becoming a neutral is taking care of one\u2019s self, soul, spirit, emotions, intellectual and mental needs. What makes becoming a neutral more complicated for today\u2019s leaders is the fact that more and more people have experienced trauma in their early years through divorce, disaster, violence, loss, racism, sexism, sickness, death and separation. \u00a0I am asking myself how might becoming a neutral and Transpersonal Leadership help create clarity for people in a sea of confusion? \u00a0Is this possible to do without certainty?<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n

Beerel:<\/span><\/p>\n

A capacity for helping others find purpose and meaning during extreme times<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

\n

Mediator:<\/span><\/p>\n

Active Listening<\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

Mediation requires the capacity to listen actively to another person. \u00a0It\u2019s tempting to enter a conflict situation and want to give people \u201cA good talking to\u201d. We also feel the need to problem solve when faced with challenging situations. \u00a0Mediation teaches neutrals to do the opposite. \u00a0In his book,\u00a0<\/span>Managing Conflict<\/span><\/em>,<\/em> David Liddle says our number one priority should be to give people \u201cA good listening to.\u201d<\/span>[11]<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0 I have found this to be true.<\/span><\/p>\n

I am conflicted with Beerel\u2019s final pages when she writes about Horizontal Learning (listening skills as functional development) vs. Vertical Learning: \u201c[It] takes one out of one\u2019s existing level of cognitive, emotional, and relational complexity, challenging one to progress to a higher level of being and understanding.\u201d<\/span>[12]<\/a><\/sup>\u00a0 <\/span><\/p>\n

If leaders need the skill of helping others find purpose and meaning during extreme times, Vertical Learning seems closely connected to Active Listening. Might Horizontal Learning, like mediation skills, and Vertical Learning help in the planning for a leader\u2019s ability to transcend themselves, their skills, and their ego?<\/span>[13]<\/a>\u00a0 \u00a0<\/sup><\/p>\n

Leaders may not be able to predict what’s coming but I hope what Beerel is envisioning is a way for leaders to know who they are.<\/p>\n

\n
\n

[1]<\/a>\u00a0Praxis is<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

[2]<\/a>\u00a0M. J. Murdock Charitable Trust. \u201cWebinar: Leading Through COVID-19 with Praxis,\u201d April 30, 2020.<\/span>\u00a0<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

\n

[3]<\/a>\u00a0Andy Crouch, Dave Blanchard and Kurt Keilhacker. Praxis. \u201cLeading Beyond the Blizzard: Why Every Organization Is Now a Startup.\u201d Medium, April 24, 2020..<\/span><\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

\n

[4]<\/a>\u00a0Beerel. P. 100.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

[5]<\/a>\u00a0I tell this part of my story to show how I am lacking what Beerel calls \u201cVertical Learning.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

[6]<\/a>\u00a0Beerel, P. 110. \u00a0Anderson and Adams in Mastering Leadership, write about the inner and outer game of leadership. \u00a0Great leadership is beyond skill, capability, and competence. Instead, qualities of the inner game such as integrity, passion, vision, courage, authenticity, self-awareness, humility, intuition and wisdom lead to leadership mastery.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

\n

[7]<\/a>\u00a0Beerel, Annabel.\u00a0<\/span>Rethinking Leadership: A Critique of Contemporary Theories<\/span>. 1st ed. Milton: Taylor & Francis Group, 2021.<\/span>\u00a0<\/a><\/span>https:\/\/doi.org\/10.4324\/9781003044444<\/a><\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

\n

[8]<\/a>\u00a0<\/span>Annabel Beerel. P. 240.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

[9]<\/a>\u00a0Simon Walker. Leading with Nothing to Lose (Undefended Leader): Walker, Simon<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

[10]<\/a>\u00a0<\/span>Mark McCaslin. \u00a0<\/span>The Nature of Transpesonal Leadership: Building Potentiating Relationships.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Integral Leadership Review, 2016.<\/span><\/p>\n

\n<\/div>\n

\n

[11]<\/a>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>David Liddle. \u201cManaging Conflict: A Practical Guide to Resolution in the Workplace.\u201d London, United Kingdom<\/span>\u202f<\/span>; Kogan Page Limited, 2017.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

[12]<\/a>\u00a0Beerel. P. 379<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\n

[13]<\/a>\u00a0Beerel. P. 100.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Praxis leaders[1]\u00a0Dave Blanchard and Andy Crouch presented a webinar in the Summer of 2020 called, \u201cLeading Without a Forecast: What to Do When You Really Don\u2019t Know What\u2019s Coming,\u201d[2]\u00a0on the heels of their timely article, \u201cLeading Beyond the Blizzard: Why Every Organization is Now a Startup.\u201d[3]\u00a0 In their introduction, Andy tells the story of the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":180,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[2977,3012],"class_list":["post-35179","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-beerel","tag-rethinkingleadership","cohort-dlgp02"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35179","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/180"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=35179"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35179\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":35181,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/35179\/revisions\/35181"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=35179"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=35179"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.georgefox.edu\/dlgp\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=35179"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}