Looking back and looking forward
Well, it's been another year like the others in the 2020s! Pretty exhausting for many people.
We may well look back at these years as a turning point for many elements of our lives and workplaces. The turbulence is going to be ongoing and the pace of change is now exponential.
And within that disturbance are going to be opportunities!!!! It is exciting, and I can feel another Renaissance occurring (I wonder what history will call this period?). New books, new ideas and new ways of doing things are emerging everywhere. Just what we need!
I remain convinced that our major (adaptive) challenge is raising awareness and a sense of responsibility for doing things very differently - no matter the domain of your interest.
COP28 has finished! The image immediately above was shared by the team at Outrage and Optimism, one of my favourite podcasts. It reminds me of one of the mantras to emerge from our Adaptive Leadership programs about psychological adaptive work: "The people with the problem are the problem - and the solution".
What will you be doing in the coming year for future generations?
A gift for you - Being a good ancestor
In many First Nations cultures, there is a philosophy that the decisions we make today should consider the impact seven generations into the future. You may be aware of the statement attributed to Chief Seattle “We cannot simply think of our survival; each new generation is responsible to ensure the survival of the seventh generation... “
So how do we each think of that connection to other generations?
This short visualisation exercise (5 mins) is based on an exercise from Roman Krznaric’s book, “The Good Ancestor: How to think long in a short term world”. I learned of this exercise when co-editing Ecological and Climate Conscious Coaching with Eve Turner and Peter Hawkins after our lead editor, Ali Whybrow, passed away. Thank you Eve.
Click here to listen or download.
My work this year
Some highlights of 2023 for myself and The Partnership included:
Developing and delivering leadership programs with academics and professional staff to positively influence university culture.
Facilitating adaptive conversations to redesign the university workload framework and working with academic supervisors to develop practices that better support staff.
Facilitating within the Leaders' Institute of SA's Governors Leadership Foundation program for the 10th year.
Delivering many iterations of our Adaptive Leadership program in regional community programs and state government departments.
Convening a small group of corporate Heads of Sustainability in Melbourne last week as we 'experimented' with bringing a larger-scale system together. Please watch this space as we figure out how to move forward with a small group that greatly enjoyed each other and learned so much in one evening.
Speaking locally and internationally about systems thinking, living systems and complexity, and regenerative leadership.
Completing the third iteration of our ‘purpose book’ – now called Purposeful Cultures. This will officially launch in March, but early releases will be available in January 2024.
What does 2024 hold for me?
Next year, the focus of our work will continue to be on those organisations and people who seek to make the world a better place. My core services will continue to be focused on leading change and transformation for a sustainable future.
We are in the process of rebranding and developing a new website. Newly packaged suites of programs will also be available in January. Please be sure to watch out for Changing Naturally.
As we head for the finish line of 2023, I wish you a safe and relaxing holiday period.
Breathe deeply and spend a while considering what is most important to you now.