The past weeks we’ve been working with an international team from China, Brazil, the US and Europe on a proposal for a client. Key was to integrate Organizational, Team and Individual transformation in the program. It was wonderful to work with so many people together, share our latest insights and observe how easy it was to co-create.
In the end we didn’t get the assignment (second out of ten players) but as one of us said: “Hein, it is the journey that is memorable… the station will come soon.” Jan van der Greef inspired us with his beautiful pictures of birds that we made part of our proposal. This one is the most intriguing (and the client wanted to keep it).
Step 1 in transformation remained to become aware of your Blind Spot by seeing with fresh eyes. This picture depicts this: the critical look (who says that birds don’t have feelings? In all Jan’s pictures you sense emotion) of the Gannet observing you and your organization. But that is the hard part. Do we want to look at ourselves and face the facts as stressed by Jim Collins? What helps us to step out of the bubble that we create around ourselves? Or as Heifetz states: look at ourself from the balcony.
When we felt stuck during the process of making the proposal we took a time out. Instead of working harder on it because the deadline was in the afternoon, we decided to take some time for reflection. We said to each other that we first needed to inquire within ourselves for a few minutes what was happening there. What did we think, what emotions were there and what fears? Inquire on the levels of head, heart and hands. And then share with each other what is there. It was amazing to see how easily after the sharing our design process flowed again.