Welcome to the series where I connect my BIF-7 insights on the questions I carried with me to the Five Breaths of Design/Chaordic Stepping Stones. In this post you’ll find insights on Breath Five, Act.
The fifth breath invites questions like what actions will be decided and performed, how will we follow-up, and how will self-organization be sustained. Here are the golden threads from my notes on the various stories at BIF-7 that connected with the fifth breath of designing conversations that matter:
On action:
- A way of supporting action champions: we build our whole program around giving people a social network (e-mentors!).
- How do we change when we know the solution? Be flexible, like the Health Leads prescription that is stapled to the billing sheet in one hospital because it’s the one paper that this hospital will never lose.
- Asking the question: how do we stay outside the system to be able to change it, yet not be so far out we’re irrelevant?
- How you can’t anticipate the reaction from your audience, and could create a view of success as “when your work generates arguments”.
- The data you measure with your change will start to do something.
Actions for my personal journey:
- I want to borrow from Quincy Jones and focus on the projects where I get to inject optimism in the world.
- What are the networks I’m learning faster because I’m part of them?
- How can I use the Cynefin Framework more in my work and shift others away from the perils of common sense?
- How can I better understand where sometimes biology gets it wrong (e.g. the peacock tail) and how that shows up in human systems?
- Asking myself: what really torches my soul? What is my mantra (e.g. create, integrate, make a difference). Then asking what am I going to do today that lives my manta? And at night, what did I do today that lives my mantra? What in my calendar aligns/doesn’t align?
- To close eyes and listen to the questions: Who am I? Who am I? What do I want? What do I want? How can I serve? How can I serve? Then answer the question: My intent is….
- How can I integrate play into hosting?
- What is a concrete description for hosting conversations that matter?
- How can I cultivate my ability to recognize patterns in the system?
- How can I cultivate my ability to see nuances in people?
The “unusual suspects” I want to connect with again (an incomplete list!):
- Karen Freidt and her creative workshops; using spaces and trading places, and mindsprints.
- Jeff De Cagna to learn more about what’s on his wave and his work with scenario writing.
- Nabil Harfoush to visit his Design with Dialogue community of practice, the Strategic Innovaiton Lab, use of scenarios, the Basadur profile (different thinking types).
- Michael Dila for conversations unfinished.
- Lisa Kimball to learn more about the 27 liberating structures.
- Monika Hardy to chat more about the Mindless book and to have a Google + hangout.
- Duane Thomas to hear more about his experiments with Start-up 52, a riff on Start-up Weekend with coaches there and on-call, to come in with your business ideas.
- Tony Silbert who connected me with the design firm Continuum, does full Appreciative Inquiry summits, has a colleague in my neck of the woods (Bill Scott), and is playing with design thinking inside the AI summits.
- Drew Marshall who gives a snap in the shorts and participates in #innochat.
- Eric Patrick Marr who is doing some big change work in his community.
- John Hagel for his edgework in high performing systems.
- Alicia Heazlitt who is navigating the realm of getting unexpected toughie stakeholders to the table.
- Jessica Esch who creates these amazing sketchnotes and who, along with Eli Stefanski, we’ll have a wine and Skype chat with to talk about our shared love of Peter Blocks’ Community.
- Angela Dunn who can expand my horizons of online hosting and harvesting.
- Matt Hlavin who is changing the way business is done; curious how hosting could assist.
- Chad Lockart to chat about books that are inspiring him.
- Francis Pedraza about his unique approach connecting “the others” (investors).
- Ninja fairy-godmother Deb Mills-Scofield for her great approach to strategic planning and connector of people.
- Sandy Maxey for the amazing journey she is on doing her work in the world; our venn diagrams overlap in ways I’m still discovering.
- Last but not least, the entire BIF family, Saul Kaplan, Chris Flanagan, Katherine Hypolite and Eli Stefansk. I suspect our paths will cross again before BIF-8!
Did I miss you on this list? Let me know if you are an unusual suspect I should be colliding with.
Thank-you BIF for these rich insights; looking forward to returning in 2012 for BIF-8 with new questions that take me further in my journey as a host of conversations that matter.