“Every day I am surprised by what I know, what I don’t know and what I don’t know that I don’t know.” ~ Bob McInnis
I had two long conversations today about culture change processes, intentionality, stepping stones, and establishing social norms in an unfamiliar and fluid environment. I recognized that some of the work I have been doing ans most of the reading has equipped me with some language, some models, and definitely some opinions about how and why people with something in common engage in the creation of a common culture and readily accept social norms. I know enough to have a theory and enough to facilitate significant shifts and enough to be dangerous.
I don’t know how diversity plays into the formation of common culture. One suggestion today was that we need to take Diversity 101,201,301 specific to the group we are living with, working with and playing with. For most we need to get to know or be reminded of our dispositions and tendencies so we can share them with others who we are interacting with so that they know I am not being a jerk – I just see the world differently and have different needs and practices. We understand tribe members better and figure out how to utilize the diversity to create an as yet unimagined game plan or solution.That would be 101 and 201. 301 takes us to a place where our egos are set aside and we demand diversity by reaching out to those who see the landscape differently and asking ” Can you take a look at this and help me understand where I am going wrong?” Then I need to listen to the other opinions without resentment or defensiveness and after the feedback is provided reply with ” Thank you, you have made my project better.”
I still don’t know what I don’t know but based on the conversations, learning and impact I am committed to being receptive to outlandish, incomprehensible, out of my frame of reference challenges and to widening my scope of mentors to include a couple of folks that I really don’t agree with.
Are any of you up to the challenge?
B
