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your home page and use "wiredbrain" password "synergy" for set-up start
pages.
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Social
ergonomics
Welcome to
the SYNERGY NETWORK the First Page Whole
Systems, and the Dreamtime: A new conceptual framework or
paradigm: Tools, Links and Comments
A new Page for Internet
newbies
March 26, 1996,
Venus,
The Roman Aphrodite
is the
Neolithic mother goddess who rises from the sea. Synergy comes
from the natural cooperation of men and women, families and
villages, that is the origin of the Species: Riane Eisler
TO THE START
page
The
Garden of Earthly Delights by
Bosch
Dr. Peter
Pflaum
RE: Body-mind training:
In sports psychology, the high diver has a well educated bogy-
mind. When I sailed my sloop, the body-mind knew the wind, the
waves, the water; in tennis, in music, in typing, driving,
surfing, climbing, the body-mind knows what it is doing.
Intuitive, non-verbal knowledge ( information + practice =
understanding ) give significance and meaning to behavior beyond
going through the motions. Science, engineering, management, the
arts of medicine, music, graphics, economics, government,
politics and teaching, all involve "going beyond the information
given" based on comprehensions that are difficult to explain in
words and use more than the last few centimeters of the cortex of
the brain.
Such knowledge can be taught and learned.
The profound connecting
of thinking and doing is not a mystery. Remarkable people have
always demonstrated the character integration of knowledge beyond
self, beyond ego, and beyond the information given. This can be
learned and taught. Practice of focus, of paying attention, of
relaxation, of mind control, of proactive reactions, of awareness
are all well known.
The mystery is why we reject this ancient
wisdom and cling to methods that don't work.
I suggest you look into the NAS series of books, "In the Minds Eye."
Paul W. Thayer
Thank you. Is this not what leadership is about - creating environments
where others can succeed - or develop or grow or perform or learn. Let's
not get hung up on the words?
If Price
The Harrow Partnership
Replying to LO6528 -- I would like to recommend two books from the
cognitive sciences literature:
Boden, M., (1990),
The Creative Mind: Myths & Mechanisms, Weidenfeld and
Nicolson: London, UK.
Boden, M., (ed), (1994), Dimensions of Creativity,
The MIT Press:
Cambridge, Mass., USA.
In addition, the journal 'Creativity and Innovation Management' (Blackwell
Business) often carries some interesting articles.
I would very much appreciate comments, ideas, book and article titles on
the subject of ideation and creativity. Thank you. I will post a
summary. Sincerely, Valerio Pascotto.
eos@leonardo.net (Effective Organizational Systems)
Dr. Jane Millar (email:janemi@pavilion.co.uk)
Research Fellow in Knowledge Management
Open University Business School.
--
janemi@pavilion.co.uk (Jane Millar)
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
It's weird, not the practice of meditation, but the rejection of
hatha yoga, of dance, of music to enrich the spirit, to inform
the soul and create the conditions where profound learning become
possible.
DIRECTORY
GO TO DIRECTORY
or you can visit GO TO
SYNERGY
Network last FIRST Page synergy.htm is the
last FIRST.HTM page. Contents are about new
technology, user unfriendly systems, THE STYLES
GAME, and the IDEA FACTORY -
quantum nodes on a neutral network. I am working on the
"FLOW", any suggestion are used !
The first.htm has
been moved to
/first
.htm
for the complete page - this page has been cut and new material
from this week Wednesday, April 10, 1996 8:22:54 AM
Hello Rachel Vance :
The picture above is from the
"Mary Anne" sailing off the Virgin Islands at Foxie's
Wooden Regatta
The COMPLEX SYSTEM =
GENERAL SYSTEMS = SYSTEMS THINKING
COMPLEX
SYSTEMS This is
a complex system = a biological economy - how to earn a living
and find a niche in Cyberspace. A new life form on TIERRA
Artificial Life as
Philosophy and Psychology
Matthew Elton
THE NERD location
TOPIC: INTERNET
RE: Creating
Innovation on the
Internet - Register NOW !
What do you think.
RE:
The governing issue of our times: BLUE SKY Paradigms,
Learning Organizations. 
Rapid change under competitive conditions require very smart
maneuvers, if we don't move fast enough, someone will. It's
almost impossible to maintain a "franchise" and control shifting
markets. For many products and services the market is neonate,
not quite born, so products and services have to be created out
of the "blue sky".
What we know and can ( more or less agree about ):
There is a significant change from "X" factories ( top-down,
separation of thinking and doing, bureaucratic, position and
power often goal replaces quality. Not quite honest, sincere, but
out for the "bottom line".
The fifth wave ( Tribal, Ancient Empires, Nation States, 1st and
2nd Industrial Revolutions, now "information societies" ) is
open, global, competitive, fast, sincere, honest, collective
responsibility, teams, and the Quality that grows from such
"learning systems". Liberty, equality, and fraternity, become
open decisions (participation), objective reasons, (rather than
power) and joyful esprit de corps.
The Fidelity Funds, Magellan managers, (Lynch) visited firms.
What they looked for was honest, dedicated, and talented people.
The quality of the people ( at all levels ) made for successful
companies ( in the long run) and the strategy produced the most
successful mutual fund.( Peter's Search for Excellence, named
firms, almost all over the hump, and on the way down.
They had
out lived their reputations ) Maybe I should do an index of
quality firms for investment purposes. Figures don't lie, but
liars sure can figure.
What we don't know and can't agree about:
Can you train and direct responsibility ? Can you leave the
choice of goals and well as methods "open"? How do you structure
freedom, organize liberty, direct team work and manage creativity
?
There is clearly an interesting contradiction here.
Let go of ego - give up - of the bottom line ?
of control, give up "hope" ?
Hope = expect = require = demands = being understood = rewards =
punishments = demands = the harder you push the more resistance
you feel..but I am the teacher.. I am the boss.. I provide and
example ... leadership...( but it's just too hard - I give up )
Silence........
Any questions,
Any Answers ?
Stretch, TONE, relax, clam down ----
Focus on little things - your toes.. smaller, smaller
I don't care, why should I, (dance through your own hoops)
I AM GOD (
The perfect creation of a loving universes -
indifferent to my petty needs, wants, desires, cares, positions )
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of JGainen@aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, April 09, 1996 2:04 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Answers... & Ambiguity LO6531
In this message, I want to respond to comments related to "ambiguity" from
several people, and open up a thread on parallels between helping people
learn to deal with ambiguity in schools and in learning organizations.
I'm going to sketch out the parallels as I see them in hopes of getting
some feedback based on your organizational experiences.
In a message dated 96-04-08 22:15:45 EDT, Rol Fessenden writes:
Ralph Meima says that comfort with ambiguity varies across cultures, and
that is far more acceptable in Sweden for example than in Germany or the
U.S. (Peter's comment: Also has to do with styles - personality .
The "need" for order, the fear of freedom, the level of openness, is partly a biological response pattern, even in new babies. )
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
MSN now does the best search
Social
ergonomics
Welcome to
the SYNERGY NETWORK the First Page Whole
Systems, and the Dreamtime: A new conceptual framework or
paradigm: Tools, Links and Comments
A new Page for Internet
newbies
March 26, 1996,
Venus,
The Roman Aphrodite
is the
Neolithic mother goddess who rises from the sea. Synergy comes
from the natural cooperation of men and women, families and
villages, that is the origin of the Species: Riane Eisler
TO THE START
page
The
Garden of Earthly Delights by
Bosch
Dr. Peter
Pflaum
RE: Body-mind training:
In sports psychology, the high diver has a well educated bogy-
mind. When I sailed my sloop, the body-mind knew the wind, the
waves, the water; in tennis, in music, in typing, driving,
surfing, climbing, the body-mind knows what it is doing.
Intuitive, non-verbal knowledge ( information + practice =
understanding ) give significance and meaning to behavior beyond
going through the motions. Science, engineering, management, the
arts of medicine, music, graphics, economics, government,
politics and teaching, all involve "going beyond the information
given" based on comprehensions that are difficult to explain in
words and use more than the last few centimeters of the cortex of
the brain.
Such knowledge can be taught and learned.
The profound connecting
of thinking and doing is not a mystery. Remarkable people have
always demonstrated the character integration of knowledge beyond
self, beyond ego, and beyond the information given. This can be
learned and taught. Practice of focus, of paying attention, of
relaxation, of mind control, of proactive reactions, of awareness
are all well known.
The mystery is why we reject this ancient
wisdom and cling to methods that don't work.
I suggest you look into the NAS series of books, "In the Minds Eye."
Paul W. Thayer
Thank you. Is this not what leadership is about - creating environments
where others can succeed - or develop or grow or perform or learn. Let's
not get hung up on the words?
If Price
The Harrow Partnership
Replying to LO6528 -- I would like to recommend two books from the
cognitive sciences literature:
Boden, M., (1990),
The Creative Mind: Myths & Mechanisms, Weidenfeld and
Nicolson: London, UK.
Boden, M., (ed), (1994), Dimensions of Creativity,
The MIT Press:
Cambridge, Mass., USA.
In addition, the journal 'Creativity and Innovation Management' (Blackwell
Business) often carries some interesting articles.
I would very much appreciate comments, ideas, book and article titles on
the subject of ideation and creativity. Thank you. I will post a
summary. Sincerely, Valerio Pascotto.
eos@leonardo.net (Effective Organizational Systems)
Dr. Jane Millar (email:janemi@pavilion.co.uk)
Research Fellow in Knowledge Management
Open University Business School.
--
janemi@pavilion.co.uk (Jane Millar)
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
It's weird, not the practice of meditation, but the rejection of
hatha yoga, of dance, of music to enrich the spirit, to inform
the soul and create the conditions where profound learning become
possible.
DIRECTORY
GO TO DIRECTORY
or you can visit GO TO
SYNERGY
Network last FIRST Page synergy.htm is the
last FIRST.HTM page. Contents are about new
technology, user unfriendly systems, THE STYLES
GAME, and the IDEA FACTORY -
quantum nodes on a neutral network. I am working on the
"FLOW", any suggestion are used !
The first.htm has
been moved to
/first
.htm
for the complete page - this page has been cut and new material
from this week Wednesday, April 10, 1996 8:22:54 AM
Hello Rachel Vance :
The picture above is from the
"Mary Anne" sailing off the Virgin Islands at Foxie's
Wooden Regatta
The COMPLEX SYSTEM =
GENERAL SYSTEMS = SYSTEMS THINKING
COMPLEX
SYSTEMS This is
a complex system = a biological economy - how to earn a living
and find a niche in Cyberspace. A new life form on TIERRA
Artificial Life as
Philosophy and Psychology
Matthew Elton
THE NERD location
TOPIC: INTERNET
RE: Creating
Innovation on the
Internet - Register NOW !
What do you think.
RE:
The governing issue of our times: BLUE SKY Paradigms,
Learning Organizations.
Rapid change under competitive conditions require very smart
maneuvers, if we don't move fast enough, someone will. It's
almost impossible to maintain a "franchise" and control shifting
markets. For many products and services the market is neonate,
not quite born, so products and services have to be created out
of the "blue sky".
What we know and can ( more or less agree about ):
There is a significant change from "X" factories ( top-down,
separation of thinking and doing, bureaucratic, position and
power often goal replaces quality. Not quite honest, sincere, but
out for the "bottom line".
The fifth wave ( Tribal, Ancient Empires, Nation States, 1st and
2nd Industrial Revolutions, now "information societies" ) is
open, global, competitive, fast, sincere, honest, collective
responsibility, teams, and the Quality that grows from such
"learning systems". Liberty, equality, and fraternity, become
open decisions (participation), objective reasons, (rather than
power) and joyful esprit de corps.
The Fidelity Funds, Magellan managers, (Lynch) visited firms.
What they looked for was honest, dedicated, and talented people.
The quality of the people ( at all levels ) made for successful
companies ( in the long run) and the strategy produced the most
successful mutual fund.( Peter's Search for Excellence, named
firms, almost all over the hump, and on the way down.
They had
out lived their reputations ) Maybe I should do an index of
quality firms for investment purposes. Figures don't lie, but
liars sure can figure.
What we don't know and can't agree about:
Can you train and direct responsibility ? Can you leave the
choice of goals and well as methods "open"? How do you structure
freedom, organize liberty, direct team work and manage creativity
?
There is clearly an interesting contradiction here.
Let go of ego - give up - of the bottom line ?
of control, give up "hope" ?
Hope = expect = require = demands = being understood = rewards =
punishments = demands = the harder you push the more resistance
you feel..but I am the teacher.. I am the boss.. I provide and
example ... leadership...( but it's just too hard - I give up )
Silence........
Any questions,
Any Answers ?
Stretch, TONE, relax, clam down ----
Focus on little things - your toes.. smaller, smaller
I don't care, why should I, (dance through your own hoops)
I AM GOD (
The perfect creation of a loving universes -
indifferent to my petty needs, wants, desires, cares, positions )
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of JGainen@aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, April 09, 1996 2:04 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Answers... & Ambiguity LO6531
In this message, I want to respond to comments related to "ambiguity" from
several people, and open up a thread on parallels between helping people
learn to deal with ambiguity in schools and in learning organizations.
I'm going to sketch out the parallels as I see them in hopes of getting
some feedback based on your organizational experiences.
In a message dated 96-04-08 22:15:45 EDT, Rol Fessenden writes:
Ralph Meima says that comfort with ambiguity varies across cultures, and
that is far more acceptable in Sweden for example than in Germany or the
U.S. (Peter's comment: Also has to do with styles - personality .
The "need" for order, the fear of freedom, the level of openness, is partly a biological response pattern, even in new babies. )
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
Welcome to
the SYNERGY NETWORK the First Page Whole
Systems, and the Dreamtime: A new conceptual framework or
paradigm: Tools, Links and Comments
A new Page for Internet
newbies
March 26, 1996,
Venus,
The Roman Aphrodite
is the
Neolithic mother goddess who rises from the sea. Synergy comes
from the natural cooperation of men and women, families and
villages, that is the origin of the Species: Riane Eisler
TO THE START
page
The
Garden of Earthly Delights by
Bosch
Dr. Peter
Pflaum
RE: Body-mind training:
In sports psychology, the high diver has a well educated bogy-
mind. When I sailed my sloop, the body-mind knew the wind, the
waves, the water; in tennis, in music, in typing, driving,
surfing, climbing, the body-mind knows what it is doing.
Intuitive, non-verbal knowledge ( information + practice =
understanding ) give significance and meaning to behavior beyond
going through the motions. Science, engineering, management, the
arts of medicine, music, graphics, economics, government,
politics and teaching, all involve "going beyond the information
given" based on comprehensions that are difficult to explain in
words and use more than the last few centimeters of the cortex of
the brain.
Such knowledge can be taught and learned.
The profound connecting
of thinking and doing is not a mystery. Remarkable people have
always demonstrated the character integration of knowledge beyond
self, beyond ego, and beyond the information given. This can be
learned and taught. Practice of focus, of paying attention, of
relaxation, of mind control, of proactive reactions, of awareness
are all well known.
The mystery is why we reject this ancient
wisdom and cling to methods that don't work.
I suggest you look into the NAS series of books, "In the Minds Eye."
Paul W. Thayer
Thank you. Is this not what leadership is about - creating environments
where others can succeed - or develop or grow or perform or learn. Let's
not get hung up on the words?
If Price
The Harrow Partnership
Replying to LO6528 -- I would like to recommend two books from the
cognitive sciences literature:
Boden, M., (1990),
The Creative Mind: Myths & Mechanisms, Weidenfeld and
Nicolson: London, UK.
Boden, M., (ed), (1994), Dimensions of Creativity,
The MIT Press:
Cambridge, Mass., USA.
In addition, the journal 'Creativity and Innovation Management' (Blackwell
Business) often carries some interesting articles.
I would very much appreciate comments, ideas, book and article titles on
the subject of ideation and creativity. Thank you. I will post a
summary. Sincerely, Valerio Pascotto.
eos@leonardo.net (Effective Organizational Systems)
Dr. Jane Millar (email:janemi@pavilion.co.uk)
Research Fellow in Knowledge Management
Open University Business School.
--
janemi@pavilion.co.uk (Jane Millar)
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
It's weird, not the practice of meditation, but the rejection of
hatha yoga, of dance, of music to enrich the spirit, to inform
the soul and create the conditions where profound learning become
possible.
DIRECTORY
GO TO DIRECTORY
or you can visit GO TO
SYNERGY
Network last FIRST Page synergy.htm is the
last FIRST.HTM page. Contents are about new
technology, user unfriendly systems, THE STYLES
GAME, and the IDEA FACTORY -
quantum nodes on a neutral network. I am working on the
"FLOW", any suggestion are used !
The first.htm has
been moved to
/first
.htm
for the complete page - this page has been cut and new material
from this week Wednesday, April 10, 1996 8:22:54 AM
Hello Rachel Vance :
The picture above is from the
"Mary Anne" sailing off the Virgin Islands at Foxie's
Wooden Regatta
The COMPLEX SYSTEM =
GENERAL SYSTEMS = SYSTEMS THINKING
COMPLEX
SYSTEMS This is
a complex system = a biological economy - how to earn a living
and find a niche in Cyberspace. A new life form on TIERRA
Artificial Life as
Philosophy and Psychology
Matthew Elton
THE NERD location
TOPIC: INTERNET
RE: Creating
Innovation on the
Internet - Register NOW !
What do you think.
RE:
The governing issue of our times: BLUE SKY Paradigms,
Learning Organizations.
Rapid change under competitive conditions require very smart
maneuvers, if we don't move fast enough, someone will. It's
almost impossible to maintain a "franchise" and control shifting
markets. For many products and services the market is neonate,
not quite born, so products and services have to be created out
of the "blue sky".
What we know and can ( more or less agree about ):
There is a significant change from "X" factories ( top-down,
separation of thinking and doing, bureaucratic, position and
power often goal replaces quality. Not quite honest, sincere, but
out for the "bottom line".
The fifth wave ( Tribal, Ancient Empires, Nation States, 1st and
2nd Industrial Revolutions, now "information societies" ) is
open, global, competitive, fast, sincere, honest, collective
responsibility, teams, and the Quality that grows from such
"learning systems". Liberty, equality, and fraternity, become
open decisions (participation), objective reasons, (rather than
power) and joyful esprit de corps.
The Fidelity Funds, Magellan managers, (Lynch) visited firms.
What they looked for was honest, dedicated, and talented people.
The quality of the people ( at all levels ) made for successful
companies ( in the long run) and the strategy produced the most
successful mutual fund.( Peter's Search for Excellence, named
firms, almost all over the hump, and on the way down.
They had
out lived their reputations ) Maybe I should do an index of
quality firms for investment purposes. Figures don't lie, but
liars sure can figure.
What we don't know and can't agree about:
Can you train and direct responsibility ? Can you leave the
choice of goals and well as methods "open"? How do you structure
freedom, organize liberty, direct team work and manage creativity
?
There is clearly an interesting contradiction here.
Let go of ego - give up - of the bottom line ?
of control, give up "hope" ?
Hope = expect = require = demands = being understood = rewards =
punishments = demands = the harder you push the more resistance
you feel..but I am the teacher.. I am the boss.. I provide and
example ... leadership...( but it's just too hard - I give up )
Silence........
Any questions,
Any Answers ?
Stretch, TONE, relax, clam down ----
Focus on little things - your toes.. smaller, smaller
I don't care, why should I, (dance through your own hoops)
I AM GOD (
The perfect creation of a loving universes -
indifferent to my petty needs, wants, desires, cares, positions )
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of JGainen@aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, April 09, 1996 2:04 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Answers... & Ambiguity LO6531
In this message, I want to respond to comments related to "ambiguity" from
several people, and open up a thread on parallels between helping people
learn to deal with ambiguity in schools and in learning organizations.
I'm going to sketch out the parallels as I see them in hopes of getting
some feedback based on your organizational experiences.
In a message dated 96-04-08 22:15:45 EDT, Rol Fessenden writes:
Ralph Meima says that comfort with ambiguity varies across cultures, and
that is far more acceptable in Sweden for example than in Germany or the
U.S. (Peter's comment: Also has to do with styles - personality .
The "need" for order, the fear of freedom, the level of openness, is partly a biological response pattern, even in new babies. )
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
Welcome to
the SYNERGY NETWORK the First Page Whole
Systems, and the Dreamtime: A new conceptual framework or
paradigm: Tools, Links and Comments
A new Page for Internet
newbies
A new Page for Internet newbies
March 26, 1996,
Venus,
The Roman Aphrodite
is the
Neolithic mother goddess who rises from the sea. Synergy comes
from the natural cooperation of men and women, families and
villages, that is the origin of the Species: Riane Eisler
TO THE START
page
The
Garden of Earthly Delights by
Bosch
Dr. Peter
Pflaum
RE: Body-mind training:
In sports psychology, the high diver has a well educated bogy-
mind. When I sailed my sloop, the body-mind knew the wind, the
waves, the water; in tennis, in music, in typing, driving,
surfing, climbing, the body-mind knows what it is doing.
Intuitive, non-verbal knowledge ( information + practice =
understanding ) give significance and meaning to behavior beyond
going through the motions. Science, engineering, management, the
arts of medicine, music, graphics, economics, government,
politics and teaching, all involve "going beyond the information
given" based on comprehensions that are difficult to explain in
words and use more than the last few centimeters of the cortex of
the brain.
Such knowledge can be taught and learned.
The profound connecting
of thinking and doing is not a mystery. Remarkable people have
always demonstrated the character integration of knowledge beyond
self, beyond ego, and beyond the information given. This can be
learned and taught. Practice of focus, of paying attention, of
relaxation, of mind control, of proactive reactions, of awareness
are all well known.
The mystery is why we reject this ancient
wisdom and cling to methods that don't work.
I suggest you look into the NAS series of books, "In the Minds Eye."
Paul W. Thayer
Thank you. Is this not what leadership is about - creating environments
where others can succeed - or develop or grow or perform or learn. Let's
not get hung up on the words?
If Price
The Harrow Partnership
Replying to LO6528 -- I would like to recommend two books from the
cognitive sciences literature:
Boden, M., (1990),
The Creative Mind: Myths & Mechanisms, Weidenfeld and
Nicolson: London, UK.
Boden, M., (ed), (1994), Dimensions of Creativity,
The MIT Press:
Cambridge, Mass., USA.
In addition, the journal 'Creativity and Innovation Management' (Blackwell
Business) often carries some interesting articles.
I would very much appreciate comments, ideas, book and article titles on
the subject of ideation and creativity. Thank you. I will post a
summary. Sincerely, Valerio Pascotto.
eos@leonardo.net (Effective Organizational Systems)
Dr. Jane Millar (email:janemi@pavilion.co.uk)
Research Fellow in Knowledge Management
Open University Business School.
--
janemi@pavilion.co.uk (Jane Millar)
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
It's weird, not the practice of meditation, but the rejection of
hatha yoga, of dance, of music to enrich the spirit, to inform
the soul and create the conditions where profound learning become
possible.
DIRECTORY
GO TO DIRECTORY
or you can visit GO TO
SYNERGY
Network last FIRST Page synergy.htm is the
last FIRST.HTM page. Contents are about new
technology, user unfriendly systems, THE STYLES
GAME, and the IDEA FACTORY -
quantum nodes on a neutral network. I am working on the
"FLOW", any suggestion are used !
The first.htm has
been moved to
/first
.htm
for the complete page - this page has been cut and new material
from this week Wednesday, April 10, 1996 8:22:54 AM
Hello Rachel Vance :
The picture above is from the
"Mary Anne" sailing off the Virgin Islands at Foxie's
Wooden Regatta
The COMPLEX SYSTEM =
GENERAL SYSTEMS = SYSTEMS THINKING
COMPLEX
SYSTEMS This is
a complex system = a biological economy - how to earn a living
and find a niche in Cyberspace. A new life form on TIERRA
Artificial Life as
Philosophy and Psychology
Matthew Elton
THE NERD location
TOPIC: INTERNET
RE: Creating
Innovation on the
Internet - Register NOW !
What do you think.
RE:
The governing issue of our times: BLUE SKY Paradigms,
Learning Organizations.
Rapid change under competitive conditions require very smart
maneuvers, if we don't move fast enough, someone will. It's
almost impossible to maintain a "franchise" and control shifting
markets. For many products and services the market is neonate,
not quite born, so products and services have to be created out
of the "blue sky".
What we know and can ( more or less agree about ):
There is a significant change from "X" factories ( top-down,
separation of thinking and doing, bureaucratic, position and
power often goal replaces quality. Not quite honest, sincere, but
out for the "bottom line".
The fifth wave ( Tribal, Ancient Empires, Nation States, 1st and
2nd Industrial Revolutions, now "information societies" ) is
open, global, competitive, fast, sincere, honest, collective
responsibility, teams, and the Quality that grows from such
"learning systems". Liberty, equality, and fraternity, become
open decisions (participation), objective reasons, (rather than
power) and joyful esprit de corps.
The Fidelity Funds, Magellan managers, (Lynch) visited firms.
What they looked for was honest, dedicated, and talented people.
The quality of the people ( at all levels ) made for successful
companies ( in the long run) and the strategy produced the most
successful mutual fund.( Peter's Search for Excellence, named
firms, almost all over the hump, and on the way down.
They had
out lived their reputations ) Maybe I should do an index of
quality firms for investment purposes. Figures don't lie, but
liars sure can figure.
What we don't know and can't agree about:
Can you train and direct responsibility ? Can you leave the
choice of goals and well as methods "open"? How do you structure
freedom, organize liberty, direct team work and manage creativity
?
There is clearly an interesting contradiction here.
Let go of ego - give up - of the bottom line ?
of control, give up "hope" ?
Hope = expect = require = demands = being understood = rewards =
punishments = demands = the harder you push the more resistance
you feel..but I am the teacher.. I am the boss.. I provide and
example ... leadership...( but it's just too hard - I give up )
Silence........
Any questions,
Any Answers ?
Stretch, TONE, relax, clam down ----
Focus on little things - your toes.. smaller, smaller
I don't care, why should I, (dance through your own hoops)
I AM GOD (
The perfect creation of a loving universes -
indifferent to my petty needs, wants, desires, cares, positions )
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of JGainen@aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, April 09, 1996 2:04 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Answers... & Ambiguity LO6531
In this message, I want to respond to comments related to "ambiguity" from
several people, and open up a thread on parallels between helping people
learn to deal with ambiguity in schools and in learning organizations.
I'm going to sketch out the parallels as I see them in hopes of getting
some feedback based on your organizational experiences.
In a message dated 96-04-08 22:15:45 EDT, Rol Fessenden writes:
Ralph Meima says that comfort with ambiguity varies across cultures, and
that is far more acceptable in Sweden for example than in Germany or the
U.S. (Peter's comment: Also has to do with styles - personality .
The "need" for order, the fear of freedom, the level of openness, is partly a biological response pattern, even in new babies. )
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
Dr. Peter
Pflaum
RE: Body-mind training:
In sports psychology, the high diver has a well educated bogy-
mind. When I sailed my sloop, the body-mind knew the wind, the
waves, the water; in tennis, in music, in typing, driving,
surfing, climbing, the body-mind knows what it is doing.
Intuitive, non-verbal knowledge ( information + practice =
understanding ) give significance and meaning to behavior beyond
going through the motions. Science, engineering, management, the
arts of medicine, music, graphics, economics, government,
politics and teaching, all involve "going beyond the information
given" based on comprehensions that are difficult to explain in
words and use more than the last few centimeters of the cortex of
the brain.
Such knowledge can be taught and learned.
The profound connecting
of thinking and doing is not a mystery. Remarkable people have
always demonstrated the character integration of knowledge beyond
self, beyond ego, and beyond the information given. This can be
learned and taught. Practice of focus, of paying attention, of
relaxation, of mind control, of proactive reactions, of awareness
are all well known.
The mystery is why we reject this ancient
wisdom and cling to methods that don't work.
I suggest you look into the NAS series of books, "In the Minds Eye."
Paul W. Thayer
Thank you. Is this not what leadership is about - creating environments
where others can succeed - or develop or grow or perform or learn. Let's
not get hung up on the words?
If Price
The Harrow Partnership
Replying to LO6528 -- I would like to recommend two books from the
cognitive sciences literature:
Boden, M., (1990),
The Creative Mind: Myths & Mechanisms, Weidenfeld and
Nicolson: London, UK.
Boden, M., (ed), (1994), Dimensions of Creativity,
The MIT Press:
Cambridge, Mass., USA.
In addition, the journal 'Creativity and Innovation Management' (Blackwell
Business) often carries some interesting articles.
I would very much appreciate comments, ideas, book and article titles on
the subject of ideation and creativity. Thank you. I will post a
summary. Sincerely, Valerio Pascotto.
eos@leonardo.net (Effective Organizational Systems)
Dr. Jane Millar (email:janemi@pavilion.co.uk)
Research Fellow in Knowledge Management
Open University Business School.
--
janemi@pavilion.co.uk (Jane Millar)
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
It's weird, not the practice of meditation, but the rejection of
hatha yoga, of dance, of music to enrich the spirit, to inform
the soul and create the conditions where profound learning become
possible.
DIRECTORY
GO TO DIRECTORY
or you can visit GO TO
SYNERGY
Network last FIRST Page synergy.htm is the
last FIRST.HTM page. Contents are about new
technology, user unfriendly systems, THE STYLES
GAME, and the IDEA FACTORY -
quantum nodes on a neutral network. I am working on the
"FLOW", any suggestion are used !
The first.htm has
been moved to
/first
.htm
for the complete page - this page has been cut and new material
from this week Wednesday, April 10, 1996 8:22:54 AM
Hello Rachel Vance :
The picture above is from the
"Mary Anne" sailing off the Virgin Islands at Foxie's
Wooden Regatta
In sports psychology, the high diver has a well educated bogy-
mind. When I sailed my sloop, the body-mind knew the wind, the
waves, the water; in tennis, in music, in typing, driving,
surfing, climbing, the body-mind knows what it is doing.
Intuitive, non-verbal knowledge ( information + practice =
understanding ) give significance and meaning to behavior beyond
going through the motions. Science, engineering, management, the
arts of medicine, music, graphics, economics, government,
politics and teaching, all involve "going beyond the information
given" based on comprehensions that are difficult to explain in
words and use more than the last few centimeters of the cortex of
the brain.
Such knowledge can be taught and learned.
The profound connecting
of thinking and doing is not a mystery. Remarkable people have
always demonstrated the character integration of knowledge beyond
self, beyond ego, and beyond the information given. This can be
learned and taught. Practice of focus, of paying attention, of
relaxation, of mind control, of proactive reactions, of awareness
are all well known.
The mystery is why we reject this ancient
wisdom and cling to methods that don't work.
I suggest you look into the NAS series of books, "In the Minds Eye."
Paul W. Thayer
Thank you. Is this not what leadership is about - creating environments
where others can succeed - or develop or grow or perform or learn. Let's
not get hung up on the words?
If Price
The Harrow Partnership
Replying to LO6528 -- I would like to recommend two books from the
cognitive sciences literature:
Boden, M., (1990),
The Creative Mind: Myths & Mechanisms, Weidenfeld and
Nicolson: London, UK.
Boden, M., (ed), (1994), Dimensions of Creativity,
The MIT Press:
Cambridge, Mass., USA.
In addition, the journal 'Creativity and Innovation Management' (Blackwell
Business) often carries some interesting articles.
I would very much appreciate comments, ideas, book and article titles on
the subject of ideation and creativity. Thank you. I will post a
summary. Sincerely, Valerio Pascotto.
eos@leonardo.net (Effective Organizational Systems)
Dr. Jane Millar (email:janemi@pavilion.co.uk)
Research Fellow in Knowledge Management
Open University Business School.
--
janemi@pavilion.co.uk (Jane Millar)
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
It's weird, not the practice of meditation, but the rejection of
hatha yoga, of dance, of music to enrich the spirit, to inform
the soul and create the conditions where profound learning become
possible.
DIRECTORY
GO TO DIRECTORY
or you can visit GO TO
SYNERGY
Network last FIRST Page synergy.htm is the
last FIRST.HTM page. Contents are about new
technology, user unfriendly systems, THE STYLES
GAME, and the IDEA FACTORY -
quantum nodes on a neutral network. I am working on the
"FLOW", any suggestion are used !
The first.htm has
been moved to
/first
.htm
for the complete page - this page has been cut and new material
from this week Wednesday, April 10, 1996 8:22:54 AM
Hello Rachel Vance :
The picture above is from the
"Mary Anne" sailing off the Virgin Islands at Foxie's
Wooden Regatta
Such knowledge can be taught and learned.
The profound connecting
of thinking and doing is not a mystery. Remarkable people have
always demonstrated the character integration of knowledge beyond
self, beyond ego, and beyond the information given. This can be
learned and taught. Practice of focus, of paying attention, of
relaxation, of mind control, of proactive reactions, of awareness
are all well known.
The mystery is why we reject this ancient
wisdom and cling to methods that don't work.
I suggest you look into the NAS series of books, "In the Minds Eye."
Paul W. Thayer
Thank you. Is this not what leadership is about - creating environments
where others can succeed - or develop or grow or perform or learn. Let's
not get hung up on the words?
If Price
The Harrow Partnership
Replying to LO6528 -- I would like to recommend two books from the
cognitive sciences literature:
Boden, M., (1990),
The Creative Mind: Myths & Mechanisms, Weidenfeld and
Nicolson: London, UK.
Boden, M., (ed), (1994), Dimensions of Creativity,
The MIT Press:
Cambridge, Mass., USA.
In addition, the journal 'Creativity and Innovation Management' (Blackwell
Business) often carries some interesting articles.
I would very much appreciate comments, ideas, book and article titles on
the subject of ideation and creativity. Thank you. I will post a
summary. Sincerely, Valerio Pascotto.
eos@leonardo.net (Effective Organizational Systems)
Dr. Jane Millar (email:janemi@pavilion.co.uk)
Research Fellow in Knowledge Management
Open University Business School.
--
janemi@pavilion.co.uk (Jane Millar)
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
It's weird, not the practice of meditation, but the rejection of
hatha yoga, of dance, of music to enrich the spirit, to inform
the soul and create the conditions where profound learning become
possible.
DIRECTORY
GO TO DIRECTORY
or you can visit GO TO
SYNERGY
Network last FIRST Page synergy.htm is the
last FIRST.HTM page. Contents are about new
technology, user unfriendly systems, THE STYLES
GAME, and the IDEA FACTORY -
quantum nodes on a neutral network. I am working on the
"FLOW", any suggestion are used !
The first.htm has
been moved to
/first
.htm
for the complete page - this page has been cut and new material
from this week Wednesday, April 10, 1996 8:22:54 AM
Hello Rachel Vance :
The picture above is from the
"Mary Anne" sailing off the Virgin Islands at Foxie's
Wooden Regatta
The mystery is why we reject this ancient
wisdom and cling to methods that don't work.
I suggest you look into the NAS series of books, "In the Minds Eye."
Paul W. Thayer
Thank you. Is this not what leadership is about - creating environments
where others can succeed - or develop or grow or perform or learn. Let's
not get hung up on the words?
If Price
The Harrow Partnership
Replying to LO6528 -- I would like to recommend two books from the
cognitive sciences literature:
Boden, M., (1990),
The Creative Mind: Myths & Mechanisms, Weidenfeld and
Nicolson: London, UK.
Boden, M., (ed), (1994), Dimensions of Creativity,
The MIT Press:
Cambridge, Mass., USA.
In addition, the journal 'Creativity and Innovation Management' (Blackwell
Business) often carries some interesting articles.
I would very much appreciate comments, ideas, book and article titles on
the subject of ideation and creativity. Thank you. I will post a
summary. Sincerely, Valerio Pascotto.
eos@leonardo.net (Effective Organizational Systems)
Dr. Jane Millar (email:janemi@pavilion.co.uk)
Research Fellow in Knowledge Management
Open University Business School.
--
janemi@pavilion.co.uk (Jane Millar)
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
It's weird, not the practice of meditation, but the rejection of
hatha yoga, of dance, of music to enrich the spirit, to inform
the soul and create the conditions where profound learning become
possible.
DIRECTORY
GO TO DIRECTORY
or you can visit GO TO
SYNERGY
Network last FIRST Page synergy.htm is the
last FIRST.HTM page. Contents are about new
technology, user unfriendly systems, THE STYLES
GAME, and the IDEA FACTORY -
quantum nodes on a neutral network. I am working on the
"FLOW", any suggestion are used !
The first.htm has
been moved to
/first
.htm
for the complete page - this page has been cut and new material
from this week Wednesday, April 10, 1996 8:22:54 AM
Hello Rachel Vance :
The picture above is from the
"Mary Anne" sailing off the Virgin Islands at Foxie's
Wooden Regatta
Thank you. Is this not what leadership is about - creating environments
where others can succeed - or develop or grow or perform or learn. Let's
not get hung up on the words?
If Price
The Harrow Partnership
Replying to LO6528 -- I would like to recommend two books from the
cognitive sciences literature:
Boden, M., (1990),
The Creative Mind: Myths & Mechanisms, Weidenfeld and
Nicolson: London, UK.
Boden, M., (ed), (1994), Dimensions of Creativity,
The MIT Press:
Cambridge, Mass., USA.
In addition, the journal 'Creativity and Innovation Management' (Blackwell
Business) often carries some interesting articles.
I would very much appreciate comments, ideas, book and article titles on
the subject of ideation and creativity. Thank you. I will post a
summary. Sincerely, Valerio Pascotto.
eos@leonardo.net (Effective Organizational Systems)
Dr. Jane Millar (email:janemi@pavilion.co.uk)
Research Fellow in Knowledge Management
Open University Business School.
--
janemi@pavilion.co.uk (Jane Millar)
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
It's weird, not the practice of meditation, but the rejection of
hatha yoga, of dance, of music to enrich the spirit, to inform
the soul and create the conditions where profound learning become
possible.
DIRECTORY
GO TO DIRECTORY
or you can visit GO TO
SYNERGY
Network last FIRST Page synergy.htm is the
last FIRST.HTM page. Contents are about new
technology, user unfriendly systems, THE STYLES
GAME, and the IDEA FACTORY -
quantum nodes on a neutral network. I am working on the
"FLOW", any suggestion are used !
The first.htm has
been moved to
/first
.htm
for the complete page - this page has been cut and new material
from this week Wednesday, April 10, 1996 8:22:54 AM
Hello Rachel Vance :
The picture above is from the
"Mary Anne" sailing off the Virgin Islands at Foxie's
Wooden Regatta
The Harrow Partnership
Replying to LO6528 -- I would like to recommend two books from the
cognitive sciences literature:
Boden, M., (1990),
The Creative Mind: Myths & Mechanisms, Weidenfeld and
Nicolson: London, UK.
Boden, M., (ed), (1994), Dimensions of Creativity,
The MIT Press:
Cambridge, Mass., USA.
In addition, the journal 'Creativity and Innovation Management' (Blackwell
Business) often carries some interesting articles.
I would very much appreciate comments, ideas, book and article titles on
the subject of ideation and creativity. Thank you. I will post a
summary. Sincerely, Valerio Pascotto.
eos@leonardo.net (Effective Organizational Systems)
Dr. Jane Millar (email:janemi@pavilion.co.uk)
Research Fellow in Knowledge Management
Open University Business School.
--
janemi@pavilion.co.uk (Jane Millar)
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
It's weird, not the practice of meditation, but the rejection of
hatha yoga, of dance, of music to enrich the spirit, to inform
the soul and create the conditions where profound learning become
possible.
DIRECTORY
GO TO DIRECTORY
or you can visit GO TO
SYNERGY
Network last FIRST Page synergy.htm is the
last FIRST.HTM page. Contents are about new
technology, user unfriendly systems, THE STYLES
GAME, and the IDEA FACTORY -
quantum nodes on a neutral network. I am working on the
"FLOW", any suggestion are used !
The first.htm has
been moved to
/first
.htm
for the complete page - this page has been cut and new material
from this week Wednesday, April 10, 1996 8:22:54 AM
Hello Rachel Vance :
The picture above is from the
"Mary Anne" sailing off the Virgin Islands at Foxie's
Wooden Regatta
Boden, M., (1990),
The Creative Mind: Myths & Mechanisms, Weidenfeld and
Nicolson: London, UK.
Boden, M., (ed), (1994), Dimensions of Creativity,
The MIT Press:
Cambridge, Mass., USA.
In addition, the journal 'Creativity and Innovation Management' (Blackwell
Business) often carries some interesting articles.
I would very much appreciate comments, ideas, book and article titles on
the subject of ideation and creativity. Thank you. I will post a
summary. Sincerely, Valerio Pascotto.
eos@leonardo.net (Effective Organizational Systems)
Dr. Jane Millar (email:janemi@pavilion.co.uk)
Research Fellow in Knowledge Management
Open University Business School.
--
janemi@pavilion.co.uk (Jane Millar)
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
It's weird, not the practice of meditation, but the rejection of
hatha yoga, of dance, of music to enrich the spirit, to inform
the soul and create the conditions where profound learning become
possible.
DIRECTORY
GO TO DIRECTORY
or you can visit GO TO
SYNERGY
Network last FIRST Page synergy.htm is the
last FIRST.HTM page. Contents are about new
technology, user unfriendly systems, THE STYLES
GAME, and the IDEA FACTORY -
quantum nodes on a neutral network. I am working on the
"FLOW", any suggestion are used !
The first.htm has
been moved to
/first
.htm
for the complete page - this page has been cut and new material
from this week Wednesday, April 10, 1996 8:22:54 AM
Hello Rachel Vance :
The picture above is from the
"Mary Anne" sailing off the Virgin Islands at Foxie's
Wooden Regatta
Boden, M., (ed), (1994), Dimensions of Creativity,
The MIT Press:
Cambridge, Mass., USA.
In addition, the journal 'Creativity and Innovation Management' (Blackwell
Business) often carries some interesting articles.
I would very much appreciate comments, ideas, book and article titles on
the subject of ideation and creativity. Thank you. I will post a
summary. Sincerely, Valerio Pascotto.
eos@leonardo.net (Effective Organizational Systems)
Dr. Jane Millar (email:janemi@pavilion.co.uk)
Research Fellow in Knowledge Management
Open University Business School.
--
janemi@pavilion.co.uk (Jane Millar)
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
It's weird, not the practice of meditation, but the rejection of
hatha yoga, of dance, of music to enrich the spirit, to inform
the soul and create the conditions where profound learning become
possible.
DIRECTORY
GO TO DIRECTORY
or you can visit GO TO
SYNERGY
Network last FIRST Page synergy.htm is the
last FIRST.HTM page. Contents are about new
technology, user unfriendly systems, THE STYLES
GAME, and the IDEA FACTORY -
quantum nodes on a neutral network. I am working on the
"FLOW", any suggestion are used !
The first.htm has
been moved to
/first
.htm
for the complete page - this page has been cut and new material
from this week Wednesday, April 10, 1996 8:22:54 AM
Hello Rachel Vance :
The picture above is from the
"Mary Anne" sailing off the Virgin Islands at Foxie's
Wooden Regatta
In addition, the journal 'Creativity and Innovation Management' (Blackwell
Business) often carries some interesting articles.
I would very much appreciate comments, ideas, book and article titles on
the subject of ideation and creativity. Thank you. I will post a
summary. Sincerely, Valerio Pascotto.
eos@leonardo.net (Effective Organizational Systems)
Dr. Jane Millar (email:janemi@pavilion.co.uk)
Research Fellow in Knowledge Management
Open University Business School.
--
janemi@pavilion.co.uk (Jane Millar)
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
It's weird, not the practice of meditation, but the rejection of
hatha yoga, of dance, of music to enrich the spirit, to inform
the soul and create the conditions where profound learning become
possible.
DIRECTORY
GO TO DIRECTORY
or you can visit GO TO
SYNERGY
Network last FIRST Page synergy.htm is the
last FIRST.HTM page. Contents are about new
technology, user unfriendly systems, THE STYLES
GAME, and the IDEA FACTORY -
quantum nodes on a neutral network. I am working on the
"FLOW", any suggestion are used !
The first.htm has
been moved to
/first
.htm
for the complete page - this page has been cut and new material
from this week Wednesday, April 10, 1996 8:22:54 AM
Hello Rachel Vance :
The picture above is from the
"Mary Anne" sailing off the Virgin Islands at Foxie's
Wooden Regatta
I would very much appreciate comments, ideas, book and article titles on
the subject of ideation and creativity. Thank you. I will post a
summary. Sincerely, Valerio Pascotto.
eos@leonardo.net (Effective Organizational Systems)
Dr. Jane Millar (email:janemi@pavilion.co.uk)
Research Fellow in Knowledge Management
Open University Business School.
--
janemi@pavilion.co.uk (Jane Millar)
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
It's weird, not the practice of meditation, but the rejection of
hatha yoga, of dance, of music to enrich the spirit, to inform
the soul and create the conditions where profound learning become
possible.
DIRECTORY
GO TO DIRECTORY
or you can visit GO TO
SYNERGY
Network last FIRST Page synergy.htm is the
last FIRST.HTM page. Contents are about new
technology, user unfriendly systems, THE STYLES
GAME, and the IDEA FACTORY -
quantum nodes on a neutral network. I am working on the
"FLOW", any suggestion are used !
The first.htm has
been moved to
/first
.htm
for the complete page - this page has been cut and new material
from this week Wednesday, April 10, 1996 8:22:54 AM
Hello Rachel Vance :
The picture above is from the
"Mary Anne" sailing off the Virgin Islands at Foxie's
Wooden Regatta
summary. Sincerely, Valerio Pascotto.
eos@leonardo.net (Effective Organizational Systems)
Dr. Jane Millar (email:janemi@pavilion.co.uk)
Research Fellow in Knowledge Management
Open University Business School.
--
janemi@pavilion.co.uk (Jane Millar)
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
It's weird, not the practice of meditation, but the rejection of
hatha yoga, of dance, of music to enrich the spirit, to inform
the soul and create the conditions where profound learning become
possible.
DIRECTORY
GO TO DIRECTORY
or you can visit GO TO
SYNERGY
Network last FIRST Page synergy.htm is the
last FIRST.HTM page. Contents are about new
technology, user unfriendly systems, THE STYLES
GAME, and the IDEA FACTORY -
quantum nodes on a neutral network. I am working on the
"FLOW", any suggestion are used !
The first.htm has
been moved to
/first
.htm
for the complete page - this page has been cut and new material
from this week Wednesday, April 10, 1996 8:22:54 AM
Hello Rachel Vance :
The picture above is from the
"Mary Anne" sailing off the Virgin Islands at Foxie's
Wooden Regatta
eos@leonardo.net (Effective Organizational Systems)
Dr. Jane Millar (email:janemi@pavilion.co.uk)
Research Fellow in Knowledge Management
Open University Business School.
--
janemi@pavilion.co.uk (Jane Millar)
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
It's weird, not the practice of meditation, but the rejection of
hatha yoga, of dance, of music to enrich the spirit, to inform
the soul and create the conditions where profound learning become
possible.
DIRECTORY
GO TO DIRECTORY
or you can visit GO TO
SYNERGY
Network last FIRST Page synergy.htm is the
last FIRST.HTM page. Contents are about new
technology, user unfriendly systems, THE STYLES
GAME, and the IDEA FACTORY -
quantum nodes on a neutral network. I am working on the
"FLOW", any suggestion are used !
The first.htm has
been moved to
/first
.htm
for the complete page - this page has been cut and new material
from this week Wednesday, April 10, 1996 8:22:54 AM
Hello Rachel Vance :
The picture above is from the
"Mary Anne" sailing off the Virgin Islands at Foxie's
Wooden Regatta
janemi@pavilion.co.uk (Jane Millar)
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
It's weird, not the practice of meditation, but the rejection of
hatha yoga, of dance, of music to enrich the spirit, to inform
the soul and create the conditions where profound learning become
possible.
DIRECTORY
GO TO DIRECTORY
or you can visit GO TO
SYNERGY
Network last FIRST Page synergy.htm is the
last FIRST.HTM page. Contents are about new
technology, user unfriendly systems, THE STYLES
GAME, and the IDEA FACTORY -
quantum nodes on a neutral network. I am working on the
"FLOW", any suggestion are used !
The first.htm has
been moved to
/first
.htm
for the complete page - this page has been cut and new material
from this week Wednesday, April 10, 1996 8:22:54 AM
Hello Rachel Vance :
The picture above is from the
"Mary Anne" sailing off the Virgin Islands at Foxie's
Wooden Regatta
-or-
It's weird, not the practice of meditation, but the rejection of
hatha yoga, of dance, of music to enrich the spirit, to inform
the soul and create the conditions where profound learning become
possible.
DIRECTORY
GO TO DIRECTORY
or you can visit GO TO
SYNERGY
Network last FIRST Page synergy.htm is the
last FIRST.HTM page. Contents are about new
technology, user unfriendly systems, THE STYLES
GAME, and the IDEA FACTORY -
quantum nodes on a neutral network. I am working on the
"FLOW", any suggestion are used !
The first.htm has
been moved to
/first
.htm
for the complete page - this page has been cut and new material
from this week Wednesday, April 10, 1996 8:22:54 AM
Hello Rachel Vance :
The picture above is from the
"Mary Anne" sailing off the Virgin Islands at Foxie's
Wooden Regatta
DIRECTORY
GO TO DIRECTORY
or you can visit GO TO
SYNERGY
Network last FIRST Page synergy.htm is the
last FIRST.HTM page. Contents are about new
technology, user unfriendly systems, THE STYLES
GAME, and the IDEA FACTORY -
quantum nodes on a neutral network. I am working on the
"FLOW", any suggestion are used !
The first.htm has
been moved to
/first
.htm
for the complete page - this page has been cut and new material
from this week Wednesday, April 10, 1996 8:22:54 AM
Hello Rachel Vance :
The picture above is from the
"Mary Anne" sailing off the Virgin Islands at Foxie's
Wooden Regatta
GO TO DIRECTORY
or you can visit GO TO
SYNERGY
Network last FIRST Page synergy.htm is the
last FIRST.HTM page. Contents are about new
technology, user unfriendly systems, THE STYLES
GAME, and the IDEA FACTORY -
quantum nodes on a neutral network. I am working on the
"FLOW", any suggestion are used !
The first.htm has
been moved to
/first
.htm
for the complete page - this page has been cut and new material
from this week Wednesday, April 10, 1996 8:22:54 AM
Hello Rachel Vance :
The picture above is from the
"Mary Anne" sailing off the Virgin Islands at Foxie's
Wooden Regatta
The picture above is from the "Mary Anne" sailing off the Virgin Islands at Foxie's Wooden Regatta
The COMPLEX SYSTEM =
GENERAL SYSTEMS = SYSTEMS THINKING
COMPLEX
SYSTEMS This is
a complex system = a biological economy - how to earn a living
and find a niche in Cyberspace. A new life form on TIERRA
Artificial Life as
Philosophy and Psychology
Matthew Elton
THE NERD location
TOPIC: INTERNET
RE: Creating
Innovation on the
Internet - Register NOW !
What do you think.
RE:
The governing issue of our times: BLUE SKY Paradigms,
Learning Organizations.
Rapid change under competitive conditions require very smart
maneuvers, if we don't move fast enough, someone will. It's
almost impossible to maintain a "franchise" and control shifting
markets. For many products and services the market is neonate,
not quite born, so products and services have to be created out
of the "blue sky".
What we know and can ( more or less agree about ):
There is a significant change from "X" factories ( top-down,
separation of thinking and doing, bureaucratic, position and
power often goal replaces quality. Not quite honest, sincere, but
out for the "bottom line".
The fifth wave ( Tribal, Ancient Empires, Nation States, 1st and
2nd Industrial Revolutions, now "information societies" ) is
open, global, competitive, fast, sincere, honest, collective
responsibility, teams, and the Quality that grows from such
"learning systems". Liberty, equality, and fraternity, become
open decisions (participation), objective reasons, (rather than
power) and joyful esprit de corps.
The Fidelity Funds, Magellan managers, (Lynch) visited firms.
What they looked for was honest, dedicated, and talented people.
The quality of the people ( at all levels ) made for successful
companies ( in the long run) and the strategy produced the most
successful mutual fund.( Peter's Search for Excellence, named
firms, almost all over the hump, and on the way down.
They had
out lived their reputations ) Maybe I should do an index of
quality firms for investment purposes. Figures don't lie, but
liars sure can figure.
What we don't know and can't agree about:
Can you train and direct responsibility ? Can you leave the
choice of goals and well as methods "open"? How do you structure
freedom, organize liberty, direct team work and manage creativity
?
There is clearly an interesting contradiction here.
Let go of ego - give up - of the bottom line ?
of control, give up "hope" ?
Hope = expect = require = demands = being understood = rewards =
punishments = demands = the harder you push the more resistance
you feel..but I am the teacher.. I am the boss.. I provide and
example ... leadership...( but it's just too hard - I give up )
Silence........
Any questions,
Any Answers ?
Stretch, TONE, relax, clam down ----
Focus on little things - your toes.. smaller, smaller
I don't care, why should I, (dance through your own hoops)
I AM GOD (
The perfect creation of a loving universes -
indifferent to my petty needs, wants, desires, cares, positions )
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of JGainen@aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, April 09, 1996 2:04 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Answers... & Ambiguity LO6531
In this message, I want to respond to comments related to "ambiguity" from
several people, and open up a thread on parallels between helping people
learn to deal with ambiguity in schools and in learning organizations.
I'm going to sketch out the parallels as I see them in hopes of getting
some feedback based on your organizational experiences.
In a message dated 96-04-08 22:15:45 EDT, Rol Fessenden writes:
Ralph Meima says that comfort with ambiguity varies across cultures, and
that is far more acceptable in Sweden for example than in Germany or the
U.S. (Peter's comment: Also has to do with styles - personality .
The "need" for order, the fear of freedom, the level of openness, is partly a biological response pattern, even in new babies. )
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
The COMPLEX SYSTEM =
GENERAL SYSTEMS = SYSTEMS THINKING
The COMPLEX SYSTEM =
GENERAL SYSTEMS = SYSTEMS THINKING
COMPLEX
SYSTEMS This is
a complex system = a biological economy - how to earn a living
and find a niche in Cyberspace. A new life form on TIERRA
Artificial Life as
Philosophy and Psychology
Matthew Elton
THE NERD location
TOPIC: INTERNET
RE: Creating
Innovation on the
Internet - Register NOW !
What do you think.
RE:
The governing issue of our times: BLUE SKY Paradigms,
Learning Organizations.
Rapid change under competitive conditions require very smart
maneuvers, if we don't move fast enough, someone will. It's
almost impossible to maintain a "franchise" and control shifting
markets. For many products and services the market is neonate,
not quite born, so products and services have to be created out
of the "blue sky".
What we know and can ( more or less agree about ):
There is a significant change from "X" factories ( top-down,
separation of thinking and doing, bureaucratic, position and
power often goal replaces quality. Not quite honest, sincere, but
out for the "bottom line".
The fifth wave ( Tribal, Ancient Empires, Nation States, 1st and
2nd Industrial Revolutions, now "information societies" ) is
open, global, competitive, fast, sincere, honest, collective
responsibility, teams, and the Quality that grows from such
"learning systems". Liberty, equality, and fraternity, become
open decisions (participation), objective reasons, (rather than
power) and joyful esprit de corps.
The Fidelity Funds, Magellan managers, (Lynch) visited firms.
What they looked for was honest, dedicated, and talented people.
The quality of the people ( at all levels ) made for successful
companies ( in the long run) and the strategy produced the most
successful mutual fund.( Peter's Search for Excellence, named
firms, almost all over the hump, and on the way down.
They had
out lived their reputations ) Maybe I should do an index of
quality firms for investment purposes. Figures don't lie, but
liars sure can figure.
What we don't know and can't agree about:
Can you train and direct responsibility ? Can you leave the
choice of goals and well as methods "open"? How do you structure
freedom, organize liberty, direct team work and manage creativity
?
There is clearly an interesting contradiction here.
Let go of ego - give up - of the bottom line ?
of control, give up "hope" ?
Hope = expect = require = demands = being understood = rewards =
punishments = demands = the harder you push the more resistance
you feel..but I am the teacher.. I am the boss.. I provide and
example ... leadership...( but it's just too hard - I give up )
Silence........
Any questions,
Any Answers ?
Stretch, TONE, relax, clam down ----
Focus on little things - your toes.. smaller, smaller
I don't care, why should I, (dance through your own hoops)
I AM GOD (
The perfect creation of a loving universes -
indifferent to my petty needs, wants, desires, cares, positions )
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of JGainen@aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, April 09, 1996 2:04 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Answers... & Ambiguity LO6531
In this message, I want to respond to comments related to "ambiguity" from
several people, and open up a thread on parallels between helping people
learn to deal with ambiguity in schools and in learning organizations.
I'm going to sketch out the parallels as I see them in hopes of getting
some feedback based on your organizational experiences.
In a message dated 96-04-08 22:15:45 EDT, Rol Fessenden writes:
Ralph Meima says that comfort with ambiguity varies across cultures, and
that is far more acceptable in Sweden for example than in Germany or the
U.S. (Peter's comment: Also has to do with styles - personality .
The "need" for order, the fear of freedom, the level of openness, is partly a biological response pattern, even in new babies. )
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
Matthew Elton
THE NERD location
TOPIC: INTERNET
RE: Creating
Innovation on the
Internet - Register NOW !
What do you think.
RE:
The governing issue of our times: BLUE SKY Paradigms,
Learning Organizations.
Rapid change under competitive conditions require very smart
maneuvers, if we don't move fast enough, someone will. It's
almost impossible to maintain a "franchise" and control shifting
markets. For many products and services the market is neonate,
not quite born, so products and services have to be created out
of the "blue sky".
What we know and can ( more or less agree about ):
There is a significant change from "X" factories ( top-down,
separation of thinking and doing, bureaucratic, position and
power often goal replaces quality. Not quite honest, sincere, but
out for the "bottom line".
The fifth wave ( Tribal, Ancient Empires, Nation States, 1st and
2nd Industrial Revolutions, now "information societies" ) is
open, global, competitive, fast, sincere, honest, collective
responsibility, teams, and the Quality that grows from such
"learning systems". Liberty, equality, and fraternity, become
open decisions (participation), objective reasons, (rather than
power) and joyful esprit de corps.
The Fidelity Funds, Magellan managers, (Lynch) visited firms.
What they looked for was honest, dedicated, and talented people.
The quality of the people ( at all levels ) made for successful
companies ( in the long run) and the strategy produced the most
successful mutual fund.( Peter's Search for Excellence, named
firms, almost all over the hump, and on the way down.
They had
out lived their reputations ) Maybe I should do an index of
quality firms for investment purposes. Figures don't lie, but
liars sure can figure.
What we don't know and can't agree about:
Can you train and direct responsibility ? Can you leave the
choice of goals and well as methods "open"? How do you structure
freedom, organize liberty, direct team work and manage creativity
?
There is clearly an interesting contradiction here.
Let go of ego - give up - of the bottom line ?
of control, give up "hope" ?
Hope = expect = require = demands = being understood = rewards =
punishments = demands = the harder you push the more resistance
you feel..but I am the teacher.. I am the boss.. I provide and
example ... leadership...( but it's just too hard - I give up )
Silence........
Any questions,
Any Answers ?
Stretch, TONE, relax, clam down ----
Focus on little things - your toes.. smaller, smaller
I don't care, why should I, (dance through your own hoops)
I AM GOD (
The perfect creation of a loving universes -
indifferent to my petty needs, wants, desires, cares, positions )
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of JGainen@aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, April 09, 1996 2:04 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Answers... & Ambiguity LO6531
In this message, I want to respond to comments related to "ambiguity" from
several people, and open up a thread on parallels between helping people
learn to deal with ambiguity in schools and in learning organizations.
I'm going to sketch out the parallels as I see them in hopes of getting
some feedback based on your organizational experiences.
In a message dated 96-04-08 22:15:45 EDT, Rol Fessenden writes:
Ralph Meima says that comfort with ambiguity varies across cultures, and
that is far more acceptable in Sweden for example than in Germany or the
U.S. (Peter's comment: Also has to do with styles - personality .
The "need" for order, the fear of freedom, the level of openness, is partly a biological response pattern, even in new babies. )
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
TOPIC: INTERNET
RE: Creating
Innovation on the
Internet - Register NOW !
What do you think.
RE:
The governing issue of our times: BLUE SKY Paradigms,
Learning Organizations.
Rapid change under competitive conditions require very smart
maneuvers, if we don't move fast enough, someone will. It's
almost impossible to maintain a "franchise" and control shifting
markets. For many products and services the market is neonate,
not quite born, so products and services have to be created out
of the "blue sky".
What we know and can ( more or less agree about ):
There is a significant change from "X" factories ( top-down,
separation of thinking and doing, bureaucratic, position and
power often goal replaces quality. Not quite honest, sincere, but
out for the "bottom line".
The fifth wave ( Tribal, Ancient Empires, Nation States, 1st and
2nd Industrial Revolutions, now "information societies" ) is
open, global, competitive, fast, sincere, honest, collective
responsibility, teams, and the Quality that grows from such
"learning systems". Liberty, equality, and fraternity, become
open decisions (participation), objective reasons, (rather than
power) and joyful esprit de corps.
The Fidelity Funds, Magellan managers, (Lynch) visited firms.
What they looked for was honest, dedicated, and talented people.
The quality of the people ( at all levels ) made for successful
companies ( in the long run) and the strategy produced the most
successful mutual fund.( Peter's Search for Excellence, named
firms, almost all over the hump, and on the way down.
They had
out lived their reputations ) Maybe I should do an index of
quality firms for investment purposes. Figures don't lie, but
liars sure can figure.
What we don't know and can't agree about:
Can you train and direct responsibility ? Can you leave the
choice of goals and well as methods "open"? How do you structure
freedom, organize liberty, direct team work and manage creativity
?
There is clearly an interesting contradiction here.
Let go of ego - give up - of the bottom line ?
of control, give up "hope" ?
Hope = expect = require = demands = being understood = rewards =
punishments = demands = the harder you push the more resistance
you feel..but I am the teacher.. I am the boss.. I provide and
example ... leadership...( but it's just too hard - I give up )
Silence........
Any questions,
Any Answers ?
Stretch, TONE, relax, clam down ----
Focus on little things - your toes.. smaller, smaller
I don't care, why should I, (dance through your own hoops)
I AM GOD (
The perfect creation of a loving universes -
indifferent to my petty needs, wants, desires, cares, positions )
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of JGainen@aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, April 09, 1996 2:04 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Answers... & Ambiguity LO6531
In this message, I want to respond to comments related to "ambiguity" from
several people, and open up a thread on parallels between helping people
learn to deal with ambiguity in schools and in learning organizations.
I'm going to sketch out the parallels as I see them in hopes of getting
some feedback based on your organizational experiences.
In a message dated 96-04-08 22:15:45 EDT, Rol Fessenden writes:
Ralph Meima says that comfort with ambiguity varies across cultures, and
that is far more acceptable in Sweden for example than in Germany or the
U.S. (Peter's comment: Also has to do with styles - personality .
The "need" for order, the fear of freedom, the level of openness, is partly a biological response pattern, even in new babies. )
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
RE: Creating
Innovation on the
Internet - Register NOW !
What do you think.
RE:
The governing issue of our times: BLUE SKY Paradigms,
Learning Organizations.
Rapid change under competitive conditions require very smart
maneuvers, if we don't move fast enough, someone will. It's
almost impossible to maintain a "franchise" and control shifting
markets. For many products and services the market is neonate,
not quite born, so products and services have to be created out
of the "blue sky".
What we know and can ( more or less agree about ):
There is a significant change from "X" factories ( top-down,
separation of thinking and doing, bureaucratic, position and
power often goal replaces quality. Not quite honest, sincere, but
out for the "bottom line".
The fifth wave ( Tribal, Ancient Empires, Nation States, 1st and
2nd Industrial Revolutions, now "information societies" ) is
open, global, competitive, fast, sincere, honest, collective
responsibility, teams, and the Quality that grows from such
"learning systems". Liberty, equality, and fraternity, become
open decisions (participation), objective reasons, (rather than
power) and joyful esprit de corps.
The Fidelity Funds, Magellan managers, (Lynch) visited firms.
What they looked for was honest, dedicated, and talented people.
The quality of the people ( at all levels ) made for successful
companies ( in the long run) and the strategy produced the most
successful mutual fund.( Peter's Search for Excellence, named
firms, almost all over the hump, and on the way down.
They had
out lived their reputations ) Maybe I should do an index of
quality firms for investment purposes. Figures don't lie, but
liars sure can figure.
What we don't know and can't agree about:
Can you train and direct responsibility ? Can you leave the
choice of goals and well as methods "open"? How do you structure
freedom, organize liberty, direct team work and manage creativity
?
There is clearly an interesting contradiction here.
Let go of ego - give up - of the bottom line ?
of control, give up "hope" ?
Hope = expect = require = demands = being understood = rewards =
punishments = demands = the harder you push the more resistance
you feel..but I am the teacher.. I am the boss.. I provide and
example ... leadership...( but it's just too hard - I give up )
Silence........
Any questions,
Any Answers ?
Stretch, TONE, relax, clam down ----
Focus on little things - your toes.. smaller, smaller
I don't care, why should I, (dance through your own hoops)
I AM GOD (
The perfect creation of a loving universes -
indifferent to my petty needs, wants, desires, cares, positions )
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of JGainen@aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, April 09, 1996 2:04 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Answers... & Ambiguity LO6531
In this message, I want to respond to comments related to "ambiguity" from
several people, and open up a thread on parallels between helping people
learn to deal with ambiguity in schools and in learning organizations.
I'm going to sketch out the parallels as I see them in hopes of getting
some feedback based on your organizational experiences.
In a message dated 96-04-08 22:15:45 EDT, Rol Fessenden writes:
Ralph Meima says that comfort with ambiguity varies across cultures, and
that is far more acceptable in Sweden for example than in Germany or the
U.S. (Peter's comment: Also has to do with styles - personality .
The "need" for order, the fear of freedom, the level of openness, is partly a biological response pattern, even in new babies. )
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
The governing issue of our times: BLUE SKY Paradigms,
Learning Organizations.
Rapid change under competitive conditions require very smart
maneuvers, if we don't move fast enough, someone will. It's
almost impossible to maintain a "franchise" and control shifting
markets. For many products and services the market is neonate,
not quite born, so products and services have to be created out
of the "blue sky".
What we know and can ( more or less agree about ):
There is a significant change from "X" factories ( top-down,
separation of thinking and doing, bureaucratic, position and
power often goal replaces quality. Not quite honest, sincere, but
out for the "bottom line".
The fifth wave ( Tribal, Ancient Empires, Nation States, 1st and
2nd Industrial Revolutions, now "information societies" ) is
open, global, competitive, fast, sincere, honest, collective
responsibility, teams, and the Quality that grows from such
"learning systems". Liberty, equality, and fraternity, become
open decisions (participation), objective reasons, (rather than
power) and joyful esprit de corps.
The Fidelity Funds, Magellan managers, (Lynch) visited firms.
What they looked for was honest, dedicated, and talented people.
The quality of the people ( at all levels ) made for successful
companies ( in the long run) and the strategy produced the most
successful mutual fund.( Peter's Search for Excellence, named
firms, almost all over the hump, and on the way down.
They had
out lived their reputations ) Maybe I should do an index of
quality firms for investment purposes. Figures don't lie, but
liars sure can figure.
What we don't know and can't agree about:
Can you train and direct responsibility ? Can you leave the
choice of goals and well as methods "open"? How do you structure
freedom, organize liberty, direct team work and manage creativity
?
There is clearly an interesting contradiction here.
Let go of ego - give up - of the bottom line ?
of control, give up "hope" ?
Hope = expect = require = demands = being understood = rewards =
punishments = demands = the harder you push the more resistance
you feel..but I am the teacher.. I am the boss.. I provide and
example ... leadership...( but it's just too hard - I give up )
Silence........
Any questions,
Any Answers ?
Stretch, TONE, relax, clam down ----
Focus on little things - your toes.. smaller, smaller
I don't care, why should I, (dance through your own hoops)
I AM GOD (
The perfect creation of a loving universes -
indifferent to my petty needs, wants, desires, cares, positions )
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of JGainen@aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, April 09, 1996 2:04 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Answers... & Ambiguity LO6531
In this message, I want to respond to comments related to "ambiguity" from
several people, and open up a thread on parallels between helping people
learn to deal with ambiguity in schools and in learning organizations.
I'm going to sketch out the parallels as I see them in hopes of getting
some feedback based on your organizational experiences.
In a message dated 96-04-08 22:15:45 EDT, Rol Fessenden writes:
Ralph Meima says that comfort with ambiguity varies across cultures, and
that is far more acceptable in Sweden for example than in Germany or the
U.S. (Peter's comment: Also has to do with styles - personality .
The "need" for order, the fear of freedom, the level of openness, is partly a biological response pattern, even in new babies. )
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
There is a significant change from "X" factories ( top-down,
separation of thinking and doing, bureaucratic, position and
power often goal replaces quality. Not quite honest, sincere, but
out for the "bottom line".
The fifth wave ( Tribal, Ancient Empires, Nation States, 1st and
2nd Industrial Revolutions, now "information societies" ) is
open, global, competitive, fast, sincere, honest, collective
responsibility, teams, and the Quality that grows from such
"learning systems". Liberty, equality, and fraternity, become
open decisions (participation), objective reasons, (rather than
power) and joyful esprit de corps.
The Fidelity Funds, Magellan managers, (Lynch) visited firms.
What they looked for was honest, dedicated, and talented people.
The quality of the people ( at all levels ) made for successful
companies ( in the long run) and the strategy produced the most
successful mutual fund.( Peter's Search for Excellence, named
firms, almost all over the hump, and on the way down.
They had
out lived their reputations ) Maybe I should do an index of
quality firms for investment purposes. Figures don't lie, but
liars sure can figure.
What we don't know and can't agree about:
Can you train and direct responsibility ? Can you leave the
choice of goals and well as methods "open"? How do you structure
freedom, organize liberty, direct team work and manage creativity
?
There is clearly an interesting contradiction here.
Let go of ego - give up - of the bottom line ?
of control, give up "hope" ?
Hope = expect = require = demands = being understood = rewards =
punishments = demands = the harder you push the more resistance
you feel..but I am the teacher.. I am the boss.. I provide and
example ... leadership...( but it's just too hard - I give up )
Silence........
Any questions,
Any Answers ?
Stretch, TONE, relax, clam down ----
Focus on little things - your toes.. smaller, smaller
I don't care, why should I, (dance through your own hoops)
I AM GOD (
The perfect creation of a loving universes -
indifferent to my petty needs, wants, desires, cares, positions )
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of JGainen@aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, April 09, 1996 2:04 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Answers... & Ambiguity LO6531
In this message, I want to respond to comments related to "ambiguity" from
several people, and open up a thread on parallels between helping people
learn to deal with ambiguity in schools and in learning organizations.
I'm going to sketch out the parallels as I see them in hopes of getting
some feedback based on your organizational experiences.
In a message dated 96-04-08 22:15:45 EDT, Rol Fessenden writes:
Ralph Meima says that comfort with ambiguity varies across cultures, and
that is far more acceptable in Sweden for example than in Germany or the
U.S. (Peter's comment: Also has to do with styles - personality .
The "need" for order, the fear of freedom, the level of openness, is partly a biological response pattern, even in new babies. )
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
The fifth wave ( Tribal, Ancient Empires, Nation States, 1st and
2nd Industrial Revolutions, now "information societies" ) is
open, global, competitive, fast, sincere, honest, collective
responsibility, teams, and the Quality that grows from such
"learning systems". Liberty, equality, and fraternity, become
open decisions (participation), objective reasons, (rather than
power) and joyful esprit de corps.
The Fidelity Funds, Magellan managers, (Lynch) visited firms.
What they looked for was honest, dedicated, and talented people.
The quality of the people ( at all levels ) made for successful
companies ( in the long run) and the strategy produced the most
successful mutual fund.( Peter's Search for Excellence, named
firms, almost all over the hump, and on the way down.
They had
out lived their reputations ) Maybe I should do an index of
quality firms for investment purposes. Figures don't lie, but
liars sure can figure.
What we don't know and can't agree about:
Can you train and direct responsibility ? Can you leave the
choice of goals and well as methods "open"? How do you structure
freedom, organize liberty, direct team work and manage creativity
?
There is clearly an interesting contradiction here.
Let go of ego - give up - of the bottom line ?
of control, give up "hope" ?
Hope = expect = require = demands = being understood = rewards =
punishments = demands = the harder you push the more resistance
you feel..but I am the teacher.. I am the boss.. I provide and
example ... leadership...( but it's just too hard - I give up )
Silence........
Any questions,
Any Answers ?
Stretch, TONE, relax, clam down ----
Focus on little things - your toes.. smaller, smaller
I don't care, why should I, (dance through your own hoops)
I AM GOD (
The perfect creation of a loving universes -
indifferent to my petty needs, wants, desires, cares, positions )
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of JGainen@aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, April 09, 1996 2:04 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Answers... & Ambiguity LO6531
In this message, I want to respond to comments related to "ambiguity" from
several people, and open up a thread on parallels between helping people
learn to deal with ambiguity in schools and in learning organizations.
I'm going to sketch out the parallels as I see them in hopes of getting
some feedback based on your organizational experiences.
In a message dated 96-04-08 22:15:45 EDT, Rol Fessenden writes:
Ralph Meima says that comfort with ambiguity varies across cultures, and
that is far more acceptable in Sweden for example than in Germany or the
U.S. (Peter's comment: Also has to do with styles - personality .
The "need" for order, the fear of freedom, the level of openness, is partly a biological response pattern, even in new babies. )
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
The Fidelity Funds, Magellan managers, (Lynch) visited firms.
What they looked for was honest, dedicated, and talented people.
The quality of the people ( at all levels ) made for successful
companies ( in the long run) and the strategy produced the most
successful mutual fund.( Peter's Search for Excellence, named
firms, almost all over the hump, and on the way down.
They had
out lived their reputations ) Maybe I should do an index of
quality firms for investment purposes. Figures don't lie, but
liars sure can figure.
What we don't know and can't agree about:
Can you train and direct responsibility ? Can you leave the
choice of goals and well as methods "open"? How do you structure
freedom, organize liberty, direct team work and manage creativity
?
There is clearly an interesting contradiction here.
Let go of ego - give up - of the bottom line ?
of control, give up "hope" ?
Hope = expect = require = demands = being understood = rewards =
punishments = demands = the harder you push the more resistance
you feel..but I am the teacher.. I am the boss.. I provide and
example ... leadership...( but it's just too hard - I give up )
Silence........
Any questions,
Any Answers ?
Stretch, TONE, relax, clam down ----
Focus on little things - your toes.. smaller, smaller
I don't care, why should I, (dance through your own hoops)
I AM GOD (
The perfect creation of a loving universes -
indifferent to my petty needs, wants, desires, cares, positions )
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of JGainen@aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, April 09, 1996 2:04 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Answers... & Ambiguity LO6531
In this message, I want to respond to comments related to "ambiguity" from
several people, and open up a thread on parallels between helping people
learn to deal with ambiguity in schools and in learning organizations.
I'm going to sketch out the parallels as I see them in hopes of getting
some feedback based on your organizational experiences.
In a message dated 96-04-08 22:15:45 EDT, Rol Fessenden writes:
Ralph Meima says that comfort with ambiguity varies across cultures, and
that is far more acceptable in Sweden for example than in Germany or the
U.S. (Peter's comment: Also has to do with styles - personality .
The "need" for order, the fear of freedom, the level of openness, is partly a biological response pattern, even in new babies. )
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
The quality of the people ( at all levels ) made for successful
companies ( in the long run) and the strategy produced the most
successful mutual fund.( Peter's Search for Excellence, named
firms, almost all over the hump, and on the way down.
They had
out lived their reputations ) Maybe I should do an index of
quality firms for investment purposes. Figures don't lie, but
liars sure can figure.
What we don't know and can't agree about:
Can you train and direct responsibility ? Can you leave the
choice of goals and well as methods "open"? How do you structure
freedom, organize liberty, direct team work and manage creativity
?
There is clearly an interesting contradiction here.
Let go of ego - give up - of the bottom line ?
of control, give up "hope" ?
Hope = expect = require = demands = being understood = rewards =
punishments = demands = the harder you push the more resistance
you feel..but I am the teacher.. I am the boss.. I provide and
example ... leadership...( but it's just too hard - I give up )
Silence........
Any questions,
Any Answers ?
Stretch, TONE, relax, clam down ----
Focus on little things - your toes.. smaller, smaller
I don't care, why should I, (dance through your own hoops)
I AM GOD (
The perfect creation of a loving universes -
indifferent to my petty needs, wants, desires, cares, positions )
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of JGainen@aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, April 09, 1996 2:04 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Answers... & Ambiguity LO6531
In this message, I want to respond to comments related to "ambiguity" from
several people, and open up a thread on parallels between helping people
learn to deal with ambiguity in schools and in learning organizations.
I'm going to sketch out the parallels as I see them in hopes of getting
some feedback based on your organizational experiences.
In a message dated 96-04-08 22:15:45 EDT, Rol Fessenden writes:
Ralph Meima says that comfort with ambiguity varies across cultures, and
that is far more acceptable in Sweden for example than in Germany or the
U.S. (Peter's comment: Also has to do with styles - personality .
The "need" for order, the fear of freedom, the level of openness, is partly a biological response pattern, even in new babies. )
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
What we don't know and can't agree about:
Can you train and direct responsibility ? Can you leave the
choice of goals and well as methods "open"? How do you structure
freedom, organize liberty, direct team work and manage creativity
?
There is clearly an interesting contradiction here.
Let go of ego - give up - of the bottom line ?
of control, give up "hope" ?
Hope = expect = require = demands = being understood = rewards =
punishments = demands = the harder you push the more resistance
you feel..but I am the teacher.. I am the boss.. I provide and
example ... leadership...( but it's just too hard - I give up )
Silence........
Any questions,
Any Answers ?
Stretch, TONE, relax, clam down ----
Focus on little things - your toes.. smaller, smaller
I don't care, why should I, (dance through your own hoops)
I AM GOD (
The perfect creation of a loving universes -
indifferent to my petty needs, wants, desires, cares, positions )
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of JGainen@aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, April 09, 1996 2:04 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Answers... & Ambiguity LO6531
In this message, I want to respond to comments related to "ambiguity" from
several people, and open up a thread on parallels between helping people
learn to deal with ambiguity in schools and in learning organizations.
I'm going to sketch out the parallels as I see them in hopes of getting
some feedback based on your organizational experiences.
In a message dated 96-04-08 22:15:45 EDT, Rol Fessenden writes:
Ralph Meima says that comfort with ambiguity varies across cultures, and
that is far more acceptable in Sweden for example than in Germany or the
U.S. (Peter's comment: Also has to do with styles - personality .
The "need" for order, the fear of freedom, the level of openness, is partly a biological response pattern, even in new babies. )
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
There is clearly an interesting contradiction here.
Let go of ego - give up - of the bottom line ?
of control, give up "hope" ?
Hope = expect = require = demands = being understood = rewards =
punishments = demands = the harder you push the more resistance
you feel..but I am the teacher.. I am the boss.. I provide and
example ... leadership...( but it's just too hard - I give up )
Silence........
Any questions,
Any Answers ?
Stretch, TONE, relax, clam down ----
Focus on little things - your toes.. smaller, smaller
I don't care, why should I, (dance through your own hoops)
I AM GOD (
The perfect creation of a loving universes -
indifferent to my petty needs, wants, desires, cares, positions )
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of JGainen@aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, April 09, 1996 2:04 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Answers... & Ambiguity LO6531
In this message, I want to respond to comments related to "ambiguity" from
several people, and open up a thread on parallels between helping people
learn to deal with ambiguity in schools and in learning organizations.
I'm going to sketch out the parallels as I see them in hopes of getting
some feedback based on your organizational experiences.
In a message dated 96-04-08 22:15:45 EDT, Rol Fessenden writes:
Ralph Meima says that comfort with ambiguity varies across cultures, and
that is far more acceptable in Sweden for example than in Germany or the
U.S. (Peter's comment: Also has to do with styles - personality .
The "need" for order, the fear of freedom, the level of openness, is partly a biological response pattern, even in new babies. )
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
Silence........
Any questions,
Any Answers ?
Stretch, TONE, relax, clam down ----
Focus on little things - your toes.. smaller, smaller
I don't care, why should I, (dance through your own hoops)
I AM GOD (
The perfect creation of a loving universes -
indifferent to my petty needs, wants, desires, cares, positions )
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of JGainen@aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, April 09, 1996 2:04 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Answers... & Ambiguity LO6531
In this message, I want to respond to comments related to "ambiguity" from
several people, and open up a thread on parallels between helping people
learn to deal with ambiguity in schools and in learning organizations.
I'm going to sketch out the parallels as I see them in hopes of getting
some feedback based on your organizational experiences.
In a message dated 96-04-08 22:15:45 EDT, Rol Fessenden writes:
Ralph Meima says that comfort with ambiguity varies across cultures, and
that is far more acceptable in Sweden for example than in Germany or the
U.S. (Peter's comment: Also has to do with styles - personality .
The "need" for order, the fear of freedom, the level of openness, is partly a biological response pattern, even in new babies. )
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
Any questions,
Any Answers ?
Stretch, TONE, relax, clam down ----
Focus on little things - your toes.. smaller, smaller
I don't care, why should I, (dance through your own hoops)
I AM GOD (
The perfect creation of a loving universes -
indifferent to my petty needs, wants, desires, cares, positions )
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of JGainen@aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, April 09, 1996 2:04 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Answers... & Ambiguity LO6531
In this message, I want to respond to comments related to "ambiguity" from
several people, and open up a thread on parallels between helping people
learn to deal with ambiguity in schools and in learning organizations.
I'm going to sketch out the parallels as I see them in hopes of getting
some feedback based on your organizational experiences.
In a message dated 96-04-08 22:15:45 EDT, Rol Fessenden writes:
Ralph Meima says that comfort with ambiguity varies across cultures, and
that is far more acceptable in Sweden for example than in Germany or the
U.S. (Peter's comment: Also has to do with styles - personality .
The "need" for order, the fear of freedom, the level of openness, is partly a biological response pattern, even in new babies. )
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
Stretch, TONE, relax, clam down ----
Focus on little things - your toes.. smaller, smaller
I don't care, why should I, (dance through your own hoops)
I AM GOD (
The perfect creation of a loving universes -
indifferent to my petty needs, wants, desires, cares, positions )
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of JGainen@aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, April 09, 1996 2:04 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Answers... & Ambiguity LO6531
In this message, I want to respond to comments related to "ambiguity" from
several people, and open up a thread on parallels between helping people
learn to deal with ambiguity in schools and in learning organizations.
I'm going to sketch out the parallels as I see them in hopes of getting
some feedback based on your organizational experiences.
In a message dated 96-04-08 22:15:45 EDT, Rol Fessenden writes:
Ralph Meima says that comfort with ambiguity varies across cultures, and
that is far more acceptable in Sweden for example than in Germany or the
U.S. (Peter's comment: Also has to do with styles - personality .
The "need" for order, the fear of freedom, the level of openness, is partly a biological response pattern, even in new babies. )
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
I don't care, why should I, (dance through your own hoops)
I AM GOD (
The perfect creation of a loving universes -
indifferent to my petty needs, wants, desires, cares, positions )
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of JGainen@aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, April 09, 1996 2:04 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Answers... & Ambiguity LO6531
In this message, I want to respond to comments related to "ambiguity" from
several people, and open up a thread on parallels between helping people
learn to deal with ambiguity in schools and in learning organizations.
I'm going to sketch out the parallels as I see them in hopes of getting
some feedback based on your organizational experiences.
In a message dated 96-04-08 22:15:45 EDT, Rol Fessenden writes:
Ralph Meima says that comfort with ambiguity varies across cultures, and
that is far more acceptable in Sweden for example than in Germany or the
U.S. (Peter's comment: Also has to do with styles - personality .
The "need" for order, the fear of freedom, the level of openness, is partly a biological response pattern, even in new babies. )
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
The perfect creation of a loving universes -
indifferent to my petty needs, wants, desires, cares, positions )
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of JGainen@aol.com
Sent: Tuesday, April 09, 1996 2:04 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Answers... & Ambiguity LO6531
In this message, I want to respond to comments related to "ambiguity" from
several people, and open up a thread on parallels between helping people
learn to deal with ambiguity in schools and in learning organizations.
I'm going to sketch out the parallels as I see them in hopes of getting
some feedback based on your organizational experiences.
In a message dated 96-04-08 22:15:45 EDT, Rol Fessenden writes:
Ralph Meima says that comfort with ambiguity varies across cultures, and
that is far more acceptable in Sweden for example than in Germany or the
U.S. (Peter's comment: Also has to do with styles - personality .
The "need" for order, the fear of freedom, the level of openness, is partly a biological response pattern, even in new babies. )
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
Sent: Tuesday, April 09, 1996 2:04 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Answers... & Ambiguity LO6531
In this message, I want to respond to comments related to "ambiguity" from
several people, and open up a thread on parallels between helping people
learn to deal with ambiguity in schools and in learning organizations.
I'm going to sketch out the parallels as I see them in hopes of getting
some feedback based on your organizational experiences.
In a message dated 96-04-08 22:15:45 EDT, Rol Fessenden writes:
Ralph Meima says that comfort with ambiguity varies across cultures, and
that is far more acceptable in Sweden for example than in Germany or the
U.S. (Peter's comment: Also has to do with styles - personality .
The "need" for order, the fear of freedom, the level of openness, is partly a biological response pattern, even in new babies. )
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
In this message, I want to respond to comments related to "ambiguity" from
several people, and open up a thread on parallels between helping people
learn to deal with ambiguity in schools and in learning organizations.
I'm going to sketch out the parallels as I see them in hopes of getting
some feedback based on your organizational experiences.
In a message dated 96-04-08 22:15:45 EDT, Rol Fessenden writes:
Ralph Meima says that comfort with ambiguity varies across cultures, and
that is far more acceptable in Sweden for example than in Germany or the
U.S. (Peter's comment: Also has to do with styles - personality .
The "need" for order, the fear of freedom, the level of openness, is partly a biological response pattern, even in new babies. )
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
Ralph Meima says that comfort with ambiguity varies across cultures, and
that is far more acceptable in Sweden for example than in Germany or the
U.S. (Peter's comment: Also has to do with styles - personality .
The "need" for order, the fear of freedom, the level of openness, is partly a biological response pattern, even in new babies. )
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
that is far more acceptable in Sweden for example than in Germany or the
U.S. (Peter's comment: Also has to do with styles - personality .
The "need" for order, the fear of freedom, the level of openness, is partly a biological response pattern, even in new babies. )
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
This implies to me that it -- comfort with ambiguity -- is at least in
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
part a culturally and/or educationally developed trait, and not a
developmental phase that is common to all humans. Joanna, are you there?
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
Does this make sense? How should we change education to increase comfort
with ambiguity?
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
Yes, Rol, I am here. I've been lurking again. Thank you for asking.
Great questions. I thought your earlier "grand simplification" of my
first message (LO 6335) was very helpful.
I wholeheartedly agree that the ability to deal with ambiguity is
educationally developed, and probably culturally influenced as well (but
I'm a psychologist, not an anthropologist--I would love to hear an
anthropological perspective on this topic).
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
Because environments can influence comfort with ambiguity, and because
ambiguity is inherent in organizations, I see a striking convergence
between ideal (IMO) educational environments and successful learning
organizations.
In education, democratic, participative approaches consistently promote
learning AND complex, contextual thinking. After tracking research on
education for development for about 20 years, I have come to believe that
people grow and learn most when they:
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
*learn skills through instruction, practice, coaching, and feedback
*have responsibility for decisions, and learn skills for decision making
*have control over their own learning, and learn skills for self-management
*have opportunities to learn with and from each other, and learn skills for
team learning
*have opportunities to learn from their own experiences, and learn skills
for reflecting on experience
*are challenged to give reasons for their statements, and learn reasoning
skills and inquiry strategies
*are supported by others as they grope around trying to make sense of
things--and learn skills of empathy.
Is there a pattern here? Somewhere along the line people got stuck on
"positive reinforcement" but the picture is now far more complex and
interesting, and I believe, parallel in many ways to learning
organizations.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
A key vehicle for all of these factors is "collaborative learning"--a huge
buzz word in education today.
The research favoring collaborative
learning over "traditional" forms such as lecture is staggering. In
structured collaborative groups, even sixth graders can develop ways to
deal with ambiguity. In one study, they even did the unheard-of: they
went to the library voluntarily in search of additional information for
their group discussions. College students who work in teams generally
outperform themselves as individuals. And so on.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
Collaborative learning helps people see that there is more than one way to
approach a problem. It brings out thought processes and mental models so
they can be organized, elaborated, and tested. Collaborative learning
must be "scaffolded," however, like any other complex skill (that is,
learning is supported through instruction, practice, coaching and
feedback). People don't just do it well the first time they find
themselves in a group.
In organizations, we are seeing a reorientation toward participative
decision making, flat hierarchies, and teamwork. I think these changes
signal a major shift in western culture from an individualist to a
collectivist paradigm. To handle the ambiguity resulting from these
changes, we find it necessary to invent or reclaim tools for deep
learning--ways to surface our mental models; system archetypes to help us
find patterns in "chaotic" phenomena; dialogue to explore meaning
together, and communication technologies designed to capture and build on
organizational learning.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
My guess is that well-designed learning organizations, like well-designed
educational programs, promote greater comfort with ambiguity by
identifying and "scaffolding" the requisite skills. "Well-designed" means
they provide tools people can use to explore and find a path through the
ambiguity instead of having to avoid it.
They also provide opportunities
for people to use those tools to influence their environment (my
definition of "empowerment").
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
A workplace (or school) with these characteristics ought to come close to
fulfilling the promise of Rolf Osterberg's wonderful statement, quoted
recently by Peter H. Jones
Subj: Who wants to "learn"? LO6283
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
"Work, as every other aspect of life, is a process, through which we acquire
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
experiences and insights and grow inwardly....
"
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
The primary purpose of a company is to serve as an arena for the personal
development of those working in the company.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
The production of goods and
services
and the making of profits are by-products."
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
(From: Corporate Renaissance, 1993; phj@actrix.gen.nz)
Creating an environment for growth, whether in education or the workplace,
is slow going--and full of ambiguities. I'm grateful for the opportunity
to learn from and with the people who share their ideas so generously on
this list. If you've gotten this far, I hope you'll respond!
Joanne Gainen
MTD & Associates
Specializing in 360-degree feedback for communication enrichment, performance
improvement, and team development
jgainen@aol.com
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
-------------------------------------------------
PS Developmental "stages" of ambiguity --for the theoreticians in the
crowd:
It would be too strong to treat the various ways of dealing with ambiguity
as universal developmental "stages." ("Stage" has a definite technical
meaning in developmental psychology.)
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
There is a certain logic to the
progression I described in my first message, and some pretty good
supporting evidence from many college environments. But there is also a
lot of evidence that people don't deal with all forms of uncertainty in
the same ways, even at the same point in their lives.
The idea of
"perspectives" or "positions" toward knowledge in a particular context is
less confining than "stages" for me.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
Another way of looking at ambiguity is a personality trait or tendency, or
a "disposition." Still another is to consider "managing ambiguity" a
skill or set of skills, a kind of expertise one develops with practice,
coaching, and feedback.
I'm an optimist--if it is developmental it can be helped along by a rich
environment. If "comfort with ambiguity" is a skill, it can be acquired.
If it's a disposition, it can be cultivated. In any case, organizations
can tend to suppress it or support it.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
Joanne Gainen
JGainen@aol.com
--
JGainen@aol.com
Learning-org -- An Internet Dialog on Learning Organizations
For info: -or-
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
The Uni-bomber thinks he has special powers - knows something the rest of
us don't. He is beyond the regular rules of society - out of it. He
doesn't relate to the pain he has caused. He needs to be put away - crazy
- has taken the map to be the territory. Builds castles in the air and
then moves in. Just a extreme case of what we all do. We all live inside
our own reality. I hope we know the difference between our ideas and
"reality" - but in groups we can become confused.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
-- Reflections on Easter:
We are all sinners - the way to a better life includes repentance. (Think again)
Since we can't make it on our own -
Do we believe that a "higher" power that understanding and forgives us our "sins".
Meditation on the power of love, of sacrifice and forgiveness - even to forgive ourselves - transforms us and our relationships.
This is the 12 steps of AA - I can't do it myself but need help. I am weak and foolish but there will be a path for my feet and a light on the path from above.
SO... that's true isn't it ? Man's search for meaning is the grace from the impossible dream - Good Mrs. Murphy will follow me all the days of my life ( from an 8 year old )
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
The step of repentance is critical.
The path of the boot camp, Markarenko' s Road to Life (Communist) the Way of St. Loyola, is the seven stages - Welcome, motivation, goals, repentance, forgiveness, union, and joy (
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
The peace that passes all understanding ).
In less religious terms the way of the hero with 1000 faces (Campbell) involves real change and requires suffering and the rewards of facing our fears and demons. A that's the truth !
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.
Integration of body/mind/soul and discovery of WHAT MATTERS -
what really matters ? What if my central skill, product, service
that is my living is being replaced ? I am being "down-sized".
-
Winfried, I like your interpretation of the list of 'leadership'
expressions.
They really are a summary of qualities of a human being.
Personally I have been very interested in the areas of mindfulness and
awareness lately. In fact I am a bit disconcerted with the emphasize on
Learning. I too often run into people who feel they need to Learn before
they can start living or doing what they would like to do. I think people
are already whole and complete, and could benefit from just taking a deep
breath, looking around themselves and live (or manage, or produce, or
create, or build, or whatever).
Then as they proceed, and find that there
are specific Learning that could help them along towards the specific
goals they try to reach, THEN they can go find the answer to those
questions.
A lot of the LEARNING discussion implies that we are not ready to start,
that we need to learn first. I say we are already ready. We are already
doing things. We live, and we work, and we play and interact with people.
Besides, I think it is prudent to remember that we can only LEARN that
which we are already ready to learn. We can only LEARN what makes sense to
us at the time.
So what would our days look like if we were more concerned about what our
next step or action will be, rather than mentally waiting until we get
THERE?
Trond
--
Trond Sjovoll
TS Leadership Consulting
TrondS@msn.com
FROM: Chip Fogg
Saw your posting to the HR-OD-L list. I'm building a Web site for DuPont's
packaging materials business, and am on the verge of launching it.
In my "welcome" message, I want to flag several key functions in Corporate America that need to come to terms with the radical nature of this change
that we are going through.
Tried to find your site, but got an error message. (try again it always works for me)
Your message fits
exactly what I'm experiencing as both the joy/creativity/freedom that we
can enjoy as individual contributors to worthy goals -- and also the
frustration of dealing with a largely bewildered "
Theory X" management
structure. It speaks the words, because it is not stupid. But it cannot
mean them, because its own job is at stake. It doesn't dare let go,
because what it's holding onto is its only known security.
We need to help them understand that they can be free, too, if only we
can find the purposes that make sense to all of us.
The human resource function is in need of new vision. I want to point
them to neat places to study and grow. Helpful tips welcomed.
Shareholders are another audience. And of course, our customers. But
one of the main topics I feel needs to be addressed as big business
accepts that it is entering chaotic times, is the collecting and
motivating of bright, honest, sincere people, who neither look for
nor look up to traditional powers in the organization, but rather
look for ideas that will help them know with whom to conspire for
great new successes in meeting society's needs.
From: Chip Fogg
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 5:57 PM
To: Peter Pflaum
Subject: (no subject)
Found it ... ideas all knotted up together and interacting. Neat!
Synergy includes cohabitation in time and space. Time of chaos.
Wanting it to make sense so I can put it away and forget it. But
that would be taking myself out of it. It will be hard to control,
but the ride is underway. Remnants of stone walls pass by from a
home in New Hampshire. I walk them in my head.
The old farmhouse
burned; it wasn't meant for electricity. Planted dreams grown over
by woods. A cellular transmitter on Cates Hill to link to someday.
Thanks for the stimulations. Distance learning will be the new
one-room schoolhouse. Looking forward to faster sailing in May?
If I can hold my head on ... "I'll be back."
Chip Fogg
DuPont
From: learning-org-approval@world.std.com on behalf of Peter Pflaum
Sent: Saturday, April 06, 1996 11:20 AM
To: learning-org@world.std.com
Subject: Cooperation vs Competition LO6473
is interesting??
On and simple ( but complex ) issue is how to use methods without
believing in "a method".
There are no 12 steps, 16 principles, 9
attitudes, etc. Each case is different and people really have to solve
their own problems.
Therefore what can the ' wise ' teacher (consultant)
do ? Since all dogma ( theology ) is true and also false - and becomes a
new prison - process becomes the message.. the media is the message - the
relationships are the content - just like in physics. This is simple and
hard, new and old - you know it when you see it. If you understand ( a
little ) it is clear but if you don't you don't.