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PAMPHLET 14
THE LEADER'S JOURNEY
by Tom Heuerman, PH.D.
with Diane Olson, PH.D.
@1998
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Most executives and consultants who talk about transformation have not
undergone a personal transformation themselves; most have never actually
engaged in an organizational transformation, even though they talk about it
while attempting to make changes. But those few executives and consultants
who have personally been through a process of transformation and have
made serious attempts at an organizational level, stand apart from all
others; they are recognizable in their manner of speaking, their way of
relating to issues, their deep respect for the difficulty involved in the
process
and their unwavering consistency of intent. Anyone who has been through
such a process is not very interested in engaging in anything else.
Michael McMaster in The
Intelligence Advantage
I believe that twentieth century scientific discoveries (from quantum physics,
chaos/complexity, ecology, etc.) will spread through the social and
philosophical
systems of Western industrial society. These learnings will expand our
consciousness in explosive ways forming a new ecological worldview that will
transform how we relate to nature, one another, and ourselves. An organic
worldview will provide leaders with insights that will enable them, if they
choose,
to lead sustainable organizational transformation that coevolves with a
sustainable global economy and a sustainable environment.
Many executives say they are transforming their organizations as if they
were
standing apart from the enterprise and doing something mechanical to it. Those
who have led transformational change know they do not transform the
organization. Instead, transformational leaders create conditions for natural
transformation to occur--including their own.
Managers acknowledge that most change and transformation efforts of this
decade are failures. Those who have led transformation do not speak in terms
of
the success or failure of a change event. They speak in terms of a process of
growth and development. These disappointments indicate that people are still
clinging to the old ways of thinking, even as they make superficial changes,
and
are the crises that precedes true transformation (or death).
Many executives express anger at resistant employees and blame them for
their
failure to change. Transformational leaders never, ever, turn on their
followers.
They understand that resistance is feedback, and they listen to it. Employees
maintain their integrity and identities by resisting change that is poorly
conceived,
planned, communicated, and led.
Most managers attempt to mechanically fix the organizations they lead.
Mechanical fixes do not work with living systems, and they never did. They are
a
waste of time, energy, and money. Mechanical fixes to human systems hurt
people unnecessarily, and they always have. Thinking of social systems as
machines leads to unsustainable results incongruent with the organizations
goals.
I believe that one day many executives will suffer deep guilt and great sorrow
from insights into the damage they have caused other human beings in their
well-intentioned but misguided efforts to lead organizational transformation.
To
transform organizations, leaders need to understand them as living systems,
and
they need to undergo a quantum transformation (a leap from one state of
consciousness to another instead of incremental change within a state).
Personal transformation is difficult. Perhaps it is as difficult as anything a
human
being will do in life--as a person, leader, or follower. It is very hard work
to
make this personal change, said Richard Knowles, consultant and former leader
of transformation at DuPont. For me it was a painful journey. This personal
development requires the courage of a pioneer, the honesty of a child, the
imagination of an artist, and the confidence of the naive.
The first step in our conscious evolution (seeing our potential and moving
intentionally toward it) is to see reality as it is and to accept that the old
ways of
control, domination, and alienation are bringing forth unacceptable unintended
consequences for nature, communities, and individuals. A moment of metanoia--a
change of the inner person--is required. We pay attention and accept the call
to
begin a courageous journey within--resisting the systems efforts to impose
its
controls on our spirits. We take responsibility for our beliefs, leave our
dependency on archaic mental models, and set out to find our own way trusting
lifes natural process of transformation.
Richard Knowles was tough enough to climb through the ranks at DuPont to
become a plant manager in Belle, West Virginia. He has a PH.D. in engineering
and was a mechanistic thinker by education, occupation, and upbringing. His
entry point to transformation:
I was troubled by the way we led because it seemed to be so harsh and
difficult
for people. I didnt understand why that had to be. I was just in it, and I
was
trying to live in that system, but I had no understanding. Once I began to
wake up to that, I had to break it because I couldnt reconcile the huge
disconnect. I felt like it was going to destroy me either physically or
emotionally. The dominant culture is often brutal, and it doesnt have to be
that way.
Once he became aware of the cruel impact mechanical ways of management have
on people, this tired warrior could not return to the archaic and failing
methods.
To refuse the call of his insights would perpetuate the unacceptable, and he
would join the legions of the walking dead. For Dick refusal was not an
option;
this courageous man would not live a divided life. He chose to be authentic
and
began the process of enlightenment and transformation. He set forth on a new
and spirited journey to evolve his humanity.
The new adventurer wanders and explores in search of new insights and wisdom.
By braving the unknown, the leader is energized and experiences being alive in
profound ways. Richard Knowles:
I thought I was going insane, because I didnt have anybody to talk to. The
stuff we were doing at Belle was working; the work on myself was very
difficult and hard, but seemed to be paying off. I had read Gleicks book on
chaos ( 1987) and said, damn, there is something here. Until then, my work
was intuitive. It was scary as all get out; it was working, but I had no
frameworks for it. I didnt have the vocabulary.
I went to the Second Annual Chaos Network Conference in Santa Cruz,
California in June 1992. I was so desperate at that point I felt, well, I am
going to go. I told my boss I was going to an O.D. conference since chaos
sounded far out. He apparently never read my expense account either. At least
he never said anything because the conference was held at a place called The
Dream Inn, and I just thought that was staggering. Here you are going to a
chaos conference at the Dream Inn, theyll think Im crazy.
It was about a three day meeting and my whole world changed. Everybody
there understood what I was doing. They gave me a vocabulary and a
framework. I met Meg Wheatley, read her new book Leadership and the New
Science, and felt like I was coming home.
The leaders new growth is difficult and painful. The naive, curious,
innocent,
and courageous adventurer moves from a world of absolutes into a world of
paradox. The limits of traditional thought are reached, and the seeker grows
comfortable with ambiguity until new understanding emerges.
The proud achiever realizes that rigid boundaries between people must be torn
down. The leader comes to realize that life in organizations is often narrow
and
superficial, and the individual importance and contribution of executives is
often
inflated greatly. To build trust, empathy, and understanding the humbled
traveler
accepts, reflects upon, and grows from feedback given thoughtfully by diverse
people. Great insights come from those the emerging person might not have paid
any attention to when living the elitist executive role. The trail blazer
meets
fellow travelers on the journey, and they provide support and encouragement.
Mentors and teachers appear mysteriously at the moments they are needed and
guide the learner along the way.
The awakened leader understands the impact that mechanistic behaviors have on
others. The emerging human being feels the sorrow of knowing that traditional
approaches to organizational leadership diminish people--including oneself.
The
competitive champion is forced to examine competitiveness and to discover the
value of cooperation and collaboration. The lonely traveler understands how
unaware leaders often are of the organizations reality and how little truth
exists
in organizations. As consciousness grows, the leader realizes how little those
with power know about people, leadership, and thought itself. The leader
begins
to see the potential that waits to spring forth from people. A growing person
becomes comfortable with feeling scared and inadequate much of the time.
Despite the persistence of these hated emotions, confidence grows and courage
and authenticity increase. Strong resistance to change and unexpected enemies
build the leaders capacity to stand alone.
Despite the shock of seeing reality in a whole new dimension, great excitement
emerges for the potential the visionary can see in the evolving picture of the
future. Commitment grows and the leaders sense of purpose is strengthened.
The leader dies many deaths and emerges as a changed person. A person who
now understands the process of becoming; a person who evolves ones core
essence intentionally. Knowing the path is uncertain and even dangerous, the
experimental leader points out the direction and will never be distracted from
living the new vision of truth.
The leader becomes an ecological thinker who experiences life organically by
seeing networks, patterns and beliefs, relationships, and processes. An
ecological
thinker experiences life in terms of interconnected networks and develops the
capacity to shift between levels of complexity and between connected systems.
Like a tracker, an ecological thinker practices intermittent attention, a
constant
refocusing between minute detail and the whole area around it, between the
track
and the whole pattern of the woods. The mind that can see the individual
track and the pattern of the woods is a new mind.
The leader knows human nature obstructs a new way of thinking (see the
pamphlet Organizational Mindfulness). Instead of resisting instinctual ways
of
reacting, the mindful leader works around them. Thought processes are held up
for examination and correction. Coaches and mentors hold up the mirror when
the leader reverts to old ways of thinking, and the messengers are rewarded
for
doing so. The ecological thinker is observant: always paying attention for
what is
unsaid, missing, or unusual by its absence or presence. The mindful thinker
always asks, what just happened, and what can we learn from it? and what
will the unintended consequences of our actions be?
The leader finds new meaning and shares learnings with others. Life in the
organization becomes participative to gain the wisdom in the system and to
utilize the diversity needed for sustainability. The leader does not go to
diversity
classes. Instead, time is spent with people different from oneself, and the
leader
learns from the experiences. Alliances with like-minded people are formed, and
the leader puts oneself in situations where wisdom can come from others.
The servant-leader suspends ego, commits to something larger than the self,
and
identifies with life itself. The leaders needs are sacrificed for the greater
vision.
The objective is the best process and product, not being first or right. The
leader
asks questions and gathers information before acting but realizes complete
knowledge is never possible. Learning is done in real-time. Mistakes are made
as
new ideas are experimented with and the leader learns to say, Im sorry,
lets fix
it.
The leader understands the importance of authentic feedback for change. A
climate of openness exists, decisions are made on merit, and its okay to be
real.
Turbulence is encouraged, and leaders in all areas of the organization tinker
and
experiment. This emergent growth heals and frees people and as restoration
occurs people begin to come alive and their restricted potential comes forth.
This
is how transformation happens, how movements begin, how recovery occurs,
how paradigms change, and how people self-transcend. This journey within can
be taken by anyone but only those of courage and character will heed the call
to
be more than they are. Those who want to lead sustainable organizations must.
Other writing by Tom Heuerman:
Transformational Change--a discussion of mechanistic change, transformational
change ( including self-organization), the acceleration of organizational
change,
and sustainable change.
A More Natural Way Leadership for Sustainable Organizations--a book (in
manuscript form) about leadership and organizational transformation viewed
through the lens of quantum physics and the learnings from the study of living
systems (including chaos/complexity theory).
The Adventurers--In-depth interviews with four women and men leading
intentionally from the metaphors of quantum physics, chaos science, complexity
theory, and life sciences. Application of leading-edge theory to real-life
leadership.
Contact Tom at [email protected] for more information.
Tom Heuerman, PH.D. and Diane Olson, PH.D. are organizational consultants in
Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA. Phone 612-931-3909; Fax 612-931-3002
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PREVIOUS PAMPHLETS:
1. SUSTAINABILITY
2. WORLDVIEW
3. THE ALLEGORY OF PLATOS CAVE
4. THE MYTH OF THE HUNDREDTH MONKEY
5. A VISION IN STONE
6. SELF-ORGANIZATION
7. EXPERIMENTAL LEADERSHIP
8. THE IDENTIFIED LOSERS REALITY OR PERCEPTION?
9. ORGANIZATIONAL MINDFULNESS
10. CHAOS
11. THE SERVANT LEADER
12. BEYOND DUALISM
13. ADDICTIVE ORGANIZATIONS
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