Conscious Professionalism and Team Development: Eating our own cooking and developing better chefs Sheldon Herring, Ph.D. Greenville Health System SUMMARY SLIDES Summary slides are provided for personal use and with acknowledgement of indebtedness to Jim Dethmer, Diana Chapman and Kaley Warner-Klemp Practicing Conscious Leadership 1
What is Conscious Leadership/ Conscious Professionalism A Conscious Leader is someone who leads with Conscious Awareness. Conscious Awareness is a process of recognizing what is going on inside and out, the effects of decisions and actions, and the interaction between a complex array of factors and forces. It is a powerful tool for transcending unconscious patterns, fostering an expanded perspective and openness to new possibilities- Jeff Klein Conscious Leadership.. Conscious Awareness, a process of recognizing what is going on inside and out, the effects of decisions and actions, and the interaction between a complex array of factors and forces. A powerful tool for transcending unconscious patterns, fostering an expanded perspective and openness to new possibilities. Jeff Klein 2008 5 10 THINGS AUTHENTIC LEADERS DO by Robin Sharma They deepen themselves. The job of the leader is to go deep. Authentic leaders know themselves intimately. They nurture a strong self-relationship. They know their weaknesses and play to their strengths. And they always spend a lot of time transcending their fears. 6 2
The Challenge To conscious leadership Not a specific leadership model To Authentic Community Through some challenging gateways Shift in definition of expertise and leadership From what you know To how well you know yourself and allow that knowledge to influence your leadership Lessons from the Neurosciences Brain is the seat of the soul/mind/self All interactions with our environment (people, things, circumstances) have an emotional valence The gut level/emotional processing impacts how we think (Damasio s Somatic Markers) 3
Lessons from the Neurosciences Neuroplasticity is the basis of ALL learning Therefore all learned behaviors can be modified Including attributes of Awareness Conscious Leadership Mindfulness Bob Anderson, The Leadership Circle Centers of Intelligence Head Heart Gut 4
Centers of Intelligence Head: Frontal Lobe- Reasoning and Problem Solving Heart: Limbic System- Emotional Regulation Gut: Insula -Somatic Marking THE LINE Above and Below the Line Shifting between to me to by me world view ABOVE THE LINE ( BY ME ) Open and Present / Curiosity / Learning BELOW THE LINE ( TO ME ) Closed / Defensiveness / Being Right TRUST FEAR 5
Beliefs Being right is the most important thing There is a threat to me occurring out there There is not enough I need another s approval Safety and security come from outside myself I need to be in control (of things I can t control) One side of a polarity is better than the other There are only two options This is serious (it s not funny) I am better than/less than There is a right/wrong way There is no choice I have no control BELOW THE LINE Behaviors Cling to an opinion Find fault/blame Fight/Flee/Freeze/Faint Argue Rationalize/Justify See others as needing help Gossip Get overwhelmed Do whatever it takes to defend or guarantee the survival of my identity Use distractions to relieve pain Enroll others to affirm my beliefs Avoid all disconfirming data Attack the messenger Avoid conflict Force everything into polarity Statements I should I can t I m right It s hard I m trying It s not my fault I m confused The fact is I have to You made me I m sorry (with an excuse) Always/Never Why questions You re not listening to me It s no use My way or the highway Beliefs It s more valuable to learn and grow than to be right I see more than one possibility I look beyond either/or Everything is a learning opportunity It is valuable to question my thoughts and beliefs From a distance, nothing is serious and most everything is funny I place my attention on what is under my control I reveal about myself in order to create a shift in me ABOVETHE LINE Behaviors Get curious Open to possibility Move around Breathe Wonder Speak unarguably Appreciate Take responsibility Significantly change my posture Welcome feedback Question my beliefs Recognize unconscious beliefs Statements What can I learn from this? I wonder what the lesson/gift is? How is this familiar? My preference is... I wonder... Hmmm I agree to I choose to I cause I commit to What I hear you saying... My body sensations are... DRAMA 6
A Theory of Escalation Toward the Drama Triangle Fact - Story - Meaning 19 A Theory of Escalation We start with an observable fact. That which would be recorded by a video camera. FACT 20 A Theory of Escalation And then, as we think about the facts, we begin to create a story. Our personal theory about the situation. Sometimes we share our stories with others. Stories aren t validated or verified and they aren t facts. FACT STORY 21 7
A Theory of Escalation And we often ascribe meaning. Which may or may not have anything to do with the original facts. FACT STORY MEANING 22 A Theory of Escalation FACT STORY MEANING And sometimes this leads to DRAMA! 23 The MEANING we attribute to the STORIES we create from the FACTS we experience Impacts how we be in the world 8
Shift from Drama to Presence Shift VICTIM to me poor me powerless fear based DRAMA VILLAN blames shames dominates fear based CREATOR chooses vs reacting focus on desired outcome PRESENCE CHALLENGER catalyst change, learning, growth HERO helps victim numb out Poor You ALSO fear based abandonment loss of purpose COACH Sees others as creative and resourceful Asks clarifying questions Gives suggestions IF invited AUTHENTIC COMMUNITY And Gateways Shifts to Authentic Community Highly Important Not Always Easy Pseudo Team Gateways Authentic Team From Through To Complaining Healthy Responsibility Concealing Truth and Revealing Façade Openness Authentic Feelings Entitlement Commitment Accountability Appreciation Conflict Vulnerability Creativity Defensiveness Discomfort Curiosity Control Fear Participation Knowledge Risk of Betrayal Risk of Wisdom Rules Embarrassment Compassion 27 9
GATEWAY Presencing questions Don t allow the challenge to drive you below the line Consider how you might model a behavior Process idea with your team!!! 28 Truth and Openness What am I not saying? With whom am I withholding? What would be at risk if I spoke up and said what I think, feel, and want? What story do I use to justify not revealing myself? What is my commitment to truth and openness? 29 Commitment Where am I still not fully in the game? Where am I holding back? Where do I still not have a whole body YES? What do I get out of not fully committing? If I were to commit, I would be afraid that? If I were fully committed, I would 30 10
Accountability Where am I still living in victim? Where am I still living as a renter and not an owner? Where am I avoiding taking full responsibility? Where am I still blaming myself and others? If I were to take accountability, I would be afraid that 31 Vulnerability If I were willing to risk vulnerability, I would I hide my vulnerability by If I were vulnerable, I would be afraid that I feel vulnerable when What I would risk if I were vulnerable would be 32 Discomfort I avoid discomfort by I medicate my discomfort with An area where I feel discomfort and don t admit it is 33 11
Fear I am afraid that If I allowed myself to feel fear (what would happen?) I avoid my fear by To me, fear is 34 Risk of Betrayal I avoid the risk of betrayal by I m afraid that I could be betrayed by If I really, I think I would be betrayed. If I were betrayed, I would 35 Risk of Embarrassment If I, I would be afraid of being embarrassed. I avoid embarrassment by If I were embarrassed, I would be afraid that When others are embarrassed I 36 12
AWARENESS AWARENESS ANTICIPATORY EMERGENT INTELLECTUAL = difficult to plan for changes = difficult to adapt to changes = difficult to comprehend changes AWARENESS WHENEVER? WHEN? WHAT? SO WHAT? 39 13
SIX ESSENTIAL COMMITMENTS www.conscious.is Responsibility I commit to taking full responsibility for the circumstances of my life, and my physical, emotional, mental and spiritual wellbeing. I commit to support others to take full responsibility for their lives. I commit to blaming others and myself for what is wrong in the world. I commit to being a victim, villain, or a hero and taking more or less than 100% responsibility. 14
Curiosity I commit to growing in self awareness. I commit to regarding every interaction as an opportunity to learn. I commit to curiosity as a path to rapid learning. I commit to being right and to seeing this situation as something that is happening to me. I commit to being defensive especially when I am certain that I am RIGHT. Allies I commit to seeing all people and circumstances as allies that are perfectly suited to help me learn the most important things for my growth. I commit to seeing other people and circumstances as obstacles and impediments to getting what I most want. Candor I commit to saying what is true for me. I commit to being a person to whom others can express themselves with candor. I commit to withholding my truth (facts, feelings, things I imagine) and speaking in a way that allows me to try to manipulate an outcome. I commit to not listening to the other person. 15
Integrity I commit to the masterful practice of integrity, including acknowledging all key feelings, expressing the unarguable truth and keeping my agreements. I commit to withholding, not feeling, living in incompletion, and being right about my story. Gossip I commit to end gossip, to talk directly to people with whom I have an issue or concern and to encourage others to talk directly to people with whom they have an issue or concern. I commit to saying things about people that I have not or will not say to them. I commit to talking about people in ways I wouldn t if they were there. I commit to listening to others when they gossip. Practicing Conscious Leadership 16
THE CL Model Application Instruction Lay the foundation Clarify concepts Develop mental models Exploration Application Look for potential areas where CL principles might apply Living CL 6 Essential Commitments THE CL Model Application Instruction Lay the foundation Clarify concepts Develop mental models Exploration Application Look for potential areas where CL principles might apply Living CL 6 Essential Commitments THE CL Model Application Instruction Lay the foundation Clarify concepts Develop mental models Exploration Application Look for potential areas where CL principles might apply Living CL 6 Essential Commitments 17