I’m an unabashed fan of Seth Godin and I love a recent blogpost of his in which he outlines the difference in company culture between the contracted risk-averse, and those that commit to the possibility of  doing something different – embracing the unknown, change, possibility.  It’s understandable in the current climate that so many people, companies, governments, financial institutions are sitting on their hands and waiting for someone else to take a risk first.  Companies won’t hire until people start spending again, banks won’t lend until companies show growth again….it’s all a cycle of Fear that has thrown our economy into quicksand.  So nobody moves unless someone else moves first.

I’m sure you see the consequences of this in your workplace.  An atmosphere of mistrust and uncertainty takes hold and people can’t really say what they think, they can’t hold their ground, because that ground seems to be dissolving around them as they watch co-workers get pink slips and the cost of everything keeps climbing and forget about new ideas – what planet are you from that you can even conceive of innovation at a time like this?

And yet…..  Now is precisely the time to pop your head out of the foxhole and look towards the horizon.  And if you can be a First Adaptor even in small ways….. you may be positioned to lead once the climate begins to thaw.

Let’s start small…… bring your employees a new way to connect by sharing their true experiences and finding more productive ways to problem solve.  Take a look at any of the trainings outlined on this website.  SFI has a series of  upcoming interactive  trainings/coaching series for three companies: a big one – Pierce Atwood, a small one: Maine Meadworks, and a non-profit network: the Institute of Civic Leadership.  These enterprises are negotiating the same shaky ground you are – and they have decided to resist contraction and Embrace the New anyway by hiring Short Fuse Interactive, LLC.

And how’s this for something really out there?  Portland Playback Theatre Co. has recently joined the Maine Convention and Visitor’s Bureau and is actively promoting storytelling as an innovative tool for stronger employee engagement and productivity.  PPT creates a staff development event unlike any you have ever experienced – they get people to tell their true stories and then play them back using specific forms and techniques.  This experience becomes a catalyst for both honoring employee experience and facilitating first steps toward productive change.
I dare you.  Take one peek out of the hole and a baby step toward something New… Check out the link….

You won’t be sorry.

I just finished David Brooks “A Social Animal”,  a cerebral page-turner written with mind, heart and yes, even a sense of humor. And I was very psyched to discover him on TED X.   His basic premise is the engine behind SFI and LegacyMD: the cultural assumption that reason trumps emotion has led to what Brooks refers to as “the Great Amputation” between mind and heart, and this is central to our country’s current political and economic paralysis.

I had to smile – this is not new stuff.  But maybe it is for a rational, reason-based, card-carrying Republican. It’s no surprise to those of us in experiential modes of training that emotions, rather than distracting annoyances,  are actually at the center of our reasoning and behavioral functions.  Brooks refers to instances where stroke victims or those with lesions in the emotion processing part of the brain (the amygdala) are helpless to make even small decisions – (see Jonah Lehrer).  Emotions are central to how and where we focus our attention – they are at the very core of our being, and we cannot learn new skills and more effective behaviors, or apply best practice anywhere without paying close attention to how they impact our behavioral decisions.  David Brooks, in thinking and researching deeply into the emotional nature of human interaction, has unknowingly lent his respected voice in support of our work.

Welcome aboard Mr. Brooks…

And speaking of TED X …Portland Playback Theatre will be profiled on TED X this coming September 10th – come see us in person or on the web!

So in the last few training sessions we have done at SFI Inc., it was not mandated that the attendees be there, but it was strongly encouraged.  And by that, I mean that our trainings were offered as a more proactive alternative to anger management interventions, or another round of communication skills training.  Our training was an opportunity for them to make a good faith attempt to analyze their own behavior and interpersonal style of communication – with the inherent pluses and minuses.  And what we all – trainers and participants – discovered in the sessions, were three key incentives not necessarily voiced prior to the work:

• When participants, no matter their perceived role in the company – start to look at themselves as leaders and therefore capable of exerting strong impact on their peers and colleagues, they take their own behavior more seriously.
• The possibility of building a positive legacy in the organization is increased and a sense of empowered responsibility takes hold
• The question “What’s in it for me?”  gets answered in that they are able to experience themselves via the role plays and Activated Scenes, as part of the solution, not just part of the identified problem.

These discoveries through the course of the workshops start to open participants up to the power of Appreciative Inquiry as a management tool  - and get them started on a quest to look for what is right – what is already working – in an organization or work team.  Then we can start to discuss how to amplify the positive – and even if we can’t eliminate the negative, we can turn down the noise.  What do you think?  What has been your experience?