A sharp and sensitive mind requires an open and vulnerable attitude. I’m therefore happy to be able to report some progress in this, quite challenging, area. As evidenced by Yoga poses that were previously totally impossible for me such as the (beginners version of the) bridge pose below.
Planning pilot trail in wildness in Italy for a group of people from NL Healthcare in June. It’s the first time this group, as part of a larger culture transformation program, travels together to ground in big nature for a few days.
I’m also excited as it is the first time I get to go to the ‘Parco Nazionale d’Abruzzo‘. This is also a focus area of Rewilding Europe, a terrific initiative that aims to reconnect us by making Europe a wilder place. What a great mission!
Foto’s by Rewilding Europe
From time to time I experience moments of clarity in which I feel connected to something bigger. We all know these rare and mostly brief moments in which we instinctively do the right thing, not only for ourselves and but also for our environment. Imagine the impact if and when these moments would turn into a more permanent flow?
Alvaneu, Swiss
… just flow …
When my natural purpose in live became clear I started thinking about ways to integrate that into my work. This was however accompanied, as it quite often is, with a strong desire to have material ‘impact’. Meaning being involved in ‘big’ or ‘important’ projects in line with my calling.
This thinking however meant that all kind of beautiful but ‘smaller’ projects seemed to disqualify and little happened as ‘larger’ projects are usually quite difficult to launch succesfully. At the same time this search for ‘size’ did not match my desire for simplicity and human scale. At this point was helpful for me to visualize the beauty of small steps. It shows how quickly small actions nearby can radiate into something much larger.
View on Bellagio from Tremezzo
Although I have never considered myself as such, deviating form the standard path, quickly creates the perception of being a ‘free bird’. Some people probably are ‘natural’ free birds but thats not me. Thinking differently came to me as a technique to get love and attention and a result of having to find out about things on my own. Only after so many years it also became a second nature and a productive asset.
Being asked for an interview on this topic by a student almanak around ‘free birds’ (alumni) made me reflect on this once more. After some hesitation (fitting a relatively introvert person) I participated as it might help others to recognize the potential of their own protection mechanisms and to embrace and trust them much earlier than I have done. Below therefor the interview as published in the: Leidsche Studenten Almanak 2015-2016 (sorry for the somewhat inflated introductory paragraph):
… not unlike my own …
A good read when feeling disconnected or facing ‘resistance’
To be followed by ‘The Source’ by Jaworsky as well or,
even better, Joseph Campbell
Westbroek, just a few hours before.
Let our leaders radiate kind thoughts, words and feelings. And let their actions be inspired by the beauty in and around us.
Looking for sustainable solutions instead of taking the predictable next step in the escalation of this conflict.
Over the years I have grown an affection for natural imperfection. Intense beauty created by a combination of time, simplicity and flaws. My live and spaces are filled with imperfections and only became wonderful when I finally started to embrace them. Not as a justification for making mistakes but as a starting point for growth. And as a realization that beauty lies in the contrast.
SHARING & LEARNING
Are you leading the implementation of a ‘self-management’ culture in an organization?
And do you want to learn by sharing with a small group of peers?
Join our lunch on June 2, 2016 from 12.30 to 17.30 hrs in Westbroek (Utrecht).
The afternoon is free of charge.
Please phone / mail Diederik de Groot for more information
06.54270488 / dgvembden@me.com
Now close to establishing if there is sufficient critical mass for ‘self management 2.0’ within a lead group of about 20 people of NL Healthcare (a healthcare company employing over 2.000 people) before moving to the actual implementation fase. If this flies it would be a live changing experience for all involved and hopefully an inspiration for others to move in this direction. If so this will also be one of the largest implementations of this ‘self management 2.0’ model in NL.
Strict but effective method for testing validity of objections ;o)
As you probably know by now my search for a company culture that addresses the specific challenges we face today has brought me to a model that helps people within the organisation to reach their full personal potential whilst giving all the space and trust needed for them to determine by themselves how to best anticipate or react to the ever changing environment within the overall vision and parameters of the company.
Whilst doing so it is helpfull that more and more litterature around the theoretical aspects of this organizational model is published. That makes it easier to transmit the basic idea to various stakeholders. Therefore also many thanks to:
1. ING as one of the larger organizations in NL that start embracing self management 2.0. For full article see Financieel Dagblad.
In my case, when I try to change some undesired behavior, mental exercise provides a temporary solution but usually no sustainable results.
The good news is however that undesired behavior (ultimately) always translates into some kind of physical discomfort. Growing an ongoing awareness of these (small or large) discomforts in a compassionate manner somehow activates behavioral change in a healthy and sustainable way. Main reason being that physical discomforts are easier to spot, allow a more objective analysis and more difficult to hide or disregard than mental discomforts.
One of things I’m still struggling with is that I’m ‘preaching’ concepts like: transparency, openness, vulnerability, authenticity, natural purpose, sustainability etc. whilst I’m not fully there myself… So when I speak to others about this I also speak to myself!
Somehow that doesn’t feel right. My temporary solution is to be open about the fact that I’m not there yet. Hence this small post about the process I’m still going through!
Training the mind is quite a challenge. The picture below (I took in a Tibetan monastery 2 years ago) depicts a well known buddhist tale about the meditator (you and me), the elephant (representing our ‘mind’) and the monkey (representing ‘distraction’).
… without knowing when you’ll be able to get new ones. That is something that I have often tried to avoid. I like to keep my old ones until I’m sure the new ones fit perfectly. Specially when it concerns an area where I have seen others getting into trouble because they didn’t.
But this time it seems I really have to let go before I know where I will land. For a while I have tried to follow my trusted method as I’m migrating to a next phase in my ‘professional’ live but somehow it does not work anymore. Not being able of letting go actually prevents me from discovering what is next.
Creative, Rational and Useless
Whilst gradually moving the organizations I’m involved with towards ‘self management’ (to liberate their full natural potential) I encountered a number of personal issues. These may be worth sharing as my success / failure as a (former) director to understand and cope with these issues greatly influenced the pace and success of the transition of the organization as a whole.
Testing a new destination for transformation trails in August. Some parts of the Pyrenees are as wild and remote as Scotland but not so wet and… less midges. It takes a 2 hours flight to Toulouse (FR) and a 2 hours drive to the starting point in Les Granges d’Astau. Followed by a healthy walk up the mountain to our base camp, le Refuge du lac d’Oo.
Basic program set up remains the same: Continue reading
As you probably know by now, my aim is to help people find and live their natural purpose in life. I recently read Blue Zones, a scientific study by Dan Buettner & National Geographic that supports my intuitive theory on the importance of knowing and living your personal purpose. This study concludes that having a clear sense of purpose is one of the 9 differentiating lifestyle habits that make that people in these blue zones live a longer, happier and healthier life (past age 100!). Continue reading
Just piloted a transformation trail on Rum with a few willing guinea pigs. Result was a powerful mix of: wonderful rough nature, beautiful hikes, few people, lots of sun (exceptional) and lots of rain (very common), strong wind (also very common), wet feet, almost no phone/internet coverage, yoga sessions on pristine beaches and surfing close to comfort zones.
