Generative Change: Working Together to Bridge the Social Aspiration Gap

Genera&ve Change: Working Together to

Bridge the Social Aspira&on Gap

www.communi)esthatcan.org

Communi'es that Can! Ins'tute

Problem / Poten&al Difference

Making change that makes a difference

Genera&ve Change

Bridging the Social Aspira&on Gap

Communi)es that Can! Ins)tute

Bridging the social aspira)on gap:

“the gap between the world in which we would like to live, and the world we create through our ac&ons.” Beyond the Big Society:

Psychological Founda'ons of Ac've Ci'zenship Social Brain Project (RSA)


How will we bridge the social aspira&on gap?

Aspira&onal Purpose

“Best Fit” Change

Technology

Genera&ve Change Levers




Purpose

•  Bridging our current social aspira)on gap: the gap between the world in which we would like to live, and the world we create through our ac&ons.

•  Aligning ac&ons with aspira&ons for a preferred future ... a future that inspires us to say “if we could achieve that, my life would have meaning.”

Change Technology

•  Genera&ve Change-‐making: Adop&ng a change approach that addresses our problems and our poten&als by ac&va&ng our unique human capacity for inten&onal and purposeful ac&on.

•  Ac&va&ng a simple set of opera&ng instruc&ons: Generate. Integrate. Par&cipate.

Genera&ve Change Levers

•  Connec&ng the dots between healthy child & youth development, adult development and social development.

•  Co-‐designing a preferred future ... for kids, for adults, and for communi&es.

Working Together to

Bridge the Social Aspira&on Gap Communi)es that Can! Ins)tute

A Preferred Future ... for kids, for adults, for communi&es.

Genera&ve Change

What’s being generated?


Health

Human Development

Educa&on Coaching

Corporate Social Responsibility

Philanthropy

Governance

Ac&vism

Social Innova&on

Community Development

Not-‐for-‐profit Organiza&ons

Spiritual Leadership

Change Leaders in Diverse Sectors and Everyday Ci&zens

Genera&ng a preferred future... for kids, for adults, for communi&es.

Who are the change-‐makers?


•  Healthy development in kids depends on healthy development in adults.

•  Thriving kids need thriving adults and thriving communi&es.

•  Healthy development, in kids and adults, is the work of communi&es.

•  A preferred future is possible, for our kids and ourselves, for our organiza&ons and our communi&es.

Change leaders and everyday ci)zens ...

Making a stand for a preferred future


Connec)ng the dots between desired changes in the world, and healthy development ... in kids, in adults and in communi)es.

How can the world change if people don’t?

Robert Kegan calls human development the hidden curriculum of adult life. Many adults, he says, have not yet mastered the mental demands of modern life. In our working lives, our family lives, in our lives as leaders and as ci&zens, we frequently find ourselves … IN OVER OUR HEADS!!

“Can we keep growing and developing in adulthood? Yes, we can! And we must!”


Adults

Community

Kids

A unified change approach that fosters healthy development in kids, in adults, and in communi&es.

Genera&ve Change-‐making


Generate. • A purposeful and prac)cal change-‐making approach that generates a preferred future.

• Taking important steps beyond adap)ve change ... genera)ng outcomes that take us from break-‐ even to break-‐through.

Integrate. • Connec)ng the dots between healthy child & youth development, adult development and social development.

• Connec)ng the dots among organiza)ons, and sectors, from business to philanthropy, from government to grassroots.

Par&cipate. • Making your unique contribu)on to the health, well-‐being, and healthy development of the people in your community.

• Everyday change-‐makers, engaged in everyday change-‐making.

Our Change-‐making Model: Generate. Integrate. Par&cipate.


Generate (verb): To bring into existence; to be the cause of.

Genera&ve change: To purposefully generate a healthier future for all living systems.

Generate. Integrate. Par)cipate.


Genera&ve approach: To choose and generate a healthier future

Borrowing from Erik Erikson’s concept of genera)vity – “somewhat akin to crea)vity, but it refers specifically to the mature adult’s contribu&on to the well-‐being of future genera&ons.”

In Bill Joiner and Stephen Josephs (2007) Leadership Agility: Five Levels of Mastery for An'cipa'ng and Ini'a'ng Change


Genera)ve change is purposefully emergent -‐ fostering health, well-‐being and healthy development in self and society, now and for future genera)ons.

More than adapta)on …


Integra&on: Change-‐making that ac)vely addresses the interconnected factors that generate thriving ... in people and the communi)es we live in.



Health, well-‐being & healthy development, in self and society ...

Psychological and Spiritual Health

Healthy mind, Healthy spirit

Physical and Behavioral Health

Healthy body, Healthy ac&ons

Cultural Health Healthy cultural values,

beliefs, a]tudes, assump&ons;

healthy rela&onships

Social and Ecological Health

Healthy environment, economy, social systems, ins&tu&ons,

policies, services


Integra)on might be the principle underlying health at all levels of our experience, from the microcosm of our inner world to our interpersonal rela)onships and life in our communi)es.

Daniel Siegel, Mindsight


Par&cipa&on: Making our own unique contribu)on.



Playing our part, on our patch.

“We change ourselves to change the world” is only half the story.

To truly change ourselves, we must take an ac)ve part in changing the world. Community engagement is a key component of transforma&ve personal development ... and vice versa.


Change leaders of all sorts, including:

•  Health professionals, including health promo)on and public health •  Social workers and allied professions •  Educators •  Coaches •  Psychologists, therapists and other mental health prac))oners •  Government staff and elected representa)ves •  Spiritual leaders and directors •  Private sector leaders •  Planners and policy-‐makers •  Community development prac))oners •  Social innovators & social entrepreneurs •  Consultants •  Engaged ci)zens


Because there’s no single sector that can address the challenges and opportuni)es that face us, there’s room for everyone to contribute. In fact, it’s necessary!

Crowdsourcing

Everyday Change-‐making •  Making a difference in the world by taking ac)on right here at home.

•  Everyday ac)vi)es, guided by a compelling and collabora)ve purpose.

•  Genera)ng the assets that foster thriving ... in kids, in adults, in communi)es


The key is genera)ve change-‐making: bridging the gap between the problem or the poten)al ... and the change that makes a difference.



Genera&ve Change

Everyday Change-‐making ...


Building the bridge to a preferred future ...

Now A Preferred Future

Genera&ve Change


•  It’s democra&c! Everyone can make a contribu)on. Every day.


•  It’s intui&ve! Rely on your ins)ncts to lean in the direc)on of thriving. You already know how to make a difference.

•  It’s effec&ve! What’s the evidence? Just keep looking for signs of “difference.”


This isn’t an argument against scien)fic measurement, but an empowerment for everyday ci)zens to do the right thing ... the genera)ve thing ... the asset building thing ... the healthy change thing ... every day. It’s become part of daily life.



A Prac&cal Tool:

Genera&ve Change


Choosing the change technology that can generate a preferred future.


Adap&ve Change-‐making

Technical Change-‐making


Two kinds of change challenges: Technical and adap&ve

Building on the work of Ronald Heifetz:


Technical Change (tools, skills, methods, plans to fix

the problem…)

Technical change has long been our “go to”


Technical change-‐making According to Heifetz, technical change is the right fit when: 1.  The problem is clearly defined; 2.  The problem solving solu)on is well known, and the skill set can be fairly easily learned; and 3.  Our current mindset is adequate ... we have the

right mental tools.


Typically, the goal of adap&ve change is this: to find balance, equilibrium, in the face of changing life condi&ons.

But Heifetz adds something else ...

Panarchy Model of Adap)ve Change

Adap)ve change-‐making


Adap&ve Change

(new thinking leads to new

skills & approaches)

Adding Complexity: New learning New mental models


Shibs our acen&on from the problem to the person having the problem.

It’s we who adapt …

Adap)ve change-‐making

Robert Kegan and Lisa Laskow Lahey (2009) Immunity to Change: How to Overcome It and Unlock the Poten'al in Yourself and Your Organiza'on


Adap&ve

Technical

•  Current mental complexity is no longer adequate •  Problem defini)on, solu)on and implementa)on require a transforma)on of mindset, advancing to a more complex stage of mental development

•  New mindset leads to new skills • Adapt to changing life condi)ons •  Goal: systems equilibrium

•  Problem is clearly defined •  Problem-‐solving solu)on is well known; skill set can be learned

•  Current mindset is adequate •  Goal: fix the problem

Two Change Challenges


Ronald Heifetz, et al. (2009) The Prac'ce of Adap've Leadership

The most common cause of failure in leadership is produced by trea&ng adap&ve challenges as if they were technical problems.

And an observa)on ...


Another common mistake is to try to meet genera&ve challenges via adap&ve means.

Yes, and …


Adap&ve

Technical


•  New mindset leads to new skills •  Adapt to changing life condi)ons •  Goal: systems equilibrium


•  Current mindset is adequate •  Goal: fix the problem, maintain the system

Taking Change to the Next Level

What else is needed? A change approach that addresses our problems and our poten&als, by ac&va&ng our unique human capacity for inten&onal and purposeful ac&on. Our goal isn’t just equilibrium; our goal is a becer future for all.


Genera&ve Change (purposefully

emergent, fostering health, well-‐being

& healthy development now and for future genera&ons)

Bridging the aspira&on gap: New inten&ons for self and system


... one more prac)cal way to make sense of our change challenges, and to take appropriate ac)on.

What we’re looking for is the best func)onal fit between the purpose of the change ini)a)ve, and the change technology we put into prac)ce.

Genera&ve

Adap&ve Technical



Genera&ve Change

Adap&ve Change

Technical Change

Poten&al (what the individual

or system can become)

Equilibrium

(bounce back from shocks, re-‐balance

the system)

Maintenance (fix problems)

Finding Func&onal Fit: The complexity of the approach must align with

the complexity of the intended outcome.


Genera&ve

Adap&ve

Technical

•  Purposefully emergent, fostering health, well-‐being and healthy development ... now and for future genera)ons

•  Complex systems respond to life condi)ons with adap)ve resilience and inten)onal genera)vity.

•  Genera)ng healthier, more equitable and more sustainable life condi)ons

•  Goal: equilibrium + nudging system toward a preferred future


•  New mindset leads to new skills •  Adapt to changing life condi)ons •  Goal: systems equilibrium


•  Current mindset is adequate •  Goal: fix the problem, maintain the system

Three Change Technologies


Genera&ve Change

Purpose: Vision for a preferred future

Power

Par&cipa&on

Poten&al

Four Guiding Principles


Four Guiding Principles Poten)al Genera)ve change focuses on the poten)al of the system; what the system can become. Purpose A preferred future ... a future that inspires us to say “if we could achieve that, my life would have meaning.”

Power The capacity to make a difference ... in my own life, and in the lives of others. Par)cipa)on Ac)ve engagement in future-‐shaping ... kids, adults, organiza)ons, neighbourhoods, communi)es ...


One unified purpose: Making a stand for a preferred future.


Adop&ng a “next step” change technology ...

Genera&ve Change

Making a stand for a preferred future


•  Shaping our lives •  Shaping evolu)on

Genera&ve change-‐making:


Genera&ve Change-‐making •  Based on science •  Informed by life



Genera&ve Change Technologies: new maps and models for bridging the social aspira)on gap, including:

1.   Genera&ve Asset Building: genera)ng higher levels of health, well-‐being and healthy development – in kids, in adults, in communi)es.

What’s in our toolkit?

3.   Dialec&cal Change Prac&ces: new perspec)ves on complex change challenges, plus prac)ces to generate a preferred future for people and communi)es.

2.   Collabora&ve Mindsight: applying insights and innova)ons in brain science to our problems and our poten)als, in teams, in organiza)ons, in communi)es.



  Webinars, workshops & training intensives

How can we support your work?


  Capacity building for leaders & teams

  Coaching – individuals, organiza)ons, change labs

  Keynotes & conference presenta)ons


Workshops


  Enac)ng the Principles of Genera)ve Change: Poten)al, Purpose, Power & Par)cipa)on

  Change Up! Growing our Skills to Lead Genera)ve Change

  Genera)ve Community Development: Working Together to Build Resilience and Response-‐ability

Learning for change-‐leaders and everyday change-‐makers ...

  Genera)ve Asset Building: Everyday Ac)ons to Promote Thriving in People and Communi)es


Leader Training


  Dialec)cal Change Prac)ces   Collabora)ve Mindsight   Genera)ve Asset Building

Next-‐step learning for change leaders:


Professional Development


  Community Leadership & Collabora)on

Prac)cal applica)ons in:

  Organiza)onal & Community Development (including policy & planning)

  Coaching

  Health Promo)on

For more informa)on …

Communi&es that Can! Ins&tute Making change that makes a difference ... so that people and planet can thrive

Contact Janet Keller or Tam Lundy Phone: 510.230.0939 Phone: 604.862.9213 (if calling from Canada) Email: info@communi)esthatcan.org

www.communi)esthatcan.org

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Generative Change: Working Together to Bridge the Social Aspiration Gap