shutterstock_31382626I’ve been thinking a lot about leadership.  Thinking about what it means in today’s context.  I’m making a distinction between leadership and a leader.  Leadership as a process is larger than the individual leader.  That seems important because leadership happens in relationship with others and within a context.  There are many kinds of leadership; thought leadership; market leadership; political leadership, spiritual leadership.  Leadership as a process brings a vision into reality by harnessing all the organization’s assets: its products, services, technologies, customers, processes, systems, reputation, individual talents, knowledge, and skills and so.  These collective assets are the strengths of the organization – the positive core.

Peter Drucker wrote in his 1967 classic, The Effective Executive. “To make strength productive is the unique purpose of organization. It cannot, of course, overcome the weaknesses with which each of us is abundantly endowed. But it can make them irrelevant.”  So if, in fact, a key task of leadership is to create an alignment of strengths, then imagine the possibilities of strengths connected to strengths?  What might that look like and why might that be worth striving for?

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2472274072_9ae091116eThis is the first full week of 2010.  As the New Year begins, I would like to extend best wishes for good health, an abundance of joy and prosperity to you all. I am excited about this new year – twenty ten!  I love saying it: twenty ten!  In March, twenty ten, my book will be published.  This is exciting and important to me.  It represents a goal, and the accomplishment of a goal to write a professional book – a practical resource on Appreciative Inquiry – that will serve people globally.

The decade beginning 2000 was a good decade for me.  I married a wonderful human being in 2000; we have enjoyed great fun and a wide range of intensely pleasurable physical experiences; we have grown together and independently through many stimulating, engaging intellectual learnings;  and we have both experienced deeply meaningful emotional times.  We have traveled a lot and created a home we love. I am blessed in my relationship.

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IndiaTimes copyI enjoyed reading the Times of India on the flight from Kathmandu to Delhi two days ago, November 23rd.  Getting a flavor of local color is a priority when you travel. An article, Red Light to Honking on Sundays by Krishnendu Bandyopadhyay, on page 2, I found particularly engaging at a number of levels. I love the charming use of English that one hears and reads in India.  This article is such an example and I’ve quoted directly to share my delight.

In the city of Kolkata, an anti-noise campaign has started and Sunday has been declared a no honking day.  To quote the police commissioner of Kolkata, Guatam Mohan Chakrabarti, “...city police are embarking on a major campaign against noise pollution in general and bursting of high decibel firecrackers in particular.”

“After some progress in the campaign, we want to observe Sundays as no honking days. Motorists in the city often honk without reason.  Most of the time this is a manifestation of their impatience.  Sundays being no hurry days, drivers can desist from honking.  This would substantially reduce noise levels in the city.  Over time, the city has got noisier and at some busy crossings, it is completely maddening.” [click to continue…]

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Reflective Work – doing the best you can with what you have

Thumbnail image for Reflective Work – doing the best you can with what you have September 30, 2009 Change

A presuppositon of NLP (neuro-linguistic programming)is people do the best they can with the resources they have.  What does that mean?  It is both pragmatic and philosophical. If you lack basic infrastructure, you do the best you can with what you have.  When physical/material resources are lacking, we have to make do and there are [...]

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Online Hosts Required.

September 23, 2009 Appreciative Inquiry

Our planning for the 2009 Appreciative Inquiry Conference in Kathmandu, Nepal has revved up with less than 8 weeks to go.  Conference dates are November 16 – 19, 2009.
We are offering some great presentations and workshops online using iCohere collaborative platform and we are seeking a number of volunteer online hosts who will be able [...]

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Acting on Feedback

Thumbnail image for Acting on Feedback September 14, 2009 Positivity

On my beach walks last week – glorious beach walks, as the day trippers have all left, leaving the beaches to the gulls, the tiny piping plovers, the rare fisherman and occasional walkers like me – I became more conscious about the range of feedback available to me and how valuable it all is.  There [...]

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Seeing with clear eyes – value of taking a break.

Thumbnail image for Seeing with clear eyes – value of taking a break. July 22, 2009 Appreciative Inquiry

I could also say seeing with fresh eyes,  or open eyes or appreciative eyes.  That’s how it seems when we take a break from our routine, regular day-to-day  activities. Distance provides a perspective that serves to clarify.  Exposed to new and different circumstances allows for expansion.   Our curiosity is aroused to inquire, admire, question and [...]

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Good Passion Bad Passion

Thumbnail image for Good Passion Bad Passion June 24, 2009 Change

Since my blog is called Pursuing Passions, I was keen to learn more about the dualistic nature of passion when I attended the First World Congress on Positive Psychology this past weekend in Philadelphia.
That there is good passion and bad passion is not new.  But appreciating the psychological impacts of good and bad passion is [...]

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Let Passion be your Power

Thumbnail image for Let Passion be your Power June 17, 2009 Change

Life is what happens to us when we have other plans, is, I think, a paraphrase of John Lennon, the great lyricist of Beatles fame.  Perhaps Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (President-elect) in Iran could be thinking just that right now, as the people Iran rise up to demonstrate that they had other plans.  Big story to be [...]

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Flourishing Destinies 1- The New News Media

Thumbnail image for Flourishing Destinies 1- The New News Media June 9, 2009 Positivity

So “flourishing” is forefront of my mind lately- see earlier post about our workshop at the recent 2009 BAWB Global Forum (Business as an Agent of World Benefit).  Therefore, it’s not unusual that the reticular activating system (RAS) kicks in and “everything”, speaks to me of “flourishing”.  The antennae coming out of my temples are [...]

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