Carving Your Own Path: Reflections from the book Lead Together

Remember those books back in the days that are designed to allow you to “choose your own adventure?” I’ve had the privilege of reading and finding my own adventure as I leaf through pages of Lead Together. Coming from their previous work, Reinventing Scale-Ups: Radical Ideas for Growing Companies, this trio of authors put this treasure trove of inspiration together by sharing their collective and extensive experience as catalysts for innovation in business. Brent Lowe is a Scale Coach for Founder CEOs.?Travis Marsh is a facilitator of the Interpersonal Dynamics class at the Stanford Graduate School of Business. Susan Basterfield is a Leadership Educator who helps individuals, teams, and organisations experiment with new ways of working and being, to actualise the workplace of the future.?

If there is one big takeaway I have from this book, it is the fact that in moving towards teal levels of consciousness, there is no hard and fast rules. Neither is there a real sense of “getting there”, only adapting and responding to what’s emergent.

What is tremendously refreshing is that they didn’t specifically push me as a reader to embrace teal, but to “carve your own unique path for your company,” assuring me that “the right path for your organization will emerge, as long as you work consciously and with intention.” Reading this book gave me the feeling that there are more opportunities for positive change being offered to me, both personally and professionally, but not being forced on me.

There is an endless source of inspiration to be had, with stories from over 60 different companies about revolutionary ways that organizations can move forward in a more “lead-together” sort of way. This book is about the ways companies can be brought forward that are more inclusive, energized, and purpose-driven. Some of the best parts are the rituals and routines inspired by organizations where people are able to do their best work. The stories have many common themes, but one that stood out the most was that success is especially sweet when “we’re in this together”.

Opening with Aaron Dignan’s brazen statement from Brave New Work ?- “Because almost everything has changed. But not management,” presents the real challenge we are facing in most organizations today. This brings me to a question that I continue to reflect on – how is the power structure in the organization I’m working with, adapting to the demands of the overall ecosystem – clients, people, patients, economics, legislation, environment?

While not directly endorsing teal , it is clearly travelling along the same path as Frederic Laloux’s “Reinventing Organizations”, sparking the thought that there is room for improvement in the present ways that organizations are led.?People in the workforce will mostly agree that there needs to be change, but the authors thoughtfully took a step back and gave serious thought about what that change can be.

A few interesting thoughts I took out from this book (and also from Grow Together):

4 types of Power Structures: Power Over or the command and control approach such as a boss has over an employee. Power For, on the other hand, is advocating on behalf of others. As a senior member of an organisation who is more attune to how it works, one may make decisions on behalf of a co-worker who is newer in the company. Power With, is working collaboratively with a finite amount of power divided among a few people. Finally, Power Among, the more transformative of all, suggests the flow of power among colleagues, where one person may use their power to make decisions in an organisation without making others feel powerless.?The first two are quite common in many organisations today. Ironically, it is in our personal lives that the last two usually take precedence. Many believe that in business, the last two can never work. The book reinforces for me, time and again, how important it is to sit in a circle and share responsibilities and accountability, and with that recognise each other's strengths and weaknesses.

Conscious Language. Conscious language relates to purpose. Sometimes we must change our language to break the belief cycle, which may no longer be working for us in the present organisation. Using language as a bridge to connect people makes is very significant towards changing the dynamic we have around each other. Using words that are elevating, not alienating creates a space of resonance and collective energy. It takes time and intention to craft this new language, but it's the start of changing actions and modelling new behaviours.?

Purpose. This part came so strongly for me. Knowing my real purpose allowed me to appreciate and find meaning in the things I put my energy towards. One personal takeaway is that purpose is not just about me and my own fulfillment, it is also about the ripple effect towards others – my customers, my immediate environment, my family, my relationships, my industry, etc. That said, I am left with the sense that purpose and humanity together will allow us to dance beautifully.

Values, Principles and Aspirations. What differentiates these three? It became more clear to me how values reflect our beliefs and motivations, and are relative to each person. Principles articulate our hard boundaries, and unlike values, all team members should agree to act within these boundaries. Aspirations are intentions of how a group would like to work together that are not yet fully true - what we want to do and what we think we can do. The alignment of values that we hold personally and the aspirations that we have in working together means we have a strong foundation in which to work. Some thoughts come up around values alignment in a team setting – bring awareness to the precise definitions, collective understanding, and shared intentions of each of these orienting features. While not a requirement, having these three are the key to thriving beyond “living”.

I’ve had plenty of though-provoking, insightful oh-yeah moments reading this book and I’d highly recommend it to anyone. Some of my highlights:

• Individuals thrive when they are involved in meaningful work.
• Organizations evolve and require freedom to emerge over time.
• Psychological safety is essential.
• Business challenges provide the best learning.
• Transparency, trust and agency are core to the culture of accountability.
• Moving away from the mindset that new things are a big deal rather to infuse new practices regularly, rhythmically.?

?Interested to know more? Drop me a message or tune in to my Living Conversation with Brent Lowe !

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