Do you have an ethical true north?

Some weeks are so full of game-changing global events, it's tricky to know where to start. Last week was just a little OTT with the reluctant resignation of the British Prime Minister, the Sri-Lankan President on the precipice and the assassination of the former Japanese PM.

Elon Musk withdrew his bid for Twitter, the Dutch parliament approved legislation that will allow people to work remotely (bill to follow), Canada experienced a massive connectivity outage on Friday and Uber's ethically questionable practices were revealed in technicolour (more on ethics below).

I won't go on... I'm sure you can add a handful of headline stories from wherever you are in the world, which will have a lasting impact in ways we have yet to fully appreciate.

And yet, is last week really any different from any other? It's easy to be overwhelmed by events in our newsfeeds and on our doorsteps unless we can find some space between what's going on and our own equilibrium. Unless we can become more comfortable living in liminality, full of ambiguity and yes, possibility and opportunity. I trust that this week's trio inspires enough of the latter for you to be in creation of what you desire from a place of perspective and balance.

3 Things to enrich your thinking for the week ahead

My aim each week?is to bring you three things worth knowing about, thinking more deeply about or taking action on. I'd love to hear your thoughts on this week's trio...

How ethical theories can help you make better decisions

Today, we're faced with numerous ethical decisions and dilemmas, not least if we're involved in any aspect of major change or innovation. The leaps and bounds being made in celebrated advances in the sciences and technology often challenge the very foundations of what we believe to be right, wrong, moral or even kind, which are also all open to interpretation.

It's tricky when the rule books haven't yet been written. When pushing the boundaries of what's possible have yet to meet up with social norms or "just doing the right thing". When what's being developed hasn't yet encountered a legal precedent or widely accepted policy.

And whilst not all of us are pushing extreme limits, as leaders at all levels, we are all faced with micro ethical and moral decisions on a daily basis. The question is, how can we find our true north and ensure we are, at least, not causing any harm?

In his refreshing TED talk, TV writer and producer Michael Schur (from hit shows "The Office" and "The Good Place") and author of How to Be Perfect: The Correct Answer to Every Moral Question shares his views on how to confront life's moral dilemmas and shows how understanding ethical theories can help you make better, kinder decisions.

"Understanding ethical theories is how we increase our chances of our success at simply being human beings who have to negotiate with other human beings. And to me, there is nothing more important than that."

I trust you enjoy this as much as I did!

When do things actually change?

There have been pivotal moments in my career when I've wondered if the things we're striving for are actually doable? If, for example, conscious leadership and business would shift from what was perceived as a "movement" to becoming mainstream? If a global event (like the pandemic) would nudge government policy and business across an invisible line to embrace something more sustainable and humane?

At times like these, I'm reminded of the impact various books and talks have had on shaping my thinking. One of these is Malcolm Gladwell's "The Tipping Point" (2000), which explores the social dynamics that cause rapid change. That magic moment when ideas, trends and social behaviour cross a threshold, tip the balance and spread like wildfire.

That magic moment when ideas, trends and social behaviour cross a threshold, tip the balance and spread like wildfire.

Another is Simon Sinek's contemporary adaptation of the Diffusion of Innovations, a?theory?that seeks to explain how, why and at what rate new ideas and technology spread. Everett Rogers, professor and chair of the Department of Communication & Journalism at the University of New Mexico originally popularised the theory in his book published in 1962.

Rogers proposes that five main elements influence the spread of a new idea: the innovation itself, adopters,?communication channels, time and a social system that relies heavily on social capital. He also introduced a term we are all so familiar with, that of the "early adopter".

In the 1991 book "Crossing the Chasm", Geoffrey Moore, Management Consultant, goes on to theorise that the tipping point between niche appeal and self-sustained adoption lies at the boundary between the early adopters and the early majority.

Today, working with leaders and leadership teams on all things change, transition and transformation, I often share one of Sinek's videos on the topic to prep their thinking before we begin.

Way too many initiatives are launched on the basis of trying to appeal to the messy middle when we should be focusing all of our efforts on the early adopters who will carry the message over "the chasm" for us.

If you haven't yet explored this, do watch Sinek's video and share it with your team. It may just be the catalyst for you to design the systemic change needed to drive growth in a much smarter way.

How can we be more Cognitively Flexible?

I'm always on the lookout for ways of helping my clients to be more “cognitively flexible”, a skill that enables us to switch between different concepts and appropriately adapt our behaviour to achieve our aims in novel or changing environments.

We all know that our world of work calls for us to be more adaptable, flexible and open to change if we are to thrive. We also know that IQ is not the be-all and end-all of success - some of the greatest human achievements have relied on creativity, imagination, curiosity and empathy and Einstein himself believed that imagination was crucial.

When I came across an article in The Conversation titled IQ tests can’t measure it, but ‘cognitive flexibility’ is key to learning and?creativity, it provoked me to explore more and ask "what are the benefits and how do we do this"? In Jennifer Verdolin's article in Psychology Today titled 3 Ways to Improve Your Cognitive Flexibility she suggests:

"Having greater cognitive flexibility confers a significant set of advantages, including being able to acquire and integrate new information rapidly, solve problems more creatively, quickly adjust responses to changing conditions and inhibit automatic behaviour. All of these benefits allow those individuals to outperform others in a variety of circumstances (social, academic, political, business, etc.)."

And the how? According to Marianne Stenger, these 7 simple changes in behaviour will go a long way to developing our ability to be cognitively flexible:

1. Alter your everyday routine...
2. Seek out new experiences...
3. Practice thinking creatively...
4. Don't always take the easy way...
5. Go out of your way to meet new people...
6. Transfer your learning to a new context...
7. Challenge your morals...

If you do decide to put these into practice, it's worth journalling the changes you are experiencing on a day-to-day basis.

When we change, we don't always recognise the enormity of the impact, simply because it's difficult to evaluate when we are the ones embodying the experience!

Give it a month and then step back and do some analysis... and please send me a message or a mail - I'd love to hear your findings?

Thank you for reading #LIFT?- I trust the 3 things explored here enrich your week ahead and beyond. Please comment and share your thoughts with us and if you know of someone else who would also enjoy this edition, why not?share it?

If you'd like to talk to me directly, please send me a private message or email:?[email protected]