There is Intelligence in Your Body

Recently, I co-led a workshop with a group of students, faculty, administrators, and volunteers looking to gain new insights into their university system and improve student outcomes. ?#leadership

The workshop was based on some of the principles outlined in Social Presencing Theater (SPT).

SPT is a methodology for understanding current reality and exploring emerging future possibilities. ?It is practiced in groups, organizations, and larger social systems, and it has been used effectively for many years in nonprofits, business, government, and civil society settings. ?

This is not "theater" in the conventional sense. ?SPT uses simple body postures and mindful movements to dissolve limiting concepts, communicate directly, access intuition, and make visible current reality and the deeper – often invisible – leverage points for creating profound change.

In "mindful movement," you pay attention to the body's feelings without thinking about them or judging them. ?You are not trying to fix, change, or accomplish anything, and you welcome every moment of your body. ?In this way, the body and mind become synchronized, and you access knowledge and wisdom that was previously unavailable. ?#mindfulness

The outcome of mindful movement practice is slowing down and becoming more grounded, appreciating the moment-to-moment experience.?Body, mind, and heart become more open and aligned, resulting in greater emotional intelligence and heartfelt listening.

We incorporated a mindful movement practice during the workshop as a precursor to a "4D Mapping exercise."

4D Mapping makes visible the current reality in a social system (in our case, a school system).

Through the 4D Mapping Process, we explored how the highest aspiration of the university system might come forward. ?We assumed there was underlying wisdom that could be revealed through body movement – despite the diverse values or goals of stakeholders in the system. ?That wisdom came to the surface and became visible to the participants.

As a result of the workshop, we generated many possibilities for "prototypes" or "experiments" the university could try to improve student outcomes, retention, and completion rates.

Next, we will choose an experiment or two to implement and see what shifts in the system.

Stay tuned.

David Langiulli is an experienced Executive Coach and Trusted Advisor to Senior Nonprofit Leaders. ?Feel free to reach out to him if you want to use 4D Mapping to reveal your organization's possibilities for change and transformation.