Introducing Awoken Development...

There is now an ever-pressing and clear case that we need to change the way we live in this World. It is a big statement, and I don't make it lightly. It is a view that I have been sharing in many ways over the last four years, and it's the foundation of why I have reviewed my offering and taken the decision to create Awoken Development.

The arguments about what is happening to our planet, to how different societies and people need to connect are well-trodden. I don't intend to revisit those in detail. In sharing Awoken Development today what I am most curious about is how we got here. What is it, we as, businesses, societies, nations - as people indeed need to start to understand and to see?

 THE FIGHT TO BE RIGHT:

Even holding the idea that much is broken, that we lack compassion and genuine respect for others can be polarising. Debates rage in the media, spats over Twitter – the polarisation of views creates a significant void where we stop engaging. We don't let others in who don't hold our opinions, for they are wrong, and we are right!

These divisions seem to reinforce further division; you are not 'woke' enough, left enough, socialist enough, right-wing enough. Part of human nature is to seek conformity, and this need is played out between groups and ideologies. Not to denounce can lead to being pushed out, people sharing posts that shame other perspectives. None of us will be immune from this. You can be as 'woke' as you like in your views - still unless you hold what diversity truly is, you miss the point. 

 THE POWER OF WE:

Diversity allows for and appreciates different opinions, ways of thinking and beliefs; it is not only a demographic. It enables us to know and understand the value of difference and to hold that alongside our thinking. I cannot have the experience and understanding of another. And therefore, I am unable to access what they see and understand fully; this is the value of the perspectives of others. Being Awoken means being bigger than our ego pushes us to be, to understand the importance of we.  

This is more than a moral argument; there is a strong business case. Businesses focusing on long term performance, ethics, sustainability and wellbeing outperform and have greater longevity. The idea that you would apply today's thinking in 5 years feels absurd. What does this mean for strategy and conventional approaches? We recognise the creation of silos and damaging practices, and it will take diversity of thought and courage to change these. Can we continue to have growth in business that does not support society or our ecology?

What has become so apparent is the lack of awareness and understanding that continues to keep us stuck. How we are sucked into systems, groups, ways of living, bringing up children that reinforce these positions. We are not awake to it. I became attracted to the idea from the Matrix – you take the red pill, and you will be awoken to the truth. You take the blue pill, to remain in ignorance. People are now starting to realise that we have opted for the blue pill for long enough. To become Awoken, it is not as simple as just taking a pill.

AWOKEN DEVELOPMENT:

With development comes awareness and deeper understanding. You have access to a broader perspective – you understand your behaviour, and you see yourself in ways you never could before. It's not a bed of roses, as Morpheus says what's seen, can't be unseen.  

Interestingly there is a map! There are ways of working with clients and organisations that aid development, opening up opportunities and broadening the approaches you have available to you in the challenges that you face. By understanding where you are, you see how you limit how you engage with your challenges, with people and opportunities, you can start to do the work that builds capacity.

The Awoken approach is to start to seek to see. Not just what we want to see, what is convenient, but all that is there. This is where the opportunity lies. To do this work requires an element of bravery, to be wholehearted and to have courage. It gives you the potential to hold positive intent and compassion. It is where soft and hard meet and you can hold the awareness that enables you to maintain that paradox, rather than contracting into damaging behaviours or falling into old habits and practices.

THIS IS FOR:

For individuals and organisations, who seek to see the bigger picture. Our future is wholly dependent on relationships and networks. Those that can connect and deliver must create places where people are looked after and enabled to thrive. As we have moved forward, we have already seen the shift from IQ to EQ, and now we need to look to WEQ. If you understand this, you may be seeking an Awoken approach.

WE SEEK:

Others with a sense of the need for change. The movement towards a tipping point for change will come from collaborating and supporting others with aligning purposes. We, therefore, seek to create and join communities of practice, connections and voices who share the need to broaden and grow developmental capacity for positive impact. Our work in coaching, facilitation, research and consultation provides a rich platform to create greater insight and understanding, and we can achieve more collectively than as individuals.

For all of these reasons, and those I am yet to discover and understand, welcome to Awoken Development. It feels exciting!

WHAT NEXT:

Please contact me if our work resonates with you and you feel an Awoken approach would support you or your organisation. Please share with others who may be interested. If you are in this field, reach out too, there as I would love to connect.

To find out more...

E: [email protected]

W: www.awokendevelopment.com