Loading ...What is your Inconvenient Truth?
Heard in coffee shops across
Regardless of how you feel about his politics or his stand on the environment, you have to give the guy credit. In a feat of personal brand management, Gore has transformed himself from Ozone Al, the presidential “almost was” to the new Green Giant complete with his own Nobel Prize.
Also heard in some coffee shops across
Regardless of whether it’s a brand, a product, an organization or an experience, sometimes we need to make a big change. But the real challenge isn’t mustering the effort required to make it happen. It’s discovering and deciding what to change in the first place.
As Neil mentioned in an earlier post, Critical Mass’ Insight & Planning group recently spent a couple of days in 2008 planning workshops. I was privileged to do much of the facilitation for the group sessions. The ever-brilliant
How did we do it? We don’t happen on this stuff by accident. I planned our process pretty carefully and used a facilitation framework created by ICA Associates called Facilitated Planning. Part of this process is identifying those deep-seated obstacles that derail an organization from realizing a true vision.
So how did we get a deeper, more constructive understanding of the more sublime obstacles? We dug deeper to find those uncomfortable contradictions - those inconvenient truths.
As an example, imagine Al Gore lying in bed, thinking late into a night after the 2001 election. As he thinks, he digs through the obvious complaints and obstacles to hunt for that sublime contradiction.
Irritants:
Al: “I lost that stupid election on a recount and legal judgment.”
Blame:
Al: “The public just didn’t understand me.”
Lack of:
Al: “If there were just more voters that understood my agenda…”
Issues:
Al: “We have major problems with our electoral system.”
Blocks:
Al: “I’ll never win next time unless voters understand my agenda.”
Obstacles
Al: “Voters just don’t understand the issues I consider important.”
Al: “Voters won’t vote for things that they don’t understand.”
Contradiction:
Al: “I tried to get elected to solve the complex issues that I’m passionate about it, but I did a poor job of educating the voters about those issues.”
Doorway to the future:
Al: “Maybe presidential politics aren’t the right forum to get started on these problems.”
Al: “Hey, Tipper? Are you sleeping?”
Tipper: “I was until you started talking to yourself, Al. It’s 2:30 am.”
Al: “Do you think the public would listen to me if I made a commitment to educating them about the real and present dangers of climate change?”
Tipper: “Sure, Al. Can we go to sleep now?”
The next time you’re working through a problem with a group, try this. Well, maybe, except for the middle of the night part. Maybe leave your partner out of it, too.
If you only get as far as the underlying obstacles, you’ll generate some solid ideas. But if you try and take it further to find that one meaningful contradiction, you should find your breakthrough.
So what is your inconvenient truth? Comments are open!
Awesome post.
Very insightful post. It’s very hard to face your own inconvenient truth but it can be very relieving. Most people need therapists, good companies use facilitated planning. In the end, aren’t both the same?
I have many middle of the night revelations or “doorway” moments. I think many of us do…solving the days issues just before the day fades to black. If we would only write those ideas down in the moment perhaps our sleep would be better, our new days brighter with more open doorways and less contradiction.
I have many middle of the night revelations or “doorway” moments. I think many of us do…solving the days issues just before the day fades to black. If we would only write those ideas down in the moment perhaps our sleep would be better, our new days brighter with more open doorways and less contradictions.
Al Gore is a great example of the right way to make a big change but a big part of the take away from his example is also passion.
Al Gore is someone who demonstrates absolute passion for a cause and I wonder if his image reinvention is just a happy by-product of him pursuing his vision with this infectious passion.
Identifying obstacles and discovering the contradictions are necessary tactics - absolutely - but without vision and passion, meaningful change will never happen.
Thanks for all the great feedback.
Uwe, you’re right about that sense of relief. After using ICA’s framework several times, I still find it remarkable the sense of relief that groups feel as they progress towards recognition of their truths.
Renee, you’ve tapped into two key elements that are common to great people and great brands - values and passion. Funny how great brands often carry the names of people, isn’t it.