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I shared this on LinkedIn earlier this week, and it’s been buzzing around in my brain ever since:
“Discussion and definition of ‘hybrid’ work is not specifically a conversation about ‘place’, but rather one about ‘power’.
The Social Age sees a general rebalancing of power between Organisational structures, and both individuals and social ones. This is driven by the dispersal and radical democratisation of technology, as well as our underlying social connectivity, beyond formal systems.
Any ‘new’ model of work will be a negotiated one, and most likely a transient one: i think the best we do right now is solve for 12-18 months and listen carefully.
It’s not a question of ‘old’ and ‘new’, but rather ‘constraint’, and ‘potential’, and which of those two we wish to seize.
The very word ‘office’ has been co-opted as a proxy for ‘productivity’, but there is no reason why this has to be true: the ‘office’ could be anything - a place, a belief, an idea.
Architecture is important, but not the answer. And any answer will start with an analysis of power.”
This quest for certainty is a risk: in times of change (and this is certainly that), to find certainty too fast is a significant risk, but to hold ambiguity can be seen as a significant weakness. This is a dynamic tension to ride.
Extremes
This week has been about extremes: the most polished end of my work to the least complete.
At one end, i’ve been wrapping copies of the first edition of ‘The Humble Leader’. This first sequence of 200 are all hand numbered and are gifts for friends around the world, so it’s been slow work, but with a real sense of connection. At a time when we have been so far apart, it’s helped me to reconnect with some people. And you know, i’m really proud of this work, so it’s just exciting to be sharing it.
At the other end, i launched the Learning Fragments site: this is extremely early stage #WorkingOutLoud, almost sitting before the blog in the sequence of thinking. It’s a space to collect fragments of thought about learning.
For the last 18 months or so i have been systematically revisiting core aspects of my own work on learning, evolving my thinking, challenging my older ideas, and trying to find new insight. This work is substantially incomplete, but i am finding new ideas and themes - my focus recently has been around ‘sense making’ and the social creation of meaning, as well as our relationship with failure. This new work is video based, short pieces, three minutes or less, each with a ‘sell by’ date - i don’t want this site to become a rubbish dump, but rather a dynamic space to hold my most recent thinking.
As you know, my work is held within the discipline of #WorkingOutLoud, and these two activities, the book and the incomplete blog, sit at different ends of the same scale. One ready to fly, and the other with barely a coherent structure at all.
It’s worth considering where you find these spaces in your own work: are you able to find spaces away from ‘performance’ to truly explore and learn - and are you able to support others to find this space?
LINK: https://learningfragments.substack.com/
What's on
In an attempt to help navigate my recently released work, I have shortlisted some of my latest books and programmes, a mix of free and paid offerings. This week, I’m focussing on the Social Leadership topics of ‘Power and Potential’ and ‘Quiet Leadership’. If this is useful to you, let me know.
Books
Power and Potential Guidebook - just released, you can download the new, free ebook here: https://seasaltlearning.com/power-and-potential-enquiry-framework/
Quiet Leadership Guidebook - this is new, standalone book, available here: https://seasaltlearning.com/quiet-leadership/
Paperback versions of both these books will be available on Amazon in the next month or so, if you prefer physical format.
Programmes
Quiet Leadership Journey - a free 4 week programme, available here: https://seasaltlearning.com/quiet-leadership/register/
Power and Potential programme - I’m excited to offer the first Open Cohort of this programme. This is one of my new Exploration programmes, based around my first full Enquiry Framework - the 4 week programme is based around sixteen questions - held within ‘conversations with strangers’, in pairs.
I’ve really loved developing this format and the feedback so far has been superb - so i am already expanding the approach out. This is a paid programme, with details here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/power-and-potential-registration-262615900227
With best wishes
Julian
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