In my last article, I investigated how people affect our capacity to become changemakers and to launch movements. It turns out if it needs ‘two to tango’, better be daring to dance first. That said, a few questions remain. How should we make the first move? In which direction? Are change strategies equal?
To activate a systemic shift, one may wonder if it is wiser to deploy one single action massively; to sow several seeds at the same time; to deconstruct the system, or to exclude oneself from it. I have often wondered, what would trigger the best momentum:
Focusing on specific scaleable, industrialized initiatives?
Watering off ambitions with quick wins to please potential allies first?
Assuming to act as a ‘lone wolf’ in launching new initiatives, until others join you?
Escaping from the crowd and creating an ecosystem from scratch?
All strategies differ, and each holds advantages, disadvantages, and specificities. Still, one principle may help classify them into two main categories of options: deciding to [act as a] bee or not to bee.
The Bees changemakers’ attributes, and limits
Bees may appear both scary because of their sting, and fragile due to their size and short lifespan. Today, these insects are disappearing and few people grasp the tremendous consequences for humanity, except for the lack of honey and its increasing market prices.
Bees actually hold a much more important role in life on earth. Take for example the following:
Flora: Beyond soil, water, and sunshine, the extreme majority of plants depend on cross-pollination to grow. Guess who is one of the main pollinators? Bees!
Life cycle: At least 20 species of birds, spiders, and insects eat bees to live.
Food chain: Bees pollinate billions of plants each year. In fact, pollinators like bees play a key role in 35% of the world's food crops.
Economy: “the price tag of global crops directly relying on pollinators, including bees, is estimated to be between US$235 and US$577 billion a year” according to the FAO, the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations.
You may wonder how is that related to changemakers and change-making strategies… Well, just like bees, changemakers may seem small, meaningless, or even scary to the other members of their ecosystems. Yet, they are vital for the ecosystem to survive and thrive.
The Bees changemakers’ strategy
Bees also perfectly illustrate key principles of change management. Here are four key ones:
1. Change starts from the inside:
Starting change from the inside out and leading by example is necessary to create momentum. During the bees’ first days of life, they clean the hive’s interior and then, feed the larvae born from the queen's eggs. After that, they produce wax and position themselves at the entrance of the hive for its defense. Finally, until the end of their lives, they pollinate flowers in the outer world.
2. Change is progressive and holistic:
Working hard and progressively, through multi-dimensions, is crucial when aiming for global impact. Bees are well known for their tireless determination and constant work in the hives or through pollination. They move from flower to flower, pollinating one after another. They create synergies between all the plants through the pollen they transport. They ‘connect the dots in an incredible and, each time, unique way. While each act may seem anecdotic in itself, it affects the lives of thousands and thousands of species.
3. Change results from individual and collective acts:
Leveraging your talents while looking for complementarity within your community, will nurture your ecosystem. We often think of ants when it comes to team structured work. Still, the bee is another living example of the benefits of group work, for the community as well as for itself. The sharing of tasks is done naturally and harmoniously. Their wide variety (over 20,000 species), their capacity to fly and explore the world, give them a touch of freedom I kind of envy.
4. Change is purposeful:
Believing in your higher purpose and enjoying the ride will conduct you to your success! If the Bee is a serious and dedicated worker, she also embodies the pleasure of discovery, connection, and embracing the here and now. It is above all, the satisfaction of a job well done and the pleasure of giving oneself to a cause that goes beyond one’s ordinary limits. In pursuing their mission, the bees bring multiple, crucial social, environmental, and economical benefits to Human life on earth. Make no mistake, those benefits are consequences of their dedication to the greater good.
Do “all roads lead to Rome”?
I have been debating A LOT with friends and peers about the initial question: “which strategy is best for activating a systemic shift for the planet’s benefit?”. Considering that truth and efficiency are some of my core values, such questions have filled me with uncertainty and nourished my imposter syndrome.
I realized I unconsciously wanted to reach the end of the journey in order to discover the real answer. Clearly, this would make me useless in providing a solution to those who were still journeying. I reasoned that life is worth experimenting with and worth living.
A systemic shift cannot occur with only one solution. I accepted the fact that most of the solutions are somehow known, and the main blockage is our preference to argue rather than to change. As strange as it may seem, I even wonder if it really is worth assessing which change-making strategy is the best to achieve a sustainable, harmonious, and nature-centered world.
“is the grass greener elsewhere”?
Rather than revealing dilemmas or limitations, these questions have kindled my way of being a changemaker. I’ve realized my value lies in bridging theory and action. I acknowledge my holistic and multidimensional perspective. Rather than being ashamed of such a leadership style, I am now willing to act as a bee in an industrialized world. I have neither the courage nor the will (yet) to disconnect myself from my current ecosystem (whether I like it or not).
Still, I don’t buy into the “one size fits all” solution. I like to test and pollinate solutions with other changemakers. I like to value the power I see so clearly in others; the engineers, intrapreneurs, entrepreneurs, public servants, doctors, journalists, researchers, and the many other changemakers who surround me. I believe in sowing multiple seeds, depending on the contexts and constraints. I know some will not flourish. I know some will only fit a certain environment, while some may develop everywhere. These realizations enabled me to take the pressure off myself about which change-making strategy is the best. Mostly, they drove my wish to act as a leader, a critical friend, a creator, a writer, a coach, and a facilitator.
Activating change
Rather, than pointing out the defaults of others’ genuine efforts to bring positive change, what about cooperating to avoid the disappearance of changemakers?
I have a (quick) challenge for you today. Are you up to follow me? I invite you to answer and react to these questions:
Do you want to bee or not to bee?
Are you ready to embody your own leadership and changemaker style?
Can you celebrate your unique strategies with other changemakers?
Either privately or on your preferred social media, I invite you to tag and value one changemaker and his/her contribution today.
Thanks to all the Bees who are showing us the way
Feel free to share how such an article resonates with you, I’d love to know. Besides, if you want support to become the leader you want for the world you expect, contact me! Here is a form find to further elaborate your ambition and challenges: English