Or LET GO OF CONTROL AND GO WITH THE FLOW
I am creating a series on the the parallel between the 12 operational principles of permaculture and conditions for sustainable transformations of organizational systems. Here is the 1st post, the 2nd one, the 3rd one. Today we address the 4th principle. If you are a professional changemaker, committed to promoting a better society, these principles and insights should help you maximize your impact and inner serenity.
💡 EXPLANATION OF THE PERMACULTURE OPERATING PRINCIPLE
Nature self-regulates to sustain itself.
Leaves fall from the tree in autumn to prepare the soil for the approaching frost in winter.
Every natural phase has a role to play in ensuring nature's self-sustainability. A rotting fruit will fall to the ground and germinate a new seed.
The cycle of four seasons teaches us that there is a time for everything: birth, growth, decline and death.
Why should it be any different for businesses and impact missions?
🔍 ILLUSTRATION OF THE PRINCIPLE APPLIED TO A MISSION OF TRANSFORMATION
As a change agent:
Who hasn't been frustrated when seeing that an initiative wasn't ‘taking off’?
Who hasn't been surprised to see an old tool reappearing out of the blue, because a new boss discovered it?
The change agent may often feel in a conflict between the long-term vision and the short-term action on the ground.
For their colleagues, the agent’s desire to do the right thing may turn into an almost tyrannical control of the behaviors of the ecosystem.
Let me tell you a story.
More than a decade ago, I and a few others within an organization, pioneered the idea of assessing, and reducing its carbon footprint and doing so for clients.
We launched related training and calculation tools. We presented materials to show the value and urgency of these practices. We relayed the importance of using a company’s internal Carbon Price to facilitate operational and business decisions.
Then, there was an echo. We received some positive feedback. But the practice was far from becoming systematic and anchored in daily business activities.
I began to wonder if I wasn't missing the point.
And then, sometime before the COVID-19 pandemic, the tide started to turn. During the pandemic, customers started asking for help to become “carbon neutral”.
Suddenly, the stars began to align.
Zone and country managers were hammering home the importance of measuring and reducing the company’s carbon footprint so as to lead by example, and then help customers with their own transformation journey.
All of a sudden, analyses and processes were accelerating at all levels.
What is the moral of this story?
Were our efforts too early? Were we useless?
I think it's mainly a question of timing and determination.
All things eventually come to those who wait and are prepared.
🐝 TIPS TO GET MOVING
I believe that the role of changemakers in organizations is as follows:
“Sow seeds, nurture the soil, engage earth-friendly farmers, trust natural cycles, and support harvests”.
So how do you do it concretely?
Articulate the ‘why’, ‘what’, ‘how’ and ‘when’ of your project clearly:
Engage your stakeholders by emphasizing the ‘why’ and ‘for what’ of your project,
Create the conditions to co-create and actualize the ‘what’ with your stakeholders,
Trust them to materialize the ‘how’ and ‘when’, while being supportive as necessary.
If you feel great frustration because of a blockage:
Ask yourself, "what season is my project in?"
Maybe it's the hibernation season. If so, look at how to protect the foundations.
Then, turn to a project that is in pre-flowering season.
Everything changes, and when the season changes, the new levers of action will surely become more apparent.
My last word is? Trust yourself and go with the flow.
“Ne craignez pas la tristesse, elle est la trace éclatante que quelque chose de beau a existé”
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IT'S THE BEST WAY TO SUPPORT ME.
Hello Changemakers!
I am Nina, an impact maker coach, specializing in leadership, sustainability and organizational transformation.
I have spent the past 10 years leading sustainable change in a Fortune 500 organization in a multicultural environment. What I like to do through my activities is to inspire organizations professionals to rethink the business and make them proud to contribute, in their own way, to a more sustainable, human, and nature-friendly world.
If you wish to be supported to progress on your journey with multiplied impact and ease, contact me!