Emergent Strategies: Mid-point (Part 1)
As I continue to read this book, I also continue to reflect. I’m about halfway through and have reached three of the major themes she attributes to the concept of Emergent Strategies. The 3 ideas so far are (in my own words) 1. Be the change you want to see, 2. Adapt to change and embrace it as an opportunity, and 3. Genuine collaboration is needed for success. The first one I’ve reflected on and have written about already, so I’ll spend the majority of my time focusing on the third.
adrienne maree brown describes what exactly she means by collaboration by using the words interdependence and decentralization, “mutually reliant on each other.” She explains how she had to fully rely on others in her family and friend circle when she was recovering from a medical issue. She had to be vulnerable by asking for help to do simple things she once could do by herself. She almost felt silly asking people to help her stand, sit down, or grab something for her, and I think for most people can understand. Her situation forced her to be completely reliant on her circle for her most basic needs, and her circle was happy to help regardless of the task. I think of ways I burden my self thinking I can do something all by myself when in actuality I need help. In our society, we have spread the idea that we need to be “self-made” encouraging a negative action of self-reliance. She also explains how a charismatic leader can be both a blessing and a curse. Because the leader is in the spotlight, they may become the face of the organization. They receive all of the shine and feel important, but they also take on the brunt of the work. brown writes, “ rockstars get isolated, lose touch with our vulnerability, are expected to pull off superhero work and generally burn out within a decade”. She later writes, “The shiny stars are rarely the ones actually getting there work done, or even doing the most exciting thinking in the organization.”
“Rockstars get isolated lose touch with out vulnerability, are expected to pull off superhero work and generally burnout within a decade... The shiny stars are rarely the ones actually getting the work done or doing the most exciting thinking in the organization””
When reading this chapter I thought to myself “okay sheesh… READ ME ”. I thought about my past experiences as a member and leader of a few student organizations at Temple. When I was president of two very active and visible orgs, I felt I was constantly on the move and the only one really putting in the effort at times. Sometimes I felt like I was the only one who actually cared. Part of this was because I over-committed myself because I didn’t have the courage to say no. A larger part is because I didn’t ask for help, or really let anyone help. There were many times where I could have delegated or potentially collaborated with other team members, but I felt I could do it best. I didn’t trust anyone to do the work or do it on time. Now that relationship and lack of trust are certainly two-fold, but I wonder if there as a different tone set at the beginning of the semester if the trust would be there on both sides. I know now my leadership “style” was a reflection of how I saw other student leaders lead and in most cases, it was very authoritative. Though we were all peers and equal, we lifted ourselves to a higher status because we could and no one held us accountable. Like adrienne writes, we weren't vulnerable enough for criticism or suggestions.
Oak trees are nature’s example of collaboration. Heres a quote in the introduction of the chapter of interdependence and decentralization by Naima Penniman. She asserts, “instead of digging its roots deep and solitary into the earth, the oak tree grounds its roots wide and interlocks with other oak trees in the surrounding areas. And you cant bring down a hundred oak trees bound beneath the soil!”
I wish I could go back and apply what I know now. I would certainly change the foundation and values I lead by. I would be more intentional about setting communication standards for the group allowing every e-board member an opinion. We would make decisions as a team. E-board meetings and planning meetings would not be dreaded because we’d all be engaged and passionate about the work we were collectively doing. If people don’t see themselves in the work there wouldn’t be a drive to actually do it. Now, of course, this is in a perfect world, but I think those foundational changes would drastically improve the functionally of the organization and the work that we were doing. Moving forward I want to always keep this in mind when joining organizations and starting new projects. I definitely can’t time travel, but maybe I can share what I’ve learned to a student leader or a peer in a leadership position for an impact on the future.