Following the last pieces of nugget, continuing my work in complex adaptive changes, in a system that aspires to operate in a fluid and networked way, I’m not short of learning sparks. This piece of nugget is about people’s holistic well-being when experiencing intense changes and paradigm shifts.
No doubt 2021 is a challenging year in many aspects. Even out of noble intentions when we initiate large complex changes in such a year, it is inevitable that we will face multi-facet challenges. Among which, one thing that is very close to my heart is people’s holistic well-being. My core motivation working with human systems is to reduce unnecessary suffering. Through teal-like transformations, I experience great potential to create better and more energizing workplaces. However, the way to get there is oftentimes messy, let alone in the background there is a global pandemic and increasing crisis both environmentally and geo-politically. In this context, I feel especially grateful that many leaders, when feeling a heightened need for supporting people going through tough periods of VUCA, are ardent advocates for well-being. Last week, I experienced a week of intense yet spacious certification programme that works on holistic well-being – Be Well Lead Well powered by a social enterprise called Wisdom Works. This marks a new beginning to trigger systemic well-being effort during transformation.
With this piece of nugget, I’m jotting down some of my learning nuggets from this experience. One thing was that I could not have imagined that I would end this workshop with tears. Tears of inspiration and being touched by the beautiful intention of creating a more holistic, conscious and more sustainable world. And with this experience, I felt the humanity that connects all of us present in the workshop, and the collective power to bring such a holistic way of being into the wider world.
This week’s experience also reinforced my belief that outer transformation can only happen through inner transformation, and it needs to be felt, lived, breathed, and not just told, or thought through cognitively. In hindsight, I felt there were several factors that created such beautiful space
- All people are experienced coaches or very open-minded executives that appreciate heart connections.
The mastery of facilitation, holding the space with deep presence, allowing what needs to be born to emerge in a safe environment. - The beautiful collective intention of bringing holistic well-being to the world, not only just for one organization, but to do whatever big or small steps to bring more positive energy to the world.
- A nice rounded and holistic tool on well-being, deep experience by the co-creators sharing their decades of experience on well-being initiatives and research.
Even on Saturday, I’m still casting out time to reflect on what I have experienced in the past 5 days. This is the power of lived experience, and deep presence, filled with compassion and will for action.
Here an overview of the Be Well Lead Well framework. This is a framework that helps build capabilities that advance human thriving. It integrates 6 dimensions of thriving in one setting.
THRIVING: Evaluate your overall wellbeing today and in the future, as well as your ability to restore your wellbeing when you face difficulties or get off track.
FUEL: Proactively use your diet, physical movement, breath, and rest as tools for a sustained, balanced source of physical, emotional, and mental energy.
FLOW: Be in the zone—those times when you bring mindfulness and your full presence to the activities of life and work. You are intrinsically rewarded with energy, enjoyment, and a richer sense of how life unfolds with effortlessness and ease.
WONDER: Evolve worldviews through engaging in new experiences and challenges, embracing differences, and perceiving the beauty around you.
WISDOM: Tap into your inner greatness—the worthwhile purpose, higher vision, and innate genius you can use to guide yourself and others toward inspired impact.
THRIVING AMPLIFIED™: Bring forth more of your leadership potential to energize people, maximize their growth and capabilities, and cultivate a work environment of care.
Having that all that, I’m also aware that the world is not all rosy. We still face very tangible challenges, e.g.
From my individual perspective
- How do I sustain my practice when diving in the “tornado’s eye” of large systemic transformation challenges?
- We know that our brain will revert to what’s “familiar” when our amygdala is triggered (fight flight and freeze). Then there is the question: how could we elevate our “familiar” state, to be a state of mindful and purposeful being, so that when challenges come we elevate the quality of response?
And from a system’s perspective
- How to scale such efforts?
- For the most effective transformation, we are heavily relying on the quality of coaching conversations throughout the organization. How to scale up the coaching competency can become a core topic.
How could we leverage neuroscience to support a large number of people to sustain their personal practice? Especially for big parts of the organization there is not always on-demand coaching support available.
I resonate very strongly with what Wisdom Works advocates, let me use their wise words to mark one step further to the vision of a more conscious and more sustainable world — The Be Well Lead Well platform is part of our bold vision at Wisdom Works to fuel a global movement of leaders for making thriving a priority at work, at home, and in all walks of society. We believe that when we individually and collectively thrive, greater wisdom is liberated for us all.
