The Alchemy of Us

I am taking a course on non-directive coaching. Beyond providing an opportunity to learn and practice a method, this experience is inviting me to interrogate what I believe about working with individuals and groups. So, in the spirit of “learning out loud” (a key skill when we’re collaborating in dispersed teams these days), and at the risk of caricaturing for the purposes of explanation, here’s what I’m noticing so far:

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Zero Sum Adaptability Thinking

As I explore the metaphor of elastic leadership with groups, they continue to find new ways to apply it. One participant recently observed that if an elastic is stretched hard in one direction, it doesn’t have much give available to be stretched in other directions. Sounds familiar, right? We can only stretch so far before we snap, and the demands on our stretchiness feel cumulative.

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Out of Shape

Most elastics are designed to be reusable. Exercise bands, hair elastics, the rubber bands that come with broccoli…all are designed to be used more than once.

But if an elastic stays stretched for too long, it won’t go back to its previous shape. It might still be useful, but not for its original use.

Can you relate?

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