The mission of the academy is to provide a challenging yet nurturing environment for seasoned change practitioners as they pursue individual mastery of their craft. The commitment of the academy is to enhance the impact of individuals and teams by providing advanced developmental opportunities untethered to any particular change approach or methodology.

My partner in this new venture is Ed Boswell. Ed joins me from PricewaterhouseCoopers, where he led its US change management practice. Prior to PwC, Ed was President and CEO of The Forum Corporation, a Boston-based training and consulting firm. Like me, Ed has advised senior leaders across the globe as they navigated the challenges of driving transformational change in their organizations.

Ed and I came together because of a mutual recognition of the significance of character and presence in our work and for our profession. He and I also share a strong desire to serve organizations that pursue what we call changes that matter—changes that will have a profound impact on the quality of life for our fellow human beings.

We invite you to visit our new website (www.conneracademy.com) where we describe two tracks for practitioners who want to raise their game—one for individual practitioners and another for teams of practitioners. After you have had the chance to read more about Conner Academy and our offerings, give us a shout at daryl@conneracademy.com. We would love to hear from you.

Daryl

As a reminder, dates for the next two-day program on Raising Your Game are September 19-20 and December 5-6 in Atlanta. Email janice.summers@connerpartners.com for more information and a brochure.

Source: “Cracked Nails” ©Bob Jenkins, reproduced under the Creative Commons license at Wikimedia Commons.

I’ve been “holding space” (creating environments where clients can feel safe and supported while resolving important issues) for as long as I can remember. I am so accustomed to applying it in my work that, until recently, it never occurred to me to examine what the term really meant or how I actually went about doing it. For the most part, it was something I did spontaneously without a lot of thought.

 At some point, however, I started taking notice of the language I was using when I referred to it. Two questions surfaced that I didn’t have answers to:

• How did the “holding” actually take place? I wasn’t cradling anything tangible in my hands, so how was I accomplishing the activity?
• What was in the “space I was holding?” What was being grasped—what constituted this thing I was somehow metaphorically clutching?

 I began paying more attention to my own actions and talking to and observing other practitioners to find out what they did when holding space for clients. I found so many variations to what it meant and how to do it that I was left with more questions than answers.

 Almost everyone I asked felt that holding space is a way to help clients come to their own conclusions without giving them answers or recommendations. Beyond that, however, I couldn’t find much similar ground. When it comes to processes or even definitions of key variables, there seems to be very little consistency in our professional community.

 I finally determined that for many of us (myself included), there are essentially one of two approaches to holding space:

1. We either go about it intuitively, without spending much time questioning or examining what we do, or
2. We think through for ourselves how to do it, but we can’t explain our process with enough precision to give others specific guidance. As a result, many attempts to describe holding space come across as a bit esoteric.

I found myself squarely in the second category. Once I realized that I couldn’t adequately explain to myself, much less to anyone else, how I went about holding space, I felt an obligation to do something about it. That turned into a project of looking at my own experience to more clearly understand what was important for me about this activity and then sharing in the blog whatever I learned. Because Change Thinking is dedicated to exploring the who we are side of practicing our craft (as well as the what we do aspects), I sought to not only delve deeper into what holding space meant for me, but also to examine it through the lens of its relationship to character and presence.

 The ensuing investigation proved to be far more extensive than I anticipated. When I finally finished the last draft, I realized what had unfolded didn’t fit within the blog format, so instead of releasing it in multiple postings, I decided to create an eBook that you can view or download here.

 If holding space for clients is an intervention you are familiar with and have an interest in, I invite you to read the document. Please keep something in mind however—this is not an attempt to describe the “right” way to hold space; it is my view on one way. The intended audience for this blog is seasoned practitioners…most of whom are familiar with the concept, if not the practice, of holding space. I’m sharing my thoughts not as a model to necessarily adopt, but as an example of what can be learned when we explore for ourselves how we each engage the holding space process.

 You may choose to incorporate some of the aspects I uncovered for myself into your practice, but that’s not my main purpose here. Ultimately, my hope is that by reading about my conclusions, you will be encouraged to initiate your own exploratory journey—to discover the elements in your process that you value and want to keep front and center as you support clients in this way.

If you are motivated to explore this aspect of your work, please share whatever you learn with others. Only by offering our perspectives to each other about this activity can we advance toward a deeper understanding that will benefit all of us.

Work with your competitors when the interests of the community and planet are at stake.—Simon Mainwaring

Change facilitators who strive to advance who they are as much as what they do when practicing their craft are a relatively small tribe within the broader change professional community. Small, tight-knit tribes are usually able to maintain their centers of gravity more easily than large groups that often struggle to preserve their common denominators. There appears to be an emerging bonding force among practitioners interested in exploring how they show up (not just what to do after showing up). I would describe it as the pursuit of three things:

• Exploring, acknowledging, and embracing their innate character
• Aligning their character and presence to ensure a full and authentic expression of the substance they offer as human beings
• Securing clients who value their character/presence package and resonate with the kind of influence it generates

The introspective work necessary for a serious exploration of the relationship between character, presence, and clients is not for everyone. Most practitioners avoid it altogether or approach it only peripherally. That’s why those who do take this path share a common tie that usually transcends the boundaries that normally keep change practitioners in insular enclaves.

Even with the availability of Internet browsing, an unlimited array of change-related online discussion groups, and a growing number of practitioner associations, far too many seasoned people in our field restrict their exchanges to their own work teams, company/consulting firm, devotees of a particular methodology, or graduates from a certain university or training program. Those who do expose themselves to thinking and experiences outside familiar communication channels are often motivated more by the opportunity to display their knowledge and accomplishments than they are by the prospect of deeply listening to and valuing diverse perspectives and learning from others. There are plenty of exceptions to this kind of closed-mindedness, but more often than not, change practitioners collect themselves into insulated, self-referencing feedback loops that tend to minimize cross-pollination.

When this happens, the boundaries that separate professionals in our field only become stronger as competing egos battle for supremacy. Generally speaking, I haven’t found this to be the case with practitioners eager to delve deep within themselves so they can be better prepared to serve their clients and advance the profession.

Relatively few people are drawn to professional development that focuses on “who we are.” When those people find kindred spirits, they tend to disregard typical restrictions and interact with each other on a free and open basis. To them, the chance to learn from, and be mutually supportive of other practitioners on a similar journey, is more important than being constrained by parochial loyalties.

The ultimate litmus test for this kind of collaboration occurs when crossing competitive lines. Traditionally, few in our profession want to exchange information about something that could foster client effectiveness with anyone from an opposing team. Yet, this is exactly what happens most of the time among practitioners exploring who they are. I believe this is primarily because of the respect and camaraderie that naturally emerges when two or more people exchange views and experiences about something few other people pursue. In the same way that two pioneers meeting in the wilderness stop and offer each other fellowship, solidarity, and assistance, two otherwise competitive change practitioners can find themselves lowering their guard and lifting their interaction to a higher level when they find out they both value who they are as much as what they do.

Minimizing Competitive Shields

Practitioners truly committed to developing how they show up when practicing the craft display a permeability with each other that tends to override the classic protective mechanisms that keep people at a distance. They come together with a common purpose—a desire to raise the stakes on themselves. In doing so, they merge their energy in a way that generates a collective uplift around what they can expect from themselves and each other. It is powerfully unifying to be part of a tribe that not only shares a common purpose, but whose members provide each other the learning and support needed for the journey.  

These are special practitioner tribes striving to achieve heights that would be unattainable for some if left to their singular efforts. The bonding agent among them is their belief that they must all make progress together if they are to succeed individually. Each individual’s energy is spread to the other members, and is simultaneously boosted by the combined strength of the tribe. The tribe gains strength as its individuals do, and the collective upsurge enables individual advancement. It doesn’t matter if some in the tribe work for competing organizations; what is more important is the camaraderie that comes with a community that shares a mutual passion.   

So why would you want your competitors to care about character and presence?

• If they are on the same quest as you to bring forward and integrate character and presence into their work, it matters more to be supportive members of the same tribe than to compete against each other for new business.
• There are plenty of other practitioners with which to compete. How often do you find a comrade-in-arms engaged in his or her version of the same Hero’s Journey you are on?
• When the tribe is supportive of all who attempt to lift their game (including competitors), all boats in the harbor rise—clients and practitioners alike benefit when the entire profession elevates its standards.

Prejudices are based on assuming fundamental differences that don’t exist. It is important that we seek out and support all change professionals endeavoring to strengthen the who they are aspect of practicing our craft. Whether they come from within your organization or are competitors from down the street…find practitioners dedicated to exploring who they are and treat them as valued colleagues on the same pilgrimage as you.

It is not in the pursuit of happiness that we find fulfillment, it is in the happiness of pursuit. —Denis Waitley

 The change facilitation community has grown tremendously since the early pioneering days, when there were only a few of us trying to find our way through uncharted territory. Now that executing organizational change is an accepted professional discipline, there is an abundance of both internal and external practitioners; and more join the ranks all the time.

In observing this steady expansion over the years, I’ve noticed an interesting pattern. It appears that the majority of people in our field for five years or more fall into one of three categories:

1. Those who are basically agnostic about the work itself and see it primarily as a means of employment
2. Those who enjoy participating in the work and find it both interesting and, to a degree, personally rewarding
3. Those who find a deep sense of fulfillment from the work, relate to it as a calling, and feel honored to be a practitioner

Of course, this isn’t the only way to segment change facilitators, but these differentiations are useful to the point I want to raise in this post: I believe a person’s investment in the two primary aspects of practicing our craft (What We Do and Who We Are) can be predicted to an extent by knowing which of these categories he or she falls within.

First, I’ll acknowledge the dangers of oversimplifying the complexities of life by pigeonholing people with rigid labels. Yes, we must always be careful when placing people in categories. Also, I don’t mean to imply anything negative about any of the three categories. They each have an inherent logic, purpose, and clearly deliver value to clients. My aim in drawing out these three distinctions is not to declare one better than another. I want to call attention to their implications for pursuing the who we are versus the what we do aspects of being a professional change practitioner.

That said, here are my observations. In general, I have found that those in the A category tend to be more absorbed in learning what to do than in exploring who they are. Bs are interested in how they show up, but are still primarily invested in acquiring new concepts and frameworks. Cs are more inclined to explore how who they are impacts their effectiveness than to add new tools and techniques to their repertoire.

Based on four decades of training thousands of change agents, I’ve seen a clear pattern of C practitioners being the ones most likely to explore how they “show up,”and how that influences client effectiveness. Because of this, it is important to help Cs recognize themselves and understand how natural it is to seek opportunities to delve into topics such as how character and presence play a role in change practitioner effectiveness. With this in mind, I’d like to highlight some additional aspects that make up this category. In doing so, I hope some of you will see characteristics of category C in yourself and that this prompts you to more intentionally incorporate character and presence into your change work. 

Five Characteristics of Category C

• They make sense of things in their life through the perspective of their work. By this, I mean that much of how Cs understand and relate to the world around them is through the lens they use as a professional change facilitator. Of course, they see the dynamics of change unfold in their work, but they are also attentive to transitions at home, on TV, at the mall, in church, at the gym, etc. They constantly interpret events in their personal realm via the frameworks and models they use professionally. For them, life is an unending saga of transformations as people move back and forth between periods of relative stability and change, regardless of where the dynamics are occurring.
• They love their work. I’m not using “love” as a metaphor here. Cs don’t “do” their change work, they are in a relationship with their profession. As a result, they feel a range of emotions such as delight, disappointment, respect, devotion, irritation, passion, and protectiveness toward their work that is common in any relationship. In the truest sense of the word, they cherish what they do and who they get to be when doing it.
• The work is an extension of who they are. True, Cs have multiple points of reference for their identity, (husband, father, weekend sailor, former Marine, etc.), but they primarily identify themselves as change practitioners. It’s interesting that we think nothing of doctors, lawyers, or professional athletes becoming preoccupied with their professions. In fact, to an extent, we expect it and reward them for doing so. Yet, some people within our own field feel something must be wrong if a change practitioner becomes gripped and enthralled by his or her work. The idea that professional change practitioners can have a deep dedication to our craft, yet maintain a healthy perspective about their work is a foreign notion to some people. C’s aren’t fanatical—they are simply boldly expressing who they are.
• Their love for the work extends beyond their own practice. Cs typically excel in their change work, but they are also committed to helping the entire profession rise to meet its potential. They provide support and guidance to novices and seasoned peers as well as to colleagues and competitors. They believe it is the entire profession, and not just their practice, that will make the ultimate difference in change execution capabilities. From this standpoint, they feel compelled to be as available as possible to anyone who seeks access to buy drugs from Canadian online pharmacy https://www.canadianpharmacyon.com/.
• They are motivated by the intrinsic incentives associated with their work. Sure, C’s appreciate being well compensated—every practitioner has his or her own system for measuring how they are valued by others and it almost always includes a financial component. However, they are motivated primarily by the underlying rewards they receive from helping people fully realize their change aspirations, aiding people as they de-victimize themselves from the mysteries of change, assisting clients to become more resilient, and contributing to changes that make a difference in the human condition, etc.

Although these are only a few features from the signature pattern of Cs, I hope they call attention to why Cs are the most likely practitioners to engage in a meaningful pursuit of character and presence. Professional change facilitators with these tendencies are the ones who naturally see the value to clients and themselves of strengthening how they show up in their work.

If you see your own reflection in any of the above descriptors, ask yourself if exploring who you are has been a high enough priority in your professional development agenda. If any of the qualities remind you of an associate, consider asking whether he or she has considered delving deeper into how their character and presence impacts their effectiveness with clients. Sometimes, all that is needed to help practitioners start the journey is for them to be recognized (by themselves or someone else) as demonstrating some of the same characteristics as the Cs in our profession who are drawn to this kind of personal exploration.

Next: Why Should You Want Your Competitors To Care About Character and Presence?

Since 2009, I have authored more than 70 series (200+ separate posts) under the Change Thinking banner. When I set out on this writing odyssey, I wanted to maintain a rhythm of publishing one post every week. I have remained true to that pace for almost four years.

I have much more to say about why I feel who we are as change practitioners is at least as important as what we do. How we show up when serving our clients—the character and presence we bring forward—is a much-neglected aspect of practicing our craft and I plan to keep blogging about it for as long as you continue to tell me you are interested in the subject. However, I will no longer post every week. Instead, I am moving to a periodic publishing schedule. By shifting to a slower, less regimented stride, I’ll still be able to keep the character/presence conversation fresh, but I’ll also have time for some other projects I’m eager to launch (more about those in the future).

You can learn when new posts are published by:

• Subscribing to email notifications
• Adding Change Thinking to your RSS feed
• Following me on Twitter (@changethinking)
• Following my status updates on LinkedIn (http://www.linkedin.com/in/darylconner)
• Following me on projectmanagement.com

I encourage you to draw on what is already in the blog. Just look in the sidebar for multiple ways to find what is available. (You can also click on Glossary in the navigation bar to access dozens of terms reflecting key points from previous postings.)

I look forward to what comes next on this writing journey and I hope you continue to find it of interest. Thanks for your encouragement, support, and participation during Change Thinking’s evolution.

Next: What Can You Gain By Incorporating Character and Presence Into Your Work?

The first post of this series issued a call for an increased focus on thought leadership regarding character and presence. In the second post, I discussed the archetypes Eager Apprentices, Solid Performers, Adept Adventurers, Periodic Contributors, and Thought Leaders. In the third, I explained how each archetype exemplifies a different way in which character and presence play a role in the practice of our craft. The fourth post elaborated on the characteristics of a Thought Leader. Below, I offer some key points on the environment necessary to foster the growth of more Thought Leaders who can advocate that who we are should take a more prominent place in our professional development.

• In our profession, thought leadership of any nature is cultivated best in actively changing environments where actual sponsors, agents, and targets are transitioning in real time. Although some useful insights can and have surfaced in think tanks and academic settings, generally speaking, the most impactful thought leadership comes from real work experience—practitioners who spend a substantial portion of their time in the field with clients.
• Who we are Thought Leaders tend to flourish in environments where there is an awareness of and commitment to the role character and presence plays in our work. They seem to have the greatest impact when in situations where there is an intellectual and emotional—sometimes even cathartic—devotion to discovering more about “how we show up” makes a difference in our client work and the advancement of our entire professional community.
• Thought Leaders who have the most impact on advocating who we are, usually come from, or operate in, working environments that display patience. Insights do not occur on schedule, nor are they often “born whole.” It takes time to nurture and grow them, to grasp their full essence, and to find the best way to share that with others. 
• Thought Leaders seem to be most productive when functioning in environments occupied not only by other Thought Leaders but also by Eager Apprentices, Solid Performers, Adept Adventurers, and Periodic Contributors. Each archetype brings its own gifts and limitations. In combination, the diversity of maturity levels surfaces issues and questions that serve as input to stoke the creative juices in the Thought Leader. It is when the Thought Leader is most stirred and challenged that his or her best work emerges.
• Thought Leaders who contribute the most to the progress of who we are seem to thrive in environments that encourage both/and, not either/or mindsets. For example:
  • There is both a commitment to maintaining alignment between character and presence, and to being open to new ways of showing up when facing the unknown.
  • There is a broad-based commitment to both succeeding at the current initiative and advancing the state of the profession.
  • There is both a strong respect for the lessons of the past and a determination to understand beyond what those lessons provide.
  • There is both great value placed on generating new ideas and a high degree of rigor imposed on their development and dissemination of the information shared.
• Thought leadership does not occur in a vacuum. Those who are most effective at applying this archetype to who we are establish synergistic relationships with others, often serving the role of the catalyst for generating new ways of showing up in our work. There is little investment in the ownership of ideas, nor is there ego attached to the ideas themselves. While there is pride in what has been developed and put forward, there is also a detachment that allows it to be easily released when deeper understanding leads to new insights or new directions.
• Many Thought Leaders maintain a developmental relationship with one or more mentors to whom they look for wisdom and guidance as they continue on their own learning journey. A reliable axiom to follow is “don’t trust any teacher who doesn’t have a teacher from whom he or she is still learning.”

Closing Thoughts

The two primary facets to being a change agent are represented by what you do and who you are. Both aspects are reflected in the work performed by five archetypical practitioners: Eager Apprentices, Solid Performers, Adept Adventurers, Periodic Contributors, and Thought Leaders. Each adds in its own way to the successes clients are able to achieve today, and to the development of our profession to meet the challenges of the future. Which of the archetypes you play is a function of your character, the presence you convey, and where you are in your maturation as a practitioner.

Regardless of which archetype you feel best describes you or to which you aspire, as a professional community, we are woefully under-represented by Thought Leaders who are dedicated to offering perspective and guidance toward the who we are side of our work. The lack of awareness and skill associated with how we show up is compounded further by so little Thought Leadership being provided in this area. I do not believe that as a profession we will ever approach our potential without considerable influence from more who we are buying doxyciline online https://www.topcanadianpharmacy.org/product/doxycycline/.

This series is directed to those practitioners who feel they meet or could meet the criteria for being Thought Leaders in our profession (being designated as such by others, not themselves). If you fall into this category and haven’t already done so, I encourage you to come forward when writing books, articles, or blogs, giving speeches, coaching/mentoring or any other means you use to convey your views, and express how you relate to who we are when practicing our craft.

Whether you use character and presence as reference points or other topics to explore your lessons learned, as a profession, we need to share our wisdom with other practitioners so they can benefit from your experience as they pursue their own path. Your peers (both those leading change and those affected by it), as well as the future of our profession, need what you have to offer. If you are considered a Thought Leader now or believe this designation will come your way in the future, please consider using that platform as a means for helping our profession lift its game to a higher level.

Go to the beginning of this series.

In my last post, I wrote about the archetypes of Eager Apprentices, Solid Performers, Periodic Contributors, Adept Adventurers, and Thought Leaders. I discussed the critical role each plays and introduced the Thought Leader as one who has a central role in helping our profession realize its who we are potential. In this post, I will address more specifics related to what it takes to be a Thought Leader dedicated to exploring and leveraging how we show up as part of the value we create for clients.

True Thought Leaders Are Rare

We can’t all function as Solid Performers or Adept Adventurers, nor can we all operate as Thought Leaders—and that is a good thing. Our professional community needs to reflect the full range of roles to properly serve clients and advance the craft.

My intent in writing this series isn’t to convince everyone to pursue being a Thought Leader; it is to call out those with this predisposition and ask that you come forward and become more visibly engaged. Thought Leaders spend considerable time and energy pondering new observations and sharing their perspectives in coaching/mentoring relationships, speeches, writings, etc. If there were too many active at this level there wouldn’t be enough practitioners left to benefit from all their wisdom.

There are change facilitators in our ranks who have not yet gravitated to Thought Leader status (but will), and some who are not cut out for it but still serve their clients and help mature our profession in their own way. This is a designation that, by definition, will always represent a small portion of those in our field. I personally know only a few senior practitioners whom I view as Thought Leaders who attend to who we are issues specifically within the change execution profession. Among them are Linda and Dean Anderson, and Mel Toomey. I’m not suggesting these are the only ones out there—they are just practitioners of this nature with whom I’m most familiar.

There are plenty of contributors to who we are perspectives in related fields (counseling, coaching, education, and even our closest relative, organizational development) that change agents have borrowed from over the years. However, Thought Leaders who have broken new who we are ground specifically intended for organizational change practitioners are rare, and that is the point of this blog series.

Why are there so few? First, there aren’t many Thought Leaders in general, much less those attending to who we are issues. Not everyone has the foundational elements needed for such a role. But, beyond the basic prerequisites is the weight of the role itself. The demands are high and call for a commitment to both client work and the present and future of our profession. Thought Leaders’ laboratories are the organizations in which they practice their craft, whether as internal agents or external consultants. As such, every day, they must focus on the changes they are assigned to support, while also remaining vigilant for any new observation, emerging pattern, or insight that could help further the profession’s growth.

These are the requirements of any Thought Leader. The focus for this writing, however, is the need for more pioneers in the who we are space, so let’s take a closer look at some of the unique features of those who push the envelope regarding this aspect of practicing our craft.

• Thought Leaders who pursue how our inner nature impacts client effectiveness are stretching the frontiers of where our hearts intersect with our heads. At those outer limits, their perspectives can sometimes be fascinating and motivating, but other times, they can make us feel uncomfortable and threatened. Their intent isn’t to unnerve us for its own sake, but to disrupt our “status-quo” thinking about the role our character and presence plays in our work. By their standards, if the practitioners who follow them aren’t periodically challenged by what they have to say, they shouldn’t be viewed as cutting-edge thinkers. As they see it, their role calls for them to uncover unfamiliar concerns, probe into subjects that are typically avoided, and encourage new views by questioning established assumptions.
• Even when they periodically achieve a degree of alignment between their character and presence, Thought Leaders don’t believe they have garnered all the wisdom about who they are that will be called for in the future. For this reason, they tend to approach most situations with a beginner’s mind, bringing to bear all they have learned while remaining open to totally new insights and understanding.
• Thought leadership is not a title one can bestow upon oneself; it is a recognition granted by one’s peers. As such, it is not the result of a singular breakthrough, but rather is achieved over time. In respect to what he did (not who he was), consider Steve Jobs. At the outset of his career, he was seen as a creative thinker, but not a Thought Leader. (In those days, he was more of a cross between Adaptive Adventurer and Periodic Contributor.) It took many years, some highly visible failures, and the successful introduction of not only many new products but the formulation of entire new markets before he was bestowed the title of Thought Leader.
• Who we are Thought Leaders surface slowly, usually after many years of honing their knowledge base and skills, and through introspective exploration. But they used this time to share generously their experiences, insights, and lessons learned, instead of just becoming proficient in the craft.
• Thought leadership is about advancing the profession, not just one’s self or firm. As such, Thought Leaders offer their time and wisdom to all who care to take it in. Despite the often high-pressure demands from their clients, they dedicate themselves to keeping a watchful eye for new implications, documenting their observations, thinking through possibilities that go beyond the client situation, and sharing the results with others in the professional community. They also make these contributions to advancements in the field knowing that much of what they make available broadly will be applied later without attribution back to them.  
• By definition, thought leadership is not stagnant. The dynamic pace of the world around us demands continuing experimentation, innovation, and growth. There are those who come up with that one “great new idea” that makes a difference, and then step back to bask in the glory of the recognition that it earns them. This is not the pattern for true pioneers in the who we are space of change execution. Thought Leaders in this space are usually long-term players who measure their tenure in the field in decades, not years. Throughout these long runs, they are consistently prolific in their contributions to and guidance of practitioners interested in incorporating who we are aspects into how they practice the craft.
• Because thought leadership is granted from the outside, it can only be earned if the insights and understanding results are made broadly available. If they are kept under wraps, only to be shared with those who pay the price of admission, they will never gain the required recognition. Thought Leaders do not just share their learning about character and presence with their coworkers and collaborators, they make them available to competitors as well.

This doesn’t make sense in the classic, win-lose business model mindset, where intellectual property is protected from rival access. Thought Leaders, however, carry two responsibilities: one is centered on their own practice or business and one is focused on advancing the profession. Balancing these influences can present conflicting priorities, but generally speaking, Thought Leaders disseminate what they learn openly and broadly.

They do so because, in most cases, they don’t think in terms of zero sum situations. They believe that it is good for their own proprietary interest for the overall profession to raise its game.

–   Thought Leaders are dedicated to transferring capability. It is fulfilling for them to see recipients of their work (clients, colleagues, and competitors) not only apply what was shared but take it to a level beyond what the Thought Leader envisioned. When this happens, not only does the professional community benefit, but the Thought Leader profits by becoming a recipient of the learning received back from his or her former student and is freed to address more sophisticated who we are challenges.

–   Serving as a Thought Leader demands both vulnerability and self-confidence. It involves a consistent commitment to experimentation that is fueled by new insights, understandings, and the questions they raise. The gains that are enjoyed are punctuated by plenty of mistakes—some small, some major—and learning from them. In this way, thought leadership is not for the meek or the grandiose.

–   While there is acceptance of the accountability that comes with others being influenced by their perspectives, Thought Leaders are also humbled by the responsibility that comes with that label and never takes it for granted. They know that the designation people have conferred on them must be re-earned every day.

Some environments nurture thought leadership, while others stifle it. In the last post of this series, I will address what is required to cultivate thought leadership.

Go to the beginning of this series.

So far in this series, I have stressed the need for an increased focus on thought leadership regarding character and presence (post 1). I also introduced five archetypes—Eager Apprentices, Solid Performers, Adept Adventurers, Periodic Contributors, and Thought Leaders—as part of a benefit continuum that reflects the value change agents provide those they serve. In this post, I will explain how each archetype exemplifies a different way in which character and presence play a role in the practice of our craft.

Eager Apprentices

Becoming an Eager Apprentice of who we are has nothing to do with a person’s age or length of time serving as a professional change facilitator. This level is engaged whenever practitioners first recognize the potential that character and presence can play in their work—and commit to developing that side of themselves along with their technical competence (concepts, tools, and techniques). This awareness may occur early in their career while learning the basics of what we do, or after many years in the profession, long after technical expertise has been well established. In either case, stepping into this archetype represents important implications, both for an individual and for our profession. 

At a personal level, becoming an Eager Apprentice launches a journey where the destination is the pursuit itself, not a predetermined terminal point of learning. The more practitioners uncover about themselves, the more there is to explore further. In this respect, although being an Eager Apprentice is a beginning, the only way the quest ever ends is if the practitioner satisfies his or her thirst for introspective discovery and there is no longer the passion for diving further into who we are.  

As it relates to the profession of change execution, Eager Apprentices constitute the pool from which the remaining four archetypes can emerge. Without this cadre of enthusiastic novices, there would be no future Thought Leaders focused on character and presence. This continuing stream of new entrants is our only hope of one day seeing enough Thought Leaders to support who we are as a priority for our profession.

Solid Performers

Practicing our craft can range from being incredibly easy to extremely difficult, depending on the change we are chartered to support and the environment in which we work. No matter how simple or grueling those changes are, having Solid Performers who are committed to bringing forward who they are into their work is invaluable.

Solid Performers have moved beyond their Eager Apprenticeship role, where they learned what contributes to being “out of sync” with their true nature and the various ways their presence could better align with their character. They are now skilled in building and sustaining trusting relationships with their sponsors, peers, and others they work with based on expressing who they really are (instead of projecting a false image to keep others comfortable). As a result, they have integrated their technical credibility (methodology) with their personal authenticity (their state of being), resulting in a heightened effectiveness when serving clients.

Although committed to their own expression of who they are, those in this archetype devote little attention toward urging other practitioners to follow suit.

Adept Adventurers

The Adept Adventurer is critical to the success of highly difficult change initiatives. No matter how effectively such changes are planned, the unexpected will arise and require change practitioners to show up in ways they have not before. The alignment between character and presence that they achieved as Solid Performers is tested and often they find the gains made in how they show up are no longer enough for the challenges they face. Unless prepared to step into new, uncharted territory regarding exploring, and bringing forward and integrating who they are into their work, practitioners put the change at risk and also hinder their own advancement as change facilitators.

When stepping into the unknown, the Adept Adventurer does so with reason and intuition. At this level, it takes both an understanding that mistakes are inevitable and the courage to persevere when progress seems slow or nonexistent. This kind of tenacity is important if the practitioner is to gain new insights into how his or her character and presence can be brought forward as part of the value proposition to clients.

As a result of their diligence, Adept Adventurers are able to shed enough ego to avoid always having to be right. This frees them to take some risks as they explore new implications about their character and presence. In turn, they foster a level of trust with their sponsors that allows them to engage in the depth of conversation that such risks warrant. Adept Adventurers consider the character and presence they bring to their work as essential ingredients for this kind of risk taking and trust building.

Despite the capacity to experiment with new ways to strengthen and leverage who they are, Adept Adventurers are primarily focused on their own personal/professional growth and how that can contribute to specific change projects. Except when called for within a specific project, they seldom invest in passing on their learning to Eager Apprentices or Solid Performers. This lack of sharing isn’t done out of malice, nor is it even an intentional act of withholding. It’s just that advancing practitioners throughout the profession isn’t a priority…it’s not part of their personal agenda. They would happily answer another’s questions and wouldn’t hesitate to provide any support they could, if asked to help others who struggle with integrating their character and presence, but they aren’t proactive about engaging such discussions.

Periodic Contributors

Those who step into the Periodic Contributor archetype are moving beyond integrating their character/presence into specific change initiatives. They have explored enough of this territory to have identified a few important insights and lessons they are sometimes willing to share with others. When the circumstances are right, they will help promote who we are as being on an equal par with what we do.  They also offer their views about how showing up in the work can create value for clients.

Periodic Contributors are committed to and skilled at leveraging their true nature as a key asset when working with their clients. They occasionally focus on fostering awareness around issues like character and presence, but not with any consistency. They are not indifferent toward having our professional community embrace who we are as part of its core. In fact, most practitioners at this level will say they would like to see that occur. They just don’t feel compelled to help  make it happen.

Periodic Contributors will, on occasion, go out of their way to speak or write about topics like character and presence. It is not the norm, but it is also not unusual for them to have a one-on-one conversation, deliver a speech, or write an article or blog post advocating the importance of bringing who we are to the forefront of change facilitation.

At this point in the evolution of our profession, it is important that we encourage and nurture Periodic Contributors. They are our future. This archetype helps promote the advancement of things like character and presence as critical components to providing value to clients. They don’t advocate for this to the extent Thought Leaders do, but are still an important part of the supporting infrastructure for helping the who we are mindset gain a stronger foothold. Also, they are just one step removed from the most influential force we have toward embracing how we show up as a vital part of our profession’s value proposition.

Thought Leaders

Thought Leaders, Eager Apprentices, and each of the archetypes in between are capable of delivering their respective value to clients. That said, it is Thought Leaders who make the most significant contribution to the advancement of our field. This is true for both what we do and who we are. Specific to how we show up in our work, they have a disproportionately positive impact on helping our professional community recognize the importance of character and presence when fulfilling change facilitation duties. Thought Leaders who focus on who we are have a vital role in raising awareness about this aspect of practicing our craft, but there’s a problem—there aren’t enough of them.

One of the factors contributing to our profession’s anemic mindshare for who we are issues and challenges is the near absence of Thought Leaders attentive to this topic. With so little of this kind of advocacy and guidance available, to whom do the apprentices, performers, adventurers, and contributors turn? Far too many practitioners showing an interest in this area are left on their own. They try to integrate character and presence into their work but without the benefit of what has been learned from those who have previously forged paths through some of these same challenges.

We need more Thought Leaders to help propel our profession into a new phase of its evolution, where character and presence is considered at least as important as what practitioners know and know how to do.

With more Thought Leaders in support of who we are, our profession could be positioned for an increasingly strong and successful future. As we individually and collectively strengthen our character and presence, we will be better prepared to step into the challenges we face, to provide sponsors the guidance they require for success, and to support the next generation of practitioners who are coming after us.

My next two posts will probe deeply into the role of the Thought Leader.

Go to the beginning of the series.

In the first post of this series, I explained that there is plenty of cutting-edge thinking about our frameworks, tools, and methodologies, but little thought leadership related to the who we are side of our craft.

For Thought Leaders to be fully appreciated, they must be seen in context. Think of them as representing the high end of a benefit continuum that reflects the value change agents provide those they serve. Because of their depth of experience, Thought Leaders offer a rare grasp of the complexities and nuances associated with practicing our craft. At the other extreme are Eager Apprentices who are early in their development and not yet in a position to contribute much to the benefit continuum. In between are Solid Performers, Adept Adventurers, and Periodic Contributors. Consider these as five maturation archetypes, each playing a critical role in both the success of organizational change and the advancement of our profession.

It is easy to see how these archetypes play out in regards to what we do:

• Eager Apprentices are consumed with learning the basics of our profession (skills, models, frameworks, etc.)
• Solid Performers approach change execution by adhering to the rules. They apply the validated concepts, established processes, and dependable techniques they have come to rely on. They are highly effective in their role with their own clients but spend little time or energy helping other practitioners (outside their own colleagues) access their lessons learned or replicate their successes.
• Adept Adventurers stretch a bit beyond their comfort zone. They refine existing frameworks or tools in ways that add value to the situation at hand but seldom pass on these modifications to other practitioners outside their organization or small circle of direct contacts.
• Periodic Contributors provide excellent client work and, on occasion, break new ground that contributes to advancing the profession, which they occasionally share with practitioners throughout the professional community.
• Finally, there are Thought Leaders who generate exceptional value for their clients, are the fountainheads for inventive new thinking and applications in our field, and are influential beyond the people they directly affect.

There are plenty of examples of how each of the archetypes relate to the concepts, frameworks, processes, and techniques we use when engaged with clients. Most people in our field, however, have no role models or guidance on how these five exemplars relate to “showing up” in our work. I contend that we should apply the same distinctions to the who we are aspects of practicing our craft:

• Eager Apprentices are early in their journey and still focused on seeing how character and presence can be key assets in providing value to their clients. They are only beginning to discover how their true nature can play out in their work. They are just starting to explore how to more boldly express and better leverage the uniqueness they have within them to the benefit of their clients. 
• Solid Performers approach their practitioner duties with a sound foundation for bringing their full selves to their work. They consider how they show up as an essential part of what they have to offer. They are comfortable: 1) embracing their true nature, 2) aligning their character and presence for authentic expression, and 3) securing clients who value their character/presence package. Their own commitment to integrating who they are with what they do is well established, but they don’t spend much time or energy encouraging other practitioners within the broader professional community to do the same.
• Adept Adventurers are comfortable enough in their ability to stay true to their core nature that they are able to engage in some experimentation. They are ready to risk pushing past what they are confident in thinking, doing, and feeling in order to explore new possibilities. What they seek is to deepen their facility for and/or commitment to operating as de-victimized, sovereign change practitioners. Though they are secure enough in living their own truth to investigate new avenues to pursue for themselves, they don’t often openly encourage other practitioners to value who they are as much as what they do. 
• Periodic Contributors take enough risk and explore enough unfamiliar ground to be able to occasionally offer unique perspectives to other change facilitators regarding how “showing up” can be incorporated into increasing practitioner effectiveness.
• Thought Leaders are practitioners who contribute often to helping individuals understand the importance of who we are and also broadly share their views so the entire profession can benefit. 

As practitioners develop professionally and progress further on the benefit continuum, each level attained incorporates and expands on the prior levels. This means all five archetypes play an important part in the value chain of our profession. They are clearly differentiated, but not in a way that suggests one is better than another. Whatever archetype one occupies at a given time, there is value to be dispensed. For some, the benefits are rationed only to clients and associates. For others, the insights and lessons learned are made available on a broader scale.     

The bottom line is we need the full complement of archetypes applied to both what we do and who we are if we are to serve our clients and continue to evolve as a professional discipline. The field of change execution has done a relatively good job of utilizing the archetypes toward learning, using, and teaching others the methodologies associated with our craft, but we are lagging far behind when it comes to doing the same for the who we are side of our work.

In the next post, I’ll show how the five levels can and should be applied to fostering a greater emphasis on the practitioner’s character and presence. In posts 4 and 5, I’ll pay particular attention to the role of Thought Leader.