Handouts for Transformational Leadership: From Theory to Action

Handouts for a Youth in Action programme:

From Theory to Action an introductory course to

Transformational Leadership 16th-27th September 2012 in Thessaloniki, Greece

Originally developed by the Foundation for

Transformational Leadership, adapted and updated by:

Hello!

Here are the handouts of our week together, I’ve added some extra reading and may have left

out bits that we did spontaneously, but hopefully there is enough information in here that goes

hand in hand with your own notes that will keep you refreshed and growing and learning.

Please stay in touch with us - we love hearing from you,

With such love,

Ilana, Daria and Pip

The training course "From Theory to Action" took place in Thessaloniki, Greece from the 16-27 of

September 2012 by the non-formal group "Youth Power". It was a project funded by the "Youth

in Action" programme.

«Το σχέδιο αυτό χρηματοδοτήθηκε με την υποστήριξη της Ευρωπαϊκής Επιτροπής. Η

παρούσα δημοσίευση [ανακοίνωση] δεσμεύει μόνο τον συντάκτη της και η Επιτροπή δεν

ευθύνεται για τυχόν χρήση των πληροφοριών που περιέχονται σε αυτήν.»



A brief overview

The course was based on the following foundations:

- everyone deserves health and happiness, not just the many or the few

- we are part of a single human family

- the heart of leadership is service

- we can cooperate, not just compete

- anyone can make a difference for the better

- the ends and the means are the same –

“we must be the change we wish to see in the world”

We start the course looking at these and what they would look like ‘in action’. As great as it is to

have these as intentions and beliefs, if they aren’t not embodied in our actions, then little can

change. Think for a moment of a situation or dynamic that you’re in – are you treating the

situation as you wish the end result to be. E.g. if you want someone to cooperate more, are you

cooperating with them?

The essence of the course was based around developing our awareness, as Daniel Goleman

explores in his model of Emotional Intelligence - if we want to make a positive impact and have

positive relationships, that the first step is to develop our self-awareness.

Once we are aware of something within ourselves (our thoughts, our feelings, our motivations,

our behaviours) we can be clearer about what we see in others and only once we are aware of

something (in us, around us etc), can choose how to respond. “You cannot manage that which

you are not aware of”

This is then furthered by being aware of our context, the context of life we find ourselevs in as

well as the context of the world around us, managing these contexts is where we make impact.

Developing our self-awareness is therefore is our response-ability, developing the ability to

respond rather than react, enabling conscious behaviour that responds to the key question of:

What is needed here?

Exercise: Which team activities and sessions do you remember? What did you learn from

them? Looking back now, is there anything more you could learn?



Shape of the course

We look at Transformational Leadership in two ways.

- Firstly, to help develop and access the inner resources of the individual/leader. This helps

the individuals become aware of what is going on within them, their intent, their visions, their

actions. It helps them to draw more fully on the whole range of capabilities and energies in

creating change from the inside out. Through the development of awareness, it helps them to

stay fresh and strong in the service of the need in front of them.

- Secondly, the programme helps to deliver the skills and abilities required to deliver this

change in practice. These are the abilities to manage people, set up tasks and projects and

ensure delivery, and to develop and grow the people who work with and around them while

creating change.

The programme is based around five types of activity:

• Tuition (when we sat in the room and did theory)

• Practical experience (all of our team tasks and exercises)

• Reflection (all the times we looked at what we noticed)

• Dialogue (when we spoke together and with each other)

• Social Activity (where we learned about each other)

This structure was designed to give you the maximum opportunity to understand the

programme material through your own experience as well as really meet one another.

This course is designed to help people explore, understand and practice transformational

leadership. Through this, the participants will be able to meet the needs of the community and

society in which they live through service as transformational leaders, and help to bring about

change that uplifts those it touches.

The programme approach follows Kolb’s Experiential Learning model with team tasks designed

to elicit learning. This is based on the idea that it’s possible to draw learning from anything and

the more we develop the habit of reflection (before, during or after an experience), the more

learning we are able to draw from it allowing us to move on.



Frameworks

You can find more information about all of these in the rest of this booklet.

- Transformational Leadership

- The Human Iceberg

- Human Framework

- Emotional Intelligence

- Stop Exercise

- Energies

- Bobta: Taking the Lead

- Decision Tree

- Assumptions

- Dialogue

- Leadership Styles

- Stretch Zone

- Being Present

- Higher Mind and Lower Mind

- Flow

- Personal Mastery

- Resilience

- Coaching

- Facilitation

- Intent & Vision

Transformational Leadership

A definition of transformational leadership is ‘the ability to bring about change which uplifts and

benefits humanity, through meeting its needs, and developing its capabilities.’ To simplify in

relation to Leadership in Action:

Having the awareness & skills - to serve the needs - for the good of all

We need to be open in our heart and mind to know what is needed from us through our actions.

As we become more aware our perception increases, and we are able to choose actions that

directly meet the needs of the situation and people around us. This approach to leadership takes

us from a constricting model of competition between individuals, teams or nations, to a

connection with the whole of a situation, and leadership for the good of all. We move towards

creating lasting relationships and seeking socially responsible outcomes.



The Human Iceberg

Transformation takes place when there is a significant shift at causal (underlying) levels, leading to

a change in the outcomes that people experience. To bring about such a shift, leaders need to

use their awareness to allow others and themselves to see what is taking place at the causal

levels, and to change it. Many people try to change things at a surface level, so they treat the

symptom and not the cause – changing symptoms doesn’t create lasting transformation.

This Human Iceberg session looks at distinguishing symptoms from causes and that if we are

going to create real change, we need to address things at a causal level because that is where

real transformation takes place. Living in a physical world, it can be easy to operate as if that is

the only dimension and forget that so much exists in the non-physical. Part of these thoughts,

motivations, feelings (of others, of ourselves, of groups) - so it is important to remember that

what we see is not the full story and that it takes awareness, empathy and understanding to start

to find the underlying causes.

In this moment, where could you enquire “Why is this happening” before assuming that you

already know...

Transformation takes place when there is a significant shift at causal levels “below the iceberg”.

To bring about such a shift, leaders need to use their awareness, to allow others and themselves

to see what is taking place at the causal levels, and then to do what is needed to transform it.

Human Framework

Our feelings, thoughts and actions are constantly at play, interacting to each other. This session

looks at 4 aspects of the human being: Awareness, Feeling, Thinking, Acting, and at how, once

we are aware of what is happening in these areas, in ourselves and in others, we can make better

choices about what is needed. This framework explores awareness and that we work from the

inside out.



This framework explores awareness and that we work from the inside out. Only from being aware

of ourselves, can we can start to manage our own motivation, values and moods. We can only be

aware of the motivations, values and moods of others once we are aware of these ourselves. The

Emotional Intelligence model suggests that it is only when we are able to do these things that we

are able to manage our relationships and our impact – the heart of leadership.

What level is your awareness at? How can you develop your awareness even more?

Consciousness

Consciousness is a term that has been used to refer to a variety of aspects of the relationship

between the mind and the world with which it interacts. It has been defined, at one time or

another, as: subjective experience; awareness; the ability to experience feelings; wakefulness;

having a sense of selfhood; or as the executive control system of the mind.[2] Despite the

difficulty of definition, many philosophers believe that there is a basic underlying intuition about

consciousness that is shared by nearly all people. As Max Velmans and Susan Schneider wrote in

The Blackwell Companion to Consciousness:

"Anything that we are aware of at a given moment forms part of our consciousness, making

conscious experience at once the most familiar and most mysterious aspect of our lives."

Our consciousness/awareness is free of ego, free of judgment and able to connect to a greater

consciousness. It is often thought that this consciousness is who we really are when the mind

doesn’t interrupt with thoughts and ideas that we have developed, that it is our essence where all

of our potential lives and so as we develop our ability to connect to our awareness, we release

our innate potential while also connecting to others and the world around us.



Emotional Intelligence

Daniel Goleman’s work on emotional intelligence is a reminder to us that if we want to make a

positive impact and develop our relationships with people, that first and foremost we need to

develop our self-awareness and only from there can we choose how to respond.

Response-ability

This is the introduction to the concept of responsibility and looking it at the ability to respond

rather than to react. Imagine if with every decision and every action, we were choosing

consciously to respond to what was needed, rather than from our own default behaviours or

based on our egoic needs, rather than what is needed for the good of all.

Energies

Another key feature of the context in which leadership happens is energy. A leaders awareness of

the energy present internally and externally, and the energy which is needed is a critical ability for

transformational leaders. A transformational leader is able to create the right balance of energy,

not just use one dimension. FTL use a framework of 3 energies; Swan, Tiger and Sloth. These

animal metaphors are simple but practically demonstrate the characteristics of three primary

energy states, present in both individuals and society.



The energies can be characterised as such:

Tiger: Action, drive, passion, speed (high)

Swan: Stillness, measure, reflection, quietness awareness building (still)

Sloth: Consolidation, consistency, restoration, healing! (low)

This session looks at the quality of energy rather than the quality of it. It refers to the contagious

nature of energy and how we are affected by other people and they are affected by ours.

Referring to the emotional intelligence model, we need to manage our own energy so that we

can manage the teams and projects we lead.

We have the ability to move into the energy needed for whatever the task or activity is.

“There is no way to peace, peace is the way” - A. J. Muste

As leaders, how do we need to “be” in order to “do”? What impact does our energy and that of

those around us have on the task at hand? How can we use our energy more effectively to shape

the environment we are in, and inspire or focus others?

For further reading about the contagious nature of energy, read Daniel Goleman’s Social

Intelligence.



B.O.B.T.A – “Taking the Lead”

One of the things leaders have to do most often is to take action to meet a need. Sometimes

they know what action to take, sometimes they may not; sometimes there may be time to spare,

sometimes not. This process is designed to help in all these circumstances.

Key Steps

1. B = Brief.

Get the brief / see the need. Ask questions until you are clear, or until you have asked all

you can. Make sure you are clear about what the objective is.

2. O = Outline.

Form an outline plan. Don’t get fixed on it - it’s just a place to start. Questions to cover

are:-What is your approach to this; What is your first step? Who should play what role?

Who will manage the process (time)?

3. B = Be.

How do I need to be? What will be needed from you as leader? What behaviours? How

will you enable success? What energy is needed? Are you ready to be adaptable?

4. T = Team.

Engage the team. Brief them in the task, and in the plan as far as is needed / possible.

5. A = Action.

Initiate and guide action. Change the plan; maintain as much control as is needed!

Maintain the overview, adapt as needed and rework the other 4 steps as needed.

Decision Tree

The Decision Tree is a tool for checking your intention behind your decisions. You have a choice

in every moment. It is only through your awareness of your intent that you will be able to choose

what needs to happen, or how you need to behave. The opposite of this is a life lived solely for

personal satisfaction and desire, quite often we are unaware of the choices which lead to this.

The ripple effect from this can be anything from hugely positive to very negative.

We are not always free to choose what happens, but we are free to choose how we respond.

“I am not a product of my circumstances. I am a product of my decisions.” ― Stephen R. Covey

The decision tree is a tool for understanding and working with intent. By using the Decision Tree,

we can understand and refine our intent, and then through formulating it precisely for the time

and place, can start to bring about transformation that will deliver the intent.



If our intent is the force that drives through us, the thing that translates into action, then to make

decisions with our awareness of our intent is a way for us to make sure we are acting in

alignment with our core values.

It is possible to make small actions, but with humanity in our hearts. How could you do this?

Key principles are:

- You have a choice in every moment - It is only through your awareness of your intent that

you will be able to choose what needs to happen, or how you need to behave. The

opposite of this is a life lived solely for personal satisfaction and desire, quite often we are

unaware of the choices which lead to this.

- The ripple effect from this can be anything from hugely positive to very negative

- The decision tree is a framework is a benchmarking tool to check your intent (not

something to mark yourself against or beat yourself up against).

- Our actions have an impact (ripple effect) whether we recognize it or not. Checking our

intent as we make our decisions day to day will allow us to be a force for good.

Assumptions

This session looks at how many assumptions we make based on a variety of things: race, gender,

nationality, education background, status etc and looked at how our actions are affected by

assumptions we have made. How can we become aware of assumptions so that we can be aware

of the impact they may have i.e. if we assume what someone is thinking or assume why someone

is doing something, it closes down opportunities for interaction and development as well as can

cause serious conflict.

We played the rope game – where is there a ‘rope’ in the way in your interactions?

The simple check in, is to ask yourself:

What am I assuming here and what is the impact of that?

This question allows us to remember there are invisible stories beneath the world that we see,

within every human being there are thoughts, feelings and events that have happened in their

life that have led them to this point.

It also helps us to remember that others could be basing their assumptions on what we do and

say without knowing the full story.



What assumptions are you making about yourself? “I am wonderful. I am slow. I am shy. I can’t

do that. I don’t deserve this. I’m not clever enough”

Enquire into which of these are just ideas you have about yourself or whether they are innately

true. What are you telling yourself that could be limiting you?

“Whether you think you can or think you can’t, you are usually right” - Henry Ford

Other assmptions / Bias:

Confirmation Bias:

- assumption of wht someone/something is like

- using the information we have/see to prove it

Attribution Bias:

- blame ‘causes’ when it’s about someone else

- blame circumstance when it’s about yourself

Curse of Knowledge:

- assumption that ‘everyone understands’

- can’t remember what it feels like not to know



Three disciplines of Transformational Leadership

The three disciplines of transformational leadership are:

Awareness

This discipline is like the leader’s torch – without it, you simply cannot see what is going on within

you, and without. Action becomes disconnected from the need and purpose and so becomes

ineffective.

Personal Mastery

This is keeping oneself in the condition in which one is fit to lead. Fit at the mental and emotional

levels, and at the level of awareness, and not just at the physical level which we normally

associate with fitness. To keep ourselves emotionally fit, what does it take? What does fitness at

this level look like? And what about at the physical level?

Great Communication

This is a crucial way in which leaders actually carry out leadership. But it is not just about telling,

and the grand speeches. It is also about listening, and about the use of speech and listening with

and among those being worked with to help everyone to grow and to make the difference for

themselves. This is the art of dialogue – thinking together.



Dialogue

This session looks at Dialogue based on William Isaac’s four tools of Dialogue from his book The

Art of Thinking Together. It is dialogue for conflict resolution as well as idea development. The

base definition that he uses is that Dialogue is a conversation with a centre not sides.

“Seek First to Understand, Then to be Understood” – Stephen R Covey

Listening

• listen from an inner space, letting go of preconceived ideas

Respecting

• Look for the humanity - or that which is the same as yourself

• See the variety of perspectives in the context of the whole; be aware of the integrity of

another’s position

• Regard whatever is in front of you as your teacher; you can learn from any person or

situation

• Look for what is highest and best in the person

Suspending

• be willing to loosen your grip on certainty and step into the unknown

• Be willing to let go of judgments and certainty; invite a fresh response

• Remember that suspension is the art of finding the “order between” positions people take;

positions are only pieces of the whole

• Act in the spirit of inquiry. Ask “How does this problem or situation work?” rather than

“What can I do to fix this?”

Voicing

• Speak from the intention of what is good for the whole. Ask “What needs to be expressed

now?”

• Be prepared to leap into the void and speak without necessarily knowing where it’s going

• Remember the power of speech – in speaking, you create, so speak the truth pleasantly

• Allow space after someone has spoken to allow the meaning of what they have said to

bloom – don’t be afraid of silence



Leadership Styles

In order for a transformational leader to meet the need in front of them, they need to behave in

a way appropriate to the people and situation in which they are leading, and so need to be fluid.

Therefore they will use different styles of leadership for different occasions.

"The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.”

- Einstein

No style is better or worse than another, but they only result in effective leadership when used at

the right time and place; the different styles have a distinctly different impact, and so the

awareness of the right time and place is absolutely key.

- Whether our preferred styles of leadership are really what is needed, and to explore what

styles we need to develop to be more effective as leaders.

- Just because you adopt a certain style it does not mean that you are that style. We need

to behave differently to truly meet the need in front of us. Therefore emotional

intelligence and personal mastery is needed to be able to fluidly step into styles that are

not normal for us.

The 6 styles are:

Long Term Short Term

Goal Visionary (resonant) Directive (dissonant)

People Participative (resonant) Affiliative (resonant)

Standard Coaching (resonant) Pace-Setting (dissonant)

Taken from “Primal Leadership” by Goleman, Boyatzis & McKee, published 2002, and “Leadership That Gets

Results”, Harvard Business Review, March - April 2000, by Daniel Goleman

Directive Style - Demands immediate compliance

Directive – gives clear direction

Characteristics:

Gives (lots of) instructions | Expects immediate compliance | Controls tightly |

Relies on quick feedback | A tendency to motivate by external factors, especially the avoidance of

negative consequences

Considerations:



What is the long term impact on flexibility, initiative, fulfilment and morale?

How well does it build capability in the people involved in the long term?

Is it well suited to complex tasks, or more to short term ones?

Works well:

When applied to relatively straightforward tasks

In crisis situations

When deviations from compliance will result in serious problems

With problem employees (when all else has failed)

Works less well:

When applied to tasks that are more complex than straightforward

Over the long term

With self-motivated able people

Visionary Style - Mobilizes people towards a vision

Characteristics:

Develops and communicates a clear vision | Seeks to engage people about the vision |

Sees selling the vision as key | Persuades people by explaining the benefits in terms of their long-

term interest | Sets and measures standards in relation to the larger vision | Uses a balance of

positive and negative feedback to motivate

Considerations:

Is there a vision for the group or organization?

Are people committed to the vision?

How is the leader perceived by his/her direct reports?

Works well:

When a new vision or clear direction and standards are needed

When the leader is seen to have “authority”

With new people who depend on the leader for guidance

Works less well:

When the leader does not develop people

When the leader is not perceived as credible

Affiliative Style - Creates harmony & builds emotional bonds

Characteristics:

Is most concerned with promoting friendly & positive relationships

Places emphasis on addressing people’s personal needs

Avoids confrontations



Considerations:

When the leader does not develop people

When the leader is not perceived as credible

Works well:

When used as part of a repertoire

When giving personal help

In getting diverse, conflicting groups to work together harmoniously

Works less well:

When people’s performance is inadequate

In crises or complex situations needing clear direction and control

With people who are task-oriented or uninterested in friendship with their leader

Participative Style - Building commitment and consensus through participation

Characteristics:

Trusts that people can develop the appropriate direction for themselves and the team

Invites people to participate in the development of decisions

Holds many meetings and listens to people’s concerns

Rarely gives negative feedback

Considerations:

How are decisions made?

How is poor or less-than- satisfactory performance dealt with?

Who provides the direction in this team?

What is the level of competence of the people?

Works well:

When people are competent

When people must be coordinated vs. managed

When a leader is unclear about the best approach

Works less well:

In crises

When people are not competent, lack crucial information, need close supervision

Pacesetting Style - Accomplishing high standards

Characteristics:

Leads by example | Has high standards | Is apprehensive about delegating |

Takes responsibility away if high performance is not forthcoming | Has little sympathy for poor

performance | Rescues the situation



Considerations:

What happens when work is not performed to expectations?

Does the leader feel comfortable delegating work to others?

What is the pace of work in this team?

What is the level of competence of the people involved?

Works well:

When people are highly motivated & competent

When managing individual contributors

In making the team move fast

Works less well:

When the leader cannot do all his/her work personally

When employees need direction, development, and coordination

Coaching Style - Develops people for the future

Characteristics:

Helps people identify their strengths / weaknesses

Encourages people to establish personal development goals

May trade off immediate standards of performance for long-term development

Uses dialogue and through this significantly improves the atmosphere.

Considerations:

Do the people want to learn and grow?

Are the resources and opportunities around for people to develop their abilities?

Does the leader have the credibility to coach? How can it be established?

Works well:

When people want to grow & learn.

When the leader has the vision to see the potential.

When the leader has the ability or experience from which to coach.

When there is the time and space available for it.

Works less well:

When people do not see the need, or want to, learn and grow.

When the leader does not have the ability or experience.

When action or results are required, such as in a crisis.



Stretch Zone

The Comfort Zone

Your Comfort Zone is just that – comfortable – and includes everyday activities such as doing the

same things and mixing with the same people. When most of your activities are in this zone life

is, of course, ‘comfortable’ but you do not learn very much nor develop yourself – it’s simply

more of the same and it can lead to the zone shrinking.

The Stretch Zone

Your Stretch Zone is the area of novelty, exploration and adventure. Here are the things that are

a little or a lot out of the ordinary – the things you haven’t done for a long time or have never

done before.

This zone is not really a comfortable place – but it is a stimulating one. It is where we stretch and

challenge ourselves mentally, emotionally or physically. In social life it could be going to a

different restaurant or pub. At work it could be handing a project in a new way or seeking a

better position.

The Panic Zone

The Panic Zone is the area of things-to-be-avoided either because they are unacceptable to you

or because they are currently a ‘stretch’ too far!

What is a stretch for one person can be a Comfort or Panic Zone issue for someone else. In a

nutshell, if we are not stretching we are shrinking. Let’s look at some examples:

The key is to be in rapport with yourself – allow your feelings to guide you and avoid forcing

things. Only move a little into, and only remain briefly in, Stretch. Use this self-rapport to know

when you have had enough and then return to Comfort to rest and to integrate the learnings.



Now do it again – this time moving a little further so it is a new Stretch. And so on.

Being Present

If you think about it, all of our thoughts are made up of either our memories or our imaginations.

So we are either remembering something or imagining something and both of these can cause

stress. It can be hard to rein either of those thought processes in but it can be done and in doing

so fully, the stress disappears.

The act of taking control of our thinking and our internal dialogue is what allows us to be present

and stay in the moment. It takes some practice but once you are even aware of your internal

dialogue, you are on your way. What are you thinking about right now? How can you get

present?

Higher Mind and Lower Mind

It’s possible to look at different aspects of our mind. For this session, we will look at the higher

mind and the lower mind. It’s possible to look into this area in Right and Left brain research.

HIGHER MIND:

OPEN TO ALL - STILL

Reflector, Reason, Insight, Creativity, Knowledge of the Whole, Decision for All, Choice in

Awareness

LOWER MIND:

FOCUSSED ON ME - ACTIVE

Formulator, Fears, Doubts, Desires, Names/Parts, Knowledge of many things

Beyond this system is the awareness or consciousness that allows this whole thing to happen.

We know that transformational leaders first transform their own being so that the awareness,

intent, vision and the resulting actions are for the benefit of all, and also to reduce or moderate

the limiting influences. The transformation is about using fully what we have – it is not about

becoming something different. We have all that we need, the only question is whether we

actually use it!

Working on our being requires overcoming the impediments of the lower mind, and allowing the

higher mind to operate and the whole being to be more open.

Let’s consider some of what goes on the mind:



What is it like, at its best and its worst?

What kinds of things do we think about and invest in?

It is noticeable that the lower mind is a ‘bits and pieces’ operator, as it natural to its factual role. It

is often indeed focusing on an idea of lack, of missing something so it responds with desires. It

uses words and names, and it is important to hear the words we tell ourselves. This is the power

of formulated thought, and it can be watched. The issue is that we need to engage the higher

mind, which integrates and sees the whole.

Both parts of the mind are there operating in all of us; it is not that one is good and the other

bad. It is that they are both needed, and need to be in good order.

The higher mind enables us to choose what we focus on, what priority we place on things that

appear to us. We all have different desires.

What do we desire now, in this moment?

What happens if we are just pushed by our desires?

Have we ever permanently and for ever satisfied a desire?

What happens because of that?

Is there a tendency to unrest, restlessness and even emotions like failure and fear because of the

insatiable nature of desire?

It makes for a busy world. In this we see the tiger - sloth cycle, of desires exhausting us, and then

lethargy follows.

The key is to make sure that we are aware of the higher mind, and allowing that to shape our

doing, taking the big picture, to open the minds to the whole by stepping beyond the parts. This

is to start to access our being, and to use that to inform our doing in everyday life. This is about

using reason, and not just logic. This is about pathways to greater reason and insight.

The heart, with this motive force gives things the power, our power. Sometimes we don't use the

reflective power to illuminate our thinking and our decisions, we simply rush in and act. What is

being proposed here is to develop the power of awareness so that that power is used in the

reflective ability of the mind to reason, to work on the big full and free picture, and to then allow

the lower mind to be what it should be - the bringer of data and information. The heart, its

power and force is shaped by all the intents that we have, which is why it is so important to see

what is happening there.

As we refine there, so we have more force and power to put into the work we face. As the mind

refines the innate knowledge we have is accessible. Our being grows, and so does the scope of

our doing, both are key. Coming back to the first principle, there is a flow from the inner world of

being to the outer world of doing, but the being comes first, it is the source. How do you tap that



source, how to use what flows from there. We need to look at why we define ourselves in the

lower mind as doers, and forget the reality of our consciousness of being.

Flow

Mihalyi Csizentmihalyi (pronounced Chicksent–mihali), professor of Psychology at the University

of Chicago has researched flow for the last 30 years. He’s written many books and articles on

flow, including: “Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience.” Harper & Row, NY 1990.

“Between Boredom & Anxiety.” Josey-Bass 1975.

He describes flow as:

• “A state of consciousness so focused that it amounts to an absolute absorption in

activity. It provides a sense of discovery, a creative feeling of pushing to higher levels of

performance, into a new reality.”

• “It is what the sailor holding a tight course feels when the wind whips through her hair,

when the boat lunges through the waves like a colt - sails, hull, wind, and sea humming a

harmony that vibrates in the sailor’s veins. It is what a painter feels when the colors on the canvas

begin to set up a magnetic tension with each other, and a new thing a living form, takes shape in

front of the astonished creator. Or it is the feeling that a father has when his child for the first

time responds to his smile.

• … Contrary to what we usually believe, moments like these, the best moments in our lives,

are not the passive, receptive, relaxing times… the best moments usually occur when a person’s

body or mind is stretched to its limits in a voluntary effort to accomplish something difficult and

worthwhile.”

2 aspects:

– the immediate experience of flow

– living life in flow, such that the quality of life is something which creates fulfilment;

• “The optimal state of inner experience is one in which there is order in consciousness. This

happens when psychic energy - or attention - is invested in realistic goals, and when skills match

the opportunities for action. The pursuit of a goal brings order in awareness because a person

must concentrate attention on the task at hand and momentarily forget everything else. These

periods of struggling to overcome challenges are what people find to be the most enjoyable

times of their lives. A person who has achieved control over psychic energy and has invested it in

consciously chosen goals cannot help but grow into a more complex being. By stretching skills,

by reaching toward higher challenges, such a person becomes an increasingly extraordinary

individual.”

From “Flow.”



THE NEED FOR FLOW

- 1955 - 1,700,000 cases of clinical intervention involving mental patients in the USA. In

1975 it had risen to 6,400,000 cases.

- Between 1950 and 1980 teenage suicides increased by 300% in the USA.

“… while humankind collectively has increased its material powers a thousand fold, it has not

advanced very far in terms of improving the content of experience.” Obstacles

- Inability to deal with frustration - the world was not made to please me!

- Chronic dissatisfaction - as soon as one set of desires are met, more spring up...

A SOLUTION

“A process of achieving happiness through control of one’s inner life...It is a circuitous path, that

begins with achieving control over the contents of our consciousness ...Only direct control of

experience, the ability to derive moment-by-moment enjoyment from everything that we do, can

overcome the obstacles to fulfilment…

“Getting control of life is never easy… But in the long run optimal experiences add up to a sense

of mastery - or perhaps better, a sense of participation in determining the content of life - that

comes as close to what is usually meant by happiness as anything else we can conceivably

imagine.”

ATTENTION

“Because attention determines what will or will not appear in consciousness, and because it is

also required to make any other mental events - such as remembering, thinking, feeling, and

making decisions - happen there, it is useful to think of it as psychic energy… We create ourselves

in how we invest this energy [ which MC calls intentions]. Memories, thoughts and feelings are all

shaped by how we use it. And it is an energy under our control, to do with what we please;

hence, attention is our most important tool in the task of improving the quality of

experience…Attention shapes the self, and is in turn shaped by it.”

COMPONENTS OF FLOW

1. Challenging activity we have a chance of completing, that requires skill.

2. The merging of action and awareness by concentrating on what we are doing.

3. Task has clear goals…

4. … and immediate feedback.

5. One acts with a deep but effortless involvement which removes awareness from worries and

frustrations of everyday life.

6. A sense of control over their actions.

7. Concern for self disappears, but a strengthened self appears afterwards.



8. The sense of time is altered.

CONDITIONS FOR FLOW

A sense of discovery; a creative feeling of transporting the person to a new reality.

– new levels of performance, and states of consciousness

– between boredom and anxiety

– the natural driver of flow; when we get good, we get bored, so we up the challenge

again, etc...

HOW TO ACHIEVE FLOW

• Setting Goals: developing the skills needed to achieve them, and having the ability to

channel consciousness through the attention. (Even in “desperate” situations, e.g. prison)

• Becoming immersed in the activity

• Paying attention to what is happening

• Learning to enjoy immediate experience

FINDING FLOW IN ADVERSITY

• These people are described as having “a strongly directed purpose that is not self-

seeking.”

• “Narcissistic individuals, who are mainly concerned with protecting their self, fall apart

when the external conditions turn threatening…. their attention turns inwards in an effort to

restore order in consciousness, and not enough remains to negotiate outward reality.”

FLOW IN WORK

Those who experience flow in work do so by:

– Finding the opportunities for action where others do not;

– Developing skills

– Focussing on the activity at hand

– Allowing themselves to get immersed in the activity

CREATING FLOW IN WORK

• Design the role well

• Help people get into flow

• Helping the work to make sense as part of a life full of flow, bringing harmony to the life

and order to consciousness.

FLOW AND LEADERSHIP

• Each individual’s emotional contract is key to the achievement of flow in the leader and

their team;

• The leader needs to know their people and where they are in the balance of “boredom

and anxiety” to support them in achieving flow;



• The leader needs to create an atmosphere – for themselves and their people – where

they are able to be in the present. The reason for doing something must not become a barrier to

doing it excellently.

THE PARADOX OF WORK 1

In one study, Csikszentmihalyi found that most of the respondents’ experiences of flow took

place at work. However, he also discovered that despite this, people who experienced great

achievement, satisfaction, and effectiveness at work often would still prefer not to be at work,

even though they also said it was more fulfilling than the time they spent outside of work.

Csikszentmihalyi concluded that there are ideas and feelings that we hold about work that are so

powerful that despite the quality of the experience itself, we view it negatively.

• “In our studies we have often encountered a strange inner conflict in the way people

relate to the way they make their living. On the one hand, our subjects usually report that they

have had some of their most positive experiences while on the job. From this response it would

follow that they would wish to be working, that their motivation on the job would be high.

Instead, even when they feel good, people generally say that they would prefer not to be

working, that their motivation on the job is low. The converse is also true; when supposedly

enjoying their hard earned leisure, people generally report surprisingly low moods; yet they keep

on wishing for more leisure…

• Thus we have the paradoxical situation: On the job people feel skilful and challenged, and

therefore feel more happy, strong, creative, and satisfied. In their free time people feel that there

is generally not much to do and their skills are not being used, and therefore they tend to feel

more sad, weak, dull, and dissatisfied. Yet they would like to work less and spend more time in

leisure…

• …One conclusion seems inevitable: when it comes to work people do not heed the

evidence of their senses. They disregard the quality of immediate experience, and base their

motivation instead on the strongly rooted cultural stereotype of what work is supposed to be like.

They think of it as an imposition, a constraint, an infringement of their freedom, and therefore

something to be avoided as much as possible.”



Personal Mastery

Self Mastery, alone, sounds like a selfish term; but if you cannot help yourself, you will have

limited ability to help others. Self mastery is the ability to make the most out of your physical,

mental, and emotional (and spiritual for those who are spiritual) health. In other words, to be the

best you can be.

As a result of your efforts, you will be able to help those around you. In order for you to change

the world around you, for the better, you have to change yourself for the better, along the way.

“Be the change you wish to see”

We are works in progress.

Personal Mastery encompasses the following:

• Awareness - Self-awareness: become aware of how your beliefs, attitudes and behavior

impacts your environment (company, family, society) and ultimately yourself.

• Acceptance - Self-acceptance: own your thoughts, belief and blindspots and stop

believing that the world is doing things to you.

• Action - Self-responsibility: understand how your choices (action, attitude, thought)

influence and create your life.

From there:

o Live purposefully:identify and leverage your talent, gifts and strengths to

o achieve your goals, make a contribution to your environment and influence your life.

o Live with integrity: integrate your ideals, standards and behavior into your life daily, both

at work and privately.



Or another way of looking at it is through Stephen Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

Independence or Self-Mastery

The First Three Habits surround moving from dependence to independence (i.e. self mastery)

Habit 1: Be Proactive

Synopsis: Take initiative in life by realizing that your decisions (and how they align with life's

principles) are the primary determining factor for effectiveness in your life. Take responsibility for

your choices and the subsequent consequences that follow.

Habit 2: Begin with the End in Mind

Synopsis: Self-discover and clarify your deeply important character values and life goals. Envision

the ideal characteristics for each of your various roles and relationships in life.

Habit 3: Put First Things First

Synopsis: Plan, prioritize, and execute your week's tasks based on importance rather than

urgency. Evaluating if your efforts exemplify your desired character values, propel you towards

goals, and enrich the roles and relationships that were elaborated in Habit 2.

Interdependence

The next three have to do with Interdependence (i.e. working with others)

Habit 4: Think Win-Win

Synopsis: Genuinely strive for mutually beneficial solutions or agreements in your relationships.

Valuing and respecting people by understanding a "win" for all is ultimately a better long-term

resolution than if only one person in the situation had gotten his way.

Habit 5: Seek First to Understand, Then to be Understood



Synopsis: Use empathetic listening to be genuinely influenced by a person, which compels them

to reciprocate the listening and take an open mind to being influenced by you. This creates an

atmosphere of caring, respect, and positive problem solving.

Habit 6: Synergize

Synopsis: Combine the strengths of people through positive teamwork, so as to achieve goals no

one person could have done alone. Get the best performance out of a group of people through

encouraging meaningful contribution, and modeling inspirational and supportive leadership.

Self Renewal

The Last habit relates to self-rejuvenation:

Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw

Synopsis: Balance and renew your resources, energy, and health to create a sustainable, long-

term, effective lifestyle.

Resilience - Developing & Maintaining Well-being

Resilience is an aspect of personal mastery about maintaining well-being under apparent

pressure. Why apparent pressure? Because pressure is a subjective experience; sometimes an

event or experience seems to be a cause of pressure yet it does not at other times. Similarly,

some events and experiences seem to be a cause of pressure in some people yet not in others.

Clearly events and experiences are not therefore inherently pressure inducing, and the

experience of pressure seems to be about our response rather than the situations themselves. It

is an inner matter, a matter of how we manage ourselves, and manage our well-being.

Consider the concept of strength for a moment. What is it to be strong? There is a question from

the Zen tradition – what is stronger, rock or water? As the water drips on a rock, in the end, the

water will wear away the rock. Hardness does not bring strength. Even the tallest buildings need

to bend, or the invisible wind will break them.

So, resilience is not a matter of hardness or rigidity. If it was, the people who can build the

hardest shell around them would be the most content and at peace; but even modern research

shows how the most successful leaders demonstrate transparency and adaptability (see “Primal

Leadership” by Daniel Goleman). We know that leadership is about the ability to connect and

build relationships, to engage with unity, not engage over a barrier. Research by Chris Watkin

and Rachel Jackson identified 7 factors engaged in developing and maintaining resilience, one of

which was reaching out – the ability to build and maintain connections with people. (See Rachel

Jackson and Chris Watkin, Hay Group, “Resilience” from Selection & Development Review

Volume 20, No 6, December 2004.)

The other factors are also significant:-



• Emotion Regulation • Impulse Control

• Causal Analysis • Self-Efficacy

• Realistic Optimism • Empathy

• Reaching Out

These factors enable us to respond to situations in a way that maintains our well-being. They are

capabilities which help under pressure; to manage our emotions, to delay gratification, to ask

ourselves why we are experiencing what is happening, and help us to keep our attention

outwards and connected, to avoid inner downward spirals.

5 Aspects of resilience:

• Love and Clarity of Purpose • Realistic Self belief (with stretch)

• Openness and flow • Well being (Holistic)

• Feeling supported

What is resilience then?

It seems to have a lot to do with self-management – in the moment, live as situations evolve, as

Watkins and Jackson’s work shows. But as we will already have found it also has a lot to do with

intent – and specifically with living a life resonant with the deepest values in the heart, a life that

allows them to be expressed in the daily life on an ongoing basis. This might be called alignment

or authenticity. So there are shorter term and longer term dimensions of personal mastery and of

building and maintaining well-being.



Intent & Vision

This session is about us getting clear on our intent and our vision for the world. If the vision we

have is of a more peaceful and just world, then what intent do we operate from, perhaps it’s one

of ‘treating everyone equally’ or ‘listening to all’. Each individual’s intent comes from them and so

resonates with their core values. They can use this intent as a touchstone whenever they are

faced with conflict or decisions, they can ask themselves:

What is my intent here?

• The intent is at the heart of the human being; it is an emotional thing, in that it “sets us in

motion” or motivates us, and it is about what we truly love or value. For the leader, it is

therefore fundamentally important - it sets the direction of the leadership. It is also

important in shaping a team - a team will have an intent, driven by what is shared in the

intent’s of the people in it.

• There is always an intent, or a range of intents operating. The thing to understand is what

our fundamental intent is as a human being

.• What do you value in life? What is about those things that you value? And why do you

value that?

• What do you love? Why do you love it?

• What do you aspire to? What do you believe in above all?



• Think about some of the most rewarding times or periods of your life. These could be

activities you do regularly, or a particular time and experience. Think of a few of them.

• What has it been about these that has made them rewarding?

• Why are these important to you?

• What subjects or situations interest and absorb you?

• What is it about them that does this?

• What is it you value about them?

Coaching

Coaching and the skills of coaching can have incredibly powerful effects in creating change, as

the coach needs to come from a place without judgment and without advice and elicit the

greatness and the change from the individuals that they coach. You got an introduction to

coaching and an opportunity to practice it, as well as get coached as well as an opportunity to

watch another’s coaching session.

The definition we use is: Facilitating someone’s learning and growth

There are a number of characteristics of great coaching. It builds a sense of possibility, but also a

sense of awareness and responsibility in order to fulfil that possibility.

Coaching shapes the space around the coachee which promotes self-enquiry and

experimentation. Coaching can be demanding and challenging to the coachee, as well as

supportive and sometimes challenging in order to be supportive. It requires awareness and the

ability to be present and from that place, the skill of questioning, listening and establishing

empathy.

- Remember the story of the sun and the wind...

- To see ourselves and others as whole, perfect and free.

- To love, serve and fully attend

LSD

• Listening pay attention to the whole person, hear with all of yourself. Listen to and

through the words.



• Summarising offer back to the person what it is that you have heard, ensuring that you

get the essence of the person’s situation or position.

• Deepening use questions to enquire more deeply into the situation. Ensure your

questions are neutral, not loaded with your own judgement or point of

view. The intent throughout is to serve the other by helping them to see

and know more, not to do anything to them.

Open Questions

What, Why, When, Were, Who/Which, How

“What do you think about…?”

“How do you feel about…?”

“Given your time again how could you handle that situation differently?”

“How did the two differ?”

Questions to Watch…

Closed questions

•“Did you coach the person?”

•“Do you think that was the best way to approach it?”

Leading questions

•“So, you had no problems with…?”

•“You agree to discuss the idea with…?”

Double-barrelled / multiple questions

•“How often did that happen and what was it like, would you do it

again?”

Implied value judgement questions

•“What on earth did you think you were doing?”

Questions containing assumptions

•“I suppose because she is younger than you she has less

experience?”

Aspects of Listening

• Giving full attention

• Reflecting facts

• Reflecting feelings

• Summarising

• Drawing out meaning

• Listen for people’s inner goals and aspirations



• Listen for people’s real story

• Listen for mismatches -between goals and people’s attitudes, mental models and

interpretations

• Listen for unexamined assumptions

• Listen for gaps in people’s reasoning

• Listen for the emotional themes

• Listen for readiness to act

How can we establish empathy?

• Be clear about your intent.

• Be present - dissolve the “emotional hangover”

• Build rapport and trust

• Attend fully - tune in to the underlying themes

• Express deeper understanding

• See person clearly, meet them freshly

• Body language

• Matching and mirroring

Grow Model

The GROW model (or process) is a technique for problem solving or goal setting. It was

developed in the United Kingdom and was used extensively in the corporate coaching market in

the late 1980s and 1990s. There have been many claims to authorship of GROW as a way of

achieving goals and solving problems. While no one person can be clearly identified as the

originator Graham Alexander, Alan Fineand Sir John Whitmore, who are well known in the world

of coaching, made significant contributions.

G Goal This is the end point, where you/the team wants to be. The goal has to be

defined in such a way that it is very clear when it is achieved.

R Reality This is how far you/the team is away from their goal. Adjust the goal to

make it realistic.

O Options What are the options to achieve the goal?

W Way Forward The Options then need to be converted into action steps which will take

you/the team to the goal. These are the Way Forward.



Facilitation

as developed by The Foundation for Transformational Leadership

This Part covers five things –

1.1. A transformational approach to delivering courses

1.2. Seven principles of facilitation

1.3. Facilitation Process

1.1. A transformational approach to Course Delivery

The Foundation’s approach to Course Delivery is based on the 3 principles below. They are are

closely related to each other, and they enable the principles and process of facilitation below.

• Whatever you need to know is present in the situation. There is no mystery here – it is simply a

matter of ensuring that we are using all our faculties to the best of their capacity. What does this

look and feel like?

– Emotionally, the intent is a love for all, unconditional. This holistic love opens up the being as a

channel to enormous insight. This love is not a sentimental experience; sentiment seems to arise

when an attachment is formed with particular individuals or situations, and the openness is

restricted somewhat.

– We are still within, with the attention kept open to take in all. When in that attention a need is

seen, the attention moves to it, enabling understanding and response. Once done, it is important

not to linger and get stuck, but to allow the attention to return to the open state.

• Meet and engage with all participants and coaches, and maintain openness to all. This is critical,

that the coaching team engage fully with the participants. Sometimes it can feel like we need

down-time, but this should not be allowed to lead to a distance from the participants. Keep open

at all times to whoever needs you. In delivering a successful course there is no more or less

important service – it is as central that teams are well coached as that the food is created and

served with love. Course Directors and ACDs particularly have a critical role in ensuring that this

total equality of service is respected and that the idea of greater or lesser service does not arise.

• Be true to the language and the concepts of this approach to Transformational Leadership. The

participants come for what this approach to personal development can offer them, for what this

approach to leadership and to human beings can offer them. So, it is important that the focus of

our work is in bringing this approach to life, rather than improvising a language of our own.



1.2. 7 Principles of Facilitation

This approach to facilitation can be described in 7 principles:-

1.Love, Serve and Fully Attend – the Coaching Benchmark

2. Being not just Doing

3. Every human being is whole, perfect and free

4. All learning is revealed within the learner

5. Stay in the unfolding present moment

6. Prepare… and forget it

7. Have many tools and no favorites

Each of these is described more fully below.

1. Unconditional love and service – the Coaching Benchmark. The intent of the facilitator, as with

the rest of the team, is unconditional love and service. Unconditional implies that the facilitator

asks nothing for him or herself – not even satisfaction or fulfilment. Even the desire for that can

get in the way of meeting what the participant’s need. One of the key techniques to keep the

intent pure is to avoid “self-talk”. It’s not about you! By keeping the mind focused on the needs

of the situation, the intent is expressed and affirmed. Keep it even away from savouring the

impact of the events of the program – this can lead to attachment to having that impact or that

sense of fulfilment which can then lead subtly to an intent of repeating or developing that

satisfaction.

2. Being not just Doing. All that takes place is taking place in being, not just in doing. A Course is

busy with doing – teams, tasks, timetables. With all of that activity it is possible to miss the

stillness and depth of being. It is often when people connect with this being that people get the

greates sense of connectedness, and this connectedness is a key tool for delivery courses, to feel

what is taking place around you. The importance of being as well as doing is one of the core

messages of this leadership approach, and, given that the ends and the means are the same, is

critical to our approach to running courses. So what is needed? Just to connect with this and

allow it work… to be. We connect with this naturally in stillness, when our sense of ourselves

includes all that is taking place, and there is no limit in effect in heart (what is loved) or mind

(what is paid attention to or not). There is a strong link to the energies in this. An excess of Tiger

can lead to a focus on certain things at the expense of others even when not required by the

situation, and a strong focus on Doing the things that are focused on. An excess of Sloth can

lead to a simple missing of things – needs are not recognized in the first place. With Swan, the

other energies are brought into balance, and the broad vision takes in being as well as the doing

called for by circumstances.

Another important way that this connection with Being can be maintained is to avoid any sense

of separation, of me and them, that something is being done to other people. It is all part of

being itself, taking place in being without barriers. Bringing all of you to the service of the whole

situation can help to keep this flow.



3. Every human being is whole and free. This is a critical principle underpinning these programs.

If every human being was not whole and free, their capacity for transformation would be fixed

and limited. It is the fundamental wholeness and freedom of the human being which gives rise to

the ever present possibility of transformation, of full service to what is needed. The recognition of

this essential wholeness is central to leading the delivery of a program. Participants met with this

view of themselves have the best chance of realizing that about themselves, and moving past

obstacles and apparent limitations. The program as a result is not about completing people, or

fixing them, it is about helping them to know themselves. Recognition of this wholeness in others,

challenges our attitudes to ourselves, for it applies to us as well as the participants. A key practice

is to maintain awareness of what we believe about ourselves, and to refine this.

4. All learning is revealed within the learner. This follows directly from the essential wholeness

and freedom of people. We may bring frameworks and language to the situation, but these

become real to participants as they connect with them and find meaning. That meaning –

knowledge – comes from within the person. Our role is to help that to happen. We are not filling

up buckets with ideas, we are helping people to realize what they are, and from that, what they

can do. This shapes the entire approach to learning, and to running events which underpins

these programs.

5. Stay in the unfolding present moment. The coach and facilitator, as with all of us, stands

constantly at the point where the yet to happen becomes the happening, where potential

becomes expressed in the moment. The moment shapes and guides us, but we also shape how it

is expressed. This is flow – and it is critical that we stay on that edge, at the point where the

program unfolds, and allow it to flow through you, calling from you what is needed. This is a core

aspect of leadership – and in Course Delivery we are modelling this capacity. It comes from

having the whole being – body, mind, heart and awareness in alignment. This is the present, and

to stay there we need not to move into the future or past, allowing the mind to skip out of

alignment. There are a number of steps which can help with this.

– Watch for what takes the mind out of the present. Watch for the angles of stress, taking the

attention into the past or the future. Observe, and learn what lies underneath. What hooks the

attention? What is the attraction of that?

– Do not attempt to deal with these beyond noting the impact and evaluating their value –

detach the attention and return to the present. Stop… and stay there.

– Come to the point by asking “What is needed here?” and following the answer. This is the

central question of leadership, and following it requires the capabilities which are developed in

our programs. It is also the central question of course delivery.



6. Prepare… and forget it. Preparation is clearly important in delivering an excellent learning

experience – often in this case delivered by volunteers to professional standards. The programs

are designed with sessions which deliver specific material and experiences in a sequence.

However, we do not know where particular sessions or programs might lead; we should not limit

it by not being free to follow in the moment what is needed. We need to know when to give up

our plan, and our objective! Furthermore, having prepared, we need to trust that what is needed

will be there when you require it. Once again, the benchmark is meeting what is needed here,

not delivering our prepared sessions.

7. Have many tools and no favourites. It has been said that to a person with only a hammer,

everything looks like a nail. The only answer is to have a full toolbox, and the awareness to see

things as they are. Learn as many approaches and techniques as you can, and then chose which

to use as needed in the moment. We need to guard that we do not become attached to

particular ones because we like them, or because they have worked before – all of that can get in

the way of what is needed.

1.3. Facilitation Process & Technique

The process of facilitating is a critical part of enabling the learning and growth of the participants.

Together with the intent, and the principles, it shapes the space in which the program takes

place.

Be clear about the objective

It is important that you are clear about the objective of the session you are running, and to

communicate this to the participants as fully as makes sense in the moment. There are times

when the facilitator does not know exactly what will come from a session, only that there is

something there to reveal or to resolve. That can be enough clarity for the facilitator – process

should not restrict intuition but support it. What the participants need to know is what kind of

session it is, and what it will require from them. So in the example above, let them know that it is

a review session, to bring together lots of the elements of the program so far, to integrate and

ensure everyone is clear. For more usual sessions, signal clearly to the participants what the area

of leadership is that we are getting into, and how it fits to what they have done so far – the

conceptual map.

Keep a simple structure, and a logical flow of points.

There are a few good approaches to this.

- “Tell them what you are you going to tell them, tell them, then tell them what you told them”.

This approach uses a route map for the session which you can have in mind at the beginning,

even if this is not what takes place in the end. Part of this is to have a sense of how to build the

content – so, in the session on the human framework we need to get some key concepts and

language, as well as the Stop exercise established by the end of the session. The 4 parts of the



human being, their function (awareness, intent, vision, action) and inter-relation, and the power

of awareness overall. We know that this session can get preachy without interaction, and that

having them build the model via an inventory of what a human being is can work well. So, using

this structure, the facilitator might say in setting up “that leadership is clearly a human matter – it

is about people. So the question of what a person is, and how people function is critical. This is

what we are going to look at now, and come to a simple model. So, what do we think a person

has?” Having done this exercise, having set out the concepts and practice, the facilitator will give

a simple summary of what has been covered.

- Propose the principle. Another approach, used less often in Lucca Leadership but very effective

at the right time, is to begin the session and get people actively involved straight away. The

facilitator needs to connect deeply to the sound and presence in the room. When you feel that,

offer a principle of leadership that underpins the subject to be considered. This needs to be done

with humility and openness, but also with confidence. For example. “We have a view about

leadership, a principle, which is that all true leadership is service. That all true leadership is service.

This can be different from a lot of assumptions about leadership which sometimes seem to reflect

the view that the focus should be that people serve the leader. These are quite different views.

What difference do you think it would make to the leadership of a person, whether they view

themselves as servant or served?”

- Set the Question. In this variation, very useful for putting the emphasis on the participants to

drive the session and get engaged, the facilitator sets the scene, and then puts the question. So,

for example, “One of the ideas you see in leadership quite often, and have done for hundreds of

years, is the idea that the ends justify the means. So, a good and noble end justifies actions that

may be less than good or noble that are required to achieve it. So, what is our experience here?

Does the purpose justify the means?” Leave them with it, and take it from there.

Create the maximum engagement – Questions & The Learning Cycle.

This is fundamental to personal development. Factual recall is simply not what transformational

leadership development is aiming at; rather we are seeking to engage the person’s whole being

in their own growth.

The first principle of getting engagement is to ask questions. Sometimes they will react with more

zest than at others; what does seem to be clear is that as the participants get more and more

used to the approach, more and more of them get stuck in. So, the facilitator should set the

scene early and clearly that this is going to be an interactive program. In some cultures,

sometimes national, sometimes educational, people are not really encouraged to interrupt

someone in authority with questions or comments. They might wait until asked, or raise a hand.

In the US for examples, University students are known to raise their hands to ask to speak. We

should set the rules out clearly – participants should ask a question when they want; if the

presenter thinks the participants can be best served by answering it later, or wants to finish a

point, we will say so.



The second principle of getting engagement is to work the experiential learning cycle. Remember

how Kolb described the process of experiential learning that he researched. He described how

the learner

“…must be able to involve themselves fully, openly, and without bias in new experiences. They

must be able to reflect on and observe their experiences from many perspectives. They must be

able to create concepts that integrate their observations into logically sound theories, and they

must be able to use these theories to make decisions and solve problems.”

Kolb also concluded from his research that different people are better at different modes, leading

him to develop the idea of learning styles. This framework has been developed further by Honey

and Mumford, and it is their work which has shaped the application of learning styles and

experiential learning. It is reproduced frequently and known as “the learning cycle”. This learning

cycle is reproduced below.

Stage 1

Having An Experience

Stage 4 Stage 2

Planning the next steps Reviewing the experience

Stage 3

Concluding from the experience

The job of the facilitator is to be able to call out a variety of approaches to encourage all the

participants to get through the stages, and to keep it interesting, and react to the energy as it

develops.



Stop

This exercise has been used by people for generations and is used widely today, in all kinds of

areas of life. For example, it was used by the Australian Rugby team which won the World Cup in

2000, is used regularly by Peter Brook and other leading theatrical directors; it was employed by

Arthur Ashe when he won Wimbledon, and by the British based Everton Football Team.

- It is about simply being present.

- It is an exercise in being more than in doing.

- Although simple, it is never the same twice.

Wherever you are, sitting still or standing...

First just allow any thoughts to pass, and be still.

Be aware of where you are now…

Feel the body…

Connect with the place where the feet touch the ground…

Feel the touch of the clothes on the skin…

And of the air on the hands and face…

Just connect with the sense of smell…

See the shapes and colours in front of you…

Just listen, to all the sounds…

Those nearby and those further away

Connect with the silence that surrounds and upholds all the sounds.

Just stay with that...



Key Questions from the whole course

The key question to ask is,

“What is needed here?”

This allows us to step back, become aware of the situation, of our own thoughts and feelings and

then act from a place of conscious response rather than default reactions. This develops our

ability to respond - our Response-Ability.

Other key questions that we have found useful that help us to become more aware:

To develop resilience, to grow, to see the bigger picture, to accept...

What is this here to teach me?

There is an idea that we will keep learning the same lessons until we “get” the lesson.

To help develop empathy for someone or a group that sees the world differently...

From what point of view does this make sense?

When someone speaks/acts, it makes sense to them in that moment, this question helps

understand others’ invisible motivations.

To help become aware of what could acting as a block internally...

What am I scared of and why?

This can help know if you’re listening to a fear instead of instinct.

If there is conflict between you and others...

What am I expecting, do others know what I am expecting?

Unexpressed expectations can often lead to conflict.

If you are stuck in your thinking...

If I got a phone call with the best news, what would it be?

This can help you to get clear on what is secretly hoped for, which in turn might help you to take

a different course of action.

At any given moment...

How can I contribute here?



Quiet Inside

One of the key areas of transformational leadership is the ability for the leader to be still inside.

Daniel Goleman found that most leaders who demonstrated strongly developed emotional

intelligence found time in their regimes for some type of stillness and contemplation. It provides

rest and refreshment to keep the leader fit and ready. It allows them to be present and to meet

the need, and the people they are leading.

It is important therefore that a leader can find ways in which to come to rest and peace within

oneself. Stillness is a tool to develop greater awareness, to observe what is happening at the

level of mind, body and heart. From this the leader is able to act in the appropriate way for any

given situation, and ultimately he or she is able to make decisions based on the good of all.

Whichever approaches you try, remember that quiet time is about rest, and is not about getting

a result. It is unusual for many people to have any time dedicated to their own well-being and

development – use it and see what happens!

Some of our favourite quotes

“I slept and dreamt that life was joy. I awoke and saw that life was service. I acted and behold, service was

joy”

- Rabindranath Tagore

"If you want to be important - wonderful. If you want to be recognized - wonderful. If you want to be

great - wonderful. But recognize that he who is greatest among you shall be your servant. That's a new

definition of greatness... The thing that I like about it: by giving that definition of greatness, it means that

everybody can be great, because everybody can serve. You don't have to have a college degree to serve.

You don't have to make your subject and your verb agree to serve. You don't have to know about Plato

and Aristotle to serve. You don't have to know Einstein's theory of relativity to serve. You don't have to

know that second theory of thermodynamics to serve. You only need a heart full of grace, a soul

generated by love. And you can be that servant."

– Martin Luther King

“How wonderful it is that nobody need wait a single moment before starting to improve the world” –

Anne Frank

“There is no use in walking anywhere to preach if your walking isn't your preaching”

- St. Francis of Assisi.

“My dear heart | never think you are better than others. | Listen to their sorrows with compassion. | If you

want peace, don’t harbour bad thoughts | do not gossip and | don’t teach what you do not know.”

- Jelaluddin Rumi

“It matters not what you are thought to be, but what you are” - Publius Syrus



“To put the world in order we must first put the nation in order;

to put the nation in order we must first put the family in order;

to put the family in order we must first cultivate our personal life;

and to cultivate our personal life, we must set our hearts right”.

– Confucius

“An old Cherokee is teaching his grandson about life.

"A fight is going on inside me," he said to the boy. "It is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves. One

is evil - he is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false

pride, superiority, and ego.

The other is good - he is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy,

generosity, truth, compassion, and faith.

This same fight is going on inside you - and inside every other person, too."

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather,

"Which wolf will win?"

The old Cherokee simply replied, "The one you feed."”

-Traditional folk story

“Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier”

– Mother Theresa

Videos

Here are videos that we recommend: CHARLIE CHAPLIN: THE GREATEST SPEECH EVER MADE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WibmcsEGLKo

DREW DUDLEY: LEADING WITH LOLLIPOPS

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVCBrkrFrBE

JILL BOLTE TAYLOR: POWERFUL STROKE OF INSIGHT

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UyyjU8fzEYU

CHIMAMANDA ADICHIE: THE DANGER OF A SINGLE STORY.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9Ihs241zeg

OPRAH WINFREY: STANFORD COMMENCEMENT ADDRESS 2008

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bpd3raj8xww

JK ROWLING: THE FRINGE BENEFITS OF FAILURE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHGqp8lz36c

STEVE JOBS: STANFORD COMMENCEMENT ADDRESS 2005

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF8uR6Z6KLc

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WibmcsEGLKo

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVCBrkrFrBE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UyyjU8fzEYU

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9Ihs241zeg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bpd3raj8xww

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wHGqp8lz36c

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF8uR6Z6KLc



THANK YOU!

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Handouts for Transformational Leadership: From Theory to Action

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