Day Two of the Communities Collaborating Institute
Today we deepened the conversation about collaboration and building a community of belonging. Our presenter was Peter Block. He is a person to Google. Read his books. He comes from a spiritual point of view, recognizing that everyone has a longing for deep conversations about things that matter.
We live in a culture, rooted in a patriarchal or hierarchical system of power that Peter calls “a culture of Empire.” The Empire is dependent on rugged individualism that isolates people. It structures life in predictable patterns that can be easily influenced and controlled. This gives the illusion of freedom, security and stability. Or maybe it is not an illusion, but a reality in which we are trapped. The teachings of the Empire focus on scarcity, problem solving, competition and promoting a consumer mentality as a way of identifying one’s value. Life is structured around serving the Empire and receiving benefits and services from the leadership.
Collaborative engagement is the new way of living. It is relationships that define our life and give it value. Intimacy, abundance, and a focus on gifts, promise and the participation of everyone is the way that provides us with a quality of life. This spiritual perspective welcomes strangers, gives everyone a voice and builds on people’s strengths rather than pouring all our resources into problem solving.
Today, in small groups, we experienced what it is like to be listened to, to share deeply from our own life experience and to be part of a discussion that can transform the world. Peter teaches that in small groups we model the way we want the world to be. We bring our gifts to each other and honour the wisdom that everyone brings to the circle. This is hard work. And as we change the conversation and the way we live together, we create a world that is more humane and supportive of our own journey.
This is leadership that transforms and it is the work of all of us.
