Different Approaches to Change— Influencer, Network, Movement and Community
Consider the Purposes, Outcomes, and Effectiveness
The Regenerative Community Summit Nov 12, 2024 9-1 PT
There are plenty of reasons to be agents of change. For example, climate change is bad for all living beings. Ignorance and denial of the outcomes or source does not save anyone. Another example is social injustice and inequality destroy creativity, divert energy from innovation, and lose the contribution of so many individuals, communities, and nations. It produces opposition from different worldviews with unreconciled beliefs, premises, and epistemology. The reasons to work for change are far and wide. The problem is that change endeavors have polarizing effects in almost all cases. And it is hard to see the way out. Einstein offered a reminder.
“We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them.”
The problem is not the reasons for change. It is the means or approaches. The approaches often cause more trouble than they advance. They highlight directions for change while further dividing positions on a subject. Even when there is a well-intended method to take on the change, we can trigger the opposite of their intentions and more polarization because of the well-intended efforts, particularly not understanding how the mind works.
For example, we are undeveloped in our culture as we grow up regarding self-management of our reactions and our lack of examination when we face opposing messages. When something gets our attention, we tend to join quickly if we agree. We can also quickly reject it without considering what is being offered. We are not taught to pause and consider the effects of our thinking processes. We tend to default to our current opinions and biases, that with which our family, church, educational sources conditioned us as a lens on the world.. We treat it as a truth we have adopted from the owner of those ideas. As many Wisdom Teachers remind us, we are identified with adopted opinions of " other people and institutions.” And we are attached to those ideas being forever accurate. We do not notice this flow in our mind from external idea to reaction. It happens instantly and invisibly, and we don’t create the space to change. We don’t examine the paths to truth and the benefits of examining our thinking. And neither do the people we seek to impress with our thoughts about a subject.
So, let’s look at the default responses to the means we use. And whether our efforts at change can make any difference. And if so, what could?
1. Influence Approach: This has become a big topic with social media. People with a platform welcome the title Influencer. It is a sign of recognition of one who others listen to. I cringe when I am introduced this way, including thought leader. The purpose, it seems to me, is ‘one which encourages others not to think for themselves.” The ideas have to be a good enough argument or justification that you convince others not to think for themselves. That is not something I want to do to young people-—teach them to be influenced by others. I then worry about who influences them next. Peer pressure, it is sometimes called. Nor do I want to influence citizens in a democracy, telling them who and what to vote for. There are terrible side effects. That makes for a terrible democracy. The greatest downside. I want to help them gain critical thinking skills; to think about HOW to think. Nor do I want to choose behavior for others in an ethical situation instead of being a resource to think it through. I want them to be better and better able to think for themselves. I want to feel shame when people tell me I am an influencer or thought leader.
The title I want is Thought Disruptor and Developer of Thinking Ableness. It takes the approach of being one that prepares people for change. In the way, we need to approach our big challenges.
2. Scaling: This mode is often held as the test of the viability or value of an approach. It is about spreading and expanding a template created that is deemed successful in one place, which can be transferred to another place. It is one of the questions I am asked most often. “Is what I have done scalable?” The answer is ‘no’ and should never be. Scaling requires using generic ideas, homogenized, standardized, proceduralized, and more. So effectively, uniqueness and singularity are lost and not regenerative because they are not tied to Place, persons, or context.
3. Network:
In networks, people bring splintered, customized “off the generic” versions and sharing of ideas. They offerings tend to be abstract unless a case study. However, case studies are treated as templates, and the inclusion of all ideas are considered with little examination. This allows banalization of concepts, fragmentation where some issues are considered and others not, and approaches can be shallow (without rigor or references to the complexity of systemic paradigms) but hope to drive toward precision and long-thought thinking on the general topic. It also aims to expand the number of interested members and skips education and development of how to think about it. The network’s biggest side effect is the loss of quality of thought and examination of the source of thinking. It invites misplaced “Inclusive of thought rather than “rigor around discernment “ with precise of the “working of life”. All ideas are welcomed except those of the designated ‘bad guys. ’
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4. Missions:
Missions create and express passion. Often, humanist intentions are projected onto living systems. Missions are based on different efforts, endeavors, legal paths, and patterns of one entity moving its membership. Whip up intensities. Missions can be coalesced by one company, one association of like-minded entities, and parts of industries or subgroups. Missions have the weight of an ordained activity by sending intermediaries, whether supernatural or human, to speak or by carrying sacred will with them so that the purposes for judgment or redemption are furthered. The biblical concept is expressed by using verbs meaning "to send, " normally with missionaries as the bearers of change. There is usually dogma and taking sides. It has a strong driving direction to move others toward the missionaries’ proposed ideology and dogma. Individuals or organizations can take on an important task or duty that is assigned, allotted, or self-imposed. It tends to have the fervor of an ideology that goes up and over the line of colonizing the lives and minds of those who do not agree with the ideology of the Mission. When treated as a method of change, it is uncontestable and becomes a crusade.
5. Movements
Movements are politicizing or opinion-oriented entities with the intention of spreading missions to others beyond their own organization and creating targeted pressure for change, most often with legal, regulatory, or a focus on problems. The purpose is to get people to become identified with the message and political goals. The Downside is the divided intentions. Since people have divided alliances and, without development, stay attached and identified, movements raise the stakes and passions. People begin to coalesce around the problems and issues and see themselves on one side of the issue. We seek to pressure others with a particular prejudice e.g., best practices, templates, and are no longer in dialogue.
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Change in Paradigm:
The previous methods are dyadic. One group is seeking to change another. After the five approaches, the following method is a Regenerative Paradigm, where it is building toward Unitive Energy without debate or division. It is unified by something brought in that is bigger than what divides and which reflects shared values. You see it in case of war when a country is threatened from outside. Higher-order shared values rise. Survival can be the rallying force or Democracy. In the case of Communities, it is most often a Place that is shared across all demographics. Any antagonizing force can be reconciled with a greater whole, which ultimately shares.
6. Developmental Communities Including Development of People Necessary Work.
To maintain a dialogue and bring people to a shared experience, all the previous endeavors further fragment, categorize, problem-aligned groups, and build issue coalitions. If we organize endeavors for change, even global change about communities, we can rapidly move global and national issues. Communities arise from Place where all persons in that place are working together from the storying of the place. They design all events around the agreed-on Core Task of the system through time. There are seven phases of building a community that breaks down a division and coalesces shared experiences. The Summit is an education and development event that seeks to uplift Systemic Thinking Ableness using 7 First Principles of Iroquois Nation which are found in other indigenous traditions as well.
Ø Learn how to build change for creating Developmental Communities with the sponsorship and stewardship arising from:
§ an educational institution,
§ Business as a global imperative embedded in growing a business,
§ land developer creating a venture,
§ Governing body coalescing engagement,
§ Social innovation Labs,
§ Community planning effort.
§ Economic development effort,
§ Other organizing effort
Join our Annual Summit: Nov 12, 2024, online from 9 am-1 pm Pacific time
3 members from the same organization attend to implement together on return.
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