The Power of the 'New' 

I have been carrying around more thoughts about identity and identity questions since I last posted.

These are big questions for ourselves and our organizations.

The answers are not to be found quickly or fit into neat little boxes, but require some space and time to define. These kinds of questions are constantly evolving.

The question for me is: how do I broaden my horizons and explore my sense of identity?

I have just made the trip to a foreign country to participate in activities which are vastly different than my normal routine.  It is a break away from what I know and live daily, and a big-time break away from the structure of my everyday work life.  

After 24 short hours in a brand new place, after joining a group of people that I have never met, and, after doing all sorts of things outside o my normal repertoire, I have discovered a renewed and revitalized sense of who I am.

As I meet new people, each asks, 'Where are you from?', 'What do you spend your time doing?' and 'Why are you here?'  

I could answer these questions simply. But each time I'm asked by a new person, the answers bubble up with complex, animated thoughtfulness.

Searching for novelty - Mar de Jade, Mexico

I found myself this morning, expressing my self in a different way than before.  I shared that my work seemed very close to what a cultural anthropologist does.  I too love to learn about rituals and routines which celebrate life. I too wonder about, and want to understand, the patterns of togetherness and behavior which give meaning to healthy work environments and to work relationships. 

What did I describe after being asked? I told of: my love for discovery, my faith in people to do wonderous things with each other, and, about how fun it is to help create healthy cultures. Pressed further about this, I told about my devotion to supporting the best of what we bring to our work and bring to its relationships.

A leader will find it difficult to articulate a coherent vision unless it expresses his core values, his basic identity...one must first embark on the formidable journey of self-discovery in order to create a vision with authentic soul. -Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi 

Plunged into a new space with new people, the rush of new and novel experiences cause me to look at my self with fresh eyes.  And, this challenges me to explain who I am and what I am about in language my new friends understand, yet also doing so without over-simplifying or rattling off stock answers.  

I've discovered the answer for each person who asks is different.  For me, this is illuminating.

Can you take yourself to somewhere you have never been? Can you go alone--so you meet new people who don't know you, and, who can only know what you bring to the new encounter?

Can you stretch yourself to try some new experiences and see what percolates up?

Can you make the time to quietly reflect about what you are learning about yourself?

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Have great days!

Leslie