From Judgment to Curiosity
November 18th, 2009 | 
Author: - the employee who just doesn’t “fit in”
- the areas of disagreement with other departments
- the customers who just can’t understand the products or services
Mr. Isaac states that we must look for coherence first – before we make judgments. This is the art of appreciating the whole, that helps us to learn to inquire into what is, not to constantly produce what we think should be. This kind of wholistic thinking also helps us to see that all of these individuals are a part of our world, and the way they see things makes sense for them – and possibly us as well.
This kind wholistic thinking has the potential to change a divisive situation into curiousity. When a leader follows their curiousity by using inquiry, the possibiliy of creating solutions that are bigger, better, and more collaborative.
When you feel those judgments (“violent thoughts”) bubbling up, be curious:
- How are these “different” ideas part of a larger whole?
- How might these ideas serve? What benefit can be derived for my leadership and our organization?
With deliberation and discipline, turning “violent” thoughts into inquiry as a way of opening up to differences can be the beginning of the innovation that most organizations seek today.
Posted in 8 Responses to “From Judgment to Curiosity”
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Great post, Mary Jo. I agree with this whole line of thinking. By coincidence, it’s very much in line with something I wrote down earlier today: http://bit.ly/4eXY9t. You need to accept differences and embrace the value they bring. Too many people rush to (negative) judgement and create a sterile uniformity that creates a company without imagination.
Great point that judgment is a form of violence, and one we far too easily justify. Inquiry and dialogue are essential tools for opening our minds to the “whole” so we can see past our judgments and discover the possibilities on the other side. I also believe it is imperative that we teach these skills to our children very early on in their education.
Richard, thanks for the comments and the link to your post. I’m thinking there has been something in the air, because I’m seeing a lot of writing on this topic.
Susan, the sad thing is that leaders don’t take the time for dialogue and inquiry. It does take more time, but there are such great benefits. And I agree – children must learn these skiils; they are essential to relationships, creativity, strategy, etc.
Mary Jo interesting post. I believe a leader, who takes the time to step into the shoes of a coworker or client, more easily understands the motivation and behavior of said individual. Hopefully this action will reduce the violent thought from bubbling up.
You are right, you need to understand how they perceive things, maybe you are not explaining your ideas in a way other people would understand you, and therefore you need to be able to create a communication channel, which allows feedback, so you are able to understand why they see things in a different way.
If you shutdown yourself to other points of view, you would never be able to be a good leader.
I just ordered the Kindle edition of _Dialogue_ based on this blog post.
One of these kinds of force, I think, are the carrots and sticks we use on people in our “Human Resources” practices as if they were rats in a Skinner box. Peter Scholtes put this as “I’m OK. You need performance appraisals.”
–mj
Some of the rush to judgment may be part of the American rush to action. Culturally we don’t value inquiry and investigation as much as we value action, even though action without assessment is often wrong-headed.
Wally, I completely concur. Execs look at me like I’m out of my mind when I say this, but I say it anyway. The rush to action doesn’t allow for important assessment and dialog, leading (sometimes) to wrong action.