Client Stories:
Here are examples of client meetings. Although based on actual clients, they are composite stories with concealed identities:
I.Speaking Of Flow And Courage
II.Speaking of Conscious Business
Speaking of flow and courage
Amery (a Systems Analyst and Project Leader) tells Ann about working
very long hours, which is normal for her when a deadline approaches. Knowing
that her personal style is to sleep in the morning and work late at night,
she pushes the envelope by arriving at the office at 10AM, and staying
well past midnight. Her favorite hours start at 9PM when the die-hards
remain - the ones who love the work and know it well - and the less talented
or less intense have left.
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Amery wonders why satisfaction arises more at midnight rather than during normal hours!!! She's frustrated. She's very concerned that she's out of balance and becoming a workaholic. Her relationship with her spouse is strained. Preparation for a possible transition into another field seems to get short shrift, even though there is a formal training program she's entered.
Ann invites Amery to look at her attraction to the late evening work through the lens of slowing down, breathing for a few moments, and patiently listening inside for clues about the nature of her attraction. As an image arises in Amery's heart, she exclaims: It's like working with the Olympic relay team! Everyone knows their role, is very talented, and highly motivated. Camaraderie is great. Communication is strong. Hand-offs are effective. Trouble-shooting and impact on other aspects of the project – all this is considered!
As Amery is smiling her "yes", Ann summarizes the bottom line of Amery's motivation: the flow, the enjoyment and accomplishment that arises almost effortlessly during such crises.
Amery is deeply excited about her growing inner clarity. The conversation flows easily into a discussion of the tension between the path of certainty, knowing and control -- and it’s opposite, the path of learning, freedom & discovery -- of being present and letting things organize themselves organically. The idea that work might flow spontaneously into its conclusion is new to Amery, who is an expert at pert charts, project management and other tools for organizing and planning work.
Frustrated again, Amery explains that usually, no one considers the impact of his or her work on others. Amery is forever trouble-shooting, working so hard and never getting quite there! Her boss and management colleagues don't understand what's happening.... how her work contributes to the whole, to having the various systems work in an integrated way, without all the problems that arise when one system changes and the others aren't considered. Her managers are responsible for – and rewarded for - only their part! The company's system feel like a strait jacket to getting her work done.
Ann and Amery together explore the many possibilities open to Amery. Her leadership style could relinquish control more and expand into greater respect, communication and cooperation. She could learn about the nature of self-organizing work systems, where ambiguity and chaos lead to surprising possibilities and great creativity. She could speak with the one senior manager who does value her "working outside the box" and see what happens. Further, she wants to take the risk of speaking her truth more dearly, directly, consistently... but she isn't comfortable in saying "no" or giving a politically incorrect message.
Amery pauses, becoming silent for a few moments. Fear, she whispers bravely, is here. Fear of being rejected at work. Fear of failing in suggesting change. And, she's staying focused on the office through fear of being home. Her relationship is strained partially because she's at work so much, but also because there are unresolved issues in the marriage. This is a very sensitive area!
Ann offers a favorite Albert Einstein quote: "Problems cannot be solved at the same level of consciousness that created them." Amery hears the deep part of her that knows that change won't happen all at once. But, one moment at a time, she wants to deepen her inner life, to grow in self-knowledge, and to honor her attraction to walking in the woods near her home and to the spiritual practice of becoming still in the silence. She's ready.
What qualities of work do you love? What is inspiring you now? Where are you struggling? How can you discover the gifts in that struggle?