Responding to all of the excellent dialogue about soul and its role in our
work with Learning Organizations....LO1141, LO1148, LO1154-56, and
LO1161...
Since We all seem to have unique and equally valuable paths within what
Barry Mallis (LO1154) describes as "revolv(ing) slowly around the same
nexus whose light of illumination is invisible to the eye", and emphasized
later in LO1155 as "Soul is so different for each person, but even those
who disclaim it are still a part of the thinking, a part of the existence,
are doing/not doing, and stury-telling and case-studying. These, too are
alive.",...
I would like to learn more what others think about the essence of "soulful
work" to be in the context of organizational interactions, consulting and
interventions. How do we act and relate to the individuals in
organizations in a manner which acknowledges their soul or "heart of
hearts", and encourages them to act and express themselves more from
there?? Is it just a matter of modelling the best We can in ourselves, or
are there important proactive strategies which can be adopted??
I worry about just performing tasks which reinforce the many attitudes and
beliefs strongly adhered to in corporate culture which deny the value of
individuals, elevate the corporate mentality (which often seems grounded
in lowest common denominator values and survival of the fittest, and all
glory to the CEO's ego) and deny that their incremental effects upon the
environment and human condition could suddenly spell disaster for Us all.
Are these difficulties rooted in trying to take an
objective/descriptive/positivistic/practical position with respect to our
systems/organizations, and by so-doing denying our soulful
interconnectedness??
-- Doug Seeley <100433.133@compuserve.com>