Role Reversal LO4427

Tobin Quereau (quereau@austin.cc.tx.us)
Sat, 23 Dec 1995 23:16:06 -0600 (CST)

Replying to LO4426 --

This is the follow-up to the forwarded message I sent earlier to the list
with Bill's permission. And to Marion Brady, I was delighted to see your
reference to Believing is Seeing and hope you find the poem responsive to
your thoughts.

Happy Holidays,

Tobin Quereau
Austin Community College
quereau@austin.cc.tx.us

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Fri, 22 Dec 1995 10:35:15 -0600 (CST)
From: Tobin Quereau <quereau@monk.austin.cc.tx.us>
To: Bill Kahnweiler <epswmk@GSUSGI2.GSU.EDU>
Cc: Multiple recipients of list ODCNET-L <ODCNET-L@PSUVM.PSU.EDU>
Subject: Re: Role Reversal

Thanks, Bill, for the marvelous description of an intervention that was
apparently helpful all the way around! {Early morning December 22, post to
the ODCNET list--"The Case of the Competent Engineer"--(my title)} This is
the sort of "case study" that works wherever it is found, in a textbook,
online, in a late afternoon conversation in the office or next to the
coffee machine. The elements it highlights--

-system assumptions (successful people ought to be "promoted" to higher
positions of management, i.e., to succeed is to look more
and more like the boss);
-system habits (once someone is promoted, they can never go back to what they
do well);
-system fears (someone will find out I/we have made a big mistake and I/we
will be embarassed or hurt);
-system secrets (we can't talk about this openly, especially with the
person involved!)
-system "resistance" (it is risky to act in a new way--we will lose more
by doing something new than we do by not acting).
-system predictions (He/she/they will never go for it, it is too late to
change, it will only get worse, there is nothing we can do but 1. get
rid of him/her/them or 2. hold on until they leave, retire, die, etc.);
-system rules (the boss knows best/holds the power--before we get a change we
have to convince the boss that we know what we are doing [which is
easier than convincing the boss that he/she does _not_ know what he/she
is doing!);

among others, are classic and "universal". The solution appears to have
worked wonders _and_ prevailed when the essential and unavoidable "test"
of the intervention occured--"You couldn't pay me enough to take the job!"

And I speak of these elements as "system" responses, because, though they
are certainly based in and on very individual human reactions, they would
not be in evidence if the "system" did not reflect and maintain them
throughout. In other words, it only takes one effective alternative
belief/behavior to shift a system if we can find it.

At the risk of being self-serving, I would like to share a verse that it
reminded me of as I read it.

"Believing is Seeing"
Tobin Quereau

Beliefs influence perception.
Perception structures reality.
Reality suggests possibilities.
Possibilities generate choices.
Choices initiate actions.
Actions affect outcomes.
Outcomes impact beliefs.

Awareness facilitates change.
Change anywhere becomes change
Everywhere.

Visions of closed loops, shrinking spirals, or expanding spirals
accompany this verse, though they are not visible in this rendition...

And all of this delightful learning was initiated by a post that took less
space than my own reaction to it has taken!!

With your permission, I would like to forward this exchange to the
Learning Organization list. It is illustrative of several threads which
have been active over there. Please let me know if that is acceptable to
you and thanks again for your stimulating post and your willingness to
contribute!

Tobin Quereau
Coordinator, Organizational Learning
Austin Community College
5930 Middle Fiskville Rd.
Austin, Texas 78752
Email: quereau@austin.cc.tx.us
Phone: (512) 223-7821
Fax: (512) 483-7080
Carrier Pigeon: retired!

--
Posted to learning-org by Tobin Quereau <quereau@austin.cc.tx.us>