As You Were – looking for connections between the work of Brené Brown and Daniel Quinn as I revisit them in book clubs. See the introductory post for what this is all about. In this post, I look at:
- Daniel Quinn Book Club — no reading this week
- Brené Brown Book Club — Dare to Lead: Brave Work. Tough Conversations. Whole Hearts., session 7 reading: Part Two: Living Into Our Values
(Commissions earned on Amazon links.)
Dare to Lead: Brave Work. Tough Conversations. Whole Hearts.
Part Two: Living Into Our Values
“When I facilitate this work in organizations, I always get this question: ‘Do you want me to identify my professional values or my personal values?’ Here’s the rub: We have only one set of values. We don’t shift our values based on context. We are called to live in a way that is aligned with what we hold most important regardless of the setting or situation.” Echoes Quinn’s critique of Taker culture as fragmenting our lives into separate domains while tribal life integrates.
“A brave leader is not someone who is armed with all the answers. A brave leader is not someone who can facilitate a flawless discussion on hard topics. A brave leader is someone who says I see you. I hear you. I don’t have all the answers, but I’m going to keep listening and asking questions. We all have the capacity to do that.” Echoes Quinn’s focus on individuals being creative, inventive, empowered to make sense of their own contexts in ways better than he or anyone could advise.
“I think back to Ken Blanchard’s wisdom and how catching people doing things right is so much more powerful than just angrily listing the mistakes… I believe a strengths-based feedback style is the best approach, in which you explain some of the strengths or things that they do really well that have not been applied to the current situation… Look for opportunities to call out the good.” Echoes Quinn’s own use of the strengths perspective, with New Minds making happen what they want while Old Minds fight what they don’t want and never succeed in getting what they want.
“It’s essential to tie what you’re observing to what’s important for the people you’re talking to.” Echoes Quinn’s belief that change happens by showing what people can gain from a change, not by dwelling on the things people see themselves as having to give up in letting go of the current situation.