This social innovation unconference explored the question, “How might we integrate superpower soft skills like compassion, vulnerability, empathy, and imagination into society in a meaningful way?”
Access the video recordings from the June 15-18, 2020 social innovation unconference in the player below. To toggle between different sessions, move your mouse over the top-right of the player and click the icon that says ‘1/28″.
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLuJahLVNePWW0lmed4yl931_n3y4eZ-hG
Visit the event page to learn more about the facilitators, workshops, and details of the social innovation unconference.
Empathy is not a soft skill. It’s a practice and, like anything, the more you train the better you’ll become at it. Join Michael Ventura, Founder & CEO of Sub Rosa, and author of Applied Empathy, for a workshop on how to make empathy a meaningful skill in your leadership, problem solving, and personal development. In this session, Michael will share a mix of methodology and real world techniques that highlight the mindset shifts and practices necessary to build your capacity for greater and more versatile empathy at work, and in life.
Michael Ventura is the CEO and founder of Sub Rosa, a strategy and design firm that has worked with some of the world’s largest and most important brands, organizations, and startups: from General Electric, Google, Marriott, and Nike to well-respected institutions such as The United Nations and the Obama Administration. Additionally, Michael has served as a board member and advisor to a variety of organizations including Behance, The Burning Man Project, The Smithsonian’s Cooper Hewitt National Design Museum, and the United Nations Tribal Link Foundation. He is a visiting lecturer at institutions such as Princeton University and the United States Military Academy at West Point. In addition to his business pursuits, he is an active practitioner of indigenous and traditional chinese medicine, working with clients in private practice for over a decade. A dynamic writer and presenter, Michael is frequently engaged as an advisor to entrepreneurs and leaders of some of the largest corporations across the globe. Applied Empathy, his first book, was published by Simon & Schuster in 2018.
Workshop: The ROI of Compassion
Facilitator: Magalie René
Date/Time: 7-16-2020 at 4pm EST
Description: Magalie says, “The future of work is compassionate.” This workshop is a brief introduction to compassionate leadership. The workshop will dissect what compassion really is and how to wield it effectively in the workplace. It will also explore what tangible value practicing radical compassion offers for the organizations and leaders who commit to it.
Objectives: learn how to
Compassionate leadership can be viewed on a spectrum ranging from Sympathy to Empathy to Compassion. Compassion is love in action. To create the environment you desire, evolve beyond sympathy and empathy and into compassion – from there, change becomes possible.
Distinctions of Compassionate Leadership
ROI of Compassion
Problems of Toxic Culture (group shares)
Concerns of Compassion (group shares)
Replay the Workshop
Magalie now offers the ‘The Workplace Catalyst™’: thought provoking workshops, seminars, and curriculum that addresses social impact, mission driven leadership, cultural issues, and compassion in the workplace.
The fundamental principles governing the way we participate in the free market (transactions, competition, ego, tribes, control of information flow, avoidance, etc) are ill-equipped to serve the evolving needs of humanity (justice, wellness, climate, equity, food, housing, etc). We participate in a system that perpetuates the existence of the challenges preventing our evolution.
“In recent years, business has been criticized as a major cause of social, environmental, and economic problems.” -Michael Porter, Harvard
The short-sighted, transactional focus of the old paradigm erodes the ability to criticize authority, inhibits empathetic understanding of the marginalized, and makes it difficult to comprehend solutions to complex global problems that likely require collaborative solutions.
“A declining emphasis on the study of the humanities could lead to a world of useful profit makers with no imaginations.” Martha Nussbaum, Stanford
The old paradigm disconnects us from our humanity, and inherently neglects the long-term impact on human evolution. We develop generations to move through our institutions as they perpetuate the existence of the challenges preventing our evolution.
What if there was another option?
For education, we question the existence of the institution, “Why are we in a building? Why are there chairs and desks? Why does learning take place during certain hours? Why am I being told what to memorize?”
“The number of high-school graduates underserved or unserved by higher education today dwarfs the number of people for whom that system works well. The reason to bet on the spread of large-scale low-cost education isn’t the increased supply of new technologies. It’s the massive demand for education, which our existing institutions are increasingly unable to handle. That demand will go somewhere.” -Clay Shirky
We soon discovered that learning happens everywhere.
For business, we ask, “What if the purpose of a business was to serve human needs and end suffering?”
“Somewhere along the way, people got the idea that maximizing investor return was the point. It shouldn’t be. That’s not what democracies ought to seek in chartering corporations to participate in our society.” -Seth Godin
We soon discovered a new and meaningful way to create economic opportunity by bringing relief to social and environmental problems.
Imagine a world where you wake up excited to be a part of something bigger than yourself. Where you intentionally cultivate superpowers like compassion, vulnerability, imagination, and empathy to elevate the collective consciousness, instigate cultural evolution, and move the world forward. A place where you experience new ways of being, receive new knowledge, make new tools, set new intentions, and communicate through a new vocabulary. A place where you share moments with your community where you talk about, design, and manifest the future you desire.
To shape the emerging future with intention means releasing the old paradigm, and embracing a new way of life. A way of life which is already waiting for you. To create this new world means deciding to no longer accept a life, a culture, a planet as it was handed down to you. It means being conscious of this decision throughout each day, and continuing to decide the new path you are carving out for yourself. It means questioning everything about the old paradigm.
As independent thinkers with our own point of view, we gravitate towards the principles of the new paradigm: love, relationships, adaptation, resilience, cooperation, trust, purpose, compassion, authenticity, vulnerability, intuition, listening, questions, spirituality, personal growth, etc.
Cooperative Impact explores a new approach that starts with a human discovering the intrinsic motivation to adopt her own purpose-driven operating principles, and, in doing so, models behavior that accurately reflects the culture she hopes to cultivate (conversations, questions, accountability, transparency, acknowledgement, emotion, ownership, vulnerability, trust).
Starting the journey from purpose means standing for something more. It means intrinsically growing a purpose-driven existence that provides value and builds trust. It’s a higher truth that brings inherent meaning and value. Its magnetic effect attracts and unifies a culture of authentic self-expression that celebrates the essence of each human being.
A focus on strengthening social ties creates the conditions for values-driven alignment with unlikely peers and partners which unlocks the opportunity to share ownership of co-created solutions to the greatest challenges of our time.
The courageous human who takes her development into her own hands creates her own opportunity. The independent thinker who takes a stand by her point-of-view leads us. The lifelong learner who indulges in her curiosity to satisfy her knowledge cravings has the advantage.
To become conscious and aware of the lessons all around, is to open oneself up to a beautiful process of evolution and growth. How will you grow today? What learning experiences will you design for yourself? Who will you invite into your space of which to create and share energy? How will you show up for yourself and others?
As you gain elevation, your vibration follows. You begin to exist at a higher vibrational frequency — a place where anything is possible — a place where you develop a deep sense of yourself — a place where you begin to know beyond yourself. How will you generate a higher vibration for yourself, and for humanity?
To know yourself is to feel into the emotions that are already waiting for you. It is to feel the emotions of which you have yet to listen. Navigate these new ways of being to build the capacity to bring your whole self into the way you show up in relationships, your work, the way you love, the way you play, and when no one else is watching.
On the path of manifestation — on the path to realizing this future — will you acquiesce back to the gravitational pull? Or, as you earn access to these defining moments will you breakthrough into another dimension?
The world is about to turn its head to hear what you have to say.
Are you ready?
by Daniel D’Alonzo
Imagine a world where we work cooperatively in the community to design a sustainable way of life. Where we unlock the intrinsic motivation to transform our circumstances into meaningful opportunities. A place where we wake up excited to be a part of something bigger than ourselves. Where we intentionally cultivate superpowers like compassion, vulnerability, imagination, and empathy to elevate the collective consciousness, instigate cultural evolution, and move the world forward.
This is the world we imagine.
“Making things better. Taking responsibility and creating a positive cycle of generous action. Leading by example. Finding a small corner where you can make a difference, and then making a difference.” -Seth Godin
Leaders want to find and attract talent, align teams with strategy, get the most from their people, and create a great environment for people to thrive. Yet, employees are unhappy, burnt out, career transitioning, and feel disconnected. There seems to be a disconnect between the intent of leadership, and the people who make-up these organizations.
I had conversations with CEOs, founders, creatives, young professionals, small business owners, and people in career transition. There were common pain-points
My hypothesis is that people have accepted a culture handed down to them. As a result, they exist in an organization, and perhaps a society, that may not look and feel as if it were designed specifically for them. Culture change initiatives from leadership and incumbents are issued to employees and the people as new processes to “organically adopt” from the bottom-up. Felt as forced, these initiatives are ineffective in returning on the financial investment and the people inside the company feel further disconnected.
Existing cultural diagnostic tools measure people against finances. They are built from a paradigm that exists to reward individual behavior. This further silos people and pits them against one another — both of which are not conducive to nurturing a healthy, collaborative workplace.
On the organization’s side, I mapped the existing journey of a leader who is aware of organizational problems, is convinced of the financial benefit of “fixing the culture” and is ready to pay for a solution.
There’s clearly a lot going on up there. Rather than take on competitors in a crowded space, I felt inclined to scrap the old paradigm. Instead, offer human-first purpose-driven transformation.
It appears that organizational transformation starts with the leader adopting new operating principles for herself, and, in doing so, models the ideal behavior she hopes to cultivate in the culture.
Old Leadership Paradigm
New Leadership Paradigm
Mindset
To lead others, lead yourself. It starts with you looking inward, developing an adaptive mindset, opening yourself up to continuous learning, going out of your way to give credit, and modeling what extreme ownership looks like.
Sense of Self
Get on a path of personal development and spiritual enlightenment. It does not start by deciding your organization is going to “change”. If you want to see change, change yourself.
Alignment
Invest time in one-on-one conversations with the people in your organization. What are they going through? What are their values? Do they feel aligned with the company? Do they feel like they contribute to important decisions?
Shared Vision
What would a conversation look like where you are co-creating the future together?
Responsibility
What would it look like for you to foster a culture of innovation that is safe, judgement-free, rewards collaboration more than individual metrics, quickly adopts microstructures to keep pace with unplanned activities, and makes people feel like they are connected with their peers and are an accurate reflection of the culture of the organization?
Experiences
How might you provide on-going moments for your people to explore new experiences individually and as a team? How might you create a safe space to facilitate deep, meaningful connection with one another? What would it look like for the people on your teams to feel the autonomy to create the experience for themselves?
Imagine a workplace where we focus on developing a sense of self, having autonomy, and aligning with one another to actualize our purpose in the work we do in the world.
A place where people are intrinsically motivated to give their blood, sweat, and tears because they have ownership and feel one with the organization, and society. A place where people connect deeply with their peers, where trust is developed and strengthened overtime, and people show up excited to be apart of an extraordinary movement.
I see a workplace where people intentionally cultivate superpowers like compassion, vulnerability, imagination, and empathy to elevate the collective consciousness, instigate cultural evolution, and move the world forward.
Superpowers like vulnerability and empathy are gifts a person receives from experiencing a moment of transformation. Humans thrive when they cultivate superpowers. These gifts continue to increase in demand as they are not available transactionally, and this makes them competitive advantages.
How might we design an experience for people to cultivate superpowers, actualize their best self, and surround themselves with inspiring people who want to see them grow?
In order to be customer-centered teams, we must have the capacity to act without ego and get out of our own way so customers feel safe bringing issues to us. To act without ego requires us to feel safe being ourselves and show up in our most authentic version. This requires organizations to foster collaborative performance metrics on projects only achievable through the collective act of a team. Teams become cohesive when there is an intentional culture of creative conversations, acknowledgement, and a safe space is created for discussing any tension that arises along the journey.
We feel similar pain-points across society. Regardless of role or position in the hierarchy, there is a common thread of feeling disconnected, purposeless, and alone. We implement processes and steps and when we impose these rigid structures on human beings, it is felt and we’re seeing more resistance begin to unfold.
My individuality is what makes my human experience so special. Invite me to a place where I am expected to be myself. A place where we celebrate each of us being ourselves. A place where we celebrate being human. A place where we are intrinsically motivated to transform our purpose into the work we bring to the world.
This is the world we imagine.
This article was originally published by Daniel D’Alonzo on July 17, 2019 and can be found here.
Enter your email to get the Zoom link before the group starts.
Use this form to schedule a call with our team, ask a question, and share feedback.
Enter your email to get the Zoom link before the group starts.
