Two ways to make sense of a changing world

In times of change it can be easy to misinterpret events. When the world is churning, things no longer work the way they used to and reactions of stress, fear, or anxiety can make it harder for us to see a clear way forward.

At times like this it makes sense to pause and explicitly take stock of our situation.

The tools of Outer Leadership will show us how to do this from a strategic and operational point of view, but first we need to make sense from the point of view of our inner leader.

The fact that the world no longer works the way it used to can lead to us into mistaken assumptions and inappropriate emotional responses. One tool in Chapter 2 shows us how to identify and unravel this distorted thinking and find alternative interpretations. It reminds us that in a churning world there is always more than one explanation, and more than one way that events might turn out.

Another useful way to find a path forward is by calling on the power of our intuition. When the world is changing, our conscious minds can easily become confused or misled. But our unconscious intuition will often be spotting patterns that our rational minds have not yet seen.

Both these tools bring us more clarity about the situation we face and more options for moving forward. This deepens the grounding we established earlier and increases our chances of getting the results we want.

It makes sense to apply these inner assessments first, because unless and until we have done so, any strategic or tactical assessment we make is likely to be based on outdated assumptions, distorted interpretations, and a limited range of options for moving forward.

Photo By Kevin Dooley via StockPholio.net