On my recent trip to Cape Town I found many cultural differences and also many things that were familiar. I worried about presenting keynotes in a new country and anguished over what I would talk about. I shouldn’t have worried so much. The reality is that the issues people face are often common, even though the context and severity might be different. The underlying principles remain the same regardless of culture. We all have ways of thinking and acting based on experiences built over years. These are based on biology, family upbringing, culture, religion, peers, travels and a whole raft of other influencing factors. We are shaped continuously and our brain changes accordingly, a process referred to as neuroplasticity. We have learnt to behave in certain ways and we all have things that we need to unlearn. Unlearning is an important part of the change process. We all have ideas we need to modify, change dramatically or discard altogether. Unlearning is important if new learning is to occur. Here is something that I had to unlearn in South Africa:
Misconception: People in shacks don’t take care of themselves. During my stay in Cape Town I was fortunate enough to visit several squatter camps and to take a much closer look at the hundreds of thousands of shacks littering the landscape. Some of these were hanging together by a thread, a nail or some gravity-defying good luck.
A shack...on the outside
Step inside some of these shacks and you could see something different. While some were unkempt and dirty, others were clean and homely. You could immediately tell when there was a sense of pride and care. In the second photo, the flower says it all. This was a shack where people took pride in what little they had. The couple living in this shack shared their food with others and had an abundance mentality about life. I was humbled to be welcomed into their home and treated as an equal.
Pride and care on the inside
As leaders we constantly need to be reminded to delve below judgement; to test our assumptions; and to reflect on why we think as we do. What are the forces that have shaped our ways of knowing and being? What do we need to unlearn in order to move on in our learning? Self management involves the ability to understand ourselves as learners before attempting to lead others. If our organisations are to change for the future needs of society we need to continue to learn, to unlearn and to relearn. This starts with us as individuals and ripples out to affect others throughout the organisation. Really seeing involves the heart as well as the eyes. It involves more questions than answers.
Tags: Thinking
Thanks Cheryl, a post I can easily relate to! I recently discussed the process of taking children traveling and what it can offer. I believe the best thing it can do is shake assumptions and judgments. I found the same thing happening to me in my travels…seeing unexpected balances to things I could initially only perceive as deficits in culture or resources. Isn’t the human spirit a triumphant thing, when it can find so many ways to create meaning and joy and value in such a range of contexts.