Exploring the known and unknown

Curious and restless by nature and nurture, I love wandering off and going / exploring / learning / meeting / sampling / XXX (insert verb as wished) something new. It shows up in any profile I do and in any coaching supervision.

In working on direction and ways forward, my experience with leaders over the last few decades underlines how self-awareness and understanding are the ground zero and waymarking cairns of development and success. If we don’t know who we truly are and what we’re bringing to a situation, we’re starting any venture or relationship with a huge handicap.

The first step in this is not clarifying how we do what we do but why we do what we do. It’s something I’ve been fascinated with for as long as I can recall. It’s taken me through a psychology degree, more personality profiling tools, books and courses than I care to remember, so many 3am conversations that I wish I could remember…

The Rooted element of the REALM model deals with this. Our values, our beliefs, our culture, the voices we hear in our heads when we contemplate paths, all that good stuff. To help kickstart this conversation with coachees, I’ve often gone to a profiling tool for culture or values or strengths as appropriate. More recently, I’ve found myself turning to TTI Success Insights’ Motivators. Evolved from Eduard Spranger’s value systems concept, there are six core elements of Knowledge, Utility, Surroundings, Others, Power and Methodologies. From these flow 12 Driving Forces along a good and proper trait-style spectrum. The sample diagram below captures the model as a wheel graph.

The model accommodates the elements from a lot of the other profiles I use, and so far it’s proven as good a conversation opener as any, but that’s another matter. The key here is in determining our starting point. What drives us? What energises us? What are we looking for in relationships, work environments, and what we want to do?

Knowing this, we can start to map out and set off on paths that are aligned to who we are, that talk to our red threads of strengths (Marcus Buckingham), and that keep us going when the going gets tough (Billy Ocean).

So from this vantage point of knowing why we choose what we choose, I’m now going to flip it a little by suggesting that walking the path of the unknown is also pretty cool. Trying out activities that go against our preferences, meeting people who have different value systems to ours, putting ourselves in situations where we’re uncomfortable, and so on is a powerful way for us to learn new skills, understand different perspectives, and challenge ourselves. In short, a powerful way to grow.

Beyond self-development, this healthy spark of the unknown is often where art comes from, unbidden and mysterious. Perhaps more importantly, it’s also the key to building empathy and walking in others’ shoes.

That’s how I see it anyway. But then again, I’m polarised on the Knowledge (Theoretical) scale above. Off the chart with Intellectual (e.g. seek opportunities for learning) and a non-starter with Instinctive (e.g. apply past experience). It’s not too much of a surprise that I’d be arguing for trying new approaches and the like. What would you argue?

And let’s take the conversation further… As you look forward into 2024, what’s driving you this year? What do you want to explore, both known and unknown?

Julian

I help people lead their way forward with greater clarity

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