Chaos was taking over Glenda Eoyang’s life when she had an epiphany. After decades of success as an “in control” leader, she realized it was imperative to her future in business to embrace the chaos and figure out a way to lead through it. As founder and executive director of the Human Systems Dynamics Institute, Glenda now helps others build up their capacity for chaos. In her work, she uses models and methods to understand patterns of chaos and how organizations can best navigate through them using practical, predictable structures.
In this episode of Let Go & Lead, Glenda shares how the collection of concepts, tools and approaches she’s brought together can support leaders to feel intentional even when they’re not in control.
Episode discussion guide – Cutting through the Chaos
Continue the conversation with others, or take the time for personal reflection, using the below episode discussion guide.
- Glenda shares that the ability of leaders to hold a paradox, without feeling the need to solve for it, is key to successfully working in systems. What paradoxes do you find yourself in? How are you responding?
- Infinite games involve significant factors outside one’s control and don’t have an end point. How can success, or the concept of winning, be redefined in a world of infinite games?
- Think of a situation where you recently felt and expressed judgement. What was the outcome? By turning that judgement into curiosity, how might the outcome have been different?
- The Human Systems Dynamics Institute has simple rules for its 800 associates to follow, in an attempt to create a pattern through their work. In looking at the values of your own organization, what patterns are you trying to create? Are these patterns emerging? If not, why?
- Identify a situation where you’re in conflict with another person, team or department. What is the conflict? By reframing this conflict into shared exploration, how can you move forward into something new together?
LG&L Podcast
/ May 07, 2019
