A labyrinth of trainings

Some discernment needs to be done here. This is full of paradoxes and dilemmas. Like the one depicted in this picture of a sign showing the way to a labyrinth. I took the photo March 14th 2022 near Kuggörens Labyrinth, Hudiksvall, Sweden.

I went into the labyrinth of the trainings being offered in the name of #Change and/or #Transformation, before starting the process of designing the training for "change persons" that I have announced in earlier posts. Making meaning of what I found, I have construed these categories:

- Trainings that emphasise #ChangeManagement are often directed towards leaders with formal responsibility in organisations. My impression (no hard data) is that the student groups end being composed to a great extent by people who want to develop their career as consultants.

- Another category are the #Leadership trainings with some elements of Change Management, that are often offered by #BusinessSchools and/or as #InHouse training.

It seems to me that these two categories teach change as if it was another operation, although riskier than others ;-) You can read more about my view on this here https://lnkd.in/dpvtH2fz

- Trainings that emphasise #ChangeFacilitation. These are mostly directed towards consultants. It seems to me that they mostly teach methods and techniques (some of them "post-it heavy") with some attention given to the personal development of the #facilitator. In some cases there is a philosophy/theory of change behind the methods/techniques, but it is unclear for me how much it is being explicitly taught to explain why one or other method should be used depending on the situation. In some cases the training is just a collection of techniques with a lot of "bling-bling".

- Trainings that focus on promoting change in specific #ScalesOfSystem, such as #Teams or #Coaching in any of their variations. However good they are, all of them are limited in their scope.

- Trainings that focus on the #PersonalDevelopment of the "change person". Although this is indispensable, many go too far when they write in their presentations that personal change comes before systemic change.

- Trainings that focus on #Workshops. However good they are, most lack a focus on change processes at a larger scale in time and space than a workshop.

- Then there are some trainings directed specifically to #activists. The best among them highlight the #complexity and messiness of change, specifically in #dilemmas and #paradoxes that are much lacking in most of the others:

a) training in promoting change with passion and at the same time from a stance of non-violence
b) highlighting individual responsibility and at the same time the power of community and the acceptance of emergence.
c) the need to promote change at the systemic and cultural levels without losing sight of the personal development and maturity off the "change person".

Some discernment needs to be done here. This is full of paradoxes and dilemmas. Like the one depicted in the photo above of a sign showing the way to a labyrinth.

I took the photo March 14th 2022 near Kuggörens Labyrinth, Hudiksvall, Sweden.