Vulnerability, perfectionism and responsiveness

My escape from the red tape of a large local authority organisation has solved some immediate issues, yet even in a place of freedom its influence still lingers.

This week has highlighted the differences in working with the wonderful Access Space - a place of possibility, responsiveness and deep creativity.  Contrast this with the process of applying for a small pot of council funding and I'm soon back in the crushed, dispirited mindset that is so debilitating.

Power and control structures, it seems to me are a throwback to another time.  Planning, planning, planning, at the speed of the slowest moving part in a big machine achieves what exactly?  The status quo for sure; fine if your aspirations are to keep things nice and constant until your retirement kicks in, but for me all I see is a chronic waste of human capacity.

Brene Brown's thought-provoking TED talk from 2010 articulates some elements of this situation.  On the one hand we have an organisation in denial of imperfection going to extraordinary lengths to protect its reputational risk when the reality that resides within is so well known it is laughable. Literally, often being the source of jokes for local stand up comics.  On the other hand we have a small organisation doing its best to ask searching questions and open up a dialog engaging with human imperfection on a human level.

I know where I feel more alive, and more things possible, and hope that in time some of the thinking and planning takes root in tangible services and products that make a real difference to the lives of people who may come to use them.

Brene's notion of embracing one's vulnerability may have been behind Novak Djokovic's moment of playing possum in his final match at the Australian Open.  Over the course of just a couple of games he shed his outward demonstration of perfectionism and came to terms with his own human frailty, and in doing so rediscovered the creativity and shot making needed to win.  Paradoxically his ability to be imperfect lead to a near perfect display in closing out the match in comparison to the tightness of the first set and half.

So my lesson from Novak and from Brene and from the good people at Access Space is clear - show your frailty!  Easier said than done, and I've got some serious work to do over the coming months.  That said, it feels a more meaningful and exciting challenge than it did a short while ago.  Life is I guess a grand slam event for us all, with no tiebreak in the fifth there's time to work it out, get a new game plan.