Go where the energy is....

I was having an email conversation with someone the other day and I remember that the last thing I wrote was: go where the energy is.

She's a management trainer and was focusing on a particular program that was getting a lot of attention. As trainers, we often try to cram stuff down people's throats - something that does not work very well.

When I worked as an internal consultant, I would spend disproportionate amounts of time with leaders and teams. Those that wanted coaching got it. The leaders who were not interested in my coaching got none. I went where the energy was.

I was once a director of product development for a medium sized firm. My job was to research, define, and recommend new product ideas and tweaks. The owner was change averse and 90% of the time would respond saying that things were fine the way they are. People asked me whether I was bothered by the fact that I would do all this great work only to have the ideas discarded. Sure, it was a bit of a downer, but 10% of the time a new idea made it to the light. And often enough, the ideas from a couple cycles previous would come back up in conversation. Most of the work was put to use in some manner. Instead of getting too discouraged, I influenced the company and products where it was possible - going where the energy was.

I am not writing this post to pat myself on the back.

Two questions:

Are you wasting your time focusing where the energy AIN'T?

Are YOU where the energy is?

I think these questions are key to helping us shape how we spend time and how we produce breakthroughs relative to our goals and dreams.

Comments

[Craig Kennedy]

Hi Lisa
I remember hearing Meg Wheatley say that at a seminar I was at. The context was another presenter, Adam Kahane was talking about dealing with the problem of Aids in Africa. Someone from the audience asked him how you possibly get your arms around such an immense problem that has so many overlaps with other issues. In other words where does one begin when there are so many possible points of entry?
Meg stpped to the mike and said that the only way she has found it is possible to tackle problems like that is to "Go where the energy is"
It's always stuck with me.
Cheers
Love the blog!
Craig Kennedy

[Lisa Haneberg]

Craig - great story! Thanks for sharing that example, it adds another layer.