alignment and culture

September 30, 2005 by Mary Wynne-Wynter · Comments Off 

It was fascinated with reports of Karen Hughes‘ diplomatic mission to the Middle East.  Although she was generally favorably received, she did hit some strong and unanticipated resistance.  Although she is considered by the White House to be a brilliant communicator, the mis-steps she made, particularly with a group of 500 Saudi women, provide some good lessons in the importance of a speaker’s alignment with her audience. 

I believe her purpose was largely to  bridge perception gaps between Saudi’s and Americans.   She frequently referred to herself as “a mom” and also as a friend to George Bush.   She presumed that her audience shared her values, including the freedom to drive and vote.  But although it was reported that her audience was generally receptive and welcoming, they did not necessarily share her, or George Bush’s values and perceptions.  She was reportedly taken aback and sometimes on the defensive

Unfortunately, cameras were prohibited so there is no video footage. I would’ve liked to watch this from the perspective of alignment to see what worked, what did not, and how she modified her approach as she learned.

Filed under: Consciousness, career, going solo
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paul mccartney concert

September 28, 2005 by Mary Wynne-Wynter · Comments Off 

I saw Paul McCartney in Boston last night and was surprised at how amazing was this concert comprised of mostly 45 yr old Beatles’ songs.  The band, the awesome holographic stage and light show, the pacing, and the sheer number of songs they did (36?) made it a memorable show.

Also, Paul McCartney provided a great opportunity for me to witness the kind of connection with an audience that I think is critical to the success of any communication or presentation.  He gave a number of short, simple talks between songs and sets which added a lot to the program.  They were very effective because they were diverse little vignettes and stories, each having an element of surprise, and told by Paul very naturally and graciously.  However, the impact  was so significant because these stories related to, and even expanded upon, the the timeless and universal qualities of the Beatles’ repetoire.  My favorite story was was how "Good Day Sunshine" was played for the NASA Discovery astronauts last July as they ended a difficult and dangerous mission and began a second re-entry attempt. 

These are some other things I remembered about his stories:

  • he used "we" and "you" …not "I" 
  • he used first names (John, Ringo, George, Linda) 
  • he frequently expressed gratitude and did so quietly
  • he seemed completely comfortable with himself including any awkwardness

The result was a true alignment between him and the audience.  I felt engaged, interested, connected and never ‘turned-off".  Well…except for one thing.  Before the band came out, there was a retrospective film that was a montage of photos and video footage overlaid with Paul’s narrative (the sound quality was poor and the Cockney accent was impossible to decipher).  I found it to be far too long and not a good lead-in for the show.  My mind kept yelling "c’mon…we’ve been waiting for hours…let’s get on with the show!!". 

I reminded myself:  do not bore your audience with too much upfront "about you"; and don’t deceive yourself that slick multimedia packaging will save you.  In this case the show, was so fantastic that this misstep was quickly forgotten.  But in the business world, a mistake like that could result in a crash and burn scenario. 

Filed under: Consciousness, career, going solo
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sculling and alignment

September 27, 2005 by Mary Wynne-Wynter · Comments Off 

I spend a lot of time lately thinking about alignment in business: organizations, projects, teams, relationships.  But this week I had an experience of physical and nature alignment as I was sculling alone in a fairly remote part of the Charles River.  The weather was perfect; the water was flat but had some nice current; birds, swans and turtles were unperturbed as I glided by.  Although I expected to be tired I felt energized and the workout felt quite effortless as I gained the feeling of ‘flow’ that my coaches are always talking about.  Two days later, I had the opposite experience.  I was in a hurry to get my workout in before the wind kicked up, and the harder I rowed the worse I rowed.  I was fighting my boat, the water, and myself and trying so very hard to remember all the technique things I’ve been working on. 

Its always a surprise to have such vastly different experiences from one day to the next and I try to learn something that I can share.  I think this learning is about ‘awareness’ of alignment and that over time this awareness can become a practice that you don’t have to really think about.  I all my activities and endeavors, including rowing, I will try to be aware of ease, effortlessness and flow and know they are signs of alignment.  I will also try to be aware of forcing, overthinking and grim determination, knowing they can be signs of mis-alignment.

Sure, there are always those days when you just have ‘a really bad row’ but why not practice taking the path of least resistance, or in other words, the path of alignment?   

Filed under: Consciousness, career, going solo
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a new start

September 25, 2005 by Mary Wynne-Wynter · Comments Off 

I want a more integrated and focused blog and I’ve wiped the slate clean of old posts which were mostly random. So going forward, I will be blogging about how news, events and experiences relate to the concepts and ideas that shape my consulting/coaching practice as well as my perspective.  Posts will be broadly categorized under: alignment, communications, creativity, knowledge sharing and bigger games. 

Filed under: Consciousness, career, going solo
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