We had the pleasure of holding a virtual session with Severin Von Hünerbein where we discussed initiating systemic change and why it is essential for the future of work. This post provides you with key points from the session.
There are three divides:
The ecological divide: the purpose of change would be our resources are becoming limited because of e.g. the climate crisis, global warming, and more.
The social divide: the purpose would be because of growing social inequality, rising social tension, racism, and more.
The spiritual divide: the purpose of change would be because of burnout, depression, absence, and suicide rates.
All these factors affect the workplace and are reasons why we may be initiating systematic change.
When moving towards systemic change, we want to shift the paradigms a given system is based on and change the game for everyone, not just a selected few.
"We cannot solve our problems with the same thinking we used when we created them"
Albert Einstein
So to have a sustainable future, we need to change the way we think about a problem. Severin explained that we should start by looking at the root causes: at the source and the core values of a given system. Then we should ask ourselves if we really want to continue with the current paradigm or if we want to create something new.
According to Severin, in order to make a change, we need to understand its root causes and their quality.
Take, for example, the "Iceberg model": on the surface, we have our visible behaviors. Then we have what is invisible which would be structures, paradigms of thoughts, and sources. Severin also mentioned that we should always keep an open mind and question everything. It is important to know your own limitations and strengths.
"We can't impose our will upon a system. Also, we can listen to what the system tells us and discover how its properties and our values can work together to bring forth something much better than could ever be produced by our will alone. We can't control systems or figure them out. But we can dance with them!"
Donella Meadows
Initiating systematic change starts with you. The result of the change will only be as successful as the intervention's mindset and willingness.
In conclusion, many of the systems and processes we have created are causing or exacerbating the ongoing crises. This has made the use of more holistic approaches all the more necessary. Instead of simply fighting the visible symptoms, we are called to dedicate time and resources to identify and tackle the root causes.
About our Thought Provoker: Severin Von Hünerbein is a social innovator, a radical collaborator, and is co-creating the emerging future. He found his passion when he started designing and facilitating transformative processes with Euforia in 2010. There Severin learned what it means to move and empower people. From here, he made it his dedication to educate people with lecturers. As a result, he now is a co-design and co-host of the Catalyst Lab - The Future Laboratory for Switzerland.
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