Most would agree that our organizational needs have changed so that past practices may not work so well for future progress.
In order to expand an organizational culture it’s time to shift our tutoring approaches to reflect more balanced and reciprocal coaching. Mind-guiding, detailed in Wiley Publisher’s new international handbook on mentoring (due in 2019). offers a form of mutual coaching for new members and new ideas to flourish in ways that benefit all concerned.
This approach is playful in nature, and it differs from traditional mentorship in that mind-guides are not selected on entitlement, age or seniority. They also avoid any we-they dichotomies. Mind-guiding’s reciprocal learning-leading democratic process highlights new neural pathways to innovative results for all concerned. How so?
Imagine an innovative mentorship that includes a new way to lead big ideas, a novel approach to learn from unique talents that include multiple intelligences, in a mutual stage or setting for clever results across new and traditional teams.
Hack 5: Teach one another mutually and across differences.
Both experts and upstarts claim to see unlimited potential in shared wisdom. Yet seasoned mentors advise clever cronies to operate much like themselves, in spite of rapidly changing horizons. Do you see the potential for stagnation here?
In contrast, mind- guiding is based on mutual brainpower potential, and experience from differences, rather than on imparting traditional values in a one-way exchange. In a symbiotic learner-teach role, or “mind-guide to the side, replaces the mentor as “sage-on-a-stage”.
Gender preferences and interests stoke proposals from creative capabilities on both sides of the brain. Technology changes how brains learn and how mind-guides lead. Brainpower increases as multiple intelligences expand in the interactive mind-guide listening process.
A mind-guide mantra is Ask, ask, ask! Participants question with two feet to draw out unique contributions, which become doable big picture solutions applied. We implement what’s learned, and thereby engage unused areas in the prefrontal cortex to organizes and prioritize what we discover.
Hack 6: Learn from one another in a toxic-free setting.
Expect differences to emerge and learn from these. Music as well as speech impacts learning for instance, and both can motivate participants within the mind-guiding process.
A possibility tone helps mind-guides step back from heated situations, tame an amygdala (the brain’s warehouse for emotions), to hear controversial issues through the other person’s perspective. Awesome rewards come to organizations that mix different communication approaches.
Mind-guides tend to laugh at themselves easily – yet run from humor that diminishes others, for instance. They focus more than most mentorships do – on spreading serotonin chemicals, which increase the brain’s well being. Serotonin and other neurotransmitters for aha insights support mind-guides’ learning and leading skills. It starts small with an effort to express and learn from opposing and integrated views on topics raised.
Social media offers more integrated views on mind-guiding topics. For that reason, a wider and more holistic approach has altered what people come to crave in the kind of opposing views often presented by radio stations such as NPR or CBC.
Mind-guiding improves the brain’s hard-wiring for organizational expansion. Each time a person interacts with others and with new insights, that strengthens a unique capability to interact with additional new ideas and with different approaches.
You’ve likely noticed that – in each brain-powered tool above, diversity and rawboned talent become mental assets for more than what mentoring views as minions’ benefit. In mind-guiding approaches – both sides learn in all sessions, and both sides also lead at times.
How could typical mentoring practices – morph into mutually beneficial learning opportunities in mind-guiding that refreshes your organization with new ideas that benefit all members? Would a brochure help mind-guides enjoy the process more?
Truth and leadership were still alive and well at our interactive newcomer Rotary meeting on Oct 10th, at the U of A Faculty Club. So was democracy as person after person shared the meaning of truth in their lived experiences. It takes tons of planning and deliberate focus on shared leadership to bring many voices to critical issues, such as TRUTH in an equitable way. We did it together!
Our goal was simple. Have fun, get to know others in new ways, examine truth through: our experiences; a few fun brain facts; gender differences to see if women and men share similar truths, and Rotary service opportunities.
We opened with the question: What makes Rotary a unique leadership group to lead TRUTH?
We inducted and warmly welcomed a new member. We also welcomed several prospective members who joined over the following weeks.
We were especially grateful to Rotarians who brought each newcomer, and to those who welcomed these prospective members. A BBQ was slated to follow for this new group in the next few weeks, thanks to our club’s generosity and hospitality. Fun was at the center, as a newcomer took home $50 cash, and prizes were distributed through our wheel of fortune.
We discussed unique ways to value Rotary’s treasured traditional foundations, while venturing forward at the same time to consider shared strategies that will keep Rotary relevant for ourselves and for others in a new era.
We played a gender circle game to ask: What is truth and how does each gender lead it best? Not best compared to the opposite gender, but best truth practices within our own gender. Women listened to men; men listened to women. Most of us will give new attention to leading truth based on the wide range of wonders we heard from both genders!
Thanks to one Rotarian’s brains and persistence, along with others added wisdom, we caught a hilarious video on the evening’s topic at – https://brainleadersandlearners.com/2008/10/13/men-use-logic-women-use-emotion/
Our guiding video question asked: Do you see your gender in this comedian’s idea of brain facts for men and women?
Tables teamed to help us look at truth in Rotary’s focus of SERVICE ABOVE SELF.
We used talking sticks to ensure all Rotarians and guests found opportunities to speak up and feel heard!
Our topics included: Wellbeing, STEAM, End of life quality; Literacy skills; and, New membership for Rotary. Rotarians then pitched their service project proposals to the whole group. We closed by reciting our Rotarian 4-way-test with new appreciation, thanks to so many who shared.
Thanks to a high tech Rotarian talent poured into awesome photos of our event and for our video that will follow! Thanks to leaders also for tracking participants and setting up terrific space that allowed us to move, meet new members, laugh and think together!
Thanks IT engineers for hanging in for us when the technology went south! and leaders who filled in all the gaps! Thanks Rotarians for your grace and service to each of those who came to interact with us and, thanks Rose for greeting folks and helping at the door. Where to from here? Let’s decide service projects together as we collaboratively build on truths we started here!
YOUR TURN! Join our Brain Based Circles! Would love to meet you at any of the following!
Brain Leaders and Learners Blog
Mita Brain Center Facebook
efweber on Pinterest
@ellenfweber on Twitter
ellenfweber on Instagram
Ellen Weber on Google+
Ellen Weber on LinkedIn
Lead Innovation with the Brain in Mind – GUIDE Created by Ellen Weber, Brain Based Tasks for Growth Mindset