Gurteen Knowledge Letter
Issue 279 – September 2023
I am pleased to announce that my colleagues John Hovell, Donita Volkwijn, Saule Menane, and I will be facilitating another Certified Knowledge Specialist in Conversational Leadership workshop in partnership with the Knowledge Management Institute (KMI).
This 5-day course taking place October 30 – November 3, 2023, is a great opportunity to develop skills in Conversational Leadership.
You can find details and registration information here. We hope you’re able to join us for this valuable learning experience!
Contents
- Please Help Support my Work
Become a patron - The New Meaning of Success
Going beyond personal goals - Intergenerational Knowledge Café
World Values Day 19 October 2023 - Beyond Blame and Entitlement
Taking responsibility for the world we create - Trust and Society
Without trust our civilization would collapse - No more annual performance reviews
Replace them by on-going performance conversations - The Surprising Dictation Accuracy of ChatGPT
Better than iOS - Unsubscribe
- Gurteen Knowledge Letter
Please Help Support my Work
Become a patron
For over 20 years, I have been sharing knowledge through my blog and monthly Gurteen Knowledge Letter. Many of you have been subscribed for 5+ years and joined my numerous free Knowledge Cafés, both in-person and recently on Zoom.
If you have found value in my work, I kindly request your support to help cover my website hosting costs. Any monthly contribution of $1 (or more) through Patreon or a one-time donation, no matter how small, is greatly appreciated.
Currently, 50 patrons donate each month. I sincerely thank those who have contributed both now and in the past - it makes a real difference in sustaining my work.
The New Meaning of Success
Going beyond personal goals
I think finding success today is about more than just chasing our dreams. It's got to be about using our unique gifts to make the world a little better, too.
Going after big personal goals is fine, but making a real difference takes things to another level. We've all got something special to contribute - so let's focus on leaving things better than we found them.
That's real success to me.
You are not here merely to prepare to make a living.
You are here to enable the world to live more amply, with greater vision, and with a finer spirit of hope and achievement.
You are here to enrich the world, and you impoverish yourself if you forget this errand.
Intergenerational Knowledge Café
World Values Day 19 October 2023
I am organizing an online Knowledge Café in October with Charles Fowler for World Values Day for the seventh straight year.
This event is also being held as part of Knowledge Management Week, an initiative organized by the Knowledge Management Global Network (KMGN).
The goal is to facilitate an intergenerational dialogue about values between young people and elders. We are looking for five schools from various countries to participate, each providing five students.
If you are a teacher interested in your school's participation, please get in touch with me at david.gurteen@gurteen.com. Note that we intend to hold extra Cafés to accommodate different time zones.
If you are 60 or older, please indicate your interest in participating in this Café by registering here. Registering will keep you updated on when registration opens for this and other future events.
More details about the Intergenerational Knowledge Café are available here.
Beyond Blame and Entitlement
Taking responsibility for the world we create
Too often, we see ourselves as passive recipients of the world rather than active shapers. We view problems as created by others and wait for leaders or institutions to solve them. This traps us in a vicious cycle of reaction and entitlement.
We need to reclaim a sense of personal agency and capacity to build a better world. The future rests on recognizing our power as citizens to drive change.
This starts with taking responsibility for the issues we care about instead of blaming others. It means convening conversations that tap into people's gifts rather than just problems. It requires inviting others into co-creation rather than waiting for alignment.
Most fundamentally, we need to rethink ourselves as creators of the world we want rather than passive responders. Our communities emerge from the conversations and commitments we build together.
Real change becomes possible when we stop seeing ourselves as acted upon and instead act from a place of collective power and possibility.
The future is ours to shape if we recognize and mobilize our power.
Credit: Influenced by the work of Peter Block.
Trust and Society
Without trust our civilization would collapse
Trust has long fascinated me, dating back to when I first encountered Stephen Covey's teachings on the Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.
I've just finished a post for my blook exploring the concept of trust, which has proven far more complex and multidimensional than I initially grasped.
In researching this topic, I've come to better understand how fundamental trust is in holding together relationships, communities, and society as a whole. Without this delicate thread binding us together, our entire civilization would unravel. I hope you find the post Exploring the Multifaceted Roles of Trust in Relationships and Society interesting.
No more annual performance reviews
Replace them by on-going performance conversations
I believe the traditional annual performance review is on its way out. Back in 2015, I tweeted about companies like Accenture eliminating them. Now, in 2023, more organizations like Apple and Microsoft are phasing them out, too.
This is a positive trend that I've long advocated for. Annual performance reviews have many flaws. They often rely on vague expectations, biased evaluations, and feedback disconnected from pay. Both managers and employees frequently find them demotivating and unhelpful for improvement.
Performance conversations are better for employees and managers alike. They provide real-time feedback and coaching that helps people continuously develop skills and improve performance.
Though the shift from annual reviews started years ago, it has been gradual. The performance review still has its defenders. But momentum lies with more agile, human-centered appraisals. In my view, the days of the dreaded annual review are numbered.
The Surprising Dictation Accuracy of ChatGPT
Better than iOS
I often use the dictation option on my iPhone to capture short emails and even short items to Evernote that I will later edit and post.
However, I've just discovered the dictation option built into ChatGPT. iOS does a good job but is rarely perfect and sometimes downright terrible.
On the other hand, ChatGPT seems to do a perfect job every time. And, of course, if I wish, I can immediately get ChatGPT to clean up the text.
Try it out!
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Gurteen Knowledge Letter
The Gurteen Knowledge Letter is a free monthly e-mail-based newsletter. Its purpose is to stimulate thought about Conversational Leadership and Knowledge Management. You can find back issues here.
If you don't already receive this newsletter, you can register to receive it by email each month.
It is sponsored by the Henley Forum of the Henley Business School, Oxfordshire, England.
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David GURTEEN
Gurteen Knowledge
Fleet, United Kingdom