Gurteen Knowledge Blog August 8, 2022, 09:56We should all speak up more, should we not? In an email to me recently, my good friend David Creelman in Toronto made what initially seemed to be the non-sensical idea that we should avoid “speaking up”. In his words: Speaking up is as likely to cause conflict and resentment … Continue reading We Should Think Carefully Before Speaking Up! Speaking up is as likely to cause conflict and resentment as it is to address a real injustice
What conversation could you have differently today? If you were to change just something small about what you say or how you say it, who you listen to and how deeply, what would it be? If you could change someone else’s life for the better, just a little bit, by saying or listening to something … Continue reading Setting the Compass Today What conversation could you have differently today?
Gurteen Knowledge Blog October 4, 2022, 13:02Sometimes I come across a passage in a book that sums up some aspect of Conversational Leadership that I particularly like. I found this on page 148 of Speak Up by Megan Reitz and John Higgins So what conversation could you have differently today? Knowledge Letter: Issue: 268 (Subscribe)Tags: Megan Reitz (7) … Continue reading What Conversation Could You Have Differently Today? Megan Reitz and John Higgins
Gurteen Knowledge Blog October 12, 2022, 10:18I came across the quotation below from Adam Grant recently on Linkedin. Adam calls all these acts, acts of leadership; I would call them acts of conversational leadership. I think the last act, which I have highlighted in yellow, is especially noteworthy. Inviting dissenting views and amplifying quiet voices are acts … Continue reading Acts of Conversational Leadership Adam Grant
The Great Unheard at Work by Mark Cole and John Higgins makes the case that silence always has something to say – it’s never neutral and speaks volumes if people are willing to hear. Our response to silence is often to dismiss or end it, to block it out with noise. Instead, silence needs to … Continue reading The Great Unheard at Work: Understanding Voice and Silence in Organisations Mark Cole and John Higgins (2023)
One of the ironies of speaking up is that, to the individual who makes the choice to withhold his or her knowledge in a meeting, that small act might seem insignificant. Yet, when such choices are repeatedly made in hundreds of meetings across an organization, the loss of knowledge significantly reduces the organization’s ability to … Continue reading One of the Ironies of Speaking Up Amy Edmondson
Gurteen Knowledge Blog April 4, 2023, 09:03I am delighted to tell you that I have an online Knowledge Café in early May. Two good colleagues, Mark Cole, and John Higgins, have recently written the book The Great Unheard at Work: Understanding Voice and Silence in Organizations. The book is quite interesting as it explores the importance … Continue reading The Great Unheard Knowledge Café Understanding Voice and Silence in Organizations
Psychological safety is a belief that one will not be punished or humiliated for speaking up with ideas, questions, concerns or mistakes. Credit: Amy Edmondson Posts where this quotation is embedded Conversation Sharpens the Saw It is not a waste of time Gurteen Knowledge Café: Entrenched and Entrained Thinking A blog post by Conrad Taylor Knowledge Café Principle: … Continue reading Psychological Safety Is a Belief That One Will Not Be Punished for Speaking Up Amy Edmondson
Gurteen Knowledge Blog May 31, 2023, 13:24This is the video of the framing talk for an online Knowledge Café The Great Unheard, that I ran in May 2023, where John Higgins and Mark Cole shared their experience of what it takes to get unheard voices heard and why sometimes silence is an active choice that speaks volumes. … Continue reading The Great Unheard Knowledge Café Where do the silences in your life exist, and what significance do they hold for you?
Megan Reitz is a Professor of Leadership and Dialogue at Ashridge where she speaks, researches, consults and supervises on the intersection of leadership, change, dialogue and mindfulness. WebsiteMegan ReitzLinkedinMegan ReitzBlogMegan ReitzRSS FeedMegan ReitzTwitter@meganreitz1YouTubeMegan ReitzGoogleMegan Reitz Twitter Tweets by Megan Reitz RSS FeedBooks: Megan ReitzBeing Silenced and Silencing Others: Developing the Capacity to Speak Truth to … Continue reading Megan Reitz Facilitator, teacher, speaker, executive coach, researcher and author
Our day-to-day conversations define how we see ourselves and how we’re seen. The choices we make about what to say and who to say it to are decisive factors in whether we get promoted, or side-lined. Whether we steer clear of trouble or find ourselves in it up to our necks. With daily scandals hitting … Continue reading Speak Up: Say What Needs to Be Said and Hear What Needs to Be Heard by Megan Reitz and John Higgins (2019)
Summary The imperative for transparency that drove this report was initially twofold. Firstly, from 2014 to 2016, the world watched as a number of corporate scandals brought household names into disrepute and in some cases to their knees. Examples included emissions at VW, accounting at Toshiba and doping at the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF). In all these … Continue reading Being Silenced and Silencing Others: Developing the Capacity to Speak Truth to Power Megan Reitz, John Higgins
How your power silences truth | Megan Reitz Posts where this video is embedded Conversation Sharpens the Saw It is not a waste of time Gurteen Knowledge Café: Entrenched and Entrained Thinking A blog post by Conrad Taylor Knowledge Café Principle: Everyone Has an Equal Voice Everyone is an equal participant Leadership Is a Practice Not a Position … Continue reading How Your Power Silences Truth Megan Reitz
Who’s listening? A small-scale research project exploring how organisations listen to employees Preface The authors believe listening is critical to improved performance and decision-making within organisations; and is more important than ever given how the nature of work and the workforce is changing, the increased focus on ethical and social purpose as well as the drive to … Continue reading Who’s Listening? Howard Krais, Mike Pounsford and Kevin Ruck (2019)
Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter. Credit: Martin Luther King Jr. Posts where this quotation is embedded Conversation Sharpens the Saw It is not a waste of time Gurteen Knowledge Café: Entrenched and Entrained Thinking A blog post by Conrad Taylor Knowledge Café Principle: Everyone Has an Equal Voice Everyone … Continue reading On Becoming Silent About Things Martin Luther King Jr.
Courage is what it takes to stand up and speak. Courage is also what it takes to sit down and listen. Credit: Winston Churchill Posts where this quotation is embedded Conversation Sharpens the Saw It is not a waste of time Gurteen Knowledge Café: Entrenched and Entrained Thinking A blog post by Conrad Taylor Knowledge Café Principle: Everyone Has … Continue reading Courage and Listening Winston Churchill
Admit When We Are Wrong ** Speak Last Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter Speak up: Many of us are afraid to speak up, especially to speak truth to power, and there are many barriers to being open and frank. In organizations, this results in bad decisions and, at a societal level, many wrongdoings that … Continue reading Speak Up Express our opinions frankly and openly
Turn Monologues Into Dialogues Speak with Less Conviction Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter Take responsibility for the conversation: A few participants dominate many conversations, and as a result, there is no real engagement or energy in the discussion. How can this be resolved? The solution is for us all to take responsibility for … Continue reading Take Responsibility for the Conversation ** We all need to take responsibility for the quality of our conversations
The Mind Is a Fire to Be Kindled The Fourth Industrial Revolution Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter Do we listen, to confirm what we already think or do we listen in order to reply? Or do we listen to discover something new? Do we enter into a conversation with a willingness to learn … Continue reading Learn to Listen and to Tell the Truth Do we listen, to confirm what we already think or do we listen in order to reply?
Facilitator Bias ** Social Silencing Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter In many cultures, especially in Asia, the concept of “face” shapes social interactions and relationships. The fear of losing face or the need to give face can create barriers to honest communication and decision-making. Understanding these dynamics helps build trust and maintain harmony … Continue reading Losing and Giving Face The fear of losing face is a significant barrier to open conversation in many cultures
Losing and Giving Face Psychological Safety ** Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter There are many reasons why people do not speak up. Social silencing is one of them. The spiral of silence or social silencing is a phenomenon where people who think they hold a minority opinion don’t speak up for fear of social … Continue reading Social Silencing A phenomenon where people don’t speak up for fear of social exclusion
Social Silencing Wisdom of Crowds of Crowds Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter Create psychological safety: Ensure people are safe for interpersonal risk-taking. Psychological safety refers to the sense of confidence and trust that individuals feel in a social setting, particularly in the workplace. It is the belief that one can speak up and … Continue reading Psychological Safety ** A shared belief that within your team it is safe to take risks
Conversational Continuous Self-improvement ** Impossible Conversations Close Pop-up all posts in this chapter A difficult conversation is unpleasant, one where we feel discomfort and awkwardness, such as asking our boss for a pay rise or confronting a neighbor. So how do we handle difficult conversations? Examples of difficult conversations include: Discussing a difficult diagnosis. Breaking … Continue reading Difficult Conversations Navigating emotionally challenging conversations
