Establishing Your Fundamental Self

Establishing Your Fundamental Self A personal mission statement defines who you are: it identifies your purpose, explains why it matters, and describes how you intend to pursue it. This prĂŠcis reproduces one such statement. Anchored in positive psychology and positive leadership, the prĂŠcis references Quinn's (2005) fundamental state of leadership and leverages its four questions for positive change to retrospectively cast light on my past and present disposition and investigate where and how Quinn's (2005) fundamental state of leadership might serve in future.

Olivier Serrat 26/05/2020

1 Positive psychology is concerned with eudaemonia, a Greek word and fundamental tenet of Aristotelian ethics that variously translates as blessedness, happiness, human flourishing, prosperity, or welfare from "eu" ("good") and "daimĹ?n" ("spirit"). For Aristotle, achieving eudaemonia was conditional on the pursuit of virtue, excellence, and the very best in each of us, which meant it had to be a rational activity. Twenty-four centuries later, in the belief that human beings are more drawn to the future than they are driven by the past, Seligman and Csikszentmihalyi (2000) introduced the new field of positive psychology to offset their discipline's excessive concern with pathology and "preoccupation only with repairing the worst things in life" (p. 5). According to its newfound precepts, the compass of positive psychology spans positive subjective experience, positive individual traits, and positive institutions (Seligman & Csikszentmihalyi, 2000). How positive leadership might shape positive organizational behaviors is one area of investigation.

Getting to the Roots of Positive Forms of Leadership Leadership is best defined by results, not attributes, and distinct leadership styles will serve depending on the situation, singly or in combination. That said, there can be no doubt that positive leaders who mitigate suffering and increase people's happiness can help optimize the performance of individuals, groups, and organizations. Positive leadership, a catch-all concept and practice that includes authentic, charismatic, ethical, servant, spiritual, and transformational leadership, typically demonstrates concern for individual and collective well-being and health both as a means to organizational effectiveness and as an end in itself. Notwithstanding varying degrees of emphasis, notably in terms of the focus given to the organizational level, Avolio and Gardner (2005) identified that common forms of positive leadership share preoccupation with positive psychological capital, positive moral perspective, leader self-awareness, leader selfregulation, leadership processes/behaviors, follower self-awareness/regulation, follower development, organizational context, and veritable and sustained performance beyond expectations (p. 323). Put simply, positive leadership is about affirming human potential to profoundly impact organizational performance for the better, which Cameron (2008) suggested rests on the four leadership strategies of cultivating positive climate, relationships, communication, and meaning with a focus on positively deviant performance, affirmative bias, and eudaemonism.

A Personal Mission Statement Serrat (2018a) articulated a personal philosophy of leadership, which the following reproduces but specifies further: Organizations exist to make people's skills and capabilities effective so organizations might themselves deliver on vision and mission. I believe that leadership is a responsibility that must be shared by all parties to the act of organizing: in a world of volatility, uncertainty, complexity, and ambiguity, it must become the capacity to see, think, and act. Toward this, by means of the leadership management system I have conceptualized, I aim in a process of social influence to grow more leaders to bring out the best in fellow knowledge workers so they accomplish more together, in more meaningful ways, than they imagined they might. Implicit in this statement are directions about how I lead and choose to influence, aka authentic leadership; what I value; what I expect from partners; what I do not accept; and—especially—what type of environment I am committed to creating. I choose to measure my life in terms of "portfolio work", meaning, the organization of my career as an integrated portfolio of endeavors, not mere jobs. (Serrat, 2018a)

2 Fusing theory, principles, attitude, and behavior, the personal mission statement manifestly draws from the positivism of authentic leadership, which it imbues with values from the lesser known style of distributed leadership. The statement also means to be actionable, which raises the following question: In the hustle and bustle of everyday life, how might I identify or create for myself personal opportunities to act on my mission, enhance what I do, or at least do it differently?

Entering the Fundamental State of Leadership Consonant with positive psychology, Quinn (2005) made the point that "nearly all corporate training programs and books on leadership are grounded in the assumption that we should study the behaviors of those who have been successful and teach people to emulate them" (p.

115). And yet, Quinn (2005) continued, leaders who do their best work do not copy others: on the contrary, "they draw on their own fundamental values and capabilities" to lead in thought and action by being truly "on" and tapping into their values and capabilities (p. 115). There is no magic here, Quinn (2005) implied, with no need for special skills or techniques.

If there is no secret sauce for leadership, then, how are common people, not just leaders, to shift into Quinn's (2005) fundamental state of leadership? How might they be helped to navigate the complexity and challenges of leading—not forcing—change? To galvanize positive emotions and engender new possibilities for what situation we face, Quinn (2005) reasoned we must first recognize that we already have experience of entering the fundamental state of leadership; next, we must analyze our current situation to compare ongoing behavior with our past best and fuel confidence that we can re-enter the state. Then, Quinn (2005) explained, we must ask ourselves four transformative questions: "Am I results centered?", "Am I internally directed?", "Am I other focused?", and "Am I externally open?" (pp. 126–130). Why these questions?

Because, Quinn (2005) argued, we understandably tend to be reactive problem solvers and our normal state is comfort centered, externally driven, self-focused, and internally closed.

Four Questions for Positive Change Quinn's (2005) fundamental state of leadership suggests we can become results centered, internally driven, other focused, and externally open if we ask ourselves the four questions for positive change. The fundamental state of leadership posits that when we do ask the four questions for positive change, we transform, become positive deviant, and so in turn transformational; that we become creators and attract others to the creative process; and that at such times relationships or organizations become learning systems (Anding & Quinn, 2005).

Asking and answering the four questions for positive change prompts new feelings, thoughts, behaviors, and techniques but few of us choose to do so even though anybody can, on the word of Anding and Quinn (2005). Why? Because "It requires giving up control, and that is terrifying," Anding and Quinn (2005) contended (p. 490).

1. "Am I Results Centered?"

Paraphrasing Quinn (2005), have I articulated the results I want to create? Paraphrasing further, instead of remaining in my comfort zone and solving familiar problems, dare I move toward possibilities that do not yet exist (Quinn, 2005)? My answer is "yes". Courtesy of an unusual background and upbringing, my cultural identity structure is that of a well-traveled, polyglot, and global citizen with multidisciplinary competencies. I have no comfort zone because I long ago made the conscious decision to avoid developing preferences for situations that make me feel at ease and in control, including routines of behavior. My Myers–Briggs Type Indicator is ENTP

3 (Extroversion, Intuition, Thinking, Perception), which suggests that I am an idea person who prefers to dwell in the world of possibilities. A problem-solver, my tasks have generally been self-contained and almost always directly linked to the accomplishment and analysis of results from policies, strategies, programs, and projects. To help focus on output accomplishment, I even invented—and regularly applied—a methodology to improve the effectiveness of design and monitoring frameworks, that is, the logic models that structure the main elements of a program (or project) and serve to highlight the (expected) linkages between inputs, outputs, outcomes, and impact (Serrat, 2008). Elsewhere, I used to invite executing agencies to fill in questionnaires to assess the effectiveness of assistance in capacity development and further inform technical assistance completion reports (Serrat, 2009).

2. "Am I Internally Directed?"

Paraphrasing Quinn (2005), am I willing to challenge others' expectations? Paraphrasing further, instead of complying with others' expectations and conforming to existing conditions, dare I clarify my core values, acting with authenticity and confidence, and willingly initiate productive conflict (Quinn, 2005)? My answer is also "yes". Through work across numerous sectors in many countries, I acquired one after the other a degree of expertise in project management, strategic planning, public communication, environmental and natural resource management, operations evaluation, knowledge management, and more recently information and communication technology. I know who I am and what my values and beliefs are. With authenticity and self-confidence, I have launched initiatives to synergize organization, people, knowledge, and technology for results and, especially, for learning from results.

3. "Am I Other Focused?"

Paraphrasing Quinn (2005), have I put my organization's needs above my own? Paraphrasing further, instead of allowing the pursuit of my own self-interest to shape my relationships, dare I commit to the collective good in organizations—even at a personal cost (Quinn, 2005)? My answer is still "yes". Change is inevitable part of life but we need to do more than simply respond. Each of us should ask: "What can I do to improve the effectiveness of the institution in which I serve?" Of course, acting for the collective good will more often than not—quite paradoxically it may seem—come at a personal cost. In such instances, we must have the nerve to do what we reason is right even though the outcome will displease. We must summon moral courage. "Few men are willing to brave the disapproval of their fellows, the censure of their colleagues, the wrath of their society. Moral courage is a rarer commodity than bravery in battle or great intelligence. Yet it is the one essential, vital quality for those who seek to change the world which yields most painfully to change", said Robert F. Kennedy (Kennedy, 1966).

4. "Am I Externally Open?"

Paraphrasing Quinn (2005), do I recognize signals suggesting the need for change?

Paraphrasing further, instead of controlling my environment, making incremental changes, and relying on established routines, dare I learn from my environment, acknowledging the need for major change, and departing from routines (Quinn, 2005)? My answer is "yes" too. It is not logical (and certainly unwise) to be externally closed if one is results centered, internally driven, and—in particular—other focused. True: one may find it difficult to turn criticism around until one finds its gift but this is assuredly a most valuable habit of mind if one manages to do it. Being externally open is also congruent with both the concept and practice of the knowledge worker (who must think for a living and so welcome feedback) as well as the principles of the learning organization (Davenport, 2005; Senge, 2006): therefore, the most pressing issue is how one

4 can set up systems for quality feedback and, especially, feedforward. In my career, I have if anything used a surfeit of tools (e.g., formal reviews, newsletters, presentations, technical reports, web pages) to continuingly communicate and report on accomplishments with thorough explanations about obstacles, steps taken, and measures of success. Much learning, all in all, that I reflected upon during and after with such questions as: What went well? What might be done better? Not to forget, we must also learn before during.

It is not for me to judge whether positive responses to the aforementioned questions ever afforded me what Quinn (2005) termed "moments of greatness"; and, considering whether they will in the future may be moot because, more often than we care to confess, we are ruled by the forces of chance and coincidence. But, paraphrasing Quinn (2005), there is—to my mind at least—deep meaning in venturing beyond the familiar to pursue different outcomes; owning one's values; advancing the collective good; and learning from the environment to appreciate when and where there might be a need for some kind of change (p. 120). The personal mission statement I reproduced is neither new nor a one-off design: it is serviceable and has staying power; it can be acted upon in myriad ways; in future, this might well be by means of the leadership management system referred to in the statement, which would aim to answer the question of what modes and combinations of leadership and associated management systems for sense- and decision-making can most effectively address simple, complicated, complex, and chaotic problems (Serrat, 2018b). As I look for opportunities to act on the statement, repeatedly raising and answering the four questions for positive change will help test my approaches and suggest what to do differently and what to enhance.

On Motive, Means, and Opportunity A caveat is in order. Past a carefully formulated motive (or reason), there must also be means (or tools, methods, and approaches) and opportunities (or occasions) to achieve "moments of greatness". Personal mission statements will remain good intentions if they do not find concrete expression on the ground. And yet, in more instances than we care to recognize (or admit), the means and opportunities to act on our motive may not be there. Not everything is necessarily in the hands of the would-be architect, which means that positive psychology, positive leadership, and personal mission statements should not oversell.

References Anding, J., & Quinn, R. (2005). An interview with Robert E. Quinn entering the fundamental state of leadership: Reflections on the path to transformational teaching. Academy of Management Learning & Education, 4(4), 487–495.

Avolio, B., & Gardner, W. (2005). Authentic leadership development: Getting to the root of positive forms of leadership. The Leadership Quarterly, 16, 315–338.

Cameron, K. (2008). Positive leadership: Strategies for extraordinary performance. San Francisco, CA: Berrett-Koehler.

Davenport, T. (2005). Thinking for a living: How to get better performance and results from knowledge workers. Boston, MA: Harvard Business School Press.

Kennedy, R. (1966, June 6). Day of affirmation address, University of Capetown, Capetown, South Africa. Retrieved from https://www.jfklibrary.org/learn/about-jfk/the-kennedyfamily/robert-f-kennedy/robert-f-kennedy-speeches/day-of-affirmation-addressuniversity-of-capetown-capetown-south-africa-june-6-1966 Quinn, R. (2005). Moments of greatness. In On managing yourself (pp. 115–134, 2010). Boston, MA: Harvard Business Review Press.

5 Seligman, M., & Csikszentmihalyi, M. (2000). Positive psychology: An introduction. American Psychologist, 55(1), 5–14.

Senge, P. (2006). The fifth discipline: The art and practice of the learning organization (2nd ed.).

New York, NY: Currency/Doubleday.

Serrat, O. (2008). Output accomplishment and the design and monitoring framework. Manila: Asian Development Bank.

Serrat, O. (2009). Assessing the effectiveness of assistance in capacity development. Manila: Asian Development Bank.

Serrat, O. (2018a). Personal philosophy of leadership. Unpublished manuscript, The Chicago School of Professional Psychology.

Serrat, O. (2018b). Research concept paper for leading organizations of the future. Unpublished manuscript, The Chicago School of Professional Psychology.