Today I will start a series of posts on change. Many of us have things that we want to change - our weight, our church, our culture, our family, our job environment, our denomination, etc. These posts will stem from a review of Building the Bridge as You Walk on It by Robert Quinn.
In order for us to be a change agent, we ourselves must embody the change. In order for us to experience change externally, we must experience it internally. Quinn recommends that we begin to tell honest stories about ourselves - even (or I might add especially) the chapters of our stories that we tend to hide. We hinder change when we abide by this simple, protective principle: that which you think is unique about yourself you hide. We are only willing to share our common self, our superficial self with others.
When we begin to open our locked doors, it becomes easier to open them again and again. When we tell our honest, transparent stories we begin to attract others to open their locked doors. An "honesty virus" begins to spread. This process is foundational to crafting change.
Next time we will talk about the loneliness of change and the importance of mentors.
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