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Part Two of Three
Case Study
Recall that part one of this series spoke about Serendipity as an aptitude for making desirable discoveries by accident? Particularly, part one spoke of moments in your work life when you discovered this:
"I don't want to be a part of this work that I am doing doing at this moment" -
Not like you are tired and want to go home - but like you are no longer committed to your work or organization because it is no longer an expression of who you are. In some cases it is worse than the organization not being an expression of you but the organization has become absolutely opposite of who you say you are.The net result is that whatever worked for you before is not working for you anymore. I would bet that it's a moment when you figure out that your life, goals plans and or dreams are no longer being forwarded by your work.
The moments that you have an accidental discovery of something that you, literally, had no idea was in the air -
Notes to a Leader
James Jordan
So now here comes the fun part - but not nearly as fun as what is to come - but let's stay right here, right now. . .
I call my accidental discoveries miracles and I experience them daily. I really do! I don't always acknowledge them nor the people who bring them to me and that's what I'm working to shift. It's amazing though because in some Serendipitous moment there is a spark of energy that I call Synergy
syn·er·gy
/ˈsɪn
Show Spelled[sin-er-jee]
— n , pl -gies
1. Also called: synergism the potential ability of individual organizations or groups to be more successful or productive as a result of a merger
2. another name for synergism
[C19: from New Latin synergia, from Greek sunergos; see synergism ]
synergy. (n.d.).
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition. Retrieved July 27, 2010, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/synergy
You know this feeling all to well. Don't you? It's the moment when you are walking through the door, with your hands full of stuff and someone is coming out - perfectly timed. No effort, no extra steps and no beats missed. The definition above defines it as a particular process, like it has specific parameters but I say there's a more spontaneous and rippling group of moments in which we experience synergy - just like the one I just described. But how about the moment like these-
The moment that a whole coffee shop stops multiple conversations and begins to sing the chorus to Sweet Caroline, in perfect pitch without direction may I add (moments by Katie Foy), or when a large group of people in celebration of peace and justice through prayer and meditation like Taizé pray in song and you swear there are angles in the house or how about when you watch a baseball team perform the perfect triple play or a club full of people move, shake and drop or cha cha (casper slide) in perfect harmony.
This seems like synergy to me!
So as the Freedom Fighters have been moving along we've had more moments of synergy than I have ever experienced and for longer periods of time than I ever remember. It's almost like a pre-ordained process. No hype, no fanfare - just pure synergy and things pop.
I think about a call that we had with a new potential organization that was supposed to go a certain way. Well, it didn't - phones were crossed up and technology was getting in the way. That day, technology was not our friend. So we moved to an alternative process and immediately things came into place. The key speaker was notified, I filled the space with appropriate conversation that provided great insight to the total call. As a result of that moment we were able to gather key information that absolutely made a difference for the organization. They were well served and in that moment I was totally clear that WE perform much better - even considering our short-comings - together.
You see, singularly, I have flaws that show up all over the place and I work to look good and compensate but when I take the strengths of each of us, as TEAM, it's amazing how WE perform, it's amazing the difference WE make.
I look forward to sharing the final and fun part when these two elements come together and we flow!
Today, I am clear that team makes a difference to every stakeholder. I promise to be graceful and fully acknowledge the difference you are to me, to us.
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