How do I know when I’m part of a self-organizing work group? How do we know if our group is self-organizing? This is the third of a series of posts in which I document the nine indicators of self-organization that emerged from my research and consulting work.
Indicator #3: Openly seeking to understand another
I am self-organizing when I:
- Openly seek to understand another. Demonstrated, for example, by:
o Setting aside your plan and instead asking questions to better understand another in the moment
o Intentionally asking a lot of questions and surfacing memories that had been forgotten by yourself and others
o Asking big, broad, open-ended questions and shutting up long enough to listen
As a group, we’re self-organizing when we:
- Openly seek to understand another. Demonstrated, for example, by:
o One individual struggles to find language (e.g., saying “this is hard to describe” or turning to a metaphor or simile to describe the experience) and another steps in to help find the language and the idea
o Group members are seen learning from others—including those with whom they disagree—first inside and then outside the group
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