Author Archives: Darcy McDonald

How My Experience Becomes My Reality

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Imagine you are getting ready to board the plane to the vacation of your dreams.  Just before getting on the plane, a person comes to you and says “I hope you have a great vacation but I just wanted to tell you that when you return, all your pictures will be deleted and you won’t remember anything about the trip.”

What do you do?  Get on the plane anyway?  Take a different vacation?  Go home?  Throw a tantrum?  Cry?

A similar question confronted people in one of Daniel Kahneman’s research studies exploring the cognitive process people go through to make choices.  In his research, he found most people would change their plans because the main purpose of the vacation was to make memories.

Kahneman became curious about discovering the mechanisms or processes our brain uses to make something memorable.  Over the decades of his research, Kahneman made many important discoveries earning him the Nobel Peace Prize and touching off the creation of a new field called Behavioral Economics.

Two of his discoveries, the ‘selves‘ and the Peak-End Rule, are particularly pertinent to the choices we make to ensure experiences with our organization are memorable.

In what ways are we missing opportunities to be memorable to our clients, customers, beneficiaries, funders, donors, stakeholders, partners, volunteers, etc…?

One discovery, the remembering-self and experiencing-self, describes how we make choices and Kahneman uses parenting as an example to illustrate the difference.

Inspired by his research I began asking friends, who recently had children, if they ever regret giving up their freedom to have kids.  Without skipping a beat, they respond by proudly regaling me with stories of first steps and funny first words.

‘On the whole‘ they would say ‘it is the most rewarding experience of my life‘

This response is coming from their remembering-self because the answer is informed by the memorable parts of parenting.  They are referencing the highlights over the years to make a judgement about whether having children has been a worthwhile endeavor.

Then the 3 year old has a 5-alarm meltdown making me think he is either on fire or possessed.  With a calm roll of the eyes and a face that momentarily says ‘I might have made a different choice had I known about the volume and frequency of 5-alarm emergencies‘, my friend goes to ensure someone isn’t actually on fire.

Responses like my friend’s facial expression come from the experiencing-self. They rely on information available in the moment and do not have the benefit of past memories.  Have you ever sent text when you were furious?  Sure felt good in the moment……

OK.  Makes sense. Sounds obvious.  We use past experiences to inform future decisions.  This is not new.

For me the new part emerged when he Kahneman began speaking about the Peak-End Rule.    

99% of us are not able to remember every moment of an experience.  Instead, our remembering-self identifies positive or negative snippets (highlights) during the experience Kahneman calls Peak moments.  Additionally, we are prone to remembering how an experience ended which he cleverly calls the End moments. (During the podcast and TED Talk, he talks about the colonoscopy study to illustrate this more thoroughly).  The result is a string of memorable moments we use for making decisions in the future.

So naturally the question becomes; how do we ensure people have memorable moments so they continue supporting our organization?

When I think back to all the events I helped organize over the years, I quickly realize the standard we had for success was whether or not everything went perfectly.  Which really meant everything went as we planned.  Everything was perfect.

Kahneman would say trying to achieve perfection leads our decision-making down a blind alley.  Instead we should be asking ourselves how we can create multiple peak moments and be more intentional about the manner in which the event comes to a close.  What ‘material’ can we provide to satisfy multiple remembering-selves from diverse backgrounds, ages and perspectives?

How would intentional consideration of Kahneman’s discoveries influence the ways your organization interacts with its community? 

 

(48 mins)Hidden Brain: Think Fast with Daniel Kahneman

(20 mins)Ted Talks: The riddle of experience vs. memory

 

Etmanski: Advocate with Empathy

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When people ask what it is like to work in government I get them to imagine all the work for all parts of government as a giant slow-moving stream.   Since the stream is moving so slowly, it takes deliberate choice to expend the effort to actually get anywhere.   95% of government employees are happy to bob along like driftwood at the whims of the stream.  The other 5% are problem-solvers in boats trying to make a difference by paddling.  Inevitably though, the boats reach a place where the driftwood has clogged the stream and the paddlers must decide whether to work through it or bail out for the shore.

After reading Etmanski’s Advocate for Empathy, I realize my analogy isn’t entirely fair because it leaves out one important group.  There are some pieces of driftwood, tired of bending to the will of the stream, that want to climb into the boats to paddle.

But climbing into the boat means accepting three realities.  First, we can’t change the pace of the steam.  It is so cluttered with competing requests that it can be difficult to tell which direction the stream is flowing.  Second, we can’t change the technology of boats and paddles.  Even though voters expect government to move more rapidly by utilizing motors and GPS, they don’t want to pay for it.  Third, everyone can see you’re paddling effort from the shore and offer their critiques and condemnations.

The result is an intensely risk-averse environment rife with fear, stifling opportunities for innovation, change and impact.

Despite this, people want to paddle, so how do we help them into the boats?  

Etmanski points to Solution-Based Advocacy which focuses on solutions over criticisms and improving the ability of government to make better decisions.  It means acknowledging we are all in the same boat, government included, so we may as well learn paddling techniques from each other.

Five Characteristics of Solution Based Advocacy

  • “Searching for a Heart of Gold” – Taking the time to look beyond what our political leaders do, to learn about who they are.
  • “Using Strategic Inquiry” – Aligning your agenda with the government agenda by “…discovering the priorities, language and tools of the group you are trying to convince…” (p.116)
  • “Cultivating a Network of Champions” – Although we think one champion is great, it just isn’t enough.
  • “Solving Problems Together” – Shifting government from the role of parent to partner.
  • “Doing it Themselves” – Regardless of how amazing the idea is, there will always be opposing interests being considered decision-makers.  Forging ahead without them can create the space they need to champion your idea and your success in the face of opposition.

Are you a paddler or are you driftwood?

 

Impact: Six Patterns to Spread Your Social Innovation by Al Etmanski is a guide for social innovators to move their idea from localized success to broader systemic impact.

Etmanski: Mobilize Your Economic Power

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Etmanski’s first three Patterns to Spread Your Social Innovation have been comfortable to comprehend.  Think and Act Like a Movement, Create a Container for Your Content, Set the Table for Allies, Adversaries are not easy but they make sense.

The fourth pattern, Mobilize Your Economic Power, is not so easy.  It means having conversations about assets, profits, liabilities, customers, marketing strategy and cash flows.  Notice words like funding, grants, beneficiaries and outcomes do not appear.

It makes me a bit squeamish because mobilizing economic power requires the not-for-profit organization to participate in the markets creating many of the injustices it is trying to correct.  I have a natural visceral reaction against the idea.  How can we talk about assets in one meeting and the suffering of people in the next?

It seems wrong.

However, after setting aside my discomfort, I realize Etmanski is encouraging me to uncover new possibilities for systemic impact.  Identifying economic power gives me access to more levers to alleviate or eliminate the suffering of people I serve.  Most importantly, can I really say I am serving people well if I’m not accessing all the avenues open to me just because it makes me squeamish?

What would change about the way you do your work if your organization was presented with a check for $10 million?

Likely your organization would shift mindsets from “scarcity to abundance” and from “victim to agent”.  Etmanski believes we shouldn’t wait for the check.  Find our economic leverage points and use them to become an independent fearless agent for change.

Five Ways to Mobilize Your Economic Power

Admittedly, I became a bit foul as I read through these.  They seem impractical and inaccessible until I read it from the perspective of a person seeking to move an idea from the local context to the mainstream.

  • “Influencing the Operational Practice of Business” – really this is about disrupting the way it has always been done.  Etmanski uses an example of the environmental activist shifting her attention from blocking logging trucks to developing a process for recycling paper so the publishing industry would no longer use virgin forest products.  She blocked the logging trucks using the market instead of her body.
  • “Commercializing Intellectual Property” – Take stock of your intellectual property and see how it might generate revenue for your beneficiaries/clients.  Charge market value for it!
  • “Nurturing a Sharing Economy” – Besides the conventional market, not-for-profits are uniquely positioned to tap into the world of swapping, bartering, and lending.
  • “Purchasing Locally” – Buying your office supplies from Walmart might be cheaper, but much of profits associated with that transaction are siphoned out of the community.  Buying your office supplies from a local business increases the likelihood that profits will be recycled into the local community.
  • “Starting a Social-Purpose Business” – Becoming an entrepreneur by forming a business that focusses on financial return and social impact.

 

Impact: Six Patterns to Spread Your Social Innovation by Al Etmanski is a guide for social innovators to move their idea from localized success to broader systemic impact.

Etmanski: Set the Table for Allies, Adversaries and Strangers

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Have you ever been asked to participate on a committee or in a community meeting and left wondering why were invited?  A situation in which the conversation was swirling around you but you never quite knew how to contribute to it?

Looking back to the occasions in which this was the case for me, I realize the people calling the meeting (conveners) had a broad range of reasons for inviting people (job titles, organizations, to not hurt feelings, to get things done, to access resources, for expertise, to make new connections, because they were told to, and so on).  All of which are valid reasons but it was unclear why I had been invited so I contributed little.

As a convener, we need to be deliberate and thoughtful about the people we invite and the environment in which they gather.  Remember, to have the idea picked up by the mainstream, means inviting supporters, opponents and others beyond the immediate context.  Everyone needs to feel welcome and to be assured that their contributions will be valuable and important.

 

Four Characteristics of Effective Convening

To avoid the gathering in which a few people speak and nothing is ultimately accomplished, take a minute to run through the questions below.

  • “Civility” – Has the group crafted (agreed upon) ground rules of conduct by which they can respectfully, openly, and safely contribute?
  • “Personal Agency” – As the convener, have you encouraged the best from all participants?  Have you given each participant an opportunity to shine, show their strengths and lead in their own way?
  • “Hospitality” – As the convener, are you able to articulate the importance of each participant’s contribution and made them feel like they belong?
  • “Curiosity” – As a convener, have you created a group culture in which uncertainty leads to inquiry and eventually new answers?

 

Impact: Six Patterns to Spread Your Social Innovation by Al Etmanski is a guide for social innovators to move their idea from localized success to broader systemic impact.

Etmanski: Create a Container for Your Content

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Being on the Board of Skills Society, I find myself wondering how we might get our message beyond our immediate community of supporters.  A common problem confronting most not-for-profit originations.

 

How do we get people to care about something that doesn’t really matter to them?

 

 There are lots of strategies.  The Elevator Pitch.  The One-Pager.  The Brand Message.  The Narrative.  Social Media Strategies.  Flashy Brochures.  All of these are effective to a certain point.  However,  how can the message a person hears be converted into an action they take?

 

For Etmanski, “Presenting the right content in the right container makes it easier for people to do the right thing” (p.64).   For impact beyond the local context, the message needs to inspire people beyond your community of supporters to  contribute to the million small acts of the movement.

 

5 Characteristics of Effective Containers

I crafted questions to  help you evaluate your message and its ability to reach beyond your community of supporters.

  • “They are playful and fun.” – Does your message make people feel good?
  • “They are non-judgmental” – Does your message blame or guilt the people you are trying to reach?
  • “They ignite our imaginations” – Does your message inspire people to think about what is possible?
  • ” They personalize the abstract” – Does your message articulate how the issue is connected to the people you are trying to reach?
  • “They tell a story” – Does your message have characters and a plot?

 

After running your message through Etmanski’s tips, I would encourage you to ask yourself one more question; does your message still have the ring of authenticity or does it feel contrived?

 

Impact: Six Patterns to Spread Your Social Innovation by Al Etmanski is a guide for social innovators to move their idea from localized success to broader systemic impact.