The Authentic Organization

Imagine this scenario: You receive an unexpected inheritance that enables you to quit the job that has eaten up so much of your time, get some well-deserved rest, and then spend the time you previously dedicated to the job (and commuting to the job and recovering from the job) on your kids and your art. [...]

Although I am firmly allied with the mission and spirit of all the professionals and organizations who use the term “work-life balance” as something to strive for, I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s fundamentally flawed, a dangerous trap, an all-around bad idea.
Superficially Sensible
The concept is enormously popular – over 10 million results for “work-life [...]

Maybe I shouldn’t read Fast Company, but I do. I also read sites that reduce complex ideas into a series of bulleted “hacks” and mainstream news sites that can’t seem to step even a millimeter outside the guiding tropes of our very painful times.
If it’s just an occasional craving for outrage, then I can say [...]

It is sometimes said that a narrow self-image prevented the wealthy American railroad companies from investing in automobiles and airplanes in the first half of the twentieth century. They saw themselves as being in the railway business, rather than in the transportation business. Thus, by the middle of the century, the modes of transportation that [...]

In the book Original Blessing, Meister Eckhard (via Matthew Fox) offers us an intriguing four part framework from which to examine the spiritual paths of individuals. I believe this framework has something to offer this conversation about the authentic organization.
In brief, the framework suggests that it can be useful to think of our walk through [...]

Every year, starting in late November and running through early February, I reflect on the manner in which the presence of death can ground us in the moment, and in our best selves. Does this work the same way for organizations? Or at least, can it be put to use in the context of organizational [...]

Emotional skills are fundamental to the success of most organizational projects. Sometimes they mean the difference between nominal success and remarkable success. Sometimes they are critical to any sort of success at all. And without a doubt, they are vital to building the relationships needed for the long term.
I was reflecting earlier this evening on [...]

As we take on new projects and new objectives, very few organizations let go of old ones to make room. In some cases, we acquire new resources, although often not enough to do justice to the new endeavor. In many cases, such decisions reflect an admirable ambition or at the very least an unwillingness to [...]

In the Eighties, I was involved in what was then called Peace Conversion work. We’ve moved so far in the other direction under the current U.S. regime that this might seem somewhat quaint, but the idea was to look for ways to repurpose the skills and resources previously used in the arms race, in order [...]

I want to explore a particular dynamic that emerges as a result of our focus on plans and to do lists in our work life, a dynamic that leads to delusion of perception and distortion of motivation:
If you were to judge your tasks by how much attention and emotional investment they get, you would think [...]