Writings
What Does a Presidential Campaign Have in Common with Leadership Development, Masterful Conversations and Coaching?
June 08
Our family found a unique way to celebrate the
New Year. We spent a week volunteering for a major
Presidential candidate in Iowa. (I won't tell you
who, but you can probably guess by the end of this
article.) While we cared passionately about who
the candidate is and
what he/she stood for, what truly caught our attention
was the way the campaign was organized and conducted.
It had all the ingredients of facilitative leadership,
masterful conversations, principled negotiations
and coaching.
Our very first meeting we were trained with other volunteers about the work of canvassing (going house to house) and phone calling prospective voters. The first item of the training were the values of the campaign - respect, empower and include. Sounds right out of a facilitative leadership playbook. The great thing about this campaign is that the staff actually walked their talk. Our input was welcomed, we felt a part of the process from the beginning. Special attention was placed on our 8 year old daughter so that she, too, felt that her contributions mattered. (She made signs, handed out booklets at the candidate's rally, made the candidate a card)
Then came the training about how to speak with voters. If, when asking voters who they preferred in the election, we were told to always show respect, never get in an argument. We could inquiry into their thinking and ask if they were open to persuasion. If not, we thanked them and were on our way. To those undecided, we were to listen deeply into what their issues/concerns were through the use of inquiry and reflective listening. Then, we could invite them into a dialogue, offering our perspective and getting their reaction.
What emerged through the conversations were many wonderful in-depth conversations about America, democracy and the critical issues that we all faced. On many occasions, the voters and the campaign volunteers left with a deeper understanding of each other's viewpoints, mutual respect and a sense of joy having participated in a mini-dialogue that was meaningful. In several cases, it was the quality of the dialogue and the showing of respect that persuaded people to align their vote with the candidate we were working for.
It underscored the principles that if you build healthy relationships and develop a good process, backed by sound communication and facilitation skills, you will create great outcomes. And, as you can well imagine, this campaign was certainly passionate about results. They were there to win; but how they got there was just as important as their goal.
It was great to actually be a participant in a collaborative/facilitative process as opposed to being the facilitator/trainer. I got to see the process from the inside out. What was most helpful was the coaching and support from the other volunteers. There were many times during the week when we wondered if our work actually made a difference, if we could have been more effective and whether a holiday in a warm climate wouldn't have been a better choice! The encouragement, constructive feedback and appreciation we received over and over again were as motivating as the larger purpose of the campaign.
And it was this unique combination of being connected with a purpose that was meaningful, having a vision of success, working with colleagues that showed tremendous respect and support and engaging with others through skillful dialogue that made this a most memorable experience. These are the same ingredients that will guarantee success for any team/organization. The principles are universal.
Practice: A Learning Conversation Across Differences
- Find a friend/colleague with whom you have a difference of opinion with. This difference could be related to our national political scene, a policy/strategy at work or family concerns at home.
- Ask that person if they are willing to engage in a 'learning conversation' with you to explore your differences.
- Start the conversation by inquiring into the other's person's point of view. Ask questions from a stance of curiosity not interrogation.
- Use reflective listening to demonstrate your understanding of their point of view.
- Share your point of view, especially your reasoning that leads you to your point of view.
- Invite their response
- Look for common ground between your points of view.
- If you can't find any, simply acknowledge your differences and see if there are any next steps to be taken.
- Thank them for engaging in a meaningful conversation with you.