Shoulder-to-shoulder

Have you noticed that mostly in business we sit opposite the people we are meeting with?  We put great store by looking the person in the eye.  In the animal kingdom, this is a challenge to assess who is the stronger, and if the other is a challenger for power… In business, it’s not so different!  I don’t imply that is the only reason for this.  We communicate a lot with our faces and also our furniture is set up, we usually face each other across a dividing table or desk. 

However, one of the basic precepts of aikido, and perhaps one that gives it much of its power, is “Put your self in the other’s (your partner’s) place.”  This means you are shoulder-to shoulder with them and looking at the world from their position.  This enables you to see as they do and to lead them forward to a different place. 

Leading is about making a difference, about helping facilitate Change; too often we follow the American model of alpha male leaders who dominate their company, rather than the softer, more subtle and infinitely more powerful path of enabling others to move to a new place, supported by your vision and faith.

Also, we all have different lead senses with which we take on board information.  If we prefer to listen to what is said, being side-by-side enables us to not be distracted by what we see.  Another tip is if you are walking side-by-side with a person, or even driving next to them, you are quite literally moving forwards together and in my experience this greatly facilitates progress in difficult conversations.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, February 3rd, 2015 at 08:01 and is filed under Communication, Hints, Tips & Techniques. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.