Quick reflections and a departure

On August 21st I ended my career at Bell Canada. Having sensed that the new owners of the company would be looking to make drastic cost reductions, I figured that it would be a good time to ask for a severance package and use the opportunity to start my own company. It took awhile for everything to fall into place (about 9 months) but it was worth it.

It has been an incredibly busy week since leaving Bell. Lots of administration stuff in getting a business launched and I’ve been fortunate enough to have lots of interest in my services so I’ve had a few meetings regarding potential work. As a result I’ve barely had time to process all of this new information and my new status in this world. And now I’m heading out for a previously planned vacation for two weeks. But I wanted to get something down on “paper” before I go.

It’s easy to slag large corporations for being soul sucking institutions that crush human spirit, especially Bell Canada, but the six years I spent at Bell Canada was a life changing experience that put me on a path to discover the work that I love to do. We had the permission to learn a method of collaborative work and build a centre around that methodology. Most companies wouldn’t invest in their space and employees like that. Most importantly, I met people who have since become some of my best friends, mentors and sources of inspiration.

The relationship was mutually beneficial, I would argue. We did some great work for the company and I’d like to think we’ll be missed, at least a little bit.

So now it’s off to Croatia for two weeks of R&R before returning to the real world and getting this business off the ground. More to come about a new company name, website and blog.

Collaboration Cue Card Project: An Insight!

I recently uploaded some more pictures of Collaboration Cue Cards to the Flickr group. Here’s a bit of backstory if you aren’t familiar with this little project of mine. Last time I uploaded the pictures I wrote a short blog entry but promised that I wouldn’t give any more updates unless there was something interesting to say.

Well….that day has come.

I don’t know if it’s particularly interesting, but one thing I noticed after looking at the 200+ cards is that some people seem to illustrate the process (Example 1) of collaborating and others illustrate the outcome (Example 2) of collaborating while others seem to illustrate both (Example 3).

Cool Japanese Life Philosophies

One of the fun parts of my work is looking for new types of life approaches and philosophies and then incorporating them into my own collaborative methodology. I’ll even introduce them to clients and let the clients play with those philosophies within the context of their own organization.

For example, today I suggested that my group of 30 clients take a “Slow Food” approach to the activities they had been assigned. I was inspired by a conversation I had with Michael Dila around “Slow Biz” and what that could mean to how people go about their work in a more mindful and deliberate way.

I’ve come across enough cool Japanese philosophies that I figured it was worthy of starting a conversation around and I’m hoping there will be some contributions. Here are a few that I quite like and I feel map well to business and collaborative approaches:

Ikebana is the Japanese art of flower arrangement. It is more than simply putting flowers in a container. Ikebana is a disciplined art form in which nature and humanity are brought together. It is the philosophy of developing closeness with nature. Ikebana is a creative expression with certain rules of construction. (From Wikipedia and thanks to Mr. Dila and Chris Finlay.)

One of the key principles of Ikebana is the mindfulness of the approach. It is typically done in silence. There is also an appreciation for simplicity and empty space which are two principles that don’t get utilized nearly enough in business, process or product design these days.

Wabi-sabi represents a comprehensive Japanese world view or aesthetic centered on the acceptance of transience. The phrase comes from the two words wabi and sabi. The aesthetic is sometimes described as one of beauty that is “imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete”. (From Wikipedia)

As much as I try to plan events down to the most minute details, I also balance the planning with the belief that people will take conversations in unpredictable and necessary ways. The collaborative sessions do have a degree of improvisation and “roughness” to them that makes each one unique and “imperfect”.

One of the very cool characteristics to the wabi-sabi aesthetic is that pieces aren’t designed to maintain their original qualities but are designed to stain, chip and crack so the pieces become an ongoing record of their existence. Examples of the wabi-sabi aesthetic include agile development methodologies, wikis and the “perpetual beta” mindset.

Omakase is the Japanese word meaning “entrust” or “protect”. It is most commonly encountered at sushi bars, where the customer may request omakase onegaishimasu (onegaishimasu meaning “please do me the favor”) to give the chef authority to prepare what the chef wants to make for you at the price that the chef sets.

One of the things that I like about this concept is the interplay between sushi chef and patron. The customer is an active part of the experience as they provide verbal and non-verbal feedback on each dish and the chef reacts accordingly in preparing the next dish. I actually have a lot more to say on this ritual and will elaborate further in the near future.

Do you know of any other philosophies or approaches in Japanese culture that can be incorporated into a design and/or collaborative methodology? I would love to keep this conversation going.