The German Version of my book is out (http://www.amazon.com/Kunst-Selbstf%C3%BChrung-German-Burkhard-Bensmann/dp/3837095673/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1250166505&sr=8-1). With a big book release party we celebrated this event on May 12th. More than 120 people came together, 30 of them interviewees for the book.
Sixty Interviews with leaders and „leading people“ have been conducted and I am continuing to write the book on Self-Leadership. Regarding the methods and instruments of self organization one insight is obvious: the most fascinating tool is worthless if you do not really know how to use it, and it makes no difference if it is a classic paper organizer or a BlackBerry. As a result of my conversations I have come to the realization that successful leaders choose methods and instruments which fit them and which they really can handle – without following a fashion or trend.
Although I found a couple of positive examples for good self-organization there is still room for improvement.
For an effective self-organization it is highly important to be aware of ones own (working) processes and to integrate these into suitable structures. Key questions are:
- How do I organize myself?
- Which kind of structures do I apply to my work?
- Which helpful habits can I develop?
- Which methods do I actually use for time management, creativity, projects, etc.?
The interviews have shown that self-leadership will only be successful when leaders realize their abilities and potentials and when they continue to develop these assets. With reference to the processes and structures of worklife it is of primary concern to know ones own duties and responsibilities. Based upon those are the daily tasks I have to focus.
Although it is a workflow like the production of goods in their companies, most leaders do not strictly check their personal processes and structures. The analysis of their duties and tasks – like checking their daily time budget – might supply some transparency. A simple visualization of the flow of their activities might open their eyes and show some counter-productive routines, suboptimal processes, and unnecessary interruptions.
In my point of view it is essential to do an in-deep analysis of your own work processes and structures and I suggest checking the following:
To reach my vision and /or goals:
• Which processes
• in which structures
• with which methods
• using which instruments
• do or will I have to coordinate and successfully put to work?
• And which results do I achieve (controlling the outcome?
Art For Business 2008 in Milano has started today and I really had to struggle to understand at least a little bit of the keynote speakers at the opening (because everything was in Italian…).
As a preparation for my ex-cathedra-speech tomorrow I will put a download of my text here: Self-Leadership as an art.
My key points are:
1. Change Agents should learn, test, and use mind-sets, methods, and instruments from the world of art to shift context and perspective.
2. Lots of successful leaders in business already use skills, approaches, and mind-sets similar to those of artists. And SELF-LEADERSHIP is an art in itself.
3. To find out how we can “use art” in human capital development we should scrutinize, maybe test, the life and oeuvre of artists.
Especially concerning the last point I suggest to take a look at the text on How to survive as an artist (about Duchamp as a role model) to which I refer in my speech in the Art For Business Forum session. If you are interested to know more about it you might as well want to take a look at my Squidoo-Lenses…
And finally for some of my ongoing gymnastics in the world of art see my laboratorio-pages.
Some key findings:
After a lot of travelling, both in Germany and in Italy, I am still struggling to get some more interviews with leading women. I was very lucky - and happy - to get the chance for a conversation with Susanne Höhn, managing director of the Goethe-Institutes in Italy. However, there are some frustrations in connection with this project of mine, too: another appointment in Rome with a top leader was cancelled in the short term. But Self-Leadership also means to make the most of any given situation - so I had the chance to sip an espresso macchiato on the Campo dei Fiori, watching the clean-up ritual.
At the beginning of each year we face the challenge of changing personal habits. Still helpful for getting results: Alan Deutschman’s book “Change Or Die“. He is collecting the key factors of lasting change:
relate - which means you need support and hope from others; repeat - which means a learning process to train new habits; and reframe - which stands for the necessary internalization process (see my Amazon review).
