The Searching for Wisdom Handbook The Coles Notes Edition

You are here. You are here now in the present

To begin the search for wisdom, it helps to ask a few questions. Where did you come from? Who are you today? Where are you going?

For that matter… Where did we come from? Where are we going? Who are we as a community, corporation, society?

At Leadership Calgary we want to explore… Who are we as human beings and where are we going as a species?

Back to you… in the present. What shaped who you are now?

School? Parents? Friends? Travel? Amazing books? Challenges? Genetics? Institutions? What else contributed to your life?

How has your life depended on the generations before you?

All the engagements we have with the real world are part of the actionscape The actionscape is the field of action in which people, organizations, communities and societies live, work, play and learn.

Of course, there is far more of the actionscape than we can discover in our lifetime. Things we engage in before we die. *sniff*

As a species, we engage with much more of the actionscape… But as a species, there is still more than we can pay attention to or discover

Leading to the inevitable realization that we are always more ignorant than we are wise.

Luckily (or unluckily) we have the ability to model the actionscape in our brains…

Which in turn influences how we act…

The thoughtscape is the dynamic field of inquiry, thinking, caring, striving and learning.

What inside you shapes how you act? Consider these questions…

To what extent do you inquire? How interested are you in things? Where does your curiosity take you? How far do you look beneath the surface? What are your investigative skills like? Do you develop theories and test them?

To what extent do you care? And what are you willing to sacrifice to be caring?

To what extent do you strive?

The thoughtscape is crucial because it is behind how people assess a situation, identify problems or opportunities, decide what to do about them, and control how they make it happen. For example…

The world is flat The world is round. The world is on a turtle. A YI E E E E E E GPS, the ultimate compass Feed the Turtle

Let’s play…. name that thoughtscape! States like these, and their terrorist allies constitute an axis of evil, arming to threaten the peace of the world. By seeking weapons of mass destruction, these regimes pose a grave and growing danger. So let us begin anew— remembering on both sides that civility is not a sign of weakness, and sincerity is always subject to proof. Let us never negotiate out of fear. But let us never fear to negotiate. We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force. What are the consequences of these thoughtscapes? Where did these thoughtscapes come from? Where do we see these thoughtscapes in action today?

What are the consequences of our collective thoughtscape?

How does humanity face the many current and emerging threats or opportunities?

To what extent do we inquire about the world?

To what extent do we care? And what are we willing to sacrifice to care?

Will we strive to be the best of humanity?

Or fall to be the worst of our nature?

Back to you… Again.

What resources must you draw upon? What capacities do you need to develop? What responsibilities are you willing to take? When faced with a challenge, how do you adapt?

The Resources are out there. Capacities can be learned and developed. But not all resources and capacities are helpful. Some are even dangerous. How do we judge the quality of the resources?

5. Systemic Adaptive Realm of aligning what gets done with foundational needs and opportunities.. The resources and capacities that we draw upon will support different levels of adaptive action, learning, collaboration. 4. Specialized Adaptive Realm of quality and innovation 3. Operational / Conventional Realm of standardized action 2. Amusement & Play Realm of creative expression and exploration 1. Bio-Social Realm of belonging and basic survival.

1. Bio-Social “RUN YOU FOOL!” 2. Amusement and Play “I could toss it at a neighbour and see what happens ” 3. Operational / Conventional “Standard procedures says put bomb into container and blow it.” 5. Systemic Adaptive How does defusing the bomb contribute to world peace? 4. Specialized Adaptive “This is a C45N detonator with a redundant circuit. Cut here!” Different levels have different priorities for responding to challenges.

1. Bio-Social “I am feeling fear and anxiety, but this will keep me sharp.” 2. Amusement and Play “At least if I go, I’ll go with a bang!” 3. Operational / Conventional “Remind me to change the standard steps for defusing this.” 5. Systemic Adaptive I am risking my life to defuse this bomb for the sake of peace. 4. Specialized Adaptive “This is a slightly different than a standard detonator. I can adjust.” Higher levels don’t eliminate lower levels, but reconfigure them to align with higher levels.

All levels of social organizations have their own capacities and resources for dealing with challenges. The bomb might just be bigger! Global Communities Societies Local Communities Organizations Primary Groups Individual

What kind of resources and capacities do we need to create at all these levels?

To deal with this?

…are you ready to be an explorer? …to inquire? So… …to care? …to strive?

To explore, discover, and retrieve the best thinking that human history has to offer? To discover and learn from the gravest failures of humanity? To position yourself to face the challenges and opportunities facing the globe?

And finally to act… …wisely… …with courage

Because the world needs you.

Let’s get to work!