Two reasons calm thinking and functioning are essential in social change work

Most of us would prefer to show up as our best selves. Few would want to be that impulsive, reactive, quick to blame, inconsistent colleague, leader, teacher, or boss.  Calm thinking and functioning enable your best self to show up while simultaneously helping those around you reduce fear, doubt, anxiety, and guardedness. The power of calm is one of the keys to build resilient high-velocity social change movements that engender loyalty and trust among stakeholders, allies, and accomplices. 

Two of the reasons calm thinking and functioning are so powerful in movement work are: 

1. Safety and trust increase as stress and anxiety decrease. 
2. Discretionary, tacit, and residual energy grow in calm environments, unleashing new ideas, creativity, innovation, and breakthroughs among peers, supporters, volunteers, and partners.      

People who consistently and effectively regulate their anxiety and practice emotional intelligence contribute to creating calm work cultures where self-responsibility, accountability, and altruism can thrive. The benefits to the organization are greater focus, continuous learning, and improved results. On the other hand, reactive undisciplined leaders engender fear, hoarding of information, superficial quick-fixes, blaming, scapegoating, rumors, and a climate of dysfunction. 

Calm congruent leaders stabilize and strengthen group cohesion through consistent informal, formal, public, and private interactions. A leader’s level of congruent behavior can be directly correlated to stakeholders, employees, and volunteers’ willingness to apply their discretionary energy. These emotionally intelligent leaders tend to be curious, demonstrate empathy, and ask helpful and thought-provoking questions. They are far more likely to encourage autonomy, problem-solving, and risk-taking than more anxious and unaware leaders.  

Functioning at the level you aspire to is a process. It takes practice, work, and the courage to ask, how am I doing? 

Questions:

• What are you doing to advance your team, cause, or family’s goals? 
• How are you working on yourself?
• Are you showing up as someone who promotes thinking, self-responsibility, humility, and curiosity? 
• Where did you learn your responses to stress?
• What did you learn about handling stress as a child?
• Do you often appear calm or silent outside while raging inside?
• How would you have to function to achieve your most ambitious aspirations?  

• Author: John Rodríguez, MA
• Website: JohnRodriguez4Change.com
• Email: [email protected]