Welcome to Co-ignite's CollaborAction Project HubCollaborAction Items
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A Choir of Thousands of Voices
What if we were to all come together to make our own unique contribution on projects that are deeply meaningful to us? What would that look like? Well, perhaps Eric Whitacre gives us a rare example of how it can be done – beautifully. You need to see this video from TED. Go ahead, click the link. I will wait for you right here. When you are done, come back here so I can share with you what I see as significant that can be applied in our workplaces and in our non-profit organizations.
What I see in this video is that each person wanted to be part of something bigger than themselves. They chose by themselves to participate and brought their own voice to the larger group. Each individual voice is small when listened to alone but, when blended together, creates this wonderful richness that is impossible unless all these people came together.
It also takes a conductor to organize the tasks so that it is easy for each person to participate. They make room in the music for the variety of voices out there and construct a way to put them all together to achieve a clear, compelling, and meaningful goal. Here is the kind of result that is possible.
What if you had never heard a choir before? You wouldn’t know the beauty that is possible by coming together and blending each person’s contribution. Our workplaces are the same.
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One Place to Learn How to Make a Difference
The Sonoma State University MA in Organization Development Program is offering an information meeting on May 7th. I highly recommend this program for learning about yourself and other individuals and groups - learning how we can all work together better.
Here is the information about the information meeting:Attend this information meeting for an informal overview, and a question-and-answer conversation about this MA program. Discover whether it's right for you:
Saturday, May 7th at 3 pm
Carson 69
Sonoma State UniversityOptional RSVP by This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. the Special Session Degree Programs Coordinator This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or calling (707) 664-2682.
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Are You Looking for Meaningful Work?
Jeff Young on Apr 19, 2011
Tagged in: teams, purpose, learning, leadership, collaboration, challengesIn reorganizing my website this past week, I again came across this video poem from Dr. Keith Merron on the Search for Great Leadership. (http://bit.ly/g3yNle). As I watched, I was deeply moved by his words saying that we have a need:
- to be valued for who we really are.
- to be seen, honored, recognized and respected for our unique gifts,
- to make a greater difference in the world.
I couldn’t help noticing that his message could be found reflected in my own words that you will find on these web pages. They describe exactly what Co-ignite strives to provide – a tribe of peers that not only does work together that is important to its members and to our clients, but to build into the work environment, practices that clarify the value of who we really are, help us to see each other for the unique gifts we bring, and to make our work something that makes a greater difference in the world.
I hadn’t quite noticed our mission as being so closely aligned with the message that Dr. Keith Merron points out; that for us to truly find these qualities we must clarify and work on these qualities deep within ourselves - through reflection and through our work. To do this, we are co-creating a workplace that, with personal and collective growth, will in time be made up of the same kind of Great Leaders Keith Merron talks about – collaborating together to make the difference WE want to make in the world.
So, if you ARE looking for meaningful work. We agree with Keith that answer can’t be found in other leaders in a job out there for you to find – it can only be found within yourself. But that doesn’t mean it is found alone. On this internal journey, we all need the support of a tribe of fellow seekers who are all looking within to clarify their gifts. Co-ignite is such a tribe. What makes it special and unique is that we also work together to take action in the world through paid work that utilizes our gifts. So, you see, we can really only find meaningful work by looking within – together.
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Ken Robinson Does it Again!
Jeff Young on Mar 23, 2011
Tagged in: purpose, learning, innovation, education, creativity, challengesKen Robinson does it again. Here is a delightful video created by RSA that illustrates the shift in paradigm being called for in education. (Link to the Video) The video tells a clear story of what has happened that is causing the need for change.
We are not so much needing higher standards or a different curriculum as needing to shift from a manufacturing process of education to one of developing the individual capacity of each person. This requires a different process of learning than the current one of focusing on the subject and lecturing on it; encouraging students to find the one right answer. Instead, we need to focus on each person as a creative being and giving them a learning environment where they can grow into who they were meant to become.
This is the central purpose of Infinite Discoveries. We believe that each person should be looking to find a place where they can be in their own element; where they can thrive and bring forth their unique gifts and contribution to something that is important to them. We then loosely organize ourselves into collaboratives where we can collectively work on projects that are important to us that are aligned with our gifts.
We believe that learning and growth happens in collaborative groups formed from a common purpose; that learning and work are not and should not be separated. Work gives us the context for expressing our gifts and we need to continually learn how to be more skillful in that expression.
