Thank you for this videos! I also thought about how challenging servant leadership is for design leaders and as always “it depends” 😅

@apolaine

11 күн бұрын

Haha. It always depends when it comes to design. I do think, though, that it depends on your own power and agency in the organisation. The more senior you are and power you have, that more you can “afford” to and should aim for servant leadership. It sounds selfish, because what I’m saying is that the less it costs you the more you can afford to do it. But this is also the same with allyship. It costs me very little as a cis white male to challenge others who look like me who might be mansplaining, being racist or sexist. So I should. I think Sinek’s really took a lot from the military, which has a very clear hierarchy that is not usually challenged and is also highly structured. It’s a different space to most workplaces.

@UXTips

11 күн бұрын

@@apolaine Oh, I hadn't thought about it that way-'the less it costs you, the more you can afford to do it.' That's totally realistic. Thank you for the clarification; it really helped me understand it better. I hope to see you at Design Leaders in London! :D

I find it interesting that people are influenced by servant leadership but view it as them "shielding" their employees. Part of service is in building their capacity, helping them with boundaries, etc. It isn't by doubling down on the hierarchy under the notion of being someone's protector. For me, focusing on what's needed by people closest to the client/product/service/whatever is a way to attune to our capacity, needs, and well-being as a system - and this should absolutely include leaders. In service we should join with those we serve. "Pour their cup" first ... and then just go and fill your own. Otherwise it's just more jingoistic, toxic management speak in the context of ever-more-productive systems. You can't apply transformative concepts to what is fundamentally the same vehicle and system without making compromises. At that point, it just becomes yet another thing to struggle through trying to implement.

@apolaine

10 күн бұрын

While I agree to an extent, especially on the first part of what you said, it’s extremely difficult to be of service in any kind of way if you’re totally depleted. I know my coaching sample is biased, of course, because I’m generally working with people struggling and looking for support, but I also hear a lot of reports from others that they’re barely hanging on. The really do need to self nourish before they do anything else.

@michaelbird9148

10 күн бұрын

@@apolaine I think both perspectives are compatible. I agree that we need to care for and sustain ourselves, and if push comes to shove - that's the priority. I work in the mental health field alongside frontline clinicians, and a phrase I use is "there are two people in the room" to counter-act the discourse of "client-centered" meaning the erasure of the clinician, employee, and human who serves their clients. I see service to others as something that occurs in parallel to sustaining ourselves; I think there's merit to working towards alignment of those interests. At some point, I guess you'd need to choose, but that gets to the reality that there are dynamics that risk making the choice irrelevant - who gets chewed up and spit out in a meat grinder of an organizational structure can become moot. For me the important aspect is having humility and, where possible within a structure, reframing the relationships/power dynamics involved; that's why I responded to the language of shielding/saving/protecting/etc. Thanks for the conversation and insights from your work!

@apolaine

9 күн бұрын

@@michaelbird9148 That's a good phrase. Thanks for sharing it. I do think medical training seems to lead to clinicians suppressing that side. At least that has been my experience as a patient or parent.