At a recent Tavistock Institute Graduation ceremony, a wonderful rite of transition, one of the graduates said that what they were taking away was the capacity to “Say Yes to the Mess” of organisational life and leadership.
This phrase, “Say yes to the Mess” calls to mind the popular (for some) television show that invites brides-to-be, to “Say yes to the Dress”.
In case you missed it, this past weekend saw the wedding of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle at St George’s Chapel, Windsor. All eyes were on the cultural representations of the new couple, the bridging of culture, class and race and what this means (at a more subtle level) for the nature of role relations across social divides. The entry into the realms of the privilege of royal life was located, to some extent, in the choice of dress worn by the bride. The dress was not just a fashion statement, it could also be seen as an embodiment of the role change from actress to Duchess. What symbols do we have for our role transitions in organisational life?
Learning for Leadership (and Followership) invites and evokes the capacity to work with and through the “mess” of finding new ways of thinking, feeling, relating and being. The Leicester Conference provides a space for participants to experience and study the complexity of life in organisations and their role in it. As a 14-day leadership intensive that is rooted in systems thinking, psychoanalytically informed and organisationally underpinned, it provides opportunities for learning like no other.
Finding the will to commit and the time to invest in oneself and our capacities in human relations is a challenge. Many have been thinking about attending the Leicester Conference for years, perhaps now is the time to secure your place.
Laurence Pearsall Jacks in his book, “Education Through Recreation” states:
A master in the art of living draws no sharp distinction between his work and his play, his labour and his leisure, his mind and his body, his education and his recreation. He hardly knows which is which. He simply pursues his vision of excellence through whatever he is doing and leaves others to determine whether he is working or playing. To himself he always seems to be doing both. Enough for him that he does it well.
If you are ready to explore what it means to reach toward Mastery in Leadership practice and the ART of Followership, come to the 73rd Leicester Conference.
You can read more here about the Leicester Conference.
Apply online or if you have any questions contact Rachel Kelly, Pre-conference administrator: r.kelly@tavistinstitute.org