How can you focus on your own ‘inner development' ?
Now more than ever, we need to invest in the people leading change – supporting them to develop the skills, behaviours and mind-sets needed to thrive in an ever-changing world.
Based on the Inner Development Goals (IDG) Framework, which details the transformational skills and qualities needed to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and in celebration of Global Goals Week, we invite you to take 10 minutes to reflect on your own inner development today:
1. Relationship to self: Cultivating our inner life and developing and deepening our relationship to our thoughts, feelings and body help us be present, intentional and non-reactive when we face complexity.
Experience: Sit for a few moments and observe your thoughts, what do you notice? A busy mind? A lot of planning? Tension?
Consider/Reflect on: What is my relationship to my thoughts and feelings? How do I respond to the thoughts – do I react or take time to reflect? How can I explore this aspect of myself? What helps me to feel less busy in my mind? How can I nourish this insight to have a positive impact on my own and others’ lives?
2. Cognitive skills: Developing our cognitive skills by taking different perspectives, evaluating information and making sense of the world as an interconnected whole is essential for wise decision-making.
Experience: Think of an activity you are involved in your work or organisation. Think about different aspects of this activity – who is involved, what it means for you and others, what impact it has outside of your organisation
Consider/Reflect on: Is this where you want to put your energy and attention? If not, where would you rather focus your energy and attention?
3. Caring for others and the world: Appreciating, caring for and feeling connected to others, such as neighbours, future generations or the biosphere, helps us create just and sustainable systems and societies for everyone.
Experience: Think about all of the people you are connected to – identify a few people that you are most connected to - begin to feel a sense of gratitude for them, be specific in your mind about what it is you are grateful for.
Consider/Reflect on: In what ways can I connect in gratefulness to all of the people I am connected to? How would this impact me and on how I interact with them? How would this have an impact on how I think about what is possible for the society in which I live?
4. Social skills/Collaboration: To make progress on shared concerns, we need to develop our abilities to include, hold space and communicate with stakeholders with different values, skills and competencies.
Experience: Recall a time when you worked with an individual or organisation that had a different point of view or perspective, think about did you manage this situation
Consider/Reflect on: What worked in this situation? What would you do differently? Reflect on how you can manage a space where you are aware of your values/perspective while being open to another and different views? What impact might this have on you and your organisation?
5. Driving change: Qualities such as courage and optimism help us acquire true agency, break old patterns, generate original ideas and act with persistence in uncertain times.
Experience: Think about a new idea you have had recently – recall how it was generated, how you explored and considered it, how you shared it, what are the feelings you associated with this process?
Consider/Reflect on: How do I encourage the development of a new idea and thinking? How are new ideas perceived in your organisation?
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