Waiting for permission
A client was describing a part of his organisation that was not working. “So much needs to be done,” he said. “But nobody really owns the whole thing.”
The movement
Waiting → Shaping
Read the story →Stories from the Work
Sometimes one question changes the shape of the problem.
The situations people bring are often very different.
- A bigger role.
- A difficult transition.
- A stalled decision.
- A team that depends too heavily on them.
- A career that no longer feels quite right.
What interests me is the moment when the problem begins to look different.
The stories below are based on real work. Details have been changed or generalised to protect confidentiality.
When being indispensable becomes the problem
Another client was very good at getting things done. Whenever something went wrong, people came to him.
The movement
Doing it yourself → Building through others
Read the story →“What is your idea?”
She was excellent at research. She could connect ideas, improve other people’s thinking and make complex things clearer.
The movement
Supporting others’ thinking → Owning a point of view
Read the story →Working harder was not the answer
A high-performing leader wanted the next role. Her instinct was familiar: do more, know more, perform better.
The movement
Expertise → Perspective
Read the story →Responding to the past in the present
A client was struggling with a situation at work. The emotional intensity seemed larger than the situation itself.
The movement
Old response → Present choice
Read the story →The question beneath the question
A client came with what looked like a decision: “Should I remarry?”
The movement
Choosing between options → Framing the life the option belongs to
Read the story →What these stories have in common
The situations are different.
The work is different.
But the movement often begins in the same place:
Something becomes visible that was not visible before.
- A pattern.
- An assumption.
- A role someone has been playing.
- A question underneath the question.
- A possibility they had not yet given themselves permission to act on.
That new seeing does not solve everything.
But it changes what becomes possible next.