BFTP: Embracing your inner confusion
Sunday, August 21, 2011 at 06:38AM A weekend Blue Skunk "feature" will be a revision of an old post. I'm calling this BFTP: Blast from the Past. Original post, September 16, 2006.
On reflection, I believe the Jentz and Murphy article has had more impact on how I deal with change and problems than anything I've read. Take a few minutes with it - you'll be glad you did.
A teacher commented on my e-mail signature quote last week:
The mind that is not baffled is not employed. The impeded stream is the one that sings. Wendell Berry
The mention brought to mind an excellent article that appeared in the January 2005 Kappan magazine that I reread this weekend. "Embracing Confusion: What Leaders Do When They Don't Know What to Do" by Barry C. Jentz and Jerome T. Murphy.
The article recommends strategies for leaders who encounter situations which simply catch them off guard, had the "rug pulled out" from under their feet. The authors write that we do NOT want a leader in such situations who:
- instinctively blames circumstances or other people when things go wrong;
- says he is open to input but regards any feedback as criticism and doesn't listen to others;
- hates uncertainty and opts for action even when totally confused; or
- takes a polarized view of leadership in which anything less than take-charge decision making shows abject weakness.
Jentz and Murphy go on to suggest using the five step RIA (Reflective Inquiry and Action) model in "confusing" situations:
- Embrace your confusion.
- Assert your need to make sense.
- Structure the interaction.
- Listen reflectively and learn.
- Openly process your effort to make sense.
Most of us who work in technology and education experience confusion on nearly a daily basis. Well, at least I do. In fact I seemed to grow more confused about life in general the older I get.
Yet new challenges, problems, and even confusion certainly keep one's life and job from getting boring. Reacting constructively and positively to puzzling situations is healthy for both ourselves and for those with whom we work.
What do you do when you just don't know what to do?
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