The objectives of call 2 were:
– To deepen Explorers’ understanding of Essence, especially in the context of philanthropy.
– For Explorers to get to know each other more deeply.
– To start thinking about the Elements that emanate from Essence.
Explorers came to the call having been twinned with each other over the previous month to talk about Essence as each of them drew their Essence map. This is a very diverse group, some of the Explorers in their twinning were crossing huge divides in our current world, so they are already talking about uncomfortable issues with courage and patience.
On call 2 there were big insights on Essence. I will come back to these.
They also discussed the very basic question: is leadership in philanthropy really that different from leadership in other contexts? It’s too early in our expedition to land a definitive answer but many expressed the following thoughts on why it is different:
– Philanthropic leadership is deeply rooted in purpose.
– It is more directly connected to each philanthropist’s Essence.
– Motherness influences philanthropic leadership – helpfully and unhelpfully – as they seek to care for those who have tough lives
– For a philanthropist, their own Trauma is likely to influence their leadership. They will also need to factor in the trauma grantees are likely to have experienced, into how they lead as philanthropists.
– There is a deep power imbalance between philanthropist and grantee that requires deep sensitivity to uneven power dynamics
– Philanthropy is likely to require continual consensus
– Philanthropists know there is no end game, no end state to get to, the size and complexity of the task means it cannot ever be fully achieved
So back to Essence. They thought hard about the seven pieces of Essence and then added some more pieces of their own. Throughout the conversation, Explorers observed how interconnected and overlapping the pieces are and how their relative importance changes over time. Here are some of their insights on the pieces of their Essence:
Motherness
Almost all Explorers had this as a significant piece of their Essence. One Explorer said that it almost ‘re organises all the other Essences’. They recognised that motherness is helpful but also can be unhelpful:
– if it doesn’t evolve to reflect the different needs of people at different stages.
– if it turns to smotherness and so takes away people’s agency.
– for one Explorer, it made her a fully engaged leader, almost fierce, and this can be quite daunting. For another Explorer, it made her feel the need to be steady and capable, and this can be quite restricting.
Education
The other piece of Essence many explorers thought was foundational was education, formal and informal. They wanted though to re name it ‘learning’ because they observe many people full of learning who have had no formal education.
They thought that because education is so central to Explorers’ Essence, it is not surprising that it features strong in their philanthropy.
Nature
For some Explorers, nature is important in their Essence. They feel it’s remarkable regenerative powers and in the same breath its destructive capacity. They talked about trees, with their self repairing skills and their ability to connect to and support each other. Nature for many Explorers reinforced the cyclical nature of things, some used the expression ‘NI: natural intelligence’. This cyclical theme remained with Explorers as some talked about body as a piece of their Essence.
Sacred
Few Explorers mentioned Sacred. It was curious in it’s absence, to the extent that a few explorers shared just how crucial it is to them. They recognise that others may see it as destructive, but to many it is a central piece of Essence.
Trauma
Explorers talked about trauma a great deal.
For some it holds them back, for others it propels them forward.
For some it is a source of guilt, for others a source of gratitude.
Some deal with it by turning to humour, others have become stoic and even fearless.
Some have learnt to live with trauma , expecting nothing different.
Some feel in the shadows of the high expectations of ancestors who lived through trauma.
Many agreed that trauma changes you but not your goal. And that they sometimes underestimate – especially as a philanthropist – the massive impact of trauma and how differently people respond to it.
Three pieces of Essence were then added (1) physical place (which is often linked with being a place associated with trauma or ancesters) (2) creativity and beauty (3) rythmic (encompassing dance and sport).
I left the call with someone’s voice in my head (not sure whose): ‘we need to help each other to be a minority in a world where majority rules’ and another explorer quoted an African proverb ‘until the lion learns to write, every story will glorify the hunter’.
