I'm finished with reading leadership books for awhile. Not that I have read a lot of them, nor am an expert in the art and science of leadership, but I have read enough of them to...
- know what I don't know.
- know what I should know.
- know what I need to do about it.
At this point it is all about application and execution and for that I just need some time and accountability.
But "Leaders are readers" so I have, instead, immersed myself into other genres and am looking for lessons in random and unrelated places.
Back in the late 90's I had a friend who was studying architecture. I asked him, "what is the ONE book that I should read to appreciate and understand your discipline?"
Without hesitation he recommended How Buildings Learn by futurist/inventor/designer Stewart Brand.
The purpose of Brand's book is to "examine buildings as a whole - not just whole in space, but whole in time". He seeks to observe the relationship between a defined space and the people that inhabit that space. Their relationship creates an environment that can be either liberating or suffocating.
Take a look around you right now.
How does the space you are in make you feel?
Does it support what you want to do or does it dictate to you what can be done?
My place comes with cement walls so it takes an inordinate amount of work to make one small change.
A few months ago I wanted to drill a hole to anchor a picture frame. Even with a pneumatic drill I couldn't penetrate more than a centimeter. Turns out it was steel reinforced cement that encased the elevator shaft. I found another place for the picture.
I bought How Buildings Learn over ten years ago, but am now just getting back to it. I am glad I didn't pick it up any earlier since I only now really have any hooks on which to hang these principles.
There is so much talk around the world about spiritual movements and these movements are often launched and led by churches and organizations.
But what I find myself asking more and more is, "can an entity like that give appropriate support to a movement without suffocating it?"
In the next few posts I will take a look at three types of buildings that Brand talks about- HIGH, LOW, and NO ROAD - and apply it to spiritual movements and the ways that an organization can either release or restrict it.
Before signing off, here are a few questions to set the baseline for our discussion.
1. What three words would you use to describe a Movement?
2. What environment is needed to see a Movement attain critical mass?
3. What environment is needed to support and multiply a Movement?
4. Do you think Organization and Movement can coexist in the same space?
Time to turn out the light for today. Until the next post...
100W
2 comments:
So I've been thinking a lot about what you've said and asked. Very thought provoking stuff. While I struggle to answer the questions you pose, I do have some thoughts.
I haven't read the book, but it seems that learning is something reserved for living things. Therefore, a building can learn if it is living, and it is living in the sens that it shares the same life phases of creation, ageing and ultimately decay. A building can really only function at it's fullest when it is designed with it's inhabitants needs in mind rather than trying to fit inhabitants into a pre-existing building. It might work, but not as well as it would if the building were designed specifically for that inhabitant's need.
Likewise, a movement of God can only be organized by facilitating the work God has already begun rather than the organizing structure determining the movement's direction.
Feed some thoughts back and let me know if I'm tracking here. :)
Here's a link that captures the thought of man-made structures in light of God's creation.
http://andrewryanshepherd.com/blog/2009/04/25/an-order-to-create/
Wes - thanks for leaving a comment and
CONGRATULATIONS!
You are the first to leave a comment on this young blog. Sorry no prizes except the bragging rights.
Excellent thoughts and thanks for contributing to the conversation.
I think you are on the right track in that a building should serve the inhabitants but as we will see in the next few posts that isn't always the case.
I suspect that this is the same thing for the environment of many Churches, Organizations, and Movements
100W
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