Yesterday I reflected how Working Out Loud has given me the gift of a network, and a network effect, across the globe. I am dialled in and dialled up by the immense collective learning and sharing of my network.

But what about inside the organization? Trickier.

#WOLyo! is <– tensioning –> my experience of work inside the organization too, but without, yet, the breakthrough moments I have had in my broader network. I am trying different ways to do it, both technology-enabled and physically-actioned.

I participate fully on our yammer ESN, even setting up a Curiosity group to share stuff about people and leadership and change and organizational learning. I poke people and leaders and teams throughout the organization, often annoyingly, about “What else?”

I worked #UnderTheStairs for a week to showcase my work and process and to stim the office. I asked people to connect up their office network on a big poster on the kitchen wall.

Last week, I held a lunchtime run through of a recent trip to Australia. 35 slides of photos of the people and places I visited, of my learning and understanding.

I had been ordering and reordering my thoughts live while I was there, trying to understand and maximize my experience, to take down and away as much richness and context as possible. Sense-making. Why not share that with others, so there might be a little osmosis of understanding?

So, I posted this note on the Vancouver yammer group

Now, my last experience under the stairs had built real muscle about acceptance. The people – or in one case, the person – who show up are the ones who should show up. There is no time for, or value in, ‘disappointment.’

I know how to cajole, threaten, and poke 20 people to turn up to a meeting. The point of working out loud is not to garner acclaim, it is make new unexpected nodal connections. If we knew who needed to know what and when all the time, then probably we have something crazy happening in our workplace.

So, come Friday, 5 people showed up, from 180-odd. All good! The presentation went longer than I expected, and there were a few good follow-up questions to different parts.

The feedback on the network was positive. I enjoyed it. It didn’t feel like wasted time. It felt valuable, not that I have calculated a firm Return on Investment, as we are wont to do on our projects!

I put myself out there, and to a little avail! All good. And we move on.

What else? What’s next?

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