“We are sun and moon, dear friend; we are sea and land. It is not our purpose to become each other; it is to recognize each other, to learn to see the other and honour him for what he is: each the other’s opposite and complement.” (Hermann Hesse, “Narcissus and Goldmund”)
Author: Ioana Marin
The red threads that create sustainable communities
According to a legend, human beings are connected by a red thread, an invisible string that links them to the right person. Our souls are intertwined in a special way and only these types of connections are authentic. Such a story makes us feel good and relaxed, but it can also persuade us into becoming passive and inert in the face of fate, waiting for things to happen.
But what if we expand our perspective and imagine that, in fact, we ourselves can create multiple red threads that bring us closer to many significant people in our lives? If we rethink the story we choose to tell ourselves and decline the concept in both personal and professional lives? We can become the ones whose red threads build communities. In turbulent times, strings can get broken, strained or worn out, so it is essential to discover the strength that holds us close to the community.
Positive Interdependence: the most powerful generator of meaning
Human beings need relational proximity, and the relationships we form in the community are the ones that provide our lives with meaning. However, we live in the age of individualism, which makes us focus more and more on our own person and neglect the collective interests. Although it may sound paradoxical, relational proximity itself is the element that contributes to the development of autonomy and it is the guarantee of a sustainable well-being. Researchers at Harvard Medical School define this type of presence that we choose to offer to other people as “a human moment”, a time when all attention is focused on communicating with the other.
How can we cultivate as many such human moments as possible? By applying positive interdependence on a daily basis. The psychiatrist Christophe André and Rébecca Shankland define this concept in “The Connections That Keep Us Alive. The benefits of positive interdependence” book as “accepting the fact that we are all connected to others and cultivating relationships that give meaning to our existence and foster the quality of life.”
In “Learning together and alone: cooperative, competitive, and individualistic learning”, David Johnson, Roger Johnson and Edythe Holubec consider that there are many types of positive interdependence that can stimulate the cohesion of strong communities, such as:
• goal-based interdependence (success is obtained only if each member of the community has achieved their goals);
• reward-based interdependence (rewarding teamwork);
• role-based interdependence (the existence of interconnected roles that define members’ responsibilities for achieving common goals);
• interdependence based on the fight against a universal external threat (the community’s strength is given by the fight against an issue that has a global impact – such as climate change or the pandemic).
How can we weave solid connections?
David Brooks, columnist for the New York Times, is the creator of the “Weave: The Social Fabric Project” at the Aspen Institute, designed to eliminate the phenomenon of social isolation through community creation. The problem he set out to solve is that collective suffering often comes from the same source: the lack of healthy connections and the inability to accept those around us as a whole, to see each other as we are, issues that lead to fear and mistrust. Issues amplified by the belief that personal development happens autonomously, not in the community and by the hyper-technology that, although it connects us, can disconnect us so much.
The solution identified by Brooks also focuses on the concept of positive interdependence. Interdependent individuals are authentic, open, inclusive, available, and curious. They are the people whom the journalist calls “Weavers”: the ones who weave connections and create communities. “Weavers” understand that change starts at the individual level or from a small group of self-aware people, who inspire and motivate others. The project can be easily implemented in any company that aims to transform the organizational culture from one that values individual success, into one that finds meaning in deep relationships and progress at the level of community. If we expose ourselves and create contexts that encourage positive interdependence, we become better members of the community, better employees, better leaders, and better human beings. Social orientation changes from one “against the others” to one “for the sake of others”.
It is the ideal way to behave when a new person enters our lives. In this manner, we can escape the dichotomous way of seeing the world in black and white, in good or bad, and we can focus on questions such as: “How can we work together? How can we help each other grow? What can I learn from the other?”. Interdependent Leadership: businesses that see the big picture Jay Coen Gilbert, the co-founder of B Lab, stated in a Forbes article that “more than 200 years ago, the Declaration of Independence was made to declare the simple truth that all humans are created equal, a moment that catalysed the spread of freedom like wildfire.” Fourteen years ago, a Declaration of Interdependence was created in order to declare another obvious truth: all humans are connected. With the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic, the B Corp community launched an appeal to all business leaders to join in building a regenerative and inclusive economic system based on collaboration.
Corporations that obtain the B Corp certification are companies that meet the highest standards of social and environmental performance based on complex audits (B Impact Assessment), which attest to the fact that they have a high level of transparency and accountability that balances profit and purpose. As of April 2020, there are over 3,300 certified corporations in 150 industries in 71 countries. Leaders who choose to pass this test do not aim to be the best in the world, but the best for the world. This type of companies accelerates global change to redefine business success and build stronger communities. By leveraging the power of business, B Corp turns profit and growth into a means that serves a more profound goal: generating a positive impact for communities and the environment.
B Corp’s example can be replicated by any company that understands the concept of positive interdependence but, above all, wants to implement it. In this way, the climate of the organization can be improved, learning can be stimulated and the interpersonal skills of stakeholders can be developed. Interdependent leaders inspire teams to enjoy working together, to support and encourage each other to progress. It is an interaction that brings positive results for everyone and places them on the same side of the barricade: the contribution of one is necessary for the success of another.
Sustainability, the North Star we all need
The principle of interdependence is rooted in the idea of sustainability, implying the existence of collective, concerted actions to respond to global challenges and problems. The Sustainable Development Goals support the creation of a network based on collaboration and openness, respect and support diversity and inclusion, guarantee access to education and learning opportunities and motivate any individual to strive to protect the „common home”: the planet. It is time for all business leaders to make a commitment and generate a movement that has a common goal: involvement in the development of communities centered on the principle of positive interdependence that collaborate locally, nationally and globally.
Another sustainable way in which interdependence can be applied in business is to adopt the “tao” of the TED founder, the famous architect and graphic designer Richard Saul Wurman. The principles on which the TED community was founded are based on the idea that diversity and interconnection are a catalyst for creative thinking and finding solutions to society’s problems. More specifically, interdependent companies should promote:
• diversity (to form inclusive, participatory, visionary teams, connected by technology);
• learning (to explore ways to turn the company into a “learning playground”);
• innovation (to reward creativity and solution generation);
• collaboration (to create an environment focused on “cross-pollination”);
• curiosity (to develop events that stimulate the birth and development of ideas).
Another key factor that any interdependent business should include is the encouragement of volunteering among employees. Involvement in such actions improves the well-being of those who offer their help, promotes constructive interactions and increases relational proximity. Good deeds are necessary for our survival and a lasting well-being, representing a source of shared gratitude. The one who helps becomes, in turn, the beneficiary. In addition, positive interdependence is not limited to relationships with other people, but we can talk about a connection with animals or the environment – the closer we get to nature and biodiversity, the more likely we are to make eco-gestures.
Let’s apply the Dandelion Principle
Lulu Miller, journalist and author of “Why Fish Don’t Exist” helps us see the world around us from a different angle. How? By applying the “Dandelion Principle”. Some consider the dandelion a simple weed, but for others, the same plant means so much more: “For a botanist, it is a cure. For a hippie, it is a wreath. For a child, a wish. For a butterfly, a support”. In relation to people, the principle can be explained in this way – a human being can represent much more than what is visible. To discover the world through a single set of lenses means to miss the big picture. By applying interdependence into our personal lives, but also in business, we can discover “intangible, concrete ways in which human beings count on this planet, in society, for each other,” says Miller.
But in order to find out how we are interconnected, we need to stop talking and start listening. Kate Murphy, in “You’re not listening: what you’re missing and why it matters”, believes that when we interact with people we seem to have nothing in common with, we run into a set of prejudices and false assumptions, “we create in our minds files in which we categorize people, even before they start talking. Categories can be broad stereotypes, influenced by our culture, or more individualistic, based on experience. If we are not careful, our haste to categorize and classify can diminish our understanding and distort reality”.
The new post-pandemic social contract: the Declaration of Interdependence The post-pandemic recovery is the proper time to build a new social contract between the business environment and communities, between each individual and his conscious and responsible self. COVID-19 has not only created new social and economic problems, but has exacerbated long-term ones, especially in terms of education, health, climate change, inequality and poverty. The last two years have shown us, in countless ways, that when human beings are united by a common cause, we can help each other rise, through care, compassion, and kindness. That a community built on a foundation of trust and shared values that practices interdependence, resource sharing and empathy can be a solid source of consolation and mutual support that identifies real-time solutions.
Sustainability may be, in fact, a way of existing correctly. A way to understand that your inaction is also a passive action, with negative consequences for future generations. A way to recognize that we have more things that bring us together than the ones that distance us, socially or emotionally. The interdependence that resides in the DNA of sustainability is a fluid process – a harmonious cohabitation that benefits the planet, the people and the environment.
By recognizing interdependence and by knowing how to welcome it with open arms can bring us fulfilment, can make us more powerful, united and intelligent.
Maybe now is the time to listen carefully to what your community is whispering to you, more than you have ever done. Even in the middle of a turbulent year you can be the dandelion that the other needs.
Photo Credit: www.unsplash.com
