Impact

“Don’t compromise yourself. You’re all you’ve got.”

Can I be the difference that makes a difference?

I’ve been starting to pay more attention to my plans for next year and feel familiar sensations of excitement, ambivalence and conflict.

Torn by a working life that feels riddled with compromise and concession, my commitment to reduce my ecological impact will be undone in just a few hours by a single long haul flight.

So a project to bring executives together from around the world for a meeting on a distant continent really pulls at my ethics.

We’ve learned a lot about virtual working over the last few years and I’m determined that I will only facilitate face to face gatherings when the work absolutely requires it and… I have good travel options. Hmmm… Yes, I’m convinced our meeting will be a good use of a face-to-face intervention. Yes, we will do valuable, socially oriented work that is desperately needed.

But my ecological intentions are still left in tatters.

The German philosopher Martin Heidegger says that we are ‘thrown’ into the world in ways we don’t choose and that we cannot live independently from it; we are each entangled within the connections that configure our lives. In the same way that environmental protestors block roads as they wear clothing made of oil, I will cause ecological damage as I travel to do my part in making the world a better place. It’s an uncomfortable compromise which calls my overall impact into question.

According to Heidegger, we move towards more authentic ways of living as we take concrete action in accordance with the possibilities we see. We are both ‘thrown’ into the world and we can ‘throw off’ the conditions we endure.

Which reminds me that I don’t need to be perfect to make an impact in the world but, ultimately, I do need to make a difference.

Notes:

‘The difference that makes a difference’ is a phrase coined by systems thinker Gregory Bateson in his work on the complexity of information. As I try to help people find the small moments of insight that unlock other possibilities, I know this is modest, humble work. But from my own experience, it seems to be the small, caring gestures that make all the difference. Have a look at Bateson’s ‘Steps to an Ecology of Mind.’

If, after Bateson, you’re ready for some heavy reading then Heidegger’s ‘Being and Time’ could be for you. But don’t underestimate it and starting with some less demanding critiques and simplified extracts of his work (found easily on the www) are really helpful.

Finally, Martin Heidegger lived a controversial life at an interesting time in history (aren’t they all…!). His Wikipedia entry is fascinating.