Rear Richard Holloway and friends,
Richard asked
>as a self-confessed agent of change, I would like to know where this
>obligation to change others comes from?
As a confessed change agent you acquire the obligation. You are to live
up to what you claim to be. Even deeper than that, we human animals have
an obligation to continue our species. This obligates us to teach,
change, our offspring into creatures that are able to survive through to
reproduction. This is purposefully expressed in the most primitive sense
and reflects your next thought....
>It's possible that this need to make change simply reflects that we are
>part of this world...
We need no more than that. We are changing people, changing their
beliefs. First we change the beliefs of the young from complete
dependence to strategies for independence then we try to change them into
beliefs of collaboration in communities to achieve goals not possible as
individuals. Goals like killing an elephant or making an automobile.
>a system where change is a characteristic of life.
Yes this is a reason to change people also, but it is beyond the primitive
survival stage. Note that we can change beliefs to ones that slow the
pace of systemic change or to ones that try to accommodate the human to
increased pace of change. I say try because, I think, that in some cases
we in the industrialized world are outstripping the human ability to make
the psychological and physiological change at the rate demanded by the
"system".
>Perhaps it reflects our god-state, or our divine spark (or our need to
>"monkey around").
Yes, in some cultures this is a god driven responsibility. The whole
evangelical movement of any religion is based on a set of beliefs that
they must change the world. The peace movement of the 1960s in the USA
reselted from this inate spiritual core.
>But being a change agent is less than I wish to be, and more. I would
>prefer (and hope I am to some extent) to be a change rider, like a surfer
>who rides waves or a sky diver who rides the air currents.
Is this a wish to be a follower of a larger culture as it changes? Is it
not participating in directing the force that creates the wave?
>I don't care to just go around making others into myself or recreating the
>world into the model I've adopted or devised (which is too often the role
>of change-agents).
Am I right in reading this as a contridiction of your last thought? I
read this as - you don't want to just ride the wave????
IMHO there are too many people, at least in the USA, who have chosen to
just ride the wave. It manifests itself in falling engagement in the
political process and increased effort to get out of this (whatever
situation) what I can for me. I see it in grossly disproportional
remuneration of CEOs as compared to the lowest paid worker in the
community. If one of the attributes of an effective learning, vital
community is the ability of anyone to contribute to the community's
success then 'anyman' (every person) must contribute to the power, speed
and force of the wave all of them are on. (to use your symbol)
With all respect
Bill Hobler
--"William J. Hobler, Jr" <bhobler@worldnet.att.net>
Learning-org -- Hosted by Rick Karash <rkarash@karash.com> Public Dialog on Learning Organizations -- <http://www.learning-org.com>