I’m a gardener. I love spring, with all its lush smells, seeds bursting with life and the anticipation of warmer days. Winter? I’d rather skip it. Especially the slushy parts.
Lately, however, I’m appreciating how each season is an essential part of the cycle of life. For example, winter is a time when we let go of things that no longer serve us. We rest.
We can think about seasons in our work lives or personal lives too. Sometimes I get stuck in “perennial fall” when I don’t want to let go of things that used to work for me. Or, I may be stuck in “spring”, when I have a lot of ideas but lack the resources to make them grow.
At times like these, I pull out an activity called the Ecocycle. The Ecocycle is based on the cycle of life. It helps me see the big picture and decide on my next steps. It gives me clarity about where to focus my energy, and yes, about what I need to let go of. I can also more easily see one thing, that if I attended to it, would move a lot of other things forward.
For example, looking at my business as a whole, I see clearly what I’m exploring (clean language), implementing (blogging, convergent facilitation), enjoying (liberating structures) and feeling frustrated about (lack of time, perfectionism), and how I can move forward (send emails more regularly).
-- Are you feeling stuck?
-- Do you want to nurture a new idea?
-- Do you wish your team would get on the same page?
-- Do you need to let go of things that are no longer working?
-- Have things have changed and you want to know what to do next?
I invite you to try Ecocycle for yourself. You can download my handout about it by signing up here. For suggestions of how to use Ecocycle in businesses, non-profits, education, government and yourself, see page 5 of the handout.
Try it with your team and let me know how it goes! And if you'd like a demonstration of the Ecocycle, let me know when you’d prefer to meet by using this form. I’ll be scheduling demos soon.