How to Lead From the Emerging Future
Ever since I came across the work of Otto Scharmer and the Presencing Institute, I’ve been hooked on the concepts of Theory U. In a time when all we know with absolute certainty is that the way forward will have to look radically different than where we came from, leadership is everything.
And not just leadership — but the right kind of leadership.
When I say that, I don’t mean politicians, CEOs, or even community organizers (although their leadership skills are obviously crucial beyond words), but the leadership that lives in all of us.
For what does it mean to gain inspiration, answers, and directions from a world we haven’t seen yet? How do we not just find the courage to act on uncertainty, but continue to navigate unknown territory with curiosity, trust, and an open mind? What, exactly, will it take to keep room in our hearts for the unimaginable and pursue the unspoken whispers of tomorrow, knowing (even if we can’t know) that “this” must be the way?
The leadership required now isn’t just about courage. It’s about expanding our consciousness to one that finds guidance in emerging futures. Otto Scharmer calls this presencing — a meaning of sensing into each moment and doing so with utmost presence. Only then, he argues, can we learn from the future as it emerges, and take radical steps into a different world.
Old-style leaders gain knowledge from the past. Transformative leaders lead from the future. It’s leadership that requires a new level of awareness, explained by Scharmers as:
Open mind
Open heart
Open will
Below are the 4 types of listening styles, as detailed in Theory U, that we can learn to work with to raise this level of consciousness. Doing so will benefit all the work that we do, and greatly increase value in the lives we lead as we navigate this territory of uncertainty and change.
» I want to plug a reminder here from The Climate Optimist: Optimism isn’t given, it’s created. The world of tomorrow is wildly uncertain, and we can let that overwhelm us, or use it as our greatest source of inspiration. To practice presencing is to show up for each moment with expansion in our hearts. We recognise that it is in our leadership that new worlds are envisioned, guided, and shaped. We are the practice; we are the optimism forward.
4 Types of Listening
1) “Yeah, I know that already.”
Downloading.
Reconfirming habitual judgements.
“We selectively hear only what we recognise.”
2) “Ooh, look at that!”
Factual listening.
You focus on what differs from what you already know.
Focus shifts from the inner voice of judgment to the data right in front of you.
3) “Oh yes, I know how you feel.”
When we listen empathetically, our perception shifts.
“We move from staring at the objective world of things, figures, and facts into the story of a living being, a living system, and self.” – Otto
This type of listening is about connection and requires an open heart.
4) “I can’t express what I experienced in words. My whole being has slowed down. I feel quieter, more present, and more my real self. I am connected to something larger than myself.”
Generative listening, or listening from the emerging field of the future.
Requires open heart and open will: our capacity to connect to the highest future possibility that wants to emerge.
“You know that you have been operating on the fourth level when, at the end of the conversation, you realize you are no longer the same person you were when you started the conversation.”
When groups begin working from real future possibility, they start to tap into a different social field from what they normally experience. It manifests through a shift in quality of thinking, conversing, and collective action. When that shift happens, people can connect with a deeper source of creativity and knowing and move beyond the patterns of the past.
– Otto Scharmer
Worth Reflecting On:
How do we create environments that nurture this kind of listening, sensing, and presencing?
What are things you could do to tap into your future potential in your everyday life?
