Can You Practice Polarity Thinking? with Cliff Kayser

06/19/20 • 26 min

Cliff Kayser is a consultant who brings 25 years of experience with senior-level OD internal positions with the Washington Post and the National Cooperative Bank, as well as his external consultancies and coaching practice with experienced and successful partners, polarity partnerships and the Institute for the Polarities of Democracy. Cliff is on faculty at American university’s master’s in OD, and a coaching fellow for George Mason University Center for the Advancement of well-being, which is where he and I met.

In this week’s episode, we explore how to balance “either/or” thinking with the need for “and” so we honor competing polarities when it comes to the way we work together.

Connect with Cliff Kayser:

https://www.experienceit.com/

You’ll Learn:

[01:40] - Cliff explains what polarity thinking is and why it matters in workplaces.
[02:26] - Cliff offers some examples of the common polarities workplaces have been grappling with over the last 12 months.
[03:38] - Cliff explains how teams and workplaces can navigate the polarities of “me and we” and “us and them”.
[06:07] - Cliff provides an example of how a healthcare company has navigated the polarities of centralized and decentralized resources.
[10:05] - Cliff shares a case study on polarities of how Charleston Police Department navigate the tension of law enforcement and community engagement.
[15:47] - Cliff explains why polarity thinking is common sense but not common practice.
[18:32] - Cliff shares where OR thinking can be useful.
[22:48] - Louis asks cliff if he’s ready for the lightning round.

Your Resources:

Thanks for listening!

Thanks so much for joining me again this week. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the bottom of this post.

Please leave an honest review of the Making Positive Psychology Work Podcast on iTunes. Ratings and reviews are extremely helpful and greatly appreciated. They do matter in the rankings of the show, and I read each and every one of them. And don’t forget to subscribe to the show on iTunes to get automatic updates. It’s free!

You can also listen to all the episodes of Making Positive Psychology Work streamed directly to your smartphone or iPad through stitcher. No need for downloading or syncing.

Until next time, take care! Thank you, Cliff!

In this week’s episode, we explore how to balance “either/or” thinking with the need for “and” so we honor competing polarities when it comes to the way we work together.

Connect with Cliff Kayser:

https://www.experienceit.com/

You’ll Learn:

[01:40] - Cliff explains what polarity thinking is and why it matters in workplaces.
[02:26] - Cliff offers some examples of the common polarities workplaces have been grappling with over the last 12 months.
[03:38] - Cliff explains how teams and workplaces can navigate the polarities of “me and we” and “us and them”.
[06:07] - Cliff provides an example of how a healthcare company has navigated the polarities of centralized and decentralized resources.
[10:05] - Cliff shares a case study on polarities of how Charleston Police Department navigate the tension of law enforcement and community engagement.
[15:47] - Cliff explains why polarity thinking is common sense but not common practice.
[18:32] - Cliff shares where OR thinking can be useful.
[22:48] - Louis asks cliff if he’s ready for the lightning round.

Your Resources:

Thanks for listening!

Thanks so much for joining me again this week. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the bottom of this post.

You can also listen to all the episodes of Making Positive Psychology Work streamed directly to your smartphone or iPad through stitcher. No need for downloading or syncing.

Until next time, take care! Thank you, Cliff!

Previous Episode

Do You Practice Racial Empathy? with Valorie Burton

Valorie Burton is the founder and CEO of the Coaching and Positive Psychology Institute and a best-selling author, international speaker, and life strategist. Valorie has a master’s in applied positive psychology from the University of Pennsylvania, and her company provides coaching, coach training, and resilience training and has served clients in all 50 American states and 15 countries on six continents. Since 1999, she has written 13 books on personal development, including the best sellers Successful Women Think Differently and What’s Really Holding You Back? And she’s been featured in media outlets around the world.

In this week’s episode, we explore how to practice racial empathy in workplaces and the simple steps workers can take to be respectful and effective white allies.

Connect with Valorie Burton:

https://valorieburton.com/

You’ll Learn:

[03:13] - Valorie explains how the murder of George Floyd caused her to speak out on the need for racial empathy.
[07:28] - Valorie shares why in order to become unstuck on the issue of racism in workplaces we need to start telling the truth.
[11:29] - Valorie helps us understand why it often difficult for people of color to talk about what’s happening and the impact that racism has on them at work.
[15:07] - Valorie offers suggestions for how white allies can help better support people of color in their workplace.
[21:39] - Valorie provides some tips for how people of color – if they wish – can encourage white allies to take action.
[25:16] - Valorie explains people of color often don’t need help from white allies but do need them to listen.
[29:46] - Valorie enters the lightning round.

Your Resources:

Thanks for listening!

Thanks so much for joining me again this week. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the bottom of this post.

You can also listen to all the episodes of Making Positive Psychology Work streamed directly to your smartphone or iPad through stitcher. No need for downloading or syncing.

Until next time, take care! Thank you, Valorie!

Next Episode

Do You Receive Feedback Well? with Sheila Heen

Sheila Heen is an expert on managing difficult negotiations, a lecturer on law at Harvard Law School, and a founder of Triad Consulting. Sheila often partners with executive teams, helping them work through conflict, repair working relationships, and make sound decisions together and her clients include Apple, HSBC, Unilever, and Pixar among others. She is the co-author of the New York Times business bestseller Difficult Conversations: How To Discuss What Matters Most and more recently Thanks For The Feedback: The Science and Art of Receiving Feedback Well (Even When It’s Off-Base, Unfair, Poorly Delivered and Frankly, You’re Not in the Mood).

In this week’s podcast, we explore why receiving feedback can be so challenging at work, and how we can unhook from our feedback triggers to make the most of the gift we are being given.

Connect with Sheila Heen:

https://stoneandheen.com/

You’ll Learn:

[02:45] - Sheila explains why learning to receive feedback is a skill that we should all be building.
[05:29] - Sheila outlines the research findings on how being able to receive feedback impacts people’s performance and wellbeing at work.
[07:37] - Sheila shares the three different triggers that can make hearing feedback difficult to hear.
[11:26] - Sheila explains the three different types of feedback people are given at work and why it helps to be clear about the purpose of the feedback we’re giving and receiving.
[16:07] - Sheila offers tips for us to be present and really hear and make the most of the feedback we’re given.
[20:04] - Sheila explores how growth mindsets can help us lean into giving and receiving feedback better.
[24:09] - Sheila explains why the ability of leaders to receive feedback well helps to improve psychological safety in teams.
[26:33] - Sheila enters for the lightning round.

Your Resources:

MPPW Podcast on Facebook Group

Thanks for listening!

Thanks so much for joining me again this week. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it using the social media buttons you see at the bottom of this post.

You can also listen to all the episodes of Making Positive Psychology Work streamed directly to your smartphone or iPad through stitcher. No need for downloading or syncing.

Until next time, take care! Thank you, Sheila!