My journey, a bit more from kirstin...
It seems I have an unusual capacity for the mundane; I am never happier than when barefoot, or with my hands in the soil. As I stand between my three children and their uncertain future on the one hand, and my loving parents who feel the shame of what has come to pass during their lifetimes on the other, I breathe and try to be quiet for long enough to hear what my soul is asking of me.
Having qualified as a psychologist and built my career working with automotive, energy, aviation, finance, luxury goods, insurance and other organisations across the world over the past 30 years, today I am committed to helping people step courageously, consciously, into a different kind of leadership.
During my early corporate years, I devoted myself to work that held an achingly narrow definition of success across a frighteningly short time horizon. Then, introduced by a dear colleague to the work of The Pachamama Alliance in the US and the Be The Change Initiative in the UK, I awoke to the seriousness of the climate, ecological, social, spiritual and other crises we face and my heart broke wide open.
Ever since, I have travelled through each day with blessed unrest, carrying as both a burden and a sacred privilege my search for the part(s) I have to play in the essential re-patterning of life. Alongside hard work, skilful competence and well-honed pragmatic instincts I have developed my professional and life crafts by sitting at the feet of mighty teachers.
Over the years, I have learned to access all my ways of knowing, beyond intellect, using my body as a barometer. Slowly, slowly, I have learned to tune into and work more skilfully with systems and their patterns. I have returned to my psychology roots to deepen my understanding of adult development and find great value in practices of collaborative, developmental action-inquiry. I have worked alongside thought leaders and activists at the front line of systems transformation, and I have developed quiet admiration for those corporate leaders seeking to push boundaries as they navigate apparently intractable dilemmas.
I am struck repeatedly by the power and beauty of being in community, and I have come to appreciate the seemingly infinite wisdom of natural systems. I have come to better understand the messy, complex business of transformation and I can find ease in the midst of turbulence and uncertainty.
Having called on diplomacy for rather too much of my adult life, I now speak freely about what I care about. I dare more, and I take more risk - the activist energy of my aunty runs through my veins! I’ve learned to trust in something bigger, and to let go of beliefs such as ‘I should know’ and ‘it’s all down to me’ - such a relief. I’ve invested resources at home into renewable energy generation, scaled up food production and water collection, and continue to talk politics around the dining table. I continue to be a student of humility, and of generosity, and find myself forever exploring the edge of inter-independence.
Having been held, nourished, challenged and inspired by the gentle kindness of many teachers, I am committed to bringing some of the colour and light I have received to others.
Awed by Nature I often find myself lost in wonderment about how things will unfold. I travel in the belief that by helping the human spirit level to rise, I am responding as well as I might to what is being asked of me at this tragic, vital time.
I’m delighted to be growing the Leading Through Storms community with Jake and James, alongside my work as a Partner with Leaders’ Quest and a Consultant with Global Leadership Associates. I love spending time with my family and friends, growing veg and, whenever possible, swimming in the sea.
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