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Difference Matters!
Difference Matters!
“Are we just trying to be all things to everyone?” is a question I’ve heard a few times over the last few months, especially as many Active Partnerships are in strategy review and grappling with how they shape their future work to achieve our shared purpose – to tackle inactivity and inequalities across our populations through sport and physical activity.
My honest answer and belief is yes! We probably are and that isn’t necessarily a good thing.
But let me qualify that… that doesn’t mean to me that as a network we couldn’t, and shouldn’t, be engaged with a wide range of causes and using a raft of tactics which all help move us forward to realise our overall ambitions. We’ve seen that happen more over the last few years with the huge change in how Active Partnerships have transformed their thinking and practice, to reach more audiences, achieve wider outcomes, build new relationships and become key strategic players in their local systems.
The conversations have become bigger, as have the networks we seek to influence across e.g. physical and mental health, transport, regeneration, education, social prescribing and integrated care, homelessness, climate change, crime prevention, housing, environments, economic recovery, anti-racism, active spaces, workplaces, workforces, communities and VCSE – to name only a few.
This range of ‘touch points’ to spread the message and bring people together, is enabling APs to vitally position themselves locally as many things – influencers, connectors, advisors, deliverers, funders, advocators, backbone movement organisations – again to name only a few approaches – in order to create sustainable and collective impact.
Subsequently that can lead to concerns that the messaging can become too blurred, learning too extensive, strands of work too broad, results too intangible and consequently workloads too big. And raise further questions around should we be saying no more? Do we need more experts or generalists? How do we report to our Board? Do our partners understand what we’re about anymore?
So having both a clarity of purpose and a breadth of agendas to achieve it, is certainly a fine balancing act. I’ve shared before my learning that all roads will always lead back to our why. Understanding and articulating what matters to us most, what is important about how we work, and how we can best affect societal change to make the difference we need, cannot in my view, be overestimated as the fundamental task we have to do.
But my experiences tell me we don’t all need to do that in the same way.
Consistency, efficiencies, scaling up, uniformity, templated measurement systems and one-size-fits-all solutions used to be what we saw as the way forward to build a strong network. And undeniably we now certainly have strong foundations as a collective network.
But we also now recognise that this doesn’t necessarily work for the many, across our many places.
Clearly that doesn’t negate the need to understand what works together, share learning across us and join up where expertise saves us ‘re-inventing the wheel’. And it still means that having common purpose, aligned values and working collaboratively remain the building blocks to achieve meaningful change on systemic levels. But we must also recognise that we need to do this in our own places, with the right people, doing their right work, at their right time to achieve their right outcomes for their unique systems.
For some that may mean strategically influencing in certain places, whilst being a more of a connector in others. For some, where system partners require impact reporting to leverage in opportunities on a local level, providing evidence led evaluation processes works. For some to demonstrate progress, improvement and the value of relationships, developing strong learning cultures and good practice moves thinking on. For some kick-starting change through investment may be the catalyst needed. For others creating space to start conversations might make the difference.
Surely this rightly will not, and should not, look the same for all – nor be developed at the same pace in the same way by the same people. Its about being different things to different people in different places in different times in different ways. This could be true within an AP’s own geography but will certainly be true across the whole network.
Hence my answer to the opening question or this blog – we simply don’t need to be all things to everyone in the same way.
So how can we learn to value our differences?
Well we’ve learnt as a society that human problems require human solutions. Whether its through working with ‘human learning systems’ or’ people centred approaches’ we rightly appreciate that its our people who are, and will continue to be, the known secret of our success.
Our systems are made up of people. And our people are individuals. Made up of their own values, histories, experiences, preferences and needs. And that’s before you layer on personal skills, competencies and behaviours.
Remember, when we describe our work with words such as flexible, relentless, simple or complex we are often doing it through our own lens of preferences. Because of course where some see chaos, others see order. Where some see messy-ness , others see patterns. Where some see a 6 in the visual, others see a 9. Its perspective. As the old adage says ‘we don’t see things as they are, but see things as we are’. But we don’t have to metaphorically walk in others’ shoes to understand them – we can ask questions, listen to answers and be responsive to what we see, hear and feel.
Our leaders have moved significantly in recognising that diversity and inclusion is the key to creating innovative, fair, equitable, happy and motivating working environments. Ones in which different voices, lived experiences, backgrounds, cultures, ethnicities, ages, disabilities, genders, religions, races and beliefs are valued and used to enable everyone to thrive.
But the value of difference when working in environments where change is almost perpetual, goes even deeper than this. It isn’t enough just to accept difference but use it – to flex, adapt, be agile, resilient and capable of driving and handling change successfully.
So by not only celebrating but actively making the most of the different styles, skills-sets, mindsets, learning profiles, preferences, needs and expertise across our people, we can shape transition and change by utilising our people where and when they are at their best.
It’s natural that people respond best to change when they feel a part of it. Taking people ‘with us’ on our journeys rather than ‘doing it to’ people makes change feel not only easier to implement but also more significant to all.
Nevertheless, not everyone needs to be involved in everything in the same way from the start through to the finish– people can be engaged at points where, when and how they can add most value.
Some can sit comfortably in those uncomfortable intangible condition-setting conversations. Some through delivering strong outputs. Some can drive change being bold and quick independent decision makers. Some can connect into people’s emotions and sense when we may need to slow down or gain more clarity before moving forward. Some add value by listening. Some by questioning. Some respond better to structure and detail. Some to holding on to the big picture. Some need people around them. Some need process. Each person responds to change in different ways and at a difference pace!
We have a tendency as leaders to try to equalise people out with set standards, goals and processes. But if we try more to understand how we tap into our people’s needs to make the most of our individual strengths, we can enable all our people to add value differently at different times – whilst still ensuring everyone can see where their piece of the jigsaw contributes to us achieving our overarching aims.
So, let’s celebrate and value our differences across our local systems, national network and within our teams. Let’s learn from each other recognising that the purpose of learning isn’t just to affirm the ‘right way to do it’ but to evolve it. Let’s value what sets us apart from each other, support one another to be at their best and enable everyone to contribute through our unique and individual, as well as collective, strengths.
And demonstrate that difference really does matter!