Abstract: Our lives often seem either to operate on autopilot or as chaotic responses to a world run amok. In these situations we revert to a default paradigm based on control—control over our environment, our relationships, our work, ourselves. Our society teaches us that not only can we be “in control”, but that we should be. To be seen as “out of control” is considered a character or behavioral flaw.  Everywhere we look, elements of the control paradigm are present: goal-setting; management by metrics; focus on security and power; having the “right” friends. We learn that meaning, fulfillment, spirituality are all too soft, too emotional for a hard world. Yet in the deepest recesses of our own psyche, we’re unsure of ourselves, uncertain that we are on the right path. We want our lives to mean something, but all the models we develop don’t help us with these doubts that pop up in our moments of reflection and dreams, unbidden but real, unmeasurable yet relevant, “fuzzying” up the crisp boundaries of our lives. Why don’t our mental models work? Why do we feel out of control? How can we make a difference?

Deb & Doug have asked themselves these questions and others dealing with success, happiness, and love. Their discoveries through observation and experience suggest that today’s default paradigm of control fails to engage in the type of inquiry that leads to more questions, rather than just answers. Models designed to get answers provide structure and have often proven successful in industrial design processes, where organizational symmetry and efficiency are valued. Models for our lives, however, need to encourage more questions, reflect the inefficiencies present in our environment, and develop feedback in unstructured yet systemic ways—feedback that can help us to learn not only what we know we don’t know, but also to become aware of what we are unaware of, even if only darkly. These models may resemble flow diagrams that incorporate immeasurables, that comprehend but don’t depend on time, that don’t end with answers or solutions, but suggest more questions, more avenues for inquiry into the areas of our lives that matter the most to us. Deb & Doug are learning that control simplifies, but that inquiry clarifies. For them, and maybe for you, clarity is often the more desired of the two.

Target Audience: Those that are ready (or merely desire) to receive a slightly off-kilter message of imagining a life—your life—through questions rather than answers, through engaging doubts rather than requiring solutions, through embracing context rather than eliminating challenges. For those who wish to live life to the fullest, with love, in service.

Organizational Issues: Deb & Doug have experience in a variety of organizations, from the largest government agencies to small non-profits. They know that all organizations are at their most effective when 1) the people who work in them believe in what they are doing and 2) the organizational system enables them to act and align with others who share those beliefs. This seminar focuses on the former while inquiring into the complex linkages between people and organizations, and beliefs and systems. Doug predicts seminar discussions regarding leadership, learning, and change are likely to occur, but he’s been wrong before.

Objectives: Deb & Doug hope that seminar participants will leave with more questions than they entered with. Selfishly, they hope that they will too.  (They also hope that we all lose track of time because we’re having too much fun and that Dr. Bellows has to come and tell us to pipe down).

Biography: Deb & Doug grew up wanting to make a difference. They both graduated from West Point, married others, have kids (all adults now), divorced, and generally followed life’s typical script. Then they met each other and began to reimagine their life. After Deb retired from the military, they went on a one-year, fifty-state bicycling tour (see www.dutyhonoramerica.com for details) to raise awareness of veteran and military issues. Following that, they imagined where they wanted to live—some place warm with a view of the ocean and mountains. They live in Hilo, Hawaii. Now they imagine helping others to live and love with energy and joy, to realize their potential and fulfill their dreams.

Contact: Deb at lewisadams80@gmail.com and Doug at 50statecyclist@gmail.com for additional information about this Pre-Conference session. (Or call them from the Hilo airport (808.930.3609) and say, “We’re here!” They’ll be by to gather you up in ten minutes.)