With the combination of fear, violence and mean-spirited rhetoric arising from the tragedy in Arizona, it is ironic, if perfect timing, that today would be Martin Luther King, Jr. Day.
Throughout the 1950s and '60s, Dr. King inspired many in this country to imagine a world where freedom, brotherhood and equality were the commonplace texture of relationships, discourse and societal interactions. He encouraged us not only to dream but to act on those dreams. His inspiration and actions serve as a reminder that no matter the situation or the odds, there are still steps you can take to make a difference, to find a way to overcome what's in the way, to work around the numerous obstacles.
We all know his famous "I Have a Dream" speech, delivered on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., that summer's day, Aug. 28, 1963. Excerpted from that stirring moment are these powerful words, equally as relevant today as they were in 1963:
I have a dream today. ... With this faith we will be able to hew out of the mountain of despair a stone of hope. With this faith we will be able to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood.
Clearly, we still have jangling discords that are tearing away at our social fabric. Racism has not gone away, and people continue to bring violence toward one another. What many of us may not know, however, is Dr. King's deeply held conviction that we are all connected, that what one of us suffers impinges on the well-being of another. As he said in his Commencement address to Oberlin College in June 1965:
All I'm saying is simply this: that all life is interrelated, that somehow we're caught in an inescapable network of mutuality tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly affects all indirectly. For some strange reason, I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be. You can never be what you ought to be until I am what I ought to be. This is the interrelated structure of reality.
Martin Luther King not only taught us that dreams require commitment in order to come true, but that if freedom is the outcome, love is the way. He did not preach of a love found in the safety of our homes but of a love demonstrated in active engagement with the world. His was not a love that you could earn but a love born of the realization that without love, there would be no life. In a sermon entitled "Strength to Love," delivered in 1963, he said:
Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that. Hate multiplies hate, violence multiplies violence, and toughness multiplies toughness in a descending spiral of destruction. ... The chain reaction of evil -- hate begetting hate, wars producing more wars -- must be broken, or we shall be plunged into the dark abyss of annihilation.
(As perfect timing would have it, Marci Shimoff has a new bestselling book out, "Love for No Reason." While the book delves into the personal and transformational side of love, it strikes me as something we could well marry with the inspiration of Martin Luther King and perhaps rise to another level of interconnection between people.)
Lessons We Can All Apply to Overcome What Stands in Our Way
In many ways my new book, "Workarounds That Work: How to Conquer Anything That Stands in Your Way at Work," was inspired by the commitment and courage of Martin Luther King, Jr. I walked many a strike line at Berkeley and San Francisco State, ate my share of tear gas, and came to my own awakening that "if you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem." Eldridge Cleaver made that quote famous at the same time that Dr. King was daring us to dream.
From those days of social strife and cultural change, I learned several powerful strategies to help one overcome whatever might be preventing him or her from moving ahead in life. Those lessons and strategies have become integral to how I live my own life and to the work I have done for four decades now helping people create the lives they want rather than the lives they settle for.
The advice contained in my book had its earliest roots in the influence of Dr. King, and the advice applies equally well to your personal life as to life on the job. There are three key principles in creating workarounds that work: intention, accountability and response-ability.
The "I Have a Dream" speech is a riveting example of holding a clear intention and a strong focus on a desired outcome. Without a clear vision of where you are heading, how can you possibly choose a path forward?
However, vision without commitment is hardly a dream worth dreaming. Dr. King not only had a powerful intention made clear in his "Dream" speech, but he also demonstrated a profound willingness to be accountable. Accountability in this instance does not have anything to do with blame or fault; rather, Dr. King's advocated a kind of accountability that I call one's willingness to own the outcome. Indeed, he demonstrated an unwavering commitment to own the outcome of peace and freedom reflected in his dream.
Response-ability is the simple yet sometimes evasive element that enables the dream to come true. In any situation requiring change, there are multiple options (responses) from which you might choose coupled with differentiated abilities you might possess to exercise those responses. Dr. King did not have what I call a "perfectionally correct" choice available, one that would easily and effortlessly produce the desired outcome. He did, however, have a "directionally correct" choice available.
My favorite workaround question is so clearly highlighted by the choices Dr. King made repeatedly: what can you do that would make a difference that requires no one's permission other than your own? While he did not have a perfect choice available, he did exercise what limited control he did have: he held strong to his values, nourished his dream and took those non-violent steps available to him. He clearly understood that by doing what he could, no matter how apparently small and inconsequential the step, he would be encouraging others to take whatever small steps they might have available, as well.
By controlling what he could and demonstrating his willingness to remain actively involved in making his dream a reality, Dr. King influenced first a small band of followers, and eventually an entire nation, to move forward.
By learning from Dr. King and applying his courage to your own life, you can, indeed, make a difference. Perhaps the difference you can make will rise to the level of consequence that Dr. King was able to put into motion for a nation. For most, the difference you can make will be in the quality of your own life. Hold the intention to do so, own the outcome you seek, and do what you can to make that difference. From there, you may be able to influence others to make similar improvements, as well. As Dr. King said in Oberlin, "Whatever affects one directly affects all indirectly."
Please leave a comment here, or drop me an e-mail to let me know your experience.
If you would like a free chapter of Russell's new book, "Workaround That Work: How To Conquer Anything That Stands in Your Way At Work," click here.
If you would like to hear him speak on the subject of "Workarounds That Work," join him in Santa Monica on Jan. 26, 2011 for a combination speech and interactive workshop. Click here for more information.
Russell Bishop is an educational psychologist, author, executive coach and management consultant based in Santa Barbara, Calif. His new book, "Workarounds That Work: How to Conquer Anything That Stands in Your Way at Work," is now available in bookstores and online. You can find out more about Russell at www.russellbishop.com. You can also download a free chapter of his new book by going to www.russellbishop.com and clicking "Download a free chapter." Contact Russell by e-mail at russell@russellbishop.com.
Follow Russell Bishop on Twitter: www.twitter.com/Russell_Bishop
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The idea of giving yourself permission to control your actions, understanding that you are the only one who can, is critical to addressing with courage, the issue at hand. Too many believe roadblocks are barriers rather than detour signs,
Dr. King saw each obstacle or challenge, more as a choice than a barrier. To me, the first step in a workaround involves realizing the existence of, and making a commitment to your choice, which virtually always exists. I have seen it in action on a small scale within families. One person makes a choice, a change to address a problem, and their action, and commitment to the change draws in other family members... it can "go viral" in the family.
There are those who claim nothing has changed since Dr. King's death in 1968. That is of course not true. As an personal example: My grandfather was a Sheriff in South Georgia with stereotypical beliefs, many of which were passed to my father, who ran a factory where blacks and whites used separate lunch rooms and bathrooms, however, neither myself nor my kids harbor the racial attitudes reflected during those times. More importantly, we understand why, and that we are not alone.
The reason why is largely attributable to Dr. King’s efforts: his dream, his vision, and his methods used to work around the obstacles. There is still path ahead, but we are on our way.
Timely article; well said... thanks,
Lawson Meadows
To me he was my grandfather since I never met my real ones, and he treated my like his grandchild.
So the kind of hatred I saw here in this country was foreign to me.
As I learned about this country it became clear, of course. Salvery, civil rights or lack thereof I should say.
But now, 50 years after I came over, I still can't figure out why some folks in this country still insist on carrying this burden, this rather heavey cross of hatred and bigotry.
MLK was great, and he died trying to make this a better place for all. A celebration of his life is really great to have. This country still has a long way to go, but we make strides every day, one day at a time, one life at a time.
MLK was decidedly not a workaround kind of guy. He was a direct confrontation kind of guy, who would not make peace with a corrupt system and who thought that those who did were actually the biggest part of the problem. He knew that his choice to confront systematic evil directly was going to cost him his life.
Here are his words, from the Birmingham jail:
---
I must make two honest confessions to you, my Christian and Jewish brothers. First, I must confess that over the past few years I have been gravely disappointed with the white moderate. I have almost reached the regrettable conclusion that the Negro's great stumbling block in his stride toward freedom is not the White Citizen's Counciler or the Ku Klux Klanner, but the white moderate, who is more devoted to "order" than to justice; who prefers a negative peace which is the absence of tension to a positive peace which is the presence of justice; who constantly says: "I agree with you in the goal you seek, but I cannot agree with your methods of direct action"; who paternalistically believes he can set the timetable for another man's freedom; who lives by a mythical concept of time and who constantly advises the Negro to wait for a "more convenient season." Shallow understanding from people of good will is more frustrating than absolute misunderstanding from people of ill will. Lukewarm acceptance is much more bewildering than outright rejection.
The very first principle of a workaround is to do what you can to make a difference requiring no one's permission other than your own. Clearly, Dr. King did that. The second principle is to seek to influence others to join the process. Clearly, Dr. Kind did that. The third principle is to then respond to external circumstances having controlled what you can and influenced what you can. Clearly, Dr. King did that.
I hope and indeed pray that you can heal whatever it is that impels you to attack.
Blessings to you.
Before you offer to take that speck out of his eye, perhaps you need to check your own.
I was 18 years old in the Spring of 1968 and heading off to college in September.
I was a white kid living in South Carolina.
In my mostly white "technicalÂÂly" integrated school, I heard a lot of talk from other students about that "n________Â_ " who was "a rebel, a malcontentÂÂ, a rabble-rouÂÂser, a communist" and much more. My parents and their friends were well educated and professionÂÂal. Their language about him was less offensive but still largely negative. They said that he was not doing "things" the "right way" and that all he was causing was "trouble for his own people."
I did not agree. Nor did most of my friends.
You see, I and five of my friends and a minister had traveled to Selma, Alabama on March 24, 1965 when I was a sophomore to take part in a march from Selma, Alabama to the state capital, Montgomery the next day. Our parents did not know where we were going. We had sold them a bill of goods about doing some volunteer work in Georgia.
We were scared. Two previous attempts had been blocked by the courts, by the police and by angry mobs. But the minister was someone we trusted. This third march succeeded and at the end of a long march with angry crowds of white folks on both sides screaming threats at us, and smaller crowds of black folk standing in silent support we made it to MontgomeryÂ.
We were safe. March organizers put us in the midst of a large church group and we walked with them, singing, chanting, and holding up signs. The signs were about integratioÂÂn, the war in Vietnam and the plight of poor people. It was no longer just about black people.
At the foot of the steps of the state capital, we stood and heard Dr. King deliver one of his most powerful speeches: "How Long, Not Long".
These words from that speech remained in my heart from that day on.
It is why I am a progressivÂÂe today. Rest in Peace, Dr. King.
Thank you for your kind comment.
But Dr. King's speech wasn't in the immediate aftermath of an assassination. It would have seemed like excessive moralizing if the president had explained that he can never be what he ought to be until everybody else is what they ought to be.
Or would it have been too modest to say that? It doesn't matter. It has already been said. It's part of our shared knowledge.
Accountability: Acknowledge fear of math and bookkeeping
Response-ability: Take a course in basic accounting
Intention: Move to France
Accountability: Fear of leaving friends and family in U.S.
Response-ability: revisit France as a wiser adult to see if it's still "all that."
As far as I can tell, accounting is actually a good way to learn math - because ultimately math really IS bean-counting. It just so happens that bean-counting is a LOT more difficult than anybody dares to imagine...
Plus: France is already no longer 'all that.'
  – I John
There are great lessons to learn from what you say
I hope your book :
Workarounds That Work: How to Conquer Anything That Stands in Your Way
reaches many :-))
Luvluv -
Ed