Advocacy is described as taking a stand that would bring assistance, advancement, encouragement, recommendation, or a sense of urgency on behalf of something or someone.
Dictionary.com tells us that Advocacy is the act of pleading for, supporting, or recommending; active espousal.
I want to suggest to you today that if you are not putting forth the effort to do a thorough inquiry into the perspectives of the people you are attempting to influence, your advocacy is, or will soon be, incompetent.
To promote, encourage, and champion a cause that is of any real value we will be required to convince people to learn something new. Our job as leaders and advocates is to be the vision champions, lead learners, and the chief inquiry experts. If people in our care don’t think we are willing to learn or grow with them we will become tyrants to them.
Would you join me in an effort to grow in the skill of inquiry?
If so, take this challenge:
This week: I will talk with someone about a controversial issue that I do not have a strong stance on and use these questions to assess my capacity for inquiry.
Before I speak on the subject I will ask myself:
– Have I achieved perfect knowledge in this matter?
– Am I open to continued learning?
– What inferences or assumptions am I making?
– What is the observable data I’m using to form my conclusions
– How has my thinking changed on this matter since learning new information?
– Who has helped me explore and challenge the data and my assumptions, inferences, and conclusions?
As I engage with others on the subject:
– Am I asking about their view honestly?
– Am I seeking to truly understand their conclusions?
– Do I explore, listen and offer my own perspective with a growth mindset?
– Do I listen for a larger meaning that could be emerging that would have gone undiscovered without the open sharing of thinking and perspective?
This month: I will listen closely to someone who is clearly on the opposing side of something I believe in strongly and only ask questions to better understand their perspective.
I believe that sharing what we learn is vital for the growth and health of our people. If you choose to join in with me on this practice of inquiry please come back and share what you’ve learned about advocacy and inquiry.