CCK08: Connecting for Change: The New Role of Educators

Christy Tucker took great notes from the recorded discussion and the backchanneling of participants.

My top 10 takeaways:

1. Communities are the basis for change, and what they need more than anything now is excellent stewardship. Facilitators, please stand up.
2. The great value of networks is that they enable groups of people to organize, collaborate, do the work each is best at, and share the work needed to bring about the change, and then show others its value.
3. Change has to start with an identified need, not with a good idea. Generally, we only change when we must. Listen for needs.
4. We need to create safe places to explore and work on bold ideas. Skunkworks can often accomplish more than large amounts of funding.
5. Change, like great research, begins with asking important questions, and provoking respondents to self-change instead of trying to persuade or impose it.
6. To bring about change, be prepared to work with people, listen and understand what works and what is important for them, and engage them in ways they see value in and relate to. And be totally, brutally honest about what you don’t know, aren’t sure about, or difficulties in the path of desired change. And stay open to other ideas and concerns.
7. If you want to accomplish great change, give up the idea of getting the credit for it.
8. Experiment. The best, profound changes come from masses of iterative learning and exploration of possibilities.
9. Create the starting conditions for momentum, enthusiasm, sufficient resources, the right people, and don’t worry about outcomes.
10. Make it easy. When you make it easier to change, to do the right thing, it will succeed more quickly and profoundly than if it requires a lot of work from every person.

PS: I’ve switched to a Mac today, and it doesn’t seem to support my my blog on the ancient creaky Radio Userland platform, so if I’m down for a fewdays, bear with me.