After a slightly difficult night’s sleep in student accommodation (I remember now what I really didn’t like about university) I am woken up by a sense of excitement of what the day is going to hold in particular the trip to St. James Palace.
But long before that event, there is a lot to do, not least convince some of my colleagues that we are in the height of spring and although the temperature is a mere 5 degrees it really is quite warm 🙂
So this morning we start with a talk from Julie Middleton who is the founder and Chief Executive of the Common purpose charitable trust. A passionate individual her talk is about “Cultural Intelligence” which she believes is the competitive edge for leaders crossing boundaries.
Julie has written a book on Cultural Intelligence and describes it in its simplest form, as a deep and genuine interest in other people, together with the belief that whoever you are and whatever position of influence or leadership you hold, you can learn from them.
CQ looks at the interconnection of the world around us and how to fully communicate with people from all different cultures. This description resonates with me deeply, as at its core, for those of you who have studied RSI (relationship System intelligence) is about focusing on the collective wisdom of the group, team and system (Communities, cities, people and the world) to create, to innovate and to lead.
Julie talks about the idea that to cross divides, and thrive in multiple cultures you need to understand yourself, what behaviours, skills, capabilities, values, beliefs, identity, spirit is core to who you are and what defines you (things that are hard to change) “Their solidity is your strength”
And then what is your flex, those things that will change. Things that will adapt to circumstances, or to people or other cultures. “Their fluidity is equally your strength”
To explore these two positions means you need to constantly review what is core and flex to you, but how you can also find strength in cultural intolerance, those moments where you will stand up to those that offer you the opposite to CQ.
It is an incredibly powerful message and one that I cannot do justice on a short blog. But one that challenges your thinking and builds you as a leader to have courageous discussions and more importantly make courageous decisions
This brings me to something I have been grappling with all day, the idea that often as human beings we are so busy focusing on “semantics” we forget the real reason for coming together. Over the last two days we have debated what is “smart” and what the definition of a “city” is and I believe we are asking the wrong question.
Smart and City mean different things to different people, and so looking for utopia, a blueprint of perfection is not necessarily the answer.
During my stakeholder interview’s I was told that vision for Smart Cities, let’s be clear “communities” if it is all about people, is “A menu of infinite opportunities and experiences”. It is the word “infinite” that brings this to life, the idea that it doesn’t end, the idea that one solution doesn’t solve everything, the idea that it is sustainable and has longevity.
So if we approach the challenge from that perspective then the next question should be on a scale of 0-100% how “Smart” is your community? Because who ever heard of a “ ‘stupid’ community”? And then assess “what would it take to move just 1% from where you are today?”
The idea of creating a smart community is about evolution not revolution and more importantly it’s about providing space to grow, day after day, month after month, year after year.
So together let’s look at what we can do, not what we can’t. Focus on what we can control today and how we can grow and enable the future.
For those wondering, have I forgotten about St. James Palace, how could I, my only disappointment was there was no photography allowed and definitely no smart phones for selfies (and yes those who read my tweets, know that being without my phone was difficult to say the least!)
However I did attend and it was simply amazing.
Meeting HRH the Princess Royal was both an honour and a privilege.
“What is she like?” Passionate, dedicated and committed and genuinely a nice person, throughout the evening she took the time to meet everyone, and I mean everyone! Not just a handshake but a genuine interest on who you were and what you did and yes my Cisco colleagues before you ask she knew exactly who Cisco were and our role in Smart Communities
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Hema it all sounds amazing and really enjoying reading your diary updates.