I’ve been working, often not purposefully, over the last 20 years to become the wise person in the corner of the crowded room who can listen, synthesize, and then offer others what I think. It’s not been an easy road, after all - a bit of me thinks I’m a genius, the rest of me is consistently insecure about sharing my thoughts with others, and another portion of me will allow me good sleep if I don’t share my thoughts when I have the chance. There have been many long drives home when I replay what I should have said, how I should have pushed back and made my voice heard.
As I think about the journey of becoming that wise and patient professional eager to hear from others and only willing to share when thoughtful, I’m struck by how so many of us don’t realize the gift we are to the rooms we’re in. Matt, a good friend of mine, was a consistent voice in many a room filled with senior leaders. Matt had a way of challenging us to remember the focus on what we were trying to accomplish. In those rooms where we both served as HR directors for a large school district - some lauded policy perspectives; others talked about the limits of strained budgets; space was taken to talk about strategy's efficacy. While all the big words and loud voices filled the space, Matt would ask, “How will this better serve kids”? All of a sudden, the room would become focused and more significant.
That’s the magic of your perspective in the rooms you get to be in, the rooms with your presence. Your voice brings a focus that adds to the context of collaborative creation. When you bring your perspective, you bring something no one else can - you bring you. As we live in a world increasingly using AI and other tech to get things done, I often think about all the ways AI can’t replace my thoughts; it can’t replace my being. The intersection of my thoughts and being is my presence. Like a fingerprint, our presence is impossible to replicate, and when we lean into our presence without inhibition, we can do great things with and for others.
At BHC, we use our unique presence and insight to shape learning spaces for our clients. We listen intently to the problems our clients are trying to solve and offer - never push - solutions we believe will help them reach their goals. We take our presence from the build space to implementation and model that active genius in real time to help others bring their unique presence to problem-solving and creativity. Our clients are of all sizes and missions, and we’ve been able to replicate our methods in the virtual space. We want to work with you.
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