The day I met my mentor, Dr. Fernando Flores, he said to me: “Leadership is too narrow and too much about individual commitment and willpower.” As I contemplated this blow to my up-until-then identity of a somewhat-leadership-expert, a new world opened up to me… the world of contingencies, emergences, and accidents. I learned that to lead is to learn to anticipate, navigate, and surf the different forces at play.

I realized that there is never a single inventor – that we never actually “create the future” by ourselves. WHAT??? Yes, I, the leadership expert actually said, “We never create the future … by ourselves.” See, there is only ever co-invention.

One of my biggest insights came when I was arguing over “going potty” with my three-year-old daughter. In a flash, I realized she and I were co-inventing our lives together – it wasn’t me, the adult, creating the reality… it wasn’t her, the defiant three-year-old, creating my experience… we were co-inventing.

When we finally get that it is ALL a co-invention, we can navigate, play, and participate in a wholly more effective way.

Transformational Tip for Co-Inventing 2020:

This month, as you begin to create your year, consider your personal commitment and willpower are unlikely to carry you through … rather, begin to relate to yourself as part of an emerging world always in a dance with others, navigating the contingencies and accidents that spring up out of seemingly nowhere.

Do some reflection:

1. With whom are you co-inventing moment-by-moment?
   Look around you – these are your co-inventors. What are you creating together in this moment, and the next, and the next? What possibilities are opening up out of your dance together?
2. Secondly, and perhaps more deliberately…with whom are you imagining the future?
   The future only exists in our imaginations. Who do you want to imagine with? Get curious about those co-imaginers. What matters most to the them? How does their story shape the future? What are their distinct contributions to a successful outcome? What mood are they in about what we’re creating together? What could I do that would make the biggest difference in supporting and gaining creative insight from my co-imaginers?

Then, create a conversation for 2020 with your co-imaginers.
Where might it lead you? Remember – if you make a point of speaking last, you’ll hear a lot more (and that’s super important – they each have critical insight).