Leading From the Highest Future Possibility

In Theory U, C. Otto Scharmer talks about, "leading from the highest future possibility." He describes everyone as acting within a "field structure of attention." When played out by us in our environment and in our own way, this results in a certain unique outcome. His book is about understanding, as leaders, how to learn and act from the future as it emerges. We learn to move our actions from levels 1 and 2 (reacting and quick fixes) to levels 3 and 4 (profound renewal and change). As we transition from LAPH Phase II (Ideation) to Phase III (Implementation), the foundational question will become: "...the choice of who we are, who we want to be, and where we want to take the world we live in. The real question then, is " 'what are we here for?' " 

Learning and acting from the future as it emerges are important skills to embrace as we move from the Ideation Phase into the Implementation Phase. The key to this work is learning to, “catch social reality creation in flight” (Chapter 20). As a situation emerges, it happens across four different systems-levels (micro, macro, meso, and mundo) or thinking, languaging, structuring, and global governance. If we can learn to watch for these different systems-level reactions as we implement our efforts, we can change our work mid-course to best achieve our outcomes. 
 
Scharmer also talks about different types of conversations we have and the different frames from which we speak. This relates to the idea of agile thinking. These conversation types include: downloading, debate, dialogue, and presencing. We can speak from different perspectives: what they want to hear, what I think, seeing myself as part of the whole, or as someone who is moving through the whole. All of this happens within a range of systems. As we move forward in our LAPH year, we also move towards more awareness and closer to the ability to operate in a generative system where we can all speak from our authentic selves.

image from ottoscharmer.com