There are lines that hit you right between the eyes as soon as you hear them.
I was attending a leadership summit in Barcelona run by a well-known teacher.
He opened the summit with this simple one-liner:
“At this summit, observer is not a role”
As soon as I heard it, it changed my mental state.
It immediately shook me out of my cagey, stand-offishness and pulled me right into the room. It set the whole group up for a weekend of participation. I remember feeling a little adrenaline rush as I suddenly realised that at this summit, I was going to achieve something.
The observer role is a funny one. No action required. No risk. No skin-in-the-game.
High functioning groups and communities are built by participants, not observers. The participants are the ones making the decisions, taking the risks, making the mistakes and getting things done. The observers are usually the ones staying one step removed, safely on the fence, rolling the eyes across the room.
And just so we understand each other, participation is not easy. I know it takes energy and courage. I am not always 100% up for that myself. The observer role is somewhere you can find yourself without noticing. It’s a low-energy, easier position to hold. But participation is where the action is. It’s where things happen. It’s an active decision to get involved.
Here’s three ways to immediately boost your participation levels:
- Knowing the names of the other people in your class is a great start. Walking over and asking someone their name can feel little awkward, but it’s so appreciated. Someone probably did it for you when you started. Also to note, we all fall out of this habit over time. Deciding to start doing this again is an instant upgrade to your participation.
- You can get on board with the group goals. Your personal goals don’t need to be compromised one iota. If the group is training towards a 1rm clean, you can get fully involved in that project while also keeping your personal goals front and centre. The group goal plays a huge role in tying the group together. It also gives us some our best days at Bua.
- Finally, you don’t have to be loud and social to be a participant. You can quietly make the decision to challenge yourself every day. You can use the coaching available. You can stay open to others coming over to chat. We have plenty of shy people who participate daily.
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