Prabhdeep Singh_BLP011__Consulting_03Jan'12

Chapter 9 talks about how to deal with resistance in a consulting assignment. It emphasis that whenever a consultant comes across a resistance with the client, the basic strategy should be to help resistance blow out and not to fight against it head on. One should ask client that what he feels about the situation and ask the client to be authentic and share whatever he experiences about the situation. So getting the client to talk more about the concerns is helping the storm to pass and defending one’s own point of view keeps the storm alive.

This chapter also talks about three steps for handling resistance:

1.        The first step is to pick up the cues to see if the client is showing any resistance. It should identify the kind of resistance the client is showing.

2.       Then a consultant has to state the kind of resistance he is facing from the client side in an un-punishing way.

3.       Then consultant should remain silent and listen to the answers from the client’s side.

An important point to learn is that a consultant should never take things personally. So despite the words used, the resistance is never designed to discredit your competence.

Chapter-10 deals with from moving to discovery to the diagnosis phase of the contract. There are two primary purposes of this phase:

a)      To develop an independent and fresh way of looking at what is going on.

b)      To create a process that leads to client commitment, ownership and action.

The earlier traditional approach considered the medical diagnosis of the problem followed by prognosis and then offering the prescription/solution but the new approach known as the asset based approach or strength based approach focuses more on strengths and advantages, and focuses more on how these strengths could be enhanced to get more advantages. The third approach which is working well is the Appreciative Inquiry approach initiated by David Cooperrider. This approach focuses more on what is working well in the organization and to find out what rituals and traditions are worth sustaining.

One important aspect we get to learn from this chapter is importance of developing a relationship with the clients. No matter which approach of diagnosis and solving a problem we may apply, a great relationship with your client always helps to deliver the best results. It also teaches us that as consultants we constantly need to see beyond the problem definition given by the client. A consultant has to sometimes re-define the problem and come to the root cause of the existing problem by great probing skills and always use language which is simple and understood easily.

Prabhdeep Singh_BLP011_Self Leadership_Sep'11

“The first and the best victory is to conquer self” –Plato (Greek Philosopher)

Self actualisation and working on the desired changes is the main attribute of a self leader. The second session on self leadership by Anil Sir helped me understand the 5 pillars in a better way and taught me to be an “Experiencer” rather than just a person who knows how things happen. It helped me to understand that one needs to be that change which we wants to see in the society. 

As we went on with the charged session on self leadership, I came to know the importance of being connected to the source and know the higher purpose of life. This session enabled me to realise my higher purpose of life and ask some very basic questions to myself. The very first questions that came to my mind was that I am clear of what my higher purpose of life is and what I want. So what are the things or habits which are hindering me from attaining my desired goal or purpose of life? I also realised that even if I have jotted down the essential habits which needs to be altered or imbibed in myself, I am not able to do much to inculcate them in myself. Even if the things which I feel are required to change, I am still struggling to change them. Then the session enabled me to learn that it’s my hidden self which is constantly not willing to change.  I learnt that I should leverage my values and hidden gifts to bring about a change in myself and attain my goal and the best part is that it’s all within me. I just need to realise the potential in myself and use it to greater effectiveness.

Then we all were exposed to an important tool-Immunity X-ray. This is an effective tool to know why people resist to change and thus can visualise the benefits one might be able to have by bringing upon the desired changes. Every individual was asked a series of questions and the answers led to the construction of a complete personal map where one could know the various assumptions and beliefs one was holding on to and  which in turn hindering the change which he/she wanted to see.

This session will have a great implication on my life. I have learnt very important things and now that I know those things, I feel that these were the most basic things missing in me. I learnt about the process of learning how to learn and in my dreams I could have never asked this question to myself, that do I know how to learn? Anil Sir told us the four simple steps to be kept in mind before learning or aspiring to learn things. One just needs to be fully present. If one is totally attentive, half the job to learn is done. Next important thing is the right attitude. One has to be open to new learning. Sometimes one has to unlearn a lot many things and then learn new things. There is no right or wrong and there can be different ways leading to the same goal. So a right mindset and attitude to listen is very much important. The third important aspect is consistent and sincere efforts to learn. One should always do justice by putting in the best of the efforts and the last but the most important is using your inner gifts. One must realise the finest of qualities are within the self and the self needs to be more realised and actualised.

So my second session of being a self leader ended the above beautiful learning’s which I will cherish and try to spread in whatever capacity I can. Looking forward to much more heavenly experiences.