We are not confined to traditional sources of expertise in such a setting because the relationship and the discourse is itself reality and the primary source of expertise. From the perspective of Ken and Mary Gergen, it is a matter of not just sustaining the relationship in the midst of differences, it is a matter of recognizing that the differences themselves enhance the relationship and enable those engaged in the relationship to come to a sense of shared truth through constructive dialogue.
Conclusions
Faced with the challenges of VUCA-Plus either as a mid-19th Century leader or as the leader of an organization, community or nation in a mid-21st Century setting, the role played by constructive dialogue in the midst of diversity might be critical. Abraham Lincoln and Doris Kearns Goodman seem to think so. It is in this constructive dialogue among rivals that Lincoln finds a blending of his two fundamental dreams regarding relationships and achievement.
Lincoln’s desire to receive the esteem of his fellow men (stated as a 23 year old) is wedded with his commitment to preserve a nation “conceived in Liberty, and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal” (stated as president). As Kearn Goodwin (2005, p. 749) declared, Abraham Lincoln truly belongs to the ages and is not only to be revered not only as a leader, but also as a teacher of ways in which to retain relationships in the midst of differences.
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References
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Bergquist, William (2020) “Leadership and Anxiety: Containment and Metabolism I: Anxiety in a VUCA Plus Environment. Library of Professional Psychology. https://psychology.edu/library/leadership-and-anxiety-containment-and-metabolism-i-anxiety-in-a-vuca-plus-environment/
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