Organization Development

How I’m using OD to improve my health

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OD in the health and nutrition space-3

As I briefly mentioned in my last post, I’ve been dealing with some minor health issues for the past 4-5 weeks. After a fairly delicious unhealthy weekend (lots of lasagna and Easter candy), and a amazing terrible dinner the day after (pulled pork nachos, a soft pretzel with cheese, and a Manhattan), I was in a world of pain immediately after eating and felt awful for the next few days. I had a lot of tests (all negative for serious issues, thank God!) and talked to a bunch of nurses/doctors, and they all seemed to land on one particular diagnosis. They prescribed a medicine that’s commonly used to treat this issue, and I was super excited to take this magic pill to feel better.

That’s what we all want, right? An easy fix or magic pill to solve our problems? 

Well, as what normally happens in life – the challenges that are most worth solving usually take a lot more patience, passion, and perseverance than just a quick fix.

Fast forward 3 weeks later and I was still feeling awful – the easy fixes and magic pills weren’t working. I had dropped a lot of weight, I felt sick or in pain most of the time, I was having trouble getting enough calories, was struggling with the adjustment to a ton of food restrictions, and I was feeling anxious and frustrated that I was seeing no improvement even though I was supposedly doing everything right.

I hit a breaking point and realized that I had to do something differently because this was not sustainable for my body or mind. I decided to practice what I preach in my organization development (OD) work and apply some of those same concepts to my health and nutrition. I don’t see OD just as a particular field of work; I truly believe that it is a way of viewing the world and helping ANY human system (i.e., individual, couple, family, team, organization, city, country, etc.) navigate change, transform their lives, and reach their potential. OD is not normally needed for easy fixes – it’s for the messy, confusing, complex, transformative, or strategic challenges that require changes in human behavior.  It makes perfect sense to me to apply some of the key concepts of OD to my own health and wellness.

I’m not totally better yet, but I’ve improved so much after making the following changes that I feel like a different person than I did two weeks ago. These changes have helped me understand why my body was acting the way it was, and what it needs to not only function properly, but thrive. Here’s what I did…

1.  I “reframe” as much as possible: It’s easy for me to feel down when I’m sick, especially when I don’t know what’s gone wrong or what I can do to fix it. Something I often help my clients with is reframing problems and challenges in a productive way that helps them focus on the opportunity, benefit, or learning gained from a seemingly negative experience. In the spirit of Appreciative Inquiry, it’s about shifting one’s mindset from problems to potential. It has been hugely helpful for me to apply this same thinking to reframe my health situation as an opportunity to have a fresh start to my health and wellness, learn more about my body, and give my body what it truly needs.

2.  I hired a coach: Although I’m not always great at admitting this, sometimes we can’t do it on our own – we need help. I had a sense that I needed to treat this condition in a more holistic way and wanted to try alternatives to conventional medicine, so I started an elimination diet and bought some supplements. But I quickly realized I didn’t really know what I was doing and while Google is amazing, it won’t make me a professional. So now I’m working with a health and wellness coach (who is also a MSN, MPH, RN) who artfully navigates a mix of “expert consulting” and coaching. She helps me understand the science behind what my body is doing and recommends holistic approaches to achieving my health goals (through food, supplements, etc.), while also employing coaching techniques and Appreciative Inquiry.

One of my favorite facilitation exercises is “Start, Stop, Continue.” I use this simple framework to help my clients identify what they need to start doing, what no longer serves them and they need to stop doing, and what they are doing well and need to continue doing in order to achieve their goals. This is very similar to the conversations I have with my coach – for example, I was so happy when she challenged me to ask myself “does this food serve me and my needs right now?” It’s definitely helping me come to terms with weeks of not being able to eat/drink some of my favorite things, like bread, cheese, tomatoes, garlic, wine (can you tell I’m Italian?).

3.  I apply “systems thinking” to my own body: Systems thinking (a crucial component of organization development) means that we consider the interrelated parts that create a dynamic, complex “whole” that is influenced by its external environment. Our bodies are so complex and incredible, and it makes perfect sense to use systems thinking as part of our own health and wellness. This is easy for those in the healthcare field, but I think it’s too easy for the rest of us to think about “problems” with our body in isolation without seeing the full picture (e.g., my stomach hurts, so I take a pill that makes it not hurt anymore, without considering the impact that pill will have on dozens of other processes taking place in my body). I’ve been making smarter choices by increasing my awareness with the help of my coach, all of the research I’ve been doing, and just paying closer attention to the signals my body gives me.

 

What OD concepts do you apply to improve your health and wellness?

 

 

How I prepare for informational interviews

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I’m starting to conduct informational interviews with people in the Organization Development (OD) field so that I can explore the types of OD roles that are out there, learn from others’ journeys, and build meaningful connections. I am just getting started, but I’ve already found this process to be extraordinarily helpful.

I’ve recommended informational interviews to a few people lately, so I thought I’d quickly share my own approach. While an informational interview lacks the pressure of a job interview, it’s just as important to be prepared. This person is taking time out of their day to help me, so I want to make the most of their time.

Here’s what I do to prepare:

  • Confirm logistics – Double check time zone, who is calling whom, and amount of time available. I also tend to confirm how much time the person has at the beginning of the call so I pace my questions accordingly.
  • Do my research – Learn about the organization and industry, check out the person’s LinkedIn profile, and do a Google search for any publications the person may have written. I don’t need to memorize the person’s entire career or become an expert in their industry, but getting smart on at least the basics helps me better tailor my questions, make the most of their time, and understand the context behind their answers.
  • Prepare questions and talking points – I create an outline for each informational interview that’s tailored to the person. I also created some talking points around my own career and what I’m hoping to learn from our conversation. I study and become comfortable with the questions I prepare, but I try to stay flexible and go with the natural flow of the conversation. It’s helpful to pick 2-3 “must ask” questions, and then refer to the other questions you have as needed in the conversation. Here are some examples of questions I’ve asked recently:
    • I’d love to hear about your journey – how did you begin working in this field? (I usually open with this)
    • What was the biggest change or challenge in your transition from consulting to an internal role?
    • What would you say are the most important values at your organization, and how would you describe the culture?
    • What are the most challenging/rewarding parts of your job?
    • If I asked a leader within your organization to describe Organization Development, how do you think they’d respond? or What is OD’s “brand” within your organization?
    • Is there an experience or skill you wish you’d had in the first part of your career, or something you wish you’d done differently?
  • Think about ways to return the favor – Since this person is doing me a favor by chatting with me about their career, I try to think about ways I can support or help them in return. For instance, I recently interviewed someone who is doing some fascinating generational research, and I offered to connect her with some other people I knew who are conducting complementary research. This might not always be possible, but at the very least, I send a thank you note to show my appreciation.

I’ve found these articles really helpful in my preparation as well –

Anyone else have any tips or go-to questions when preparing for informational interviews?

 

Intentions for 2016

Wow – I turned in my computer and cell phone to my company today! I am feeling so appreciative for all of the amazing people I worked with and experiences I had, but I am absolutely ready for the next phase and am already loving this leave of absence. With both closure and new beginnings happening this week, it seems fitting to spend some time reflecting on my “goals” for 2016.

I create a new set of resolutions every year, and I usually do pretty well (one of my biggest achievements in 2015 was paying off all of my credit card debt <<praise hands emoji>>) but I inevitably forget about some of them (definitely didn’t learn how to use my camera yet – that’s been on the list for 2 years).

I wanted to do things a bit differently this year. I’m a big fan of SMART goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic, and Time-Bound) and usually use that format for my resolutions, but this year I’m saving the SMART goals for more specific milestones I want to achieve. Inspired by this article and this article, I’m setting intentions instead of resolutions this year.

The Huffington Post article talks about intentions as a “determination to act in a certain way.” For the past decade (at least), I’ve measured my success by achieving specific goals – getting promoted by a certain year, finishing a triathlon in a certain time, etcetera. But I’m realizing that success (for me) is a lot more about the journey than the destination, so my 2016 intentions are more focused on the journey and the way I want to live my life than my resolutions have been in the past. They’re short and sweet, and rather than keeping them in a Word document that I forget about by March, I designed it to hang in my room so that I can see it and reflect on my intentions every day.

2016 Intentions

I used a few different templates as inspiration to create the following list of intentions (big thanks to my sister for sharing this template, which was my starting point).

What do you think – do you prefer resolutions or intentions? Or do you not see a difference? I don’t think there’s a right or wrong answer – everyone should choose what works best for them.

What are some of your intentions for 2016? I’d love to hear them!