{"id":316,"date":"2023-11-01T14:58:48","date_gmt":"2023-11-01T14:58:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/chopwoodcarrywaterllc.com\/?p=316"},"modified":"2023-11-01T17:38:28","modified_gmt":"2023-11-01T17:38:28","slug":"chop-wood-carry-water-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/chopwoodcarrywaterllc.com\/index.php\/2023\/11\/01\/chop-wood-carry-water-2\/","title":{"rendered":"\u201cChop wood, carry water.\u201d"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><em>\u201cBefore enlightenment; chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment; chop wood, carry water.\u201d<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Without resorting to vogue \u201cbe(ing) in the moment\u201d and\/or the ubiquitous \u201cmindfulness,\u201d<a href=\"#_edn1\" id=\"_ednref1\">[i]<\/a> the chop wood, carry water approach is typified by the organization eschewing obsessiveness or undue anxiety about future consequences of its decision- making if decisions are grounded in fit, sound, humane approaches that promote or preserve organizational \u201cnon-negotiables\u201d<a href=\"#_edn2\" id=\"_ednref2\">[ii]<\/a>&nbsp; (foundational goals\/\u2019ends\u2019) \u2013 &nbsp;or the vernacular \u201chills to die on.\u201d<a href=\"#_edn3\" id=\"_ednref3\">[iii]<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Of Sasse, Wenner, Zhou Enlai, Martin Luther<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Indeed, former Sen. Ben Sasse (now University of Florida president) concludes the \u201c1960s (produce) a hangover for almost every fight we have today\u201d<a href=\"#_edn4\" id=\"_ednref4\">[iv]<\/a> \u2013 a point stated differently by Jann Wenner, co-founder of <em>Rolling Stone<\/em> magazine, who said, \u201cI don\u2019t think rock \u2018n\u2019 roll changed everything. I don\u2019t think rock \u2018n\u2019 roll overturned segregation or the war in Vietnam, but we played huge parts in it (<em>both<\/em>)<em> consciously and unconsciously<\/em>&#8230;\u201d<a href=\"#_edn5\" id=\"_ednref5\">[v]<\/a> (Wenner\u2019s interview proved personally costly for other sentiments he stated.) <a href=\"#_edn6\" id=\"_ednref6\">[vi]<\/a> &nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Similarly, Chinese premier Zhou Enlai, asked about the impact of the French Revolution, replied, \u201cToo early to say.\u201d &nbsp;The intent of the premier\u2019s comments, made in 1972, are debated. Is his reference to the 1789 French Revolution&nbsp; or to a 1968 student uprising in Paris, which essentially shut down the country for a few weeks in summer 1968?<a href=\"#_edn7\" id=\"_ednref7\">[vii]<\/a> &nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>\u201cStill plant an apple tree.\u201d<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Protestant reformer Martin Luther, when asked about the end of the world, replied, \u201cEven if I knew that tomorrow the world would go to pieces, I would still plant an apple tree.\u201d<a href=\"#_edn8\" id=\"_ednref8\">[viii]<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Sasse, Zhou Enlai and Luther quotes illustrate that organizations, through their leadership and outputs, leave <em>conscious or unconscious<\/em> current and prospective imprints,<a href=\"#_edn9\" id=\"_ednref9\">[ix]<\/a> although entities aren\u2019t alone in this regard:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Circa early 1990s, Canadians, primarily college students, were paid to plant black spruce trees \u2013 six feet apart in neat rows &nbsp;\u2013 to mitigate environmental effects of timber clear-cutting. Decades later, those plantings may have exacerbated 2023 Canadian wildfires.\u201d<a href=\"#_edn10\" id=\"_ednref10\">[x]<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Myriad chemical compounds, considered blessings as introduced, produce environmental or health chaos years later.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>\u201cVictors\u201d in 2022 United States Supreme Court rulings relating to Roe v. Wade contend &nbsp;with the potential of &nbsp;fifty-state referenda regarding abortion, which aren\u2019t &nbsp;tallying in their favor. <a href=\"#_edn11\" id=\"_ednref11\">[xi]<\/a><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>And, of course, consider all things COVID-19.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Of course, the \u201cconverse\u201d may be true, namely not all \u201cconsequences\u201d are bad \u2013 think medicinal compounds, having one purpose but aiding with other health conditions.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>The paradox of \u2018living in the moment\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Organizations are human resource endeavors characterized by both tangible (widgets) or intangible outputs &#8211; policy, laws, rules, regulations. (AI, of course, is an emergent consideration<a href=\"#_edn12\" id=\"_ednref12\">[xii]<\/a> as well as the rise of entrepreneurial tech influencers.<a href=\"#_edn13\" id=\"_ednref13\">[xiii]<\/a>)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><br>Organizations, existing on a continuum, are increasingly urged to become adaptive and entrepreneurial to best compete in an ever-flattening world, although organizational structures don\u2019t always accommodate or sustain entrepreneurship.<a href=\"#_edn14\" id=\"_ednref14\">[xiv]<\/a>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Admittedly, organizational leadership must be fitted to secure the organization\u2019s short- and long-term viability, including the rise of the generalist leader \u2013 the focus of <em>Range: Why Generalists Triumph In a Specialized World<\/em>.<a href=\"#_edn15\" id=\"_ednref15\">[xv]<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">No matter, these words of Robert Hunter also ring true:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Everything you (the organization in this case) cherish<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Throws you over in the end<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Thorns will grab your ankles<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>From the gardens you tend.<a href=\"#_edn16\" id=\"_ednref16\"><strong>[xvi]<\/strong><\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>\u2018Persist, pivot or concede\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Matthew McConaughey\u2019s \u201cpersist, pivot or concede,\u201d <a href=\"#_edn17\" id=\"_ednref17\">[xvii]<\/a> may be applicable when an organization\u2019s trade winds change as policymakers and funders fixate on the organization\u2019s \u201carchitecture\u201d \u2013 the schema of how organization carries out its mission as having evolved by influences of time and internal and external considerations \u2013 to achieve larger policymaker aims.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Faced with change, organizations, often \u2013 certainly not always \u2013 have temporal \u201cwindows\u201d to embrace policymakers\u2019 nudges and boosts<a href=\"#_edn18\" id=\"_ednref18\">[xviii]<\/a> to refocus policy dynamics. Organizational non-negotiables, however, create <em>homeostasis <\/em>(equilibrium) even symmetry,<a href=\"#_edn19\" id=\"_ednref19\">[xix]<\/a> balancing disparate parts within the organization or to hedge the organization\u2019s threats. When policymakers, having higher-charged leverage, namely long-haul funding, or regulatory prowess, seek to rearrange or <em>supplant<\/em>\u201c organizational architectural\u201d non-negotiables, organizations often see these developments as threatening core organizational worth and value. Thus, preservation of&nbsp; non-negotiables are greatly magnified often becoming the organizational mission.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Accordingly, is Aaron Tippen\u2019s \u201c<em>You\u2019ve got to stand for something, or you\u2019ll fall for anything<\/em>,\u201d<a href=\"#_edn20\" id=\"_ednref20\">[xx]<\/a>the best &nbsp;organizational stance when policymakers, having a broader perspective, seek to reframe the organization prospectively?<a href=\"#_edn21\" id=\"_ednref21\">[xxi]<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We\u2019ll explore these considerations in future blog posts. Meanwhile, in the spirit of &nbsp;residing \u201cin the moment,\u201d I recommend Kipling\u2019s \u201c<em>If<\/em>\u201d as well as provide historical context for a literally fatalistic phrase we hear almost daily. I invite your input as we For existentialists among us, I include a Gertrude Stein quote. Visi<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#_ednref1\" id=\"_edn1\">[i]<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.intechopen.com\/chapters\/84536\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">https:\/\/www.intechopen.com\/chapters\/84536<\/a> is a representative read. Also consider &nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/unifiedmindfulness.com\/mindfulness-good-business\">https:\/\/unifiedmindfulness.com\/mindfulness-good-business<\/a> or <a href=\"https:\/\/hbr.org\/2021\/03\/where-mindfulness-falls-short\">https:\/\/hbr.org\/2021\/03\/where-mindfulness-falls-short<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#_ednref2\" id=\"_edn2\">[ii]<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mr-sustainability.com\/why-how-what-who\/clear-non-negotiables#:~:text=Clear%20non%2Dnegotiables%20are%20the,framework%20and%20basis%20for%20cooperation\">https:\/\/www.mr-sustainability.com\/why-how-what-who\/clear-non-negotiables#on<\/a>. The author states, \u201cClear non-negotiables are the rules everyone in the organization adheres to in order to achieve the cause. They provide clear guidelines and rules for the organization to operate in. They are the framework and basis for cooperation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#_ednref3\" id=\"_edn3\">[iii]<\/a> https:\/\/grammarist.com\/idiom\/the-hill-you-want-to-die-on\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#_ednref4\" id=\"_edn4\">[iv]<\/a> https:\/\/conversationswithtyler.com\/episodes\/ben-sasse\/<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#_ednref5\" id=\"_edn5\">[v]<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/09\/15\/arts\/jann-wenner-the-masters-interview.html\">https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/09\/15\/arts\/jann-wenner-the-masters-interview.html<\/a> Wenner\u2019s complete quote, \u201cBoth consciously and unconsciously. Despite the Trump thing, despite the Republican presidents of the last 30 years, which have held back enormous amounts of progress, society has become so much more liberal. I think rock \u2019n\u2019 roll played a huge role in that. Did it do everything? No. Was it the sole thing? No. But we did a lot.\u201d <a><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#_ednref6\" id=\"_edn6\">[vi]<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/jann-wenner-rolling-stone-rock-hall-4052a04c35ce13cc2b17b5455ebe6883\">https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/jann-wenner-rolling-stone-rock-hall-4052a04c35ce13cc2b17b5455ebe6883<\/a>.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#_ednref7\" id=\"_edn7\">[vii]<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/professorbuzzkill.com\/qnq-26-zhou-enlai\/\">https:\/\/professorbuzzkill.com\/qnq-26-zhou-enlai\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#_ednref8\" id=\"_edn8\">[viii]<\/a> https:\/\/www.brainyquote.com\/quotes\/martin_luther_380369<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#_ednref9\" id=\"_edn9\">[ix]<\/a> \u201c&#8230;(Political) change is fantastically difficult and often takes decades. But the degree of difficulty is only part of the story.\u201d Those of the words of Op-ed columnist David Leonhardt who quotes author Fredrik&nbsp;<em>deBoer who argues <\/em>progressive social reformers \u201c&#8230;also bear some responsibility for their disappointments. Above all, they made decisions geared more toward changing elite segments of American society \u2014 like academia, Hollywood and the national media \u2014 than toward passing new laws and changing most people\u2019s lives.\u201d For Leonhardt\u2019s article, refer to &nbsp;&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/09\/26\/briefing\/me-too-black-lives-matter-occupy-wall-street.html\">https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/09\/26\/briefing\/me-too-black-lives-matter-occupy-wall-street.html<\/a> Also refer to<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\nhttps:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/books\/2023\/09\/01\/how-elites-ate-social-justice-movement-fredrik-deboer-review\/\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#_ednref10\" id=\"_edn10\">[x]<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/09\/15\/opinion\/wildfires-treeplanting-timebomb.html\">https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/2023\/09\/15\/opinion\/wildfires-treeplanting-timebomb.html<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#_ednref11\" id=\"_edn11\">[xi]<\/a> https:\/\/www.politico.com\/news\/magazine\/2023\/08\/08\/ohio-ballot-republicans-00110169<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#_ednref12\" id=\"_edn12\">[xii]<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/hbr.org\/2023\/08\/ai-wont-replace-humans-but-humans-with-ai-will-replace-humans-without-ai\">https:\/\/hbr.org\/2023\/08\/ai-wont-replace-humans-but-humans-with-ai-will-replace-humans-without-ai#<\/a>&nbsp; <a href=\"https:\/\/hbr.org\/2023\/08\/ai-wont-replace-humans-but-humans-with-ai-will-replace-humans-without-ai\">https:\/\/hbr.org\/2023\/08\/ai-wont-replace-humans-but-humans-with-ai-will-replace-humans-without-ai#<\/a>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#_ednref13\" id=\"_edn13\">[xiii]<\/a> \u201cThe people who are crazy enough to think they can change the world are the ones who do it.\u201d &#8211; Steve Jobs, Apple co-founder. &nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#_ednref14\" id=\"_edn14\">[xiv]<\/a> https:\/\/hbr.org\/2017\/03\/hiring-an-entrepreneurial-leader<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#_ednref15\" id=\"_edn15\">[xv]<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/davidepstein.com\/\">https:\/\/davidepstein.com\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#_ednref16\" id=\"_edn16\">[xvi]<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.azquotes.com\/quote\/594040\">https:\/\/www.azquotes.com\/quote\/594040<\/a> Hunter, a U.S. lyricist, singer-songwriter, translator, and poet, best known for his work with the Grateful Dead, died in 2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#_ednref17\" id=\"_edn17\">[xvii]<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/greenlights.com\/#book\">https:\/\/greenlights.com\/#book<\/a> (Crown \/ Crownpublishing.com, New York, N.Y. 2020 (Penguin Random House LLC), p. 14. Of \u201cpersist, pivot, or concede,\u201d McConaughey says, \u2018It\u2019s up to us, our choice every time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#_ednref18\" id=\"_edn18\">[xviii]<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.businessballs.com\/improving-workplace-performance\/nudge-theory\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">https:\/\/www.businessballs.com\/improving-workplace-performance\/nudge-theory\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#_ednref19\" id=\"_edn19\">[xix]<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mr-sustainability.com\/why-how-what-who\/clear-non-negotiables\">https:\/\/www.mr-sustainability.com\/why-how-what-who\/clear-non-negotiables<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#_ednref20\" id=\"_edn20\">[xx]<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Z_s-Qk07KxA\">https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=Z_s-Qk07KxA<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"#_ednref21\" id=\"_edn21\">[xxi]<\/a>David Epstein states, \u201cEveryone is digging deeper into their own trench and rarely standing up to look in the next trench over, even though the solution to their problem happens to reside there.&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.goodreads.com\/book\/show\/41795733-range\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Range: Why Generalists Triumph in a Specialized World<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&ldquo;Before enlightenment; chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment; chop wood, carry water.&rdquo; Without resorting to vogue &ldquo;be(ing) in the moment&rdquo; and\/or the ubiquitous &ldquo;mindfulness,&rdquo;[i] the chop wood, carry water approach is typified by the organization eschewing obsessiveness or undue anxiety about future consequences of its decision- making if decisions are grounded in fit, sound, humane &hellip; <\/p>\n<p class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/chopwoodcarrywaterllc.com\/index.php\/2023\/11\/01\/chop-wood-carry-water-2\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;\u201cChop wood, carry water.\u201d&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-316","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/chopwoodcarrywaterllc.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/316","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/chopwoodcarrywaterllc.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/chopwoodcarrywaterllc.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chopwoodcarrywaterllc.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chopwoodcarrywaterllc.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=316"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/chopwoodcarrywaterllc.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/316\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":319,"href":"https:\/\/chopwoodcarrywaterllc.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/316\/revisions\/319"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/chopwoodcarrywaterllc.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=316"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chopwoodcarrywaterllc.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=316"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/chopwoodcarrywaterllc.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=316"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}