Inner Development Goals: Acting (Driving Change)

#WCIW Post for 20 April 2022

Welcome to the second last post on the WCIW series on the Inner Development Goals. The category I’m focusing on today is ‘Acting – Driving Change’ and the IDG website has this to say:

“Qualities such as courage and optimism help us acquire true agency, break old habits, generate original ideas and act with persistence in uncertain times.”

My response:

The IDG website lists four skills or qualities that belong to this category – courage, perseverance, optimism, and creativity. The whole idea of the IDGs is that after you cultivate your inner life and certain personal skills and qualities then you are better equipped to take action and to be a positive force in the world.

The skillset of ‘creativity’ is one that I work within; as a mentor, transformative facilitator, and writer I focus on supporting people in nurturing their creative identity and developing their creative practice. I am fascinated by the process that creative work takes from light-bulb moment to tangible outcome, and by the possibilities of developing a practice that not only enables that to happen but in such a way that it offers joy, learning, and empowerment.

But how to sustain effort in such a way as to do that? This is one of the questions that most engages me, and I was drawn to the IDGs because the qualities and skills I talk about and think about are the same as those listed in the framework. The IDG Framework includes the skill of creativity and, because of what I do, I look back at the whole IDG Framework through the lens of creativity. For me, there’s a nice loop of perception going on.

How did you come to the IDG Framework – what was your point of entry? Was there a need or a point of curiosity or a ‘lens’ you started to view it through?

A creative prompt:

“Do I dare Disturb the universe?” T. S. Eliot from The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock.

• When did you last disturb the universe?

• What stone did you chuck, to then watch the ripples spread into what pond?

• To disturb the universe, did you need to draw on courage, creativity, optimism, or perseverance?

The Pond - Moonlight, Edward Steichen, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

More information:

The IDG website lists the following skills or qualities as essential components of this category:

“Courage – Ability to stand up for values, make decisions, take decisive action and, if need be, challenge and disrupt existing structures and views

Creativity – Ability to generate and develop original ideas, innovate and being willing to disrupt conventional patterns

Optimism – Ability to sustain and communicate a sense of hope, positive attitude and confidence in the possibility of meaningful change

Perseverance – Ability to sustain engagement and remain determined and patient even when efforts take a long time to bear fruit.”

Thank you for reading.

• Feel free to share these articles on social media but, if you do, I would love it if you could include the #WCIW and #IDGs hashtags.

• If you want to find out more about the IDGs, then check out the website here.

• The IDG Summit is on the 29 April 2022. Information and bookings here.

• If you have enjoyed this article, why not come to my free workshop to explore them further. It will be held on the 27 April 2022. Information and bookings here.