Interplay Between Meta Competencies

Writing about each meta competency separately helps illuminate the distinctions of each, and yet the meta competencies are depicted in a Venn diagram, because they not only overlap and inform each other, but each also dynamically co-arises with and co-creates each other.

Meta Competencies Overlap and Inform Each Other

At the individual level, our presence, how we make meaning, the actions we take, our behavioral patterns and emotions are all produced by the same nervous system. Over many years of experience and learning, we develop grooved ways of anticipating, experiencing and interpreting the world. Awareness of these conditioned ways of responding is the first step towards creating an ability to replace it with something different. Self-observation enables us to witness habit states 175 that produce only automatic actions; only when we make these habit states visible, are we able to act on them. We accelerate development when we identify and invest in practices that build presence, concrete new competencies, and physiological support for our commitments. The more we engage in practices and actions that are consistent with the future we want, the more neurological circuitry we develop to support such actions in the future. Every time you notice (see), choose the state (be), commit (connect) and produce a new action (do), you are increasing the neuro structures for a new habit. We get better at the things we practice (e.g., if we practice being present, that becomes more available). 176

At the individual and organizational levels, structure and content travel together, fueled by emotion. Let’s build on the railway metaphor we have used earlier to illustrate how the meta competencies work together within a dynamic system.

The cognitive engine (seeing) pulls the cars, with its cargo (the content, strategy). The engine and the cars are the thing people most identify with when they think of rail travel. In the same way, leadership’s “vision” is often what people most associate with specific leaders and leadership in general. It is the most visible guiding force.
However, the tracks determine where the train will go. As with leadership, underlying (often subtle) structures often determine what actions are taken and what really is achieved.
The train cannot move without diesel fuel, and so, too, do emotions and human connection fuel performance.
The being meta competency is the intelligence behind these systems – the engineers that design and build the engines and tracks and fill the engine with fuel.
The geographical terrain (and weather) determines the context, and thus how easy or hard it is to lay the tracks and maintain the rail system. Smooth, flat, temperate locals are easier than rugged, mountainous terrain, which require switchbacks and tunnels, and a host of other engineering feats to ensure smooth travel. The geographical terrain represents the context in which leadership operates. It determines the base environment in which leadership is exercised – some of which requires more or less effort and skill.

It is worth noting that powerful levers of leadership performance reside in the points of intersection between the meta competencies. Consider these examples:

“Right people in the right seats:” Aligning an organization, so roles are inhabited by the people with the right knowledge, experience, relationships, and competencies is one of the most powerful things a leader can do to drive performance. This sits in the intersection of seeing (knowledge, expertise, experience, etc.), connecting (relationships, political support and goodwill of others, etc.) and doing (the roles, responsibilities of organizational structure).
“Seeing others:” Understanding and appreciating others, so they feel “seen” -- a powerful leadership lever for driving engagement, motivation and performance -- sits at the interface of “seeing,” “connecting,” and “doing.” It is fundamentally an act (doing) of expanded perception (seeing) and human connection (connecting).

Not only do the meta competencies overlap and inform each other, dynamically co-arising with and co-creating each other, but also each meta competency (i.e., circle of the Venn diagram) is also a fractal of the whole. Therefore, each is simultaneously distinct from and comprised of all of the meta competencies (i.e., the entire Venn diagram). Take the example of the being meta competence. Emotions (connecting), physiological states of contraction or flow (doing) or beliefs that limit or expand options (seeing) are all indications of your current internal state of being.

Barbara Fredrickson helps us understand how the process of establishing and strengthening healthy communities and cultures (fundamentally a manifestation of the “connect” meta competency) requires the participation of all the meta competencies.

In moments of positive resonance (connect), your awareness automatically expands, allowing you to appreciate more than you typically do (see). Also, quite automatically, your body leans in toward (do) and affirms the other person and begins a subtle synchronized dance to further reinforce your connection. Over time, these powerful moments change who you are. They help expand your network of relationships (connect) and grow your resilience (be), wisdom (see), and physical health (do). They also affect the people with whom you share these moments. This repeated back and forth sharing helps establish and strengthen healthy communities and cultures. 177(Parentheticals are mine.)

Consider these other examples:

For leadership to provide a compelling, clear vision (seeing), that vision must include a winning strategy (seeing), be aligned with available human, financial, and organizational resources (doing) and be meaningful (connecting).
Successful implementation of a strategy (doing) requires clear understanding of the strategic direction and desired outcomes (seeing), commitment (connection), and action (doing).
Successful interpersonal communication (connecting) requires deftly navigating the substantive issues (seeing), the underlying structural dynamics of the interaction or relationship (doing) and emotion (connecting).
The most attuned sense of awareness or inner knowing (being) entails insight (seeing), enteroception (doing), and feeling of emotions (connecting).
Conversely, the doing meta competency, through interoception, is a gateway to the ability to attune with others (connecting), as well as a gate way to limiting beliefs (seeing). John Prendergast describes the latter. “Internal body tension is often directly related to a conscious or subconscious limiting believe that we hold. A willingness to sense and feel a contraction, as well as to investigate the truth of an associated belief, allows the tension to transform and dissolve over time.” 178
Increasing one’s emotional intelligence (connecting), entails language distinctions and nuances (seeing), attunement to self and others (connecting) and practice (doing).
The key ingredients of compassion (connecting) include the four meta competencies: I understand you (seeing), I want to help you (doing), and I feel you (connecting). “Goodwill” (defined as a sense of “I want you to be happy”) is an internal state (and thus a “being” meta competency) that is both created by and a key ingredient for compassion. 179
Habits (doing) themselves can be broken down into “habits of mind” (seeing), “habits of action” (doing), “habits of relationship” (connecting), and “habits of relationship to self” (being). 180
Resiliency can be broken down into physical (doing), emotional (connecting), mental (seeing) and spiritual (being) resilience. Physical resilience is physical flexibility, endurance and strength. Emotional resilience is the ability to self-regulate and your levels of emotional flexibility, positive outlook and supportive relationships. Mental resilience is your ability to sustain focus and attention, mental flexibility and the capacity for integrating multiple points of view. Spiritual resilience is your commitment to core values, intuition and tolerance of others’ values and beliefs. 181
John Prendergast identifies four bodily signals (doing) of inner knowing (being): relaxed groundedness; inner alignment; open-heartedness; and spaciousness. He describes five ways of attuning with each, which correspond to the meta-competencies: physically (doing); mentally (seeing); emotionally (connecting); energetically (being); and spiritually (Being). 182

Key Points Summary: The Interplay Between the Meta Competencies

At the individual level, how we make meaning, the actions we take, our behavioral patterns and emotions are all produced by the same system – our nervous system.
At the individual and organizational levels, structure and content travel together, fueled by emotion. The railway metaphor illustrates how the meta competencies work together, each contributing an essential part of the broader system of performance.
Powerful drivers of leadership performance lie at the intersections between the meta competencies.
Each meta competency (i.e., circle of the Venn diagram) is also a fractal of the whole, thereby being comprised of each of the meta competencies (i.e., the entire Venn diagram).