WE ARE EXCITED to share Matthew Barzun’s new book that captures quite beautifully how we each come together to be a part of the solution into a healthy ecosystem – a constellation – with our families, neighbors, and institutions, in community. Matthew digs up the (nearly) lost wisdom of Mary Parker Follett to bring balance to many of the most popular leadership lessons of today and to guide each of us to think more critically about the promise of interdependence in our meetings, in our homes, and in our society. His book is very timely as we each assess the role we play and how we should be interacting for problem solving for greater impact in our communities. Preorder the Book Here.
How do the best leaders learn to let go?
When leaders find the courage to distribute rather than hoard power, creativity multiplies, trust deepens, and inclusivity expands… and a new kind of order emerges.
For decades, leaders forced their organizations to look like a pyramid, with all authority flowing from the top. That didn’t work. Next, experts told leaders to adopt “bottom-up” leadership. But that’s not working either. Top-down and bottom-up are the same organizational shape. And neither approach really enables innovation, collaboration, or enthusiasm. The problem is the Pyramid.
A few rare leaders have seen the pyramid for the trap that it is and have learned to embrace a new shape and mindset: Constellations. Organizations designed as constellations are dynamic and flexible networks of distinct yet interwoven individuals. Each member of the team feels like a singular star and is also connected to others to form something greater. That is how Visa re-imagined how we pay for things, how Wikipedia beat the richest company in the world and how Barack Obama and his grassroots team revolutionized political campaigning. These leaders did what most dread –they gave away power.
Matthew also did a great podcast interview with Simon Sinek about the book. Tune in here.
WONDERFUL NEWS has been announced that the Quinn Chapel stabilization and preservation project will begin soon. This chapel, formally known as “Quinn Chapel African Methodist Episcopal Church,” located at 912 West Chestnut, was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980 for its role in African American history and civil rights activism. The church gained a reputation early on as an “abolitionist church.” In addition to serving as a community gathering space, it served as a mass meeting place for the NAACP and was visited by civil rights leaders such as Martin Luther King Jr. and Muhammad Ali. Since its congregation moved out in 2002, the property was sold to the neighboring YMCA and the property continued to fall into disrepair. Work on stabilizing and repairing the chapel will begin by the end of May starting with the facade of the building.
THE ARTS IN LOUISVILLE are having an exciting Spring! After a nationwide search, a native Louisvillian, Andre Kimo Stone Guess, has been named the President & CEO of the Fund for the Arts! A big congratulations and thanks to him for all of his career work advocating for the arts in both Kentucky, New York City, and Pittsburgh! And the Louisville Orchestra is back with a whirlwind of in-person concerts for the 2021-2022 season - the Classics Series, the Pops Series, the Coffee Series, and the Family Series. As we eagerly await the beginning of these performances this fall, the Orchestra continues to offer outdoor and virtual events, which can be found here.
UNIVERSITY OF LOUISVILLE is proud to be a major research hub in the ongoing understanding of Covid19 and developing better community health for the future. This site features UofL’s work on the Wastewater network in tandem with other global initiatives tracking the disease to better understand the spread and risks.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, the Co-Immunity Project has conducted ongoing testing and surveys in Metro Louisville to better understand the spread of the coronavirus and COVID-19. In the past year, UofL researchers have tested more than 12,000 people for COVID-19 infection and antibodies, beginning with frontline health care workers. They also have worked to gauge how local citizens feel about COVID-19 vaccines, with 91% of Jefferson County residents in a recent poll saying they would like to be vaccinated.
All Louisvillians are invited to participate in testing, with the benefit of learning more about your own immunity to Covid 19 - the next round of open enrollment for testing will be Thursday, June 17 to Wednesday, June 23.
