Book Review – Elevator – Becoming a Positive Force in Any Situation

Book: Elevator: Becoming a positive force in any situation

By Ryan W. Quinn and Robert E. Quinn

Publisher Berrett-Koehler 2009

254 pages

After reading Robert E. Quinn’s book, Changing the World: How Ordinary People Can Achieve Extraordinary Results, I thought, “This man wants us all to become saints!” Because? Because Change the World outlines eight “seed principles” that, if taken seriously and put into practice, naturally lead to a course of compassionate action on behalf of others.

Robert Quinnn’s new book, Lift: Becoming a Positive Force in Any Situation, which he co-authored with his son Ryan Quinn, an assistant professor at the University of Virginia’s Darden’s School of Business, deepens that journey toward “sainthood.” Elevation reports are a way for us to immediately become positive change agents in any situation we find ourselves by asking ourselves four basic questions: 1) What result do I want to create? 2) What would my story be if I were living the values ​​I expect from others? 3) How do others feel about this situation? 4) What are the three (or four or five) strategies that I could use to achieve my purpose in this situation?

Robert Quinn, who holds the Margaret Tracy Collegiate Chair at the University of Michigan and is a professor of management and organization at the Ross School of Business, is the author of sixteen books. Considered an innovative thinker and an authority on positive change processes, he developed the ACT Advanced Theory of Change, which the Parent Training Institute uses as an integral part of our successful parent training model. The four questions discussed and promoted in Lift provide a foundational approach to applying ACT more fully in daily activities when life’s issues can often interfere with our good intentions to be kind, considerate, or proactive.

How do people change, and how do they do so in profound and sustainable ways to catalyze transformative social change? is a question that captures our human yearning to make a positive difference. Robert Quinn’s books can be counted on to effectively address and answer this question. Now at Lift, with his son Ryan, the two provide a practical framework for keeping that longing alive and fulfilled. Elevation is defined as a “psychological state in which a person is purpose-focused, internally directed, other-focused, and externally open.” This dynamic internal state keeps us “lifted up”, making us reliable lifters of others. And soon, as the authors demonstrate, our sphere of influence is infused with positivity and possibility: We naturally become role models for others as we enthusiastically undertake the self-discipline necessary to monitor and adjust our psychological states. “As within, so without” never seemed more true to me as I poured out the wisdom of this book.

The book begins with an informative description of positive influence and psychological state. As the founder and CEO of The Parent Coaching Institute, which has worked with parents for over 30 years, I was struck by one of Ryan’s first chapter stories in which he explains using the four questions with his son Mason from 6 years. When dealing with a child having behavioral problems, like Mason’s seemingly illogical tantrums, it’s perfectly natural and normal for parents to be out of this psychological state of grace. In fact, it is just a human impulse to coerce, impose, and fight for control as the situation spirals out of control. Father and son become more closed, demanding, and often angry. It is a disaster. We’ve all been there as parents. Finding our way out can affect our relationship with our child because most of the time the parenting advice is to “take” control; or “speak up and stand your ground”, shutting down our children even more… What parenting advice would you give us: “Walk a mile in your child’s shoes”?

The power to lift it up is to focus deeply on how the other is experiencing the situation while staying focused on our purpose and integrity. As Ryan explains how he struggled to really understand his son, he got a flash of intuitive insight that resulted in a blessed moment between father and son, deepening understanding and respect for both. Throughout his story about Mason, Ryan shares how using the four questions put him more in touch with his intuition and personal agency. It is a moving story and really shows how the elevator can make a positive difference not only in the immediate future but also in the future.

I won’t ruin your story by telling you everything. You have to read it. Beyond the sweetness lies the enormous power of surrendering and allowing an authentic connection to happen. At PCI, we strive to help parents connect authentically and have found successful strategies embedded in the principles of Appreciative Inquiry and System of Life. The authors add an important layer here. Yes, although tried and true prescriptive parenting formulas can often work to solve the immediate problem, it is difficult to translate an assign strategy (rather than a do strategy) like the one found in Lift into a practical application for children. parents. Well, two business professors have done exactly that. Parent educators and parent trainers should take note. Against the backdrop of the book’s four central questions, a practical framework, questions, and strategies can be developed for bringing out the best in others, in any situation, even in cranky six-year-olds given to habitual tantrums.

Chapter two introduces the science, history, and metaphor of the elevator. It is here that the reader finds a comprehensible graphic illustrating a competing values ​​framework, often used for organizational effectiveness. It consists of understanding the interaction of collaboration, control, creativity and competitiveness. For example, the value of collaboration often competes with control. Control is sometimes necessary to move forward, to make decisions, but collaboration is a powerful approach for productive teams. And while market competitiveness is essential, it often restricts the creativity of individuals within the organization to compete effectively. Bob and Ryan Quinn use this framework to move from profound change to psychological elevation, juxtaposing the four core questions with each of the four competing values. Control allows a person to be directed internally, examining his integrity. Collaboration keeps us focused on others, to see others as people with legitimate needs, feelings, and desires. Creativity allows us to remain open externally. And competitiveness allows us to maintain our purpose, which is often used to create extraordinary results. This chapter is extremely helpful in understanding the interplay between the four questions, demonstrating the dynamic energy inherent in their performance.

Chapter 3 provides an overview of ways to move from problem solving to what the authors call “seeking purpose.” This is a very inspiring way of looking at challenges and it fits wonderfully with the concept that our challenges, while always there, don’t have to drive us into despair or alienation. The chapter sets the stage for the next eight chapters, the core of the book.

These chapters are paired around the four basic questions. For example, Chapter 4 explains how to become more focused on purpose, while Chapter 5 discusses the ways that we get out of being focused on purpose. Combined, the two chapters provide a wealth of information to stay within our purpose and answer question 1): What results do I want to create?

The next two chapters focus on becoming more internally directed and supporting our lives with the values ​​we expect from others. Chapters 8 and 9 examine how we can truly understand how others feel about a situation that we would like to have changed. According to the Quinns, an important component of being other-focused is not being afraid of feedback from others. This is a common human obstacle to positive change and the authors normalize our fear of feedback, allowing us to use our fear for deep curiosity about ourselves and others instead of anxious judgments that don’t really have profound change effects.

Chapters 10 and 11 help us think about becoming more open to the outside. Chapter 11 contains a table that summarizes the characteristics of the elevator. This chart is an easy reference tool for the important components and qualities that will keep us purpose-focused, internally directed, other-focused, and externally open. One look at the chart, readers recognize effective strategies for staying in these states as opposed to “comfort-focused, externally directed, self-centered, and internally closed” states. Those are the easiest to use, especially when dealing with our kids’ tantrums or too many bills to pay or other common everyday stresses.

Despite all the challenges, Robert and Ryan Quinn call us to be more present, more deeply engaged, more thoughtful in every way. They urge us to move from “comfort seekers” to “opportunity creators”; from spectators to fully engaged participants. While this isn’t exactly sainthood, it’s still hard work, every laborious minute worth it, not for our reward in Paradise, but for those daily rewards, like when our children melt in our arms after a crisis and They show us that they know who we are. Let them know that we love them without measure, and that everything is fine. Pure heaven! And Lift brings us many more moments like this. Count on that!