Page 65 - Appreciative Leadership

38 Appreciative Leadership

acknowledge that the situation is less than ideal and then to ask for
a description of the ideal—what the situation would be like if it were
the best it could be. In essence, what Peter is suggesting is to do Th e
Flip by acknowledging what is and then inquiring into the ideal as
an appreciative alternative.

In our work we often come across what we call habitual problems.

They are issues that are discussed as problems over and over again,
using the same vocabularies and metaphors, in organization aft er
organization. In most cases, a great deal of time and energy is spent
talking about and studying these problems—they are habits embed-
ded in the organization’s ways of thinking, talking, and working. Th ey
are ripe for Th e Flip.
Several of these habitual problems, along with appreciative alter-

natives (that is, affirmative topics), are listed in Table 3-1. Use these as
samples when you are practicing Th e Flip.

TABLE 3-1
THE FLIP

Habitual Problems Possible Affirmative Topics
Employee turnover Employee retention
Magnetic work environment

Low test scores Successful learning
Good study habits

Too little time When saying “no” is the answer

Working in the flow
Work group silos Productive collaboration

Teamwork across lines
Technology breakdowns Technology that serves
Users as designers