Patterns and Possibilities - Thriving in Uncertainty with Miss Handie

When you finally meet the romantic partner you’ve been dreaming about, love is a splendored thing! If you’re lucky, you can fall in love and stay there forever. If something happens to cause you to fall out of love with the person of your dreams, it can suddenly feel like your heart has been pierced with splinters. I’ve developed a Relationship Math Quiz to help you and your mate determine if your relationship is thriving or just surviving. I invite you and your mate to take the quiz independently so you can see, hear and experience how your partner views your relationship and if it’s in alignment with how you see it.

I have always been afraid of birds, especially those that flock together. On a recent trip to Chicago, I had an epiphany about why everything in the bird species terrifies me, and it took me back to my past when I first read, “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” by Maya Angelou. I was inspired to figure out why the caged bird sings at work, and I now know why their lyrics bother me so much.

I had an amazing four-day vacation that was sandwiched by two wicked issues. Both created major tension between me and the other people that were involved. Rather than remain a victim of my circumstances, I took time to think about what transpired in an HSD type of way. I figured out how I can open a doorway to empathy even when I’m dealing with unreasonable human beings. I realize that there are bad apples out there, but I prefer to beat them with a pattern of self-awareness rather than join them.

In March 2001, I was granted a five-day opportunity to be locked in a room on The Oprah Winfrey Show with Dr. Phil McGraw and 41 other human beings, from around the country, for five days, in The Get Real Challenge. The 42 of us were filmed from morning to night even while we were just interacting with one another, on an informal basis, outside of Harpo Studios. Those five days felt like a lifetime and by the time we were preparing to head home, I had transformed into someone else…who was ready to bring my creative side out of hiding so it could live and breathe real air. At the end of that journey, myself and the other 41 human beings who were participating in the experiment, were required to make a written contractual declaration about who we’d evolved into after spending time with Dr. Phil. In this episode, I’ll share my declaration and reveal how it and HSD are helping me to navigate the restless waters flowing through my life right now.

I’m delighted to announce the relaunch of this podcast, and it’s happening in just a few days. I wouldn’t be here, doing something I love and in this fashion, without loyal listeners like YOU. Press play to learn more about the What, So What, and Now What of this new version of the podcast, and how WE can continue THRIVING together.

It’s been awhile since we had a curious conversation, so we wanted to reunite with all of you for some important news from Glenda Eoyang, Founder and Executive Director of Human Systems Dynamics Institute. The Human Systems Dynamics Institute is hosting a Gathering of Curious Minds in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Friday and Saturday, April 5-6. This is an in-person opportunity to meet people from everywhere, who lightly and deeply touch and use HSD to see, understand, and influence patterns personally and professionally. Glenda reveals: 1. Why now is an opportune time for people everywhere to gather around the patterns that disrupt our daily lives; 2. What people everywhere should bring to the gathering table; and 3. What people everywhere can expect to gain and leave with after the HSD Gathering. If you’re curious about HSD and want to create the patterns that help you and everyone around the globe to thrive, then register for the HSD Gathering and meet us in Minneapolis, Minnesota on April 5.

This episode completes our pattern of curious conversations with members of the Human Systems Dynamics (HSD) Community. We couldn’t think of a better way to end the season and podcast than inviting, Glenda Eoyang, Founder and Executive Director of the Human Systems Dynamics Institute, back as our special guest. In our first episode, Glenda shared: the history behind HSD, why HSD matters, and advice that anyone new to and familiar with HSD can use now. In this episode, we’ve asked Glenda to explain something many of us are curious about and that is the HSD Vision. She also shares details about the issue that’s at the top of her wicked list. Glenda helps public and private organizations thrive in the face of overwhelming complexity and uncertainty. She is a pioneer in the applications of complexity science to human systems, and she founded the field of HSD in 2001.  As founding executive director of the Human Systems Dynamics Institute, she leads a global network of scholar-practitioners who use her models and methods to see patterns in the chaos that surrounds them, understand the patterns in simple and powerful ways, and take practical steps to shift chaos toward coherence. Her recent clients include the Finnish Research Institute (VTT), US Environmental Protection Agency and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, British Columbia Ministry of Health, Oxfam International, The International Baccalaureate Organization, The Sustainability Consortium, the Association for Medical Education in Europe, UK National Health Service, and Roffey Park Institute.  Glenda received her doctorate in HSD from the Union Institute and University in 2001, studying under Drs. Donald Klein and Kevin Dooley. There she discovered three fundamental factors that influence the dynamics of self-organizing change in human systems. This research forms the foundation for the body of work that helps individuals, institutions, and communities respond to complex change. With colleagues around the world, Glenda delivers a hybrid of education and consulting in the form of Adaptive Action Laboratories. Individuals and teams bring their most wicked problems, learn and practice human systems dynamics approaches, and leave with plans for next wise action. Groups from Vancouver to Sao Paulo and Boston to Delhi have used this method to break through apparently intractable issues.  Her published works include scholarly articles in a variety of fields and Radical Rules for Schools: Adaptive Action for Complex Change (HSD Institute, March 2013), and Coping with Chaos: Seven Simple Tools (Lagumo Press, 1996). Glenda’s latest book, with co-author Royce Holladay, is Adaptive Action: Leveraging Uncertainty in Your Organization (Stanford University Press, April 2013). It is a roadmap for anyone who chooses to work at the intersection of order and chaos. Glenda grew up in the Texas Panhandle, where there is more sky than ground and the wind “has been blowing for a very long time.” She lives now near the headwaters of the Mississippi River, on a little lake in Circle Pines, Minnesota. Thanks to Zoom, she engages with global partners in local action.  For more information about Glenda and the HSD Institute, visit www.hsdinstitute.org. You can reach Glenda via email @[email protected].

In this episode, we’re continuing our pattern of inquiry with active members of the HSD community but this time Glenda Eoyang, Founder and Executive Director of Human Systems Dynamics Institute, is taking over the conversational reins to ask the questions that have her curious. Our next special guest is Tamela Handie, the host of Patterns & Possibilities - Curious Conversations with Miss Handie. Tamela’s passion is helping others fulfill the highest expression of themselves. She is a Corporate Trainer, Organizational Development and Leadership Strategist, Certified Facilitator and Human Systems Dynamics Practitioner. Tamela uses her skills and experience to disrupt status quo workplace culture and transform lackluster engagement, communication, and leadership into impactful, energetic and creative breakthroughs.  In addition to hosting and producing the Patterns & Possibilities podcast, Tamela serves as a member of the Board of Directors for the Human Systems Dynamics Institute. Tamela’s first love is writing. She is a published author and poet and has written numerous blogs and poems about a wide variety of interesting topics, from racism to heartbreak, on the popular Medium platform.  Tamela comes from a family of seasoned educators and orators. Fueled by deep pride in her family surname, she truly believes that “Courage Comes in Handie.” In her spare time, she lends her talents as a voiceover artist, on-air personality, and inspirational speaker. Tamela’s celebrates life with long walks, solo vacations, dancing, hula hooping and a good lemon drop martini.  Her voice can be heard delivering travel announcements at Kansas City International (KCI) Airport in Kansas City, Missouri, and on her podcast, “Gumbo Nights with Miss Handie.” Tamela earned a bachelor's degree in marketing and an MBA in Management from Avila University, where she’s served as a guest lecturer on personal branding for many years.    She previously served in the Office of former Mayor of Kansas City, Missouri, Sly James, as Senior Advisor for Operations. She’s also served on numerous boards and commissions including the Kansas City Credit Union’s Supervisory Committee, the Kansas City AIDS Foundation, and the Avila University Alumni Board. You can connect with Tamela on LinkedIn and follow her courageous blend of extroverted introversion on Instagram and TikTok.

John N. Murray is a systems thinker, collaborator, teacher, and coach based in beautiful Saint Paul, Minnesota. John is an Evaluation Specialist at the University of Minnesota Extension, where he has worked since 2020 with the most incredible Youth Development colleagues. Having begun his career in the development and facilitation of youth programs, John was certified as a Human Systems Dynamics Practitioner in 2016 seeking to help support his and other programs and organizations facing complex challenges and environments. Since then, he has coached and continued learning alongside professionals from around the world, in fields such as economics, medicine, education, and youth development, taking action in uncertain and often overwhelming circumstances. John holds a Bachelor of Arts in Cross-Cultural Communication and Ethics from Prescott College, a Masters in Organizational Leadership, Policy, and Development from the University of Minnesota, and is a Ph.D. Candidate researching the use of systems thinking and complexity science by evaluators.

In this episode, we’re continuing our pattern of inquiry with active members of the HSD community. Our special guest is Dr. Miriam Bayés. Dr. Bayés is a physician specialized in clinical pharmacology, and a doctor, with almost 30 years of experience in the rigorous world of clinical research, the strategic context of the corporate environment and the fascinating world of human development. Miriam has always been passionate about teaching and facilitating the growth of people and teams, what she has been doing in the multiple positions Miriam has had over the years as Medical Director. Recently Miriam has decided to put her knowledge and experience in several hospitals and organizations, family businesses and large multinationals in different countries to the service of the medical, scientific, and academic community as well as entrepreneurs. As a consultant, coach and trainer, Miriam creates adaptive leadership and team management programs for personal and professional growth based on the neuroscience, the systems thinking and the complexity of the human dynamics.