The Leading Way of Changing Meaning

Citation

Furtado, L. (2010), "The Leading Way of Changing Meaning", Journal of Educational Administration, Vol. 48 No. 1, pp. 136-138. https://doi.org/10.1108/09578231011015520

Sandra Systma's book, The Leading Way of Changing Meaning, beckons and challenges individuals to look within and discover the inner strength to face the outer world that we live and create. Systma supports the reader's introspective journey with numerous analogies, rich metaphors, academe philosophies, and scholarly contributions leading to an incremental open‐ended questioning and understanding of holistic living. Organized around five chapters the book portrays the collegial journey of five self‐appointed professional educators who explore their inner selves for nearly a year.

The journey of communication, trust, patience, growth, and support witnessed among Systma and her four colleagues were conducted via several e‐mail writings. The electronic correspondences in cyber space created a safe place to challenge their inner and outer beliefs, visions, and challenges. It is through continuous dialogue the colleagues accepted the perspective of the other. Each chapter resonates “Changing” as the researchers come to recognize themselves through their journey. In chapters 1 and 2, Systma juxtaposes both eastern and western disciplinary contributions and philosophies to preface the rationale and nature of her journey as research; that is through introspection of one's life and actions one is better able to understand the meaning of life. She posits that as one advances through life one changes as so does the meaning of change and to find that meaning of “changing” one has to reflect deeply. Chapter three provides the research framework of Systma's project based on the conceptual terms of “changing” and how it was applicable in this study. The following are brief windows of excerpts highlighting the various forms of “changing”.

The changing way of being is critical to knowing and in order to know one needs to be in motion. Movement helps one to change perceptions, actively construct and participate in meaning to one's being. And in order to find meaning one has to challenge one's “personal beliefs and internal missions” (p. 17). A meaningful introduction to change commences with an individual asking some simple personal questions such as who am I, why am I here, how did I get to be this way, and what can I do? The changing way of relating guides one through authentic and creative words of dialogue and an emerging consciousness of participation. Through the organic and natural fluidity of a genuine dialogue “one can distinguish the differences and converging similarities in an individual other” (p. 45) .

The changing way of knowing is accomplished through active experiences and reflection. Action reflection acts in a cyclical motion to guide ones perceptions, insights and experiences to a more constructive way of knowing the world. The author parallels this cyclical motion to the yin and yang of life's actions and relations that leads to knowing. One's desire to know leads to personal transformation. The changing way of representing implies using language in a more informal than formal code of communication where one is seen to be more relaxed and conscious in the sharing and knowing than following the prescribed provisions of disseminating facts of knowledge. The changing way of leading is the dual purpose of being (leader) and doing (lead). True leaders accept responsibility and are learners and seekers of self‐knowledge. For Systma, the meaning of leading as changing was a very personal experience through this research where she engaged upon leading and sharing this journey with others.

The changing way of becoming occurs when a leader moves from within to without and harmonizes in an ever‐changing dance with self and self‐others. One's becoming (p. 73) “is multidimensional and incorporates non‐linear linking towards the change of the leader and the group – the one and the many have shared beliefs.” This subsection of the chapter provides examples and thoughts of how academic organizations function and can benefit from change in becoming. The leading way of changing meaning is a way to harmonize energies to change meaning – that (p. 80) “finding meaning does not require us to live differently; it requires us to see our lives differently”. Inner and outer dimensions blend in harmonic wholeness to create a harmonic space. The changing way of researching – is “for leaders who are changing meaning, nothing is untouched and everything is always becoming more harmonious” (p. 81). To the author, leading is researching, which in turn involves taking the spiraling path of searching and searching again which deepens and broadens and changes meaning.

Chapter 4 describes the exploratory and qualitative research approach undertaken to analyze the leading way of changing meaning. The characteristics of researching that the author addresses are: the participative, socially constructed way of researching; the open, generative way of researching; the risking, vulnerable and trusting way of researching; and the truthful, valid way of researching. The final chapter assures the on‐going journey of the author of changing meaning for a leader.

In general terms, the book provides a thematic and organic way to analyze qualitative data as “parallels” (p. 131) where the title of the book classified the columns for separation as leading, changing, and meaning within those columns the data was recognized through themes like “organic gardener, chimers/shape‐changer, sensible‐stabiliser” (p. 131) and so forth. Studying the data using themes preserved participants' interests and concerns over the life of this project. Graphic figures and guided suggestions to process dialogic data are provided throughout. The findings from the research demonstrate working as a team creates the dynamics of leadership based on trust and mutuality to freely address the inner thoughts and outer actions as leading to transformative leadership. Sandra Systma leads the reader through a comprehensive exploration and organic qualitative analyses of being consciously aware of oneself for leadership roles. Equally impressive is her ability to articulate a philosophical underpinning and recommendation for professional development to be reconfigured as personal‐professional development by acknowledging the inner and outer self‐connections of individuals.

Undoubtedly, this book is a well‐written guide to transformative leadership. The book should be in the possession of school leaders, university faculty, and students aspiring to leadership roles. Systma also recommends that pre service teachers should not only learn and practice the “skills of reflection and participation, but develop the courage to consciously witness themselves and others living” (p. 231). However, her primary recommendation is for educators to recognize that “changing meaning is an ongoing characteristic of leading” (p. 217) … a holistic world created by self‐aware leaders in connection with others.