Episode #47: The Unsolvable, Unavoidable, and Indestructible Tension Between Health AND Economy & Individual Freedom AND the Common Good
The Unsolvable, Unavoidable, and Indestructible Tension Between Health AND Economy & Individual Freedom AND the Common Good
Introduction to Episode:
During this episode we interview our dear friend and colleague Dr. Barry Johnson, the father of Polarity Thinking™ about two crux polarities/tensions we are facing as a nation during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The interview is based on two Op-Ed pieces that will be included in Barry’s new book, AND Making a difference by leveraging polarity, paradox, or dilemma- Volume One: Foundations which is to be released this month (June 2020).
The two polarities/tensions we discuss during the interview are Health And Economy and Individual Freedom And the Common Good.
These two polarities/tensions impact every person in the United States and therefore we urge you to listen to this episode and share it with your family, friends, colleagues, and communities.
This interview can change how you think about these two tensions that we are experiencing daily in our communities and in the country.
We think it’s safe to say we all want a country with healthy people and a healthy economy and at the same time there is a fear that as the pandemic continues we will end up with more unhealthy people and further insult to a declining economy in our country.
The truth is these polarities/tensions were present before the COVID-19 pandemic, and we must manage them now and after the pandemic.
The question is, what can we learn now, during the pandemic, to help us manage them in future?
That is the purpose of this podcast, to help us learn to see these tensions through a new lens, explore why it is important to manage them, and identify how we can manage them better in the future.
A few considerations before listening:
If this is your first time listening to the podcast, you may find it helpful to listen to Episode #1 where we explain polarities before listening to this episode.
The Op-Ed pieces are available in the show notes and if you are in a location where it is possible, we encourage you to download both pieces before you listen to the episode. Barry refers to the Polarity Map® in the Op-Ed pieces during the interview, so it will be helpful to have them in hand.
We hope you will listen!
During this episode we discuss:
· Polarities are unavoidable, unsolvable, and indestructible, so there is always an opportunity to course
correct and manage them better
· Polarities come as a set for a reason, because they are inherently interdependent, so making
either/or choices just does not work- it sets you up to fail.
· Two sets of fears accompany each set of values
· Fears come from a place (i.e., mindset, history) that needs to be respected because they represent a
value that is being threatened
· If we focus on Health OR Economy, we assume we must make a choice between the values (poles)
· Both Health AND Economy are essential, but neither is sustainable alone, they need each other
· This is an opportunity to see health and economy as a polarity and leverage it better going into the
future
· There are tensions between different points of view regarding a decentralized government approach
(supporting individual freedom) to COVID-19 and a centralized government approach (supporting
the common good)
· Individual freedom and the common good are the basis for democracy which many have fought and
died for
· Individual freedom and the common good is a fundamental tension that looks just like “are we going
to open up or not” but it represents these immensely powerful, emotionally charged values and fears
that are at stake
· Approaches that can help individuals, organizations and communities manage these
polarities/tensions include key stakeholders creating a polarity map together, identifying dual
strategies to achieve both values, and identifying early indicators to support evaluation of how well a
polarity/tension is managed
Resources:
Available June 2020: AND: Making a difference by leveraging polarity, paradox, or dilemma- Volume One: Foundations
AND Volume Two: Applications will be available in August, 2020
Crux Polarity Op-ED pieces:
Winning on Two Fronts-Health AND Economy
Individual Freedom AND the Common Good
Email us at questions@missinglogic.com if you have any questions. We may use your question on a future episode.
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