The Dynamic Balance of Power & Love

Finding a Dynamic Balance of Power & Love

At Spoke & Wheel we craft our work with teams and organizations around helping them find a balance between power and love. The theologian Paul Tillich was the first to identify power and love as the fundamental drives of all living things. We have adapted this understanding into our own definitions:
Power is the drive to act, to achieve a life-affirming purpose and realize an impact on the world. Love is the drive to integrate and unite with each other in service of what the world needs. 
Power and love are an interdependent polarity. This means that when these two drives are valued together and brought into a dynamic balance they are generative. Teams that excel at both power and love are high performing and sustainable; they are creative, effective, adaptable and resilient. Conversely, when either power or love is valued over the other, and they fall out of balance, they become destructive and degenerative. A singular focus on achievement and action, at the expense of human connection, unity and service, can lead to great harm. The focus on unification and service, at the expense of effective action, will lead to collapse and loss of purpose.

“Power without love is reckless and abusive, and love without power is sentimental and anemic." - Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

Photo by Austin Mabe on Unsplash

In our work and lives we see both forms of imbalance happening all the time. I've been in groups that were all about love, where we spent all of our time listening and checking in with each other. While those groups were nurturing for a time, they are all in the past. Without purpose there was no reason for them to stay together and they eventually dissolved, often without us even noticing. Not even a drive for connection could hold them together. At Spoke & Wheel we often find ourselves being invited to work with teams that have over emphasized power, where team members were burnt out and struggling to rebuild broken relationships. In these teams and companies, the drive to succeed and passion for the work was high, but without creating space for connection and belonging they were unsustainable. At their worst we found teams where trust was gone, competition and fear dominated, and team members no longer felt safe in their workplace. 

Photo by Natalie Pedigo on Unsplash

When we see a team that has found a dynamic balance between power and love, it is immediately apparent. Balanced teams have a palpably positive environment where there is an effective workflow, joyful sharing of ideas and credit, and easy communication about challenging topics. In these teams team members are passionate about what they are doing and clear about how it serves the greater purpose. By bringing a spirit of love and connection to the work, their capacity to act is regenerative and sustainable. And by offering clear structure, direction and purpose to support the team members' passions and sense of service, there is an abundance of creativity and agility. 

Lessons about Power & Love

Developing balance in the interdependent polarity of power and love requires two important approaches: First it must be managed as a cyclical process in constant dynamic oscillation. Second, the interplay between power and love is occurring on all scales, and it must be recognized as such and addressed appropriately.

Linear change vs Cyclical Management

In team and organizational development work it is easy to take a linear approach to problem solving. This is alluring as it is straightforward and easy to explain: Identify the problem and then chart a path to the solution. The linear approach might look something like this: 

This may make sense as a short term solution, but it is likely to run into challenges. The first problem may come from resistance. The advocates for focusing on power will be eager to point out the value of structure, hard work, and healthy competition. They may also point out that there are risks to taking on a new approach. They might see things like this:

The tendency to focus on problem vs. solution and to move in a linear direction is a consequence of "either/or" approaches to binary choices. 
The way out of this trap is to manage the two drives of power and love by harnessing the cyclical energy of an interdependent polarity. This "both/and" approach embraces the value of both sides of the polarity. It is also important to recognize that the polarity is not static, it is a dynamic system. At any given moment there may be a need to move in one direction or the other, and that requires ongoing conscious calibration. A system that effectively balances power and love is actually answering a bigger question that has an open-ended answer: "What is the best way to operate and relate that supports us effectively working together towards a common purpose?" Such a system looks more like this:

In the above system the group is embracing the organic nature of cyclical flow. There is a recognition that going too far in one direction will lead to the negative aspects of that side, and that the solution can be found in course-correcting to the positive aspects of the other side. There is a recognition in this system that both approaches have something dignified to offer and they have a shadow side too. 

Power and Love at All Scales

The polarity of power and love is happening at all scales of reality (from atomic and cellular to international and galactic). This becomes more clear when they are seen as differentiation and integration. What's more, every process where individuals connect, unite or collaborate results in the formation of a larger entity. This is called a holon (whole-part), where everything is a whole made up of parts and part of a larger whole. For the purposes of our work at Spoke & Wheel, we understand that individuals working together for a purpose form into a team, and that team is often part of a larger organization or company. We know that it is important to ensure that both the team members and the team have a strong balance of power and love. Are individuals empowered to express their full self in their work? Do they feel connected to others on the team?  Is the team effectively achieving its purpose? Does it fit well into the larger organization/field/context? Successful teams are made up of great workers, and it is the quality of connection and collaboration in the team that supports team members in bringing forth their creativity and greatness. Everyone has a need for both independence and support, and a great leader understands this. This is why we say "We believe great relationships drive great companies." 

Applications

In our work at Spoke & Wheel we conduct team relationship assessments at the beginning and end of our projects. Combining quantitative and qualitative data we help teams understand how they are doing in relation to power and love. We use seven dimensions for both power and love. The dimensions each represent a fundamental organizational need. Every team may meet this need in their own unique way. And we understand that each dimension also has a positive and a shadow side. The assessment looks at the team as a whole and the experience of the individual team members. These are the dimensions that we are looking at. 

Dimensions of Power 

• Purpose

• Direction

• Structure

• Team Leadership

• Energy (Resources)

• Passion (Proactivity)

• Accomplishment

Dimensions of Love 

• Identity & Belonging

• Collaboration

• Communication

• Humanity

• Safety

• Diversity

• Fun & Enjoyment 
  

Would you like to do an assessment of your team, group or organization? We'd love to talk to you. Schedule a free call with us at calendly.com/spoke-wheel/connect.