Leaders and Maps

In November 2007, the Chicago Field Museum of Natural History will be presenting what promises to be a spectacular cartography exhibit entitled "Maps: Finding Our Place in the World."

As reported by Yahoo News, the exhibition promises to focus on how maps reflect the reality of the mapmaker.

As the article quotes:

'"Any map," said exhibit curator Robert W. Karrow Jr., the Newberry's curator of maps, "even a modern map, even the most scientifically rigorous modern map, comes packed with a whole bundle of cultural propositions that regulate how it's going to look."'

Why is this important for leaders?

Whether you are leading a team of explorers across the Polar Ice caps or managing a team of lawyers in New York City, every leader needs to be aware of their own 'cultural propositions'--which I called worldviews in Leading People the Black Belt Way. These worldviews can be particularly damaging to organizations when leaders use them without examining them.

As a leader, how aware are you of your 'cultural propositions'?

The fate of your organization may rest of your answer.