In our current post-truth, corona-ridden, climate-battered, and profoundly polarized world, our worldviews seem to be more in turmoil than ever before. People are fighting ~ online and offline ~ about what’s true, what’s important, and how to move forward. It seems hard to agree on anything these days.
But collaboration is the only way we can make progress on the many urgent issues facing us. We simply got to work together. Hopefully corona has taught us that much.
Collaboration: so important, yet not so easy
But working together is hard when people almost seem to live in different worlds, with sometimes an entirely different understanding of what’s true and what’s going on, and which sources of information to trust. With different priorities as to what’s important, and different ideas about what kind of solutions may be effective.
As the Dutch professor of social psychology and anthropology, Geert Hofstede, has said: “The survival of mankind will depend on the ability of people who think differently to act together.”
The first step is perhaps precisely that: to train our ability to talk to, have understanding for, and ultimately collaborate with people who think differently. With people who have very different worldviews than our own.
At Worldview Journeys, that’s really what we’re hoping to contribute to, by offering tools and programs that support all kinds of people, in all kinds of contexts, to learn more about their own as well as other worldviews, and to have engaging, constructive conversations beyond the boundaries of these views.
Our journey
This whole ‘journey’ started with the worldview-test I developed on the basis of my extensive research into worldviews. After having written a doctoral dissertation on the subject I was in for something new. So I put the test online and moved on with my life. Or at least, I tried 🙂
But inquiries about the test kept coming. From many different places in the world! Teachers explained how they used it in their classrooms ~ in high schools and universities, from business to anthropology departments. Organisations used it in their change- and learning trajectories. Coaches said it was useful for understanding the basic perspectives of their clients. Researchers used it in a range of different fields.
It travelled the world without me doing anything!
Finally it dawned on me. I realized this could serve people in many different contexts, in education, trainings, and organisations. A few brainstorms later, I gathered a small team and we founded Worldview Journeys ~ a platform offering tools and programs that bring awareness to our worldviews.
The group worldview is now free to use
The first service we’ve developed is the Group Worldview. This tool allows you to explore the worldviews of a group as a whole, whether it’s a classroom, a conference, or a big institution. It’s a bit like a cultural mirror, giving you feedback on the group culture.
But also the process itself is fun, engaging, and insightful. It invites people to reflect on their worldviews. And it offers opportunities for having meaningful conversations with each other ~ conversations where we move beyond the surface, explore the values and assumptions underlying our differences, and learn more about ourselves and others.
The platform will be formally launched at the end of Summer. However, we want to offer people the possibility to check out what we’ve been building and start their own group-test. So they can play and experiment with it! And we can learn from the feedback. The group worldview is therefore free to use for at least the next two months!
Video’s and questions
Soon we’ll also release short video’s that support the group process of learning about our worldviews. These include video’s on what worldviews are, why exploring them is so potent, the four worldviews, and how we can engage in more fruitful conversations with each other.
We’re also curious to hear your questions concerning worldviews! Maybe these have to do with practical situations in your life. Or they’re theoretical questions. Or questions that came up during the group worldview process. Please let us know here what your top questions about worldviews are.
We think this is going to be an exciting journey! Will you join us?
