Chapter 2
The source person’s work
UNDERSTANDING what the words mean is an indispensable first step, but the real challenge is putting them into effect. All the more so for the source person, whose role is explicitly defined by taking an initiative that chiefly consists of setting actions in motion. Instead of standing paralysed in the face of her idea, the source person gets things going to make her initiative happen. She has something to accomplish—the ancient Greeks called this task anergon, meaning an item of work, an action, adoing that flows into an output. It’s like a work of art by a poet or painter. For a source person, herergon is both an implementation path (the work) and the work’s result (the output). But the source person’s work is more complex than a simple fabrication. Unlike mechanically following an instruction manual or putting an Ikea bed together, it requires setting a course, making adjustments according to the ups and downs of the experience, and continually aligning the implementation with the chosen course. As a result, the source person’s action is both very strong and very fragile. A formidable surge propels the source person to undertake, develop and complete her initiative, but the undertaking is also very delicate. It is constantly susceptible to being buffeted by unpredictable and unmanageable circumstances, and to being influenced by her own imperfections as a source person. To move her initiative forward, she learns not only to explore the power of her actions, but also to grapple with their inherent weaknesses, and to address her own shortcomings.
So what exactly does this work, thisergon, consist of? The source person’s three main tasks correlate with her three main roles:
1. To actualize the intuitions (ideas, vision) she receives, the source person initiates actions and undertakes risks. This is the role of source as entrepreneur.
2. The source person launches her initiative into the future—an arc that continues throughout its evolution. She does this by constantly clarifying, and then communicating, the next steps to be taken. This is the source’s role as guide.
3. The source person ensures that the project’s framework—its values and vision—is respected. This is the source’s role as guardian.
Let’s look at these three roles, and their corresponding tasks, a little more closely.