Succeeding in the Messy Middle
Leaders responsible for supporting civic collaboratives sort through the various priorities and motivations of diverse members, nudge reluctant members to become more engaged and advocate for more collective efforts to disrupt the inequitable status quo in their communities. In short, they’re in the messy middle.
Supporting the members of a collaborative is a multi-layered job that resembles herding cats, getting them into a raft and helping them navigate a very long set of whitewater rapids.
Succeeding in the messy middle is never easy – and sometimes it isn’t even possible. But as one of my mentors is fond of reminding me: Just because it’s impossible doesn’t mean it’s not somebody’s job. Three keys to surviving and succeeding in the messy middle are:
Clarity, not certainty: Little is certain about addressing wicked, persistent problems in our community. If we were certain about what should happen next, the problem wouldn’t persist. The uncertainty begins with the causes of the problem and only grows from there.
With so much uncertainty, there is a need for great clarity on our collaborative’s purpose and what is expected of the person(s) in the messy middle.
Recently, I met with a relatively new arrival to the “messy middle” serving an emerging collaborative. Their role (and the purpose of the collaborative) wasn’t yet clear. Was she running a project for multiple partners or was she helping those partners alter their practices and behaviors to improve community outcomes? She was hoping for the latter but suspected the partners saw her as a project manager.
Without clarity of purpose and roles, the mess in the middle is overwhelming. This podcast from the Collective Impact Forum offers some tools and insight on developing clarity of purpose for a collective effort. And this resource from Converge, provides a template for a charter for a collective effort (which they refer to as “impact networks”). And it outlines four primary responsibilities for “network coordinators,” another term for working in the messy middle.
Embrace complexity: “Consisting of many different and connected parts” is the dictionary definition of the word “complex.” Civic collaboratives are complex. As are the civic priorities – such as housing, food security, public health, education, etc. -- they are formed to address. Again, if the solutions were simple, or even just complicated, they could be solved without collaboration.
Complexity doesn’t mean unsolvable. But for solutions to emerge, we first need to develop a deep understanding of complexity and complex systems. And we need to be able to share that understanding with the members of the collaborative in ways that inspire them to work together – rather than be overwhelmed by the complexity.
The Donella Meadows Project is wonderful gateway to resources and tools that help us understand and simplify complexity.
Celebrate: A pastor who was a member of a public health collaborative once told me that working in the messy middle means you’re constantly resolving conflicts – and such a job isn’t sustainable.
Helping diverse players make decisions and move forward together is grueling, in part because the work is rarely “done” and meaningful, measurable progress often takes months or years. In the meantime, there is a stream of conflicts to be addressed, outcomes to be measured and lessons to be shared. When do we celebrate?
I encourage my clients to find something to celebrate as often as possible. The cause for celebration may be as simple as two members developing a stronger relationship. The size of the celebration should reflect the impact of what is being celebrated – so it may just be a high-five with a team member. Or an impromptu dance party in the office. Or a quiet glass of wine at the end of the day.
The middle is always messy. Don’t let that reality wear you down. Regular celebrations can remind you and your team of the progress you’re making and why it can be fun to be in the middle of the mess.
