In their book Three Laws of Performance, the authors layout three laws that I find quite profound. They are worthy of reflection:
- First – How people perform correlates to how situations occur to them.
- Second – How a situation occurs arises in language.
- Third – Future based language transforms how situations occur to people.
(See Zaffron, Steve; Logan, Dave. The Three Laws of Performance (J-B Warren Bennis Series), Wiley, 2009.)
As a peacemaker at heart, I have some questions in reference to the idea of those with politically motivated agendas.
The resourcefulness of the language we use serves us. It is important to understand the role language serves in shaping how things occur to people, and thereby transforming how people perform as a result. The constructive application of the three laws benefits us.
Can these laws be used destructively as well? Movements that seek to re-define the language we use should be carefully examined. Does the agenda and motive behind such causes serve the best interest of humanity? Does the result of such attempts serve to unite or polarize the culture into which the endeavor is being introduced?