Acumen Essentials Wk 1

8/11/2019 Acumen Essentials Wk 1

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ACUMEN ESSENTIALS 1:

Week 1 Foundations of Leadership

3 HOURS

INTRO TO MORAL IMAGINATION & CHALLENGES IN POVERTY ALLEVIATION

COURSES


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WELCOME TO

+ACUMEN COURSES!

We created +Acumen to give people a meaningful way to add Acumen to

their lives and our online courses are a new way to do just that.

We want to share what Acumen is learning in the field our knowledge and

insights, and perhaps more importantly, the values and principles underpinning

our approach with more people around the world. Were focused on changing

the way the world tackles poverty and building a world based on dignity but we

understand we cant do this alone. It will take all of us.

With 7+ years of experience running our flagship Acumen Global Fellows

Program, we see an opportunity to use online tools to scale the impact of our

traditional leadership development programs so that even more emerging leaders

can gain the skills and networks they need to improve the lives of people around

the world. And even if youre not focused on poverty alleviation, we think the

skills and tools covered in our courses are valuable to emerging leaders in any

sector looking to drive change.

Youre joining a community of 50,000+ individuals from over 167 countries

who have already participated in a +Acumen course. We want you to take

what you learn at +Acumen and apply it in your own way. Innovation could

come from anyone, and we believe that the world truly needs you to lead.

This is your invitation.


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ABOUT ACUMEN

ESSENTIALS 1

This is a 6-week introductory course to give you a taste of Acumens

leadership training. The content of this course was developed basedon our experience training Acumens Global and Regional Fellows.

This course is for those who are new to the social impact space and

interested in cultivating more self-awareness as a leader and change

agent. We will touch on Acumens investment model. However, this

course is not about the impact investing space and will not provide

an in-depth look at Acumens work.

The curriculum is drawn from diverse disciplines and methodologies

with the purpose of helping you better understand yourself, the

challenges of the work of poverty alleviation, and discover some clues

for how you might develop your own leadership style to get started.

We are also excited for you to connect more closely with other like-

minded individuals in this course, so that you can start to build a

community of learners that will benefit you on your journey.


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4WELCOME TO +ACUMEN COURSES

Course Learning Objectives

Explore your own values, motivations and goals for

how you want to impact the world

Understand the different perspectives and

complexities around the work of poverty alleviation

Understand Acumens patient capital model and

its role in poverty alleviation

Understand and begin to develop the capacity for

moral imagination - the humility to see the world

for what it is and the audacity to imagine the world

as it could be

Reflect on your leadership journey and the changes

you might be willing to make in the future

This Course is for You

You will get as much out of this course as you put in.

There is much about this course that will seem challenging,

which is appropriate given that this is about leadership

development. You will need to be self-motivated to make

it through all 6-weeks. Some of the exercises are designed

to push you out of your comfort zone. You will need to build

relationships with your lab group and conduct meaningful

discussions with no clear authority in the room. Many of

the issues we will discuss will not have a clear right or

wrong answer. This may seem frustrating, but as our CEO

Jacqueline Novogratz likes to say it is more important to

live the questions. We will do our best to share Acumens

current point of view on these issues, but it is more

important that you come away with your own views and

opinions. We encourage you to question assumptions,

to share your point of view and respectfully challenge

your course mates.

Lab Groups

This course is designed as a group-guided learning

experience. In order to make this structure work, youll

need a group of at least 2 (and no more than 6) people. You

can read through this curriculum but its not going to work.The real learning happens face to face, person to person,

when you challenge yourself and those around you.

Structure

Course content will be delivered over the internet. Each

week, you will have a set of pre-readings/videos to watch/

activities to do before meeting with your lab group. Each

group is expected to meet in-person once per week to

discuss/debate the pre-work/watch a video/ participate in

an activity together depending on the week.

Lab Leader

Each week, a new member of your team will serve as the

lab leader. This person will be responsible for reviewing

the lab prep readings/videos and the lab guide thoroughlybefore the weekly meeting so that they can lead the lab

discussion and activities. The lab leader will also organize

your team to bring required supplies each week. You should

coordinate with your team to schedule who will be the

weekly lab leader for each week at the start of the course.

We understand that some people are stronger facil itators

than others but we believe facilitation skills are an

important component of any effective leaders tool box;

therefore, we like to give everyone practice facilitating at

least one lab group. If youre new to facilitating check out

the tips for good facilitation weve put together on pages

6 and 7. If youre one of those people with great facilitationskills then let them shine and support your group members

who may be newer to this by providing tips and constructive

feedback when its their turn.

Time

Youll have about one to two hours of prep work each week

to prepare for your lab group. Each lab is scheduled to take

about two hours. The only exception is Week 4 which will

require you to come up with an empathy building exercise

that takes you out of your comfort zone and likely into your

community. This exercise could take 4 or more hours and

then you will need to write a short blog post about that

experience. This is why we give you two weeks to complete

Week 4.

Calendar

You should plot your lab group meeting on a calendar

with your group. Can everyone commit to attend all of the

sessions? If not, mark dates that members might miss and

plan accordingly or reschedule

Ahas

At Acumen, we have a practice of sharing Ahas on a

regular basis. It is a way to reflect on an experience and

to gain more insight into the world and yourself. An Aha

moment is a moment of clar ity, a moment that touched

you, challenged you, or possibly even changed you. They

can be big or small moments, funny or sad, surprising

and inspiring. Each one is unique, personal, and we think,

worth saying out loud. Youll be asked to participate in

this practice of sharing Ahas at the end of each lab and we

encourage you to share these with the greater global group

on the course Google+ community.


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If you do not have a Google+ or Gmail account

1.Go to https://www.google.com/

2. Find the red box that says sign up at the top rightcorner.

3. Fill in the required information and register for aGoogle account.

4. Once you are logged into your Google account, click on

+(your name) that appears at the top left corner of

your screen. For example if your first name is Jessica, it

will appear as +Jessica.

5. Once you have reached your Google+ profile page,

you can either upload your picture by clicking Snapa photo/upload an image or simply move on by

clicking on the blue box that says Finish.

Now that you have an account/already had aGoogle+ account

1a. Click here and Ask to join the Acumen LeadershipEssentials community. The full URL for the

community is listed at the bottom of this page.

1b. Or Look for a button that says Home at the top left of

your Google+ profile page. Scroll down the menu until

you reach Communities in green. Click on it. Withinthe box that says Search for communities, type in

Acumen Leadership Essentials. Click on the button

that says Ask to join this community.

2. Wait for an email confirming you've been accepted

into the Google+ Community.

Take a few minutes to orientate yourself to the

Google+ community

1. When joining the Acumen Leadership EssentialsCommunity, you must read the About this

community section on the community home page.

Please be sure to also read A word from our legal

team. We know the legal stuff isn't exciting, but it's

important.

2. IMPORTANT:Since this is a private community, thedefault notification setting is ON. If you don't want

to receive an e-mail every time someone posts to this

community. Click the Notifications bell OFF.

3. Browse the various sections of the Google+ community

under All posts. You can view comments posted byprevious course participants as well.

Some categories that you might find useful include

Tips for Google+ Community

Course Calendar

Optional

We have established a Google map to visualize who is

taking this course around the world. The link to the

Google Map of course participants and guidelines for

how to participate in this dynamic map is posted underthe category Map Who is taking this course? from

the Google+ community page.

Participate in the Google+ CommunityWe created a Google+ community to help you see what other lab groups are doing with

the course and share what youve been up to too. Use this community to continue your

discussions online and explore the perspectives of your course mates from around the

world. Depending on your familiarity with Google+ we've outlined how you can sign

up to participate.
https://www.google.com/https://www.google.com/


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Provide a safe space for the group to share At times

the lab discussions may become difficult. People may

share experiences that are particularly painful or

scary. Acknowledge at the beginning of each lab that

this is meant to be as open a conversation as possible.

It is also wise to ask everyone to verbally affirm what

is said in the space stays in the space.

Open with a Check In The Check In is the initial

phase of a meeting and is really independent of the

lab content. The purpose of this is to bring everyones

focus into the room and establish the discussion

boundaries, so that right from the start you can be

clear on how everyone is feeling that day and what to

expect from each other.

One technique is to go around the group and ask

everyone to rate on a scale of 0-100% how present they

feel. Are they only 75% present because they had a bad

day at work and are still mulling over what their boss

said? Or are they 100% present because theyve been

looking forward to this discussion all day.

Encourage storytelling people love stories and they

are far more likely to remember information they hearin a story than as a recitation of facts. Encourage your

lab mates to share their stories, and share your own.

Opening up and a willingness to be vulnerable will

often create a greater willingness in your lab mates to

reciprocate and share their own stories. It builds an

atmosphere of mutual trust.

Allow each participant to come up with the answer

themselves These discussions are not intended to

feature a lecture. Instead, your goal as the facilitator

is to help participants and yourself to find your own

voice with in the discussion. You dont need to provide

the solutions. Everyone in your group has access to

wisdom and can help teach each other as well as teach

you. A good facilitator helps find those with the seeds

of wisdom in the room and allows them to grow. The

key is not to judge, not to impose your own opinions

and not to dominate the conversation.

Improvise Facilitation is not about following the

script. While we provide a series of topics, questions,

and activities, let the conversation guide the group.

Feel free to add your own questions or explore

ancillary topics and lines of discussion. You all have

your own experiences, knowledge, and wisdom that

will enhance these discussions. Use these topics as a

starting point, and make the conversation your own.

Dealing with difficult group dynamics There will

be times when you will be faced with challenging

situations, either from individuals or from the group.

If you can learn to embrace these situations, andwork with them, they can be powerful experiences for

learning and growth. The following, taken from The

Facilitators Guide to Participatory Decision Making

by Same Kaner, gives some typical challenges, with

suggestions for how to deal with these.

Tips for effective facilitation


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Problem Common Mistake Effective ResponseHighly vocal memberdominates discussion

Trying to control this person excuse me XXX doyou mind if I let someone else take a turn?

If one person is overparticipating everyone elseis under-participating, so focus your efforts onthe under-participators and encourage them toparticipate more. Ask: How do the rest of you feelabout this? or break into smaller groups.

Fooling around in themidst of a discussion

Trying to organize by saying ok, everyone,lets get refocused.

Aim for a break as soon as possible. People becomeundisciplined when they are overloaded or wornout. After a break it will be easier to re-focus.

Low participation byentire group

Low participation can create the impressionthat a lot is getting done quickly, so the facilitatorassumes that things are going well and doesnothing.

Change from large group open-discussion tosomething else, like idea listing, or working insmaller groups.

Two people constantlyhaving a personal battle

Focusing on two individuals and trying toresolve conflict. A lot of time can be wastedtrying to resolve conflict between two peoplewho have no intention of agreeing.

Reach out to other members and ask who else hasan opinion on this? or lets step back a bit arethere any other issues that need to be addressed.Remember dont focus on the dominantminority, but on the passive majority.

One or two silent membersin a group whose other

members participate actively

XXX, you havent said anything yet. Whats yourview? Can make the person feel put on the spot

and so retreat further into silence.

Break into small groups, to allow the quietermembers a greater chance of speaking up.

Minimal participation bymembers who dont feelinvolved/interested in theparticular topic

Ignore it, and act as though silence means consent.Be thankful that they are not making trouble.

Look for an opportunity to have a discussionon Whats important to me about this topic?Have people break into small groups to discuss.This gives everyone a chance to consider theirown stake in the outcome of the discussion.

Quibbling about trivialissues/ procedures

Lecture them about wasting time Have the group step back from the content andtalk about the process ask them what is reallygoing on here?

Someone becomes stridentand repetitive

At lunch, talk behind the persons back.Confront the person during the break,and then be surprised when you see theiranxiety go through the roof when you resume.

People repeat themselves because they dont feelheard. Summarize the persons point of view untils/he feels understood. Encourage participants tostate the views of the group members whose viewsare different from their own. People just want tofeel heard, not necessarily that everyone mustagree with them.


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This document contains all the materials you will need for Week 1:

WELCOME TO

ACUMEN ESSENTIALS 1:Introduction to Moral Imagination &

Challenges in Poverty Alleviation

Objectives:

Become familiar with the lab format and get to know your lab group

Understand and articulate your personal values, motivation and

purpose for taking this course

Understand what leadership means to Acumen

LAB

Do this with your lab group

Estimated time:2 hours

Pages:1014

PREP

Do this on your own before

meeting with your lab group

Estimated time:1 hour

Page:9


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ACUMEN ESSENTIALS 1 Week 1 9

Context

At Acumen, we believe self-awareness and the practice of

internal introspection are vital to the success of a leader

and that understanding your core values, purpose and

mission help you anchor your life.

This course will bring up tough issues and you are likely to

emerge with more questions than answers. This is okay. In

the words of the poet Rainer Maria Rilke, it is important to:

So we begin by having you better understand your self.

Lab 1 is all about exploring your motivations for joining

this course and the question of what leadership means

to you.

Read and Watch

1.A manifestoby Acumen(http://bit.ly/Acumenmanifesto).

New to Acumen? (http://acumen.org/about/)

2. No Ordinary Leadersby Rutendo Change(http://bit.ly/Rutendo)

3. Inspiring a Life of ImmersionJacqueline Novogratz

TED Talk. (http://bit.ly/LifeofImmersion)If your

internet connection does not allow you to stream

video, you can read a transcript of her talk.

(http://bit.ly/LifeofImmersionText)

Reflect and Write

1. Acumens manifesto serves as a moral compass for thekinds of leaders we hope to be and to reflect the values

of leadership required in an interconnected world.

What are the key components of your moral compass?

What people, places, and ideas have influenced the

development of your moral compass?

2. What are the moments or turning points in yourlife that have influenced your beliefs? (Youll be doing

an activity based-off this reflection during your lab

group meeting)

3. Why drew you to this course? What are your personalobjectives or takeaways for this course?

We look forward to hearing more about your first lab!

try to love the questions themselves as if they were locked

rooms or books written in a very foreign language. Dont

search for the answers, which could not be given to you now,

because you would not be able to live them. And the point

is to live everything. Live the questions now. Perhaps then,

someday far in the future, you will gradually, without evennoticing it, live your way into the answer.

1 HOURPREP
http://bit.ly/Acumenmanifestohttp://acumen.org/about/http://bit.ly/Rutendohttp://bit.ly/LifeofImmersionhttp://bit.ly/LifeofImmersionTexthttp://bit.ly/LifeofImmersionTexthttp://bit.ly/LifeofImmersionhttp://bit.ly/Rutendohttp://acumen.org/about/http://bit.ly/Acumenmanifesto


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Lab leader, please welcome

everyone to the very first lab

group and guide the group

through the followingactivity and discussion

questions. Appoint one of

your lab mates to be time

keeper for this session.

Introductions: Life Maps45 min 1 hour depending on the size of your group

Course Logistics20 min

Group Discussion35 40 min depending on the size of your group

Ahas15 minutes

Preparing for Week 25 min

A printed or electronic copy of this Lab Guide

Enough sheets of white paper for each lab member

Black/colored markers/pens/pencils (enough for each lab member)

Tape (optional)

Something to keep time with

Agenda

Materials

1

2

3

4

5

2 HOURSLAB


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Welcome to your first lab! In order to break the ice and help you get to know each other,

you are each going to make a LIFE MAP.

But a life map is different from anormal map because you can make

it look like whatever you want it tolook like...

it can look like a timeline, taking

you from where you were born, to

where you grew up, to where you

are now

it can look like a normal map,

retracing your footsteps across

the world and point out all the

places youve been

it can just be a collection

of pictures, showing a few

memories that are important

to you

Instructions

youll have about 20 minutes to draw your life maps, and then you will each take turns sharing your life maps with

the group (each presentation should take about 5 minutes).

you can share as much or as little as you want with your life map, but know that this is a safe space and

that no one will make fun of you for what you decide to open up about. So feel free to put down as much

as you feel comfortable sharing.

include what drew you to this course and what you hope to takeaway from it

lab leaders should have markers and paper for you to draw your maps, and if not, improvise.

you have about 20 mins to draw your maps Time keepers please set a timer or watch the clock. Ready? Get set. Go!

Next take 5 minutes to share your life map with your lab group. Once again, time keepers please set a timer or watch the clock.

A: Thats right! Its a map of your life!

A life map is just like a normalmap that

helps you understand where

you are by thinking about where

youve been and also helps you

figure out how to get to where

you might want to go next

tells you about the major

landmarks and buildings or in

this case a map of your life tells

you about the major landmark

events in your life

tells you about the places you

came from, a map of your l ife

tells you about the country/

culture/family you came from

Q: Can anyone guess what a life map is?

The most important thing aboutyour life map is that it tells a story

no two people in this room are

the same and we each have a

unique and special story about

our lives

we each have had a different

journey that has brought us here

together today, and by learning

from each others stories and

experiences we can learn more

about the world when we share stories we become

more connected because we learn

about the things that make us

both different and similar

feel free to include on your life

map your happiest moments or

moments where you were sad...

Your proudest achievements but

also things that you might regret

1INTRODUCTIONS: LIFE MAPS

45 min 1 hour depending on the size of your group


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2The lab leader should guide this discussion. This course

has a group-guided learning structure and will be most

successful if you follow as closely as possible to the

guidelines below. Discuss each of these guidelines and

determine if there will be any problems and map out

potential solutions.

Time

Youll have about one to two hours of work each week to

prepare for your lab group.

Each lab is scheduled to take about two hours. The only

exception is Week 4 which will require you to come up with

an empathy building exercise that takes you out of your

comfort zone and likely into your community. This exercise

could take 4 or more hours and then you will need to write

a short blog post about that experience. This is why we give

you two weeks to complete Week 4.

Calendar

You should plot your lab group meetings on a calendar

with your group. Can everyone commit to attend all of the

sessions? If not, mark dates that members might miss and

plan accordingly or reschedule.

Lab Leader

Each week, a new member of your team will serve as the

lab leader. This person will be responsible for reviewing

the lab prep readings/videos and the lab guide thoroughly

before the weekly meeting so that they can lead the lab

discussion and activities. The lab leader will also organize

your team to bring required supplies each week. You should

coordinate with your team to schedule who will be the lab

leader for each week at the start of the course.

COURSE LOGISTICS

20 minutes

Set group norms

We recommend that your group takes a moment to set a few

rules or norms for how you would like the weekly meetups

to function. One way to start is with a pen, a piece of paper

and a group brainstorm. Here are some questions to get you

going:

How can you structure the weekly meeting to ensure

that an environment of mutual trust and respect is

created?

How should feedback (both positive and negative) be

communicated so that each individual and the group

get the most out of it?

Are there other rules that you can think of which will

make the weekly meetups run more smoothly?

Sharing

Weve created a Google+ Community where youll be

asked to post updates from your lab group meetings andlearn what other groups around the world are discussing

and doing. See page 5 for instructions on how to join the

community.

Pick a group name

Your group should select a name. Have fun with the name

and choose something that is distinctive and represents

your lab group. Youll use this group name to post updates

to the Google+ community


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GROUP DISCUSSION

35 40 minutes depending on the size of your group

3In the lab prep you were exposed to several voices fromthe Acumen community speaking about leadership.

What do you think leadership means to Acumen?

What was new to you? What surprised you? What are

you still puzzled about?

How does this compare to what leadership is to you?

What are the qualities/characteristics leaders you lookup to possess?

Acumen decided to write a manifesto, which we askedyou to read, to help guide us through the tough decisions

around investing in companies and leaders daring toserve the poor in genuine, empowering ways. It is anaspirational document, a moral compass to ground us in

the kinds of leaders we want to be.

What are the key components of your moral compass?

What people, places, and ideas have influenced the

development of your moral compass? (Share and

discuss similarities and differences among your group)

What kind of leader do you aspire to be?

What are some of the barriers/challenges to becoming

the leader you want to be at this moment?

What do you all think are effective ways to overcome

these barriers going forward?


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AHAS

15 minutes

PREPARING FOR WEEK 2

5 minutes

4At Acumen, we have a practice of sharing ahas on a regular basis. It is a way to reflect on

an experience and to gain more insight into the world and yourself. Take 12 minutes to

think and write down your aha: a key takeaway, a new perspective, a memorable comment

or question, or a parting thought from this lab. Then share your aha with the group. If you

are struggling to come up with an aha, heres a question to help you: If you were to tell your

friend about this experience tomorrow, what would you tell them?

51. Report your participation

(Individuals)In order to be eligible for a Statement of Accomplishment at the end of the

course, you must individually report your participation each week. Please complete your

Lab 1 report (This will take you less than 5 minutes) (http://bit.ly/AE12014Q3ReportLab1)

2. Choose your lab leader for next week

3. Confirm the time and location for next weeks lab meeting

4. Dont forget to

Join the Google+ Community if you havent done so already

(http://bit.ly/ALEcommunity)

Share your individual Ahas from Week 1 and/or any photos from your Lab 1 meeting

on the Google+ Community under the discussion category Lab 1. Feel free to share

your team name, group norms, and answers to any of the discussion questions too.

Browse the Google+ Community posts from other participants around the world

Have a great week!
http://bit.ly/Lab1Reporthttp://bit.ly/ALEcommunityhttp://bit.ly/ALEcommunityhttp://bit.ly/Lab1Report

Documents

Acumen Essentials Wk 1