- Are you seeing what’s going on in the world today and wondering what these events may be calling you to do – close to home or on a bigger stage – to enable something positive?
- Has work or life lost a little of its sparkle? Or direction?
- Are you in a team or other relationship and looking to find a way to be more together, and to do more of what really matters to you both/all?
- Are you a coach, consultant or professional in other supportive services and wanting to offer your clients an easy path to richer, deeper, powerful conversations?
These are just some of the ways that people are using Neil’s Wheel.
How it began
It started from looking at the huge social, environmental and economic challenges facing the world, and asking myself questions like, ‘Why is progress so slow?’, ‘How could business and leadership be part of the solution?’ and ‘What could give people insight, new possibilities and self-generated motivation for real change?’
Leadership and the development of the Wheel
John Elkington’s Triple Bottom Line ideas for organisations (Profit, Environment, Social) was a great starting point. But I noticed that whilst most leaders ‘got it’ intellectually, relatively little change was actually happening. I started to look for what was missing.
So I drew upon hundreds of the coaching conversations that I was being invited into. Many of those were helping leaders to connect more deeply within themselves, and more widely with the world around them, and seeing the energy and powerful sense of purpose that came to life with these connections.
I found that when leaders were asked ‘What would you like your legacy to be?’ their thinking shifted from short term results to much longer time frames. And the thinking broadened – with careful consideration of how they (and their work and organisations) are impacting people in and beyond the organisation, and the difference they are making in the wider world. And they often changed perspectives: shifting from seeing the world through their eyes to seeing things (and themselves) through the eyes of others. These changes could be profound.
Adding the idea of ‘How does this link to your values, and sense of meaning, calling and purpose?’ further engaged the emotional drive.
Work on authentic happiness in the world (which has since gone much further) invited people to look at how fulfilment and contentment can often be what much of their deeper searching is really all about.
Working with many leaders who were making good things happen in the world highlighted how good intents can often be hijacked by messianic and martyrdom energies, and that nothing is created by one person alone – we need to release the greatness in others.
Now it all seemed to fit. Nearly.
Trialling the Wheel
Sharing these 7 themes with other coaches led to a loud request – a blank space for ‘And what else…’. And so then there were eight segments to the Wheel. Many professional coaches were instantly excited and signed up to trial it in real conversations.
So we began an extensive international trial with professional coaches and coaching supervisors around the world. The central questions were: ‘Is it safe?’ and ‘Is it effective?’ It soon became clear that it was – across the wide range of coaching styles, experiences and subjects. We also explored whether the professional using this needed a minimum level of training or qualification. And the answer to that was ‘No. Not at all.’
Putting it ‘out there’
With the professional trail complete, the Wheel was publicly shared with the world in 2020, and something unexpected happened. It quickly became apparent that people from all walks of life were finding it useful, not just leaders and professionals. Someone’s position in an organisation or society was irrelevant. This was touching something fundamentally human. Across ages. Across cultures.
People started using it in hospices. People found it to be wonderful at helping them to explore and reconnect at turning points in their lives and careers. Church leaders started using it preparing couples for marriage, and indeed couples themselves used it to start conversations, re-energising their relationship. Companies started using it in leadership training and for team bonding and strategy work. It’s been used in sectors such as government, defence, and charities. I’ve even heard examples of people using it as an underlying structure for job interviewing. A community used it to rebuild when they were burnt down by forest fires.
If you’d like to play with the Wheel, it’s simple
All you need is on a dedicated site – neilswheel.org. It’s available in a number of languages. There’s an 11 minute video which pretty much says all you need to know. There are other useful resources. Dive in. By yourself or with a thinking partner, draw your own Wheel your own way. See what you find. Enjoy!