Below are some of the most commonly asked questions that we have heard. If you have further questions, please contact us at info@fromthefourdirections.org or 801 377 2996.

How is From the Four Directions different from other circles currently being held?

Why are you doing From the Four Directions? What's the need?

Is From the Four Directions a type of leadership training?

What goes on in a From the Four Directions Leader Circle? What do people talk about?

Long term, how will From the Four Directions measure its success?

How is From the Four Directions organized to achieve these outcomes and what are the next steps?

How do I get involved?

What do I do to participate if I am not in a circle?

Can I participate on-line?

How can I help with fundraising?

How do I stay in touch?

How is From the Four Directions different from other circles currently being held? Or from the work of humanitarian organizations (e.g. churches, NGOs) trying to make a difference in the world?

Calling people together in circles is emerging as the new mode of social activism. Our particular focus is on bringing together people who feel called to serve as leaders in a wide range of initiatives -- people of all ages and in all places, not just senior leaders or those in formal leadership positions. From the Four Directions circles support leaders in developing insights, courage, capacity, and competence to lead initiatives which can help create a sustainable and life-affirming future. Our focus is to use circles to increase the ability of people to lead in all aspects of their lives.

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Why are you doing From the Four Directions? What's the need?

We believe that more and more people are being called to serve as leaders now. They are an abundant resource, appearing all over the world within their communities and countries. These leaders have the knowledge, competence, and passion to move us to robust organizations and communities, to a future that is life affirming. They do not require more training or advice. They need to meet with other leaders and, through the power of simple, honest conversation, develop and maintain the courage and clarity they need to practice what they know.

There is also a great need to be in conversations with people we don't normally talk with. New solutions are available to us from new voices. These leader circles are intentionally diverse by age, person, and type of conversation. They aspire to mend the broken bonds that keep us separate even as our challenges and hopes unite us. What might become possible when sitting in the same circle where there are young leaders and retired leaders, community leaders and corporate leaders, teachers, musicians, nurses, parents, students, civil servant leaders of global efforts?

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Is From the Four Directions a type of leadership training?

We assume that leader-servants already know what to do, but are prevented from doing it by the increasing pressures of running all types of organizations as businesses, with a focus on the narrow values of speed, numeric efficiencies, and technology. Leaders with great knowledge and experience cannot act from their competence; they cannot lead in ways that support creativity, commitment, or effectiveness.

We believe that these leader-servants can best be supported to act on what they know in three ways: first, by becoming part of a conversation circle in which they can more clearly name the work in the world that they are called to do, increase their capacity for courageous action, and step out into the world on behalf of all life. Second, leaders can be supported by helping them to find others in the world who have similar concerns and are working on similar issues. By creating more formal "communities of practice," these leaders can increase their capacity for learning and contribute to the world’s knowledge about what works. And finally, leaders can be supported by networking local conversations into a global presence of "people everywhere leading the way" to a future of possibility and promise for all.

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What goes on in a From the Four Directions Leader Circle? What do people talk about?

While circles are completely free to have the conversations that are important to their members, From the Four Directions Circles do focus on leadership. From the "Conversation Starters" that have been offered to circle hosts, we find that triggering questions such as, "When am I most able to act with greatest courage?" "What are the things happening in my life that are making it easier, or more difficult for me to be a leader?" "What are the issues and concerns that are speaking to me with the most urgency?" and "What difference do I want to make in the world around me?" are those that generate a great deal of energy and clarity. As circles mature, they tend to determine their own topics, including the stories and experiences that come from other circles.

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Long term, how will From the Four Directions measure its success? How will you know you've had an impact?

From the Four Directions is catalyzing local and global societal change through supporting those leaders who already know how to act in life-affirming ways. We can already see that we succeeding at two different levels of scale. First, hundreds of local leaders throughout the world are already acting with greater clarity and courage to lead in ways that affirm and support the human spirit. They are feeling more truly engaged and more effective in their work; they are assuming more responsibility for their actions; they are extending their concern beyond themselves to many others; they are displaying greater creativity; they are developing deep commitment to their organizations and communities; and they are expanding their work to support the whole system.

At the global level, we are working with the power of network dynamics. Using the Web and other means, we are connecting local circles to each other. As leaders are becoming aware that there are many issues and practices they share in common, the conditions are being created for local work to emerge as a global shift. A powerful global voice can emerge, a voice that offers to the world those values and practices that can lead us to the future we all want, where humans and all life flourish.

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How is From the Four Directions organized to achieve these outcomes and what are the next steps?

To support the success of these first circles, we held a series of Practicums for "First Circle Hosts," in late 2000 and the first half of 2001. These were held in the south of England, the southwestern region of the United States, and in South Africa and the participants came to learn how to convene circles in their local communities and to learn about the purpose and theory of From the Four Directions.

Now, participants from those practicums are convening circles. Based on what we are learning with them, we have developed web-based materials to help others start circles in their communities. As circles continue to emerge, we will continue to connect the circles, their members and their learnings. We are also supporting other similar learning events, spontaneous circles, and a series of on-line connections.

The Berkana Institute is in the process of launching a number of other global initatives that will expand our capacity for supporting life affirming leaders, including an African Festival of Leaders, a global network of Leadership and Learning Centers, and an online environment for communities of practice.

Because of the manner in which networks grow rapidly, we expect that this work and the work of others will lead to a point where all hope breaks loose. Our dream is to astonish the world with what is possible when we create organizations that affirm and rely on the human spirit.

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