Relief. Wonder. Rekindling. Excitement.
Aren’t these words that any business owner would love to embody? How do you get there? Well, today on the Stride 2 Freedom podcast, I had the distinct pleasure of learning how through my interview Eric Oakland and Marita Herkert Oakland, a husband and wife team that founded Relumed (pronounced reloomed).
Relumed is in the business of supporting business owners and teams in the practice of visual thinking. Visual thinking is the act of expressing ideas in a visual way that groups of people can use for discussion, collaboration, and execution.
Consider this:  I want to sit down with my team and share the goal for the next quarter. I speak to the group and then ask them to contribute to the strategy of how we are going to make it happen. Lots of ideas fly around and lots of people talk. Some seem to get my strategy and others don’t but I let it continue. After an hour meeting, someone has been taking notes and ask where we are at? The answer: Nowhere. The problem is that everyone has a different view of what success looks like and the path to get there and aren’t able to see how one person’s path might link with another’s so that we can work to build a cohesive plan. This is where Relumed comes into the picture.  They not only can facilitate these types of conversations and get all these great ideas into a visual that creates connectors and parking lots and boxes and arrows. But they can also train leaders on how to facilitate these kinds of conversations visually as well.
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The power of visualization to architect strategy and a shared plan cannot be overstated. It is an incredibly powerful way to get everyone on the same page, to take ownerships, to make it about the collective vs. the individual. Now don’t get scared and have the reaction of, “Well I’m not an artist.” That was my reaction too. But it’s not about being an artist. It is simply about having an understanding of the frameworks to employ. Relumed uses something called the Constellation System of Visual Thinking and they explained it so well in one of their articles from February 2021.
One pro tip I learned from them is the use of the Google Jamboard as a virtual whiteboard when having facilitations with remote teams. Check it out. Super cool.
Who should I interview next? Please let me know.                Â
In this Freedom Speaker Series episode with Eric and Marita, you will learn:
- How visual thinking helps teams converge around a shared plan.
- The power of visual thinking tools for business owner leadership.
- Why many of us tend to shy away from drawing but shouldn’t.
- How to kickstart visual thinking in your organization.
We are fortunate to have Eric and Marita available to spend time with us on this edition of Stride 2 Freedom. If there is a speaker you’d like us to interview, let us know. Stay well. Stay safe. Stay healthy.
Show Notes and Links From Episode:
Relumed
Eric Oakland LinkedIn
Marita Herkert Oakland LinkedIn
Google Jamboard
Miro board
Episode Transcript:
Podcast: The Power of Visual Thinking with Eric Oakland and Marita Herkert Oakland
