Come Together

‘Shrooms.

I’ve always been fascinated with them. They’re baked into the name of our business, not only because of their magical powers but also because of the way they grow and create networks. It also fascinates me that, when you see mushrooms in the wild, you’re not actually looking at the fungus itself, but at the reproductive organ of the fungus. (Let’s all be thankful not a biological trait shared by humans.) No, the main fungal body lives underground, from which the energy and harmony that feeds it flourishes in all its complex and integrated glory.

Earlier this summer, I engaged in a module on facilitation and dialogue as part of my ongoing studies in sustainable leadership. It might not sound like the most exciting endeavour but you’d be surprised. I certainly was. Ever since I got down and dirty with the theory of collective human connection, my mind has been buzzing with the possibilities of community-building in terms of enhancing and/or rediscovering learning, resilience and creativity.

As a communications professional (and one that does like to go on), I’ve also had to develop active listening skills, so this subject was one I embraced with some enthusiasm. Of course, it’s easy to find shiny new ideas to play with and tempting to then imagine you’ve discovered the panacea to all ills, but I firmly believe this area provides something accessible, current and desperately needed.  

In the UK, three years of the Brexit impasse, combined with the manipulation of our information sources to create division and confusion, has had a dire effect on our collective mental health and sense of unity. But there were cracks in our solidarity long before Brexit reared its ugly head. The truth is that, over the last 30 or so years, we’ve become progressively less connected to groups and communities. We’ve been urged to atomise, acquire stuff, worship wealth and throw up the drawbridge against anybody who looks, sounds or thinks differently. On top of that, we’re now being battered by a perfect storm of misinformation, and the dawning realisation that our political and financial systems have neither the will nor the ability to resolve the massive issues confronting us, chief among which are gross wealth inequality and the climate emergency. No wonder we’re feeling lost, divided and angry. 

But back to the mushroom. I reckon we can learn a lot from its ability to come together in networks and draw upon what’s going on under the surface to flourish and prosper.   

In Douglas Rushkoff’s latest book, Team Human, he explores how the digital renaissance promised us a happier, freer, fairer world. That dream, as we now know, has been appropriated by huge corporations betting on stock futures. Digital technology, far from driving social progress, is eroding decency and destroying communities. Our world is being driven by the pursuit of wealth and commodification of data, to the detriment of democracy and equality. And like a Ponzi scam, it’s unsustainable. Unless things change — and fast — we are sleepwalking into an inevitable crash. I was at a conference last week and even Bruce Daisley of Twitter said the relentless obsession with scale was breeding an absence of a sense of control that encourages active, and that’s ACTIVE disengagement, people working against and in your organisations in a motivated way.

But there is, as ever, hope and it lies in our basic human talent for creating and maintaining social groups. In the TV industry, new creative organisations continue to be launched. These green shoots pushing through the mire of a market obsessed by growth and profit are our industry’s new fungi. And they have the opportunity to change the game — as long they remain focused on connecting with people rather than dividing them, and unlocking and protecting our human storytelling potential.

I’m a little bit horrified by the industry that has sprung up to coach and encourage people to be ‘the best you’. To my mind, a lot of these expensive training sessions basically teach people to cope within systemically toxic corporate structures. This might help in the short term — just as a cuddle will provide comfort but won’t cure cancer — but it’s not a long-term fix.

We can only understand what’s in the best of us through the perspective of all of us. We can all start to think up ways to come together in our organisations with the objective of learning, engaging, sharing and wondering. And it’s good business too, on the basis that community is the most effective way to build resilience. If you own your own company, start building in those structures today. If you work in a big organisation, think about bringing new communities together. Start a club or a social group — and disguise it as a knitting circle if your boss is spooked by the fact that you might actually be tempted to converse, test ideas and swap opinions.

Because if the shit hits the fan, our survival will depend on our ability to help each other. So find your network, come together and make like a mushroom.