b'PEOPLE-POWERED LEADERSHIPHave You Considered: What If Youre Wrong? EVERY WEDNESDAY MORNING(Wednesdaywayssome of what theyre saying is actually right? nights for our team in Europe), we gather our entireIf we cant actively listen and seek to understand how, global Seed World team for a Zoom meeting we callwhat and why others think the way they do, we have Heads Up. Heads Up is a way for our team to connect,no chance for better understanding onlet me be stay up to date, pitch ideas, and talk big picture. (Ifvery clear about thisboth sides.youre not already doing something like this with yourThere are loads of polarizing topics in our industry team, I highly recommend it).right now. How are we informing ourselves? Can we During this weeks call, I threw a polarizing topic find opportunities to weight train and flex our critical SHAWN BROOKhow people are feeling about getting COVID vaccinethinking, big-picture-seeing mental muscles? is the President ofboostersinto the open discussion part of our chat, Seed World Group. just to see how our team tackled controversy. Crickets, to start. While I absolutely know that each person on that call has an opinion, vaccines have become such a political flashpoint that it felt awkward throwing their opinions wide open to the larger group, even thoughIf we cant actively listen and seek to this is a very close-knit and cohesive group. I see that reticence as a big problem indicative of a bigger prob- understand how, what and why others think lem in our society andyesour industry. the way they do, we have no chance for better Let me be frank: like most people, I have an opinion about COVID vaccines. Actually, I feel really stronglyunderstanding onlet me be very clearabout it. If youve ever spent three minutes with me, youll know I feel strongly about a whole bunch ofabout thisboth sides.topics. What my opinion is on those topics, however, doesnt matter nearly as much as what I do with those opinions. I watch Fox News and CNN. Ive got pro-vaccine and anti-vaccine feeds on my social media. I follow non-GMO and pro-GMO advocates. I spend every day promoting our seed industry, but I read and regularlyAre we so busy talking just to ourselves that we forward articles from the Canadian Centre for Foodincorrectly start thinking were actually always right? Integrity (if you dont know it, CCFI is actively anti-sci- Im not going to say Im always good at this. After ence and anti-big ag). Why? Im absolutely convincedour team opened up about their perspectives on vac-my understanding others perspectives is the first stepcination, I said, That discussion renewed my faith in to having authentic discussions that break down bar- humanity. riersand maybe even convincing others to hear myMy own son, Aiden, whos our Business perspective too.Development Manager, called me on it. Is your In our increasingly polarized reality, the worst thingrenewed faith in humanity only because almost every-we can do is hide in an echo-chamber of like-mindedone matched up to your way of thinking?thoughts. What is it that the other side sees that wereWell said, Aiden. Its seems Ive got more work to not seeing? What ifoccasionally and in small or bigdo.SW96/ SEEDWORLD.COMDECEMBER 2023'