Dr. Malik Muhammad, Founder and CEO of Akoben, shares his formula for bridging disconnection and increasing accountability.
Dr. Muhammad, an educator and entrepreneur, has focused on working with youth who have been wounded by life. Dealing with trauma and a rough environment as a child or teenager can be extremely difficult to move on from and live a better life. The way he is able to bring change to people’s lives and organizations is to introduce and work them through a simple but significant formula: connection plus challenge equals change.
In order for the people and organizations he works with to know that change is possible, he tells his own story of being homeless and arrested at a young age, ultimately a story of transformation and growth. It was through connection with his community, mentors and a cause greater than himself that helped him face the challenges that would redefine his life and others. This is the formula that he teaches and coaches others on, because, upon reflection, he discovered that this was the very thing that transformed his life. Dr. Muhammad says “I don’t see this as finding and maintaining a balance between connection and challenge. That feels static and stale. No, it is about riding and embracing the dynamic tension between them. That feels like energy and living.”
According to Dr. Muhammad, connection and challenge can bring people together, and it starts with connection. He argues that because we are social beings, connection is natural and built into how we communicate and get to know one another. It is one of the fundamental building blocks of developing relationships. Dr. Muhammad says it is why people greet each other when they meet across the world and in every culture, so as to establish a basis for a connection. But challenge is equally essential, says Dr. Muhammad, as it enables people and organizations to grow by going through and overcoming the obstacles in front of them.
“Connection and challenge are equal ingredients, but connection is the first among equals.” says Dr. Muhammad.
Through using connection and challenge in the formula to help people and organizations, Dr. Muhammad works with them to establish if they need more challenge, connection or a combination of both. When we are dealing with extreme adversity and developing worthwhile connections with other people and organizations, it increases our capacity to handle the challenges together. Likewise, when we are in deep connection through strong relationships, we often need to increase the challenge to help us grow and transform.
To help the people he works with have a greater understanding into what aspects of the connection plus challenge equals change formula will best work for them, he uses the Social Discipline Window. This framework with four quadrants of high challenge, low challenge, high connection and low connection provides a strong visual for understanding what approach we are using at the time. He teaches that the best leadership, parenting, relationship and teaching approach is in the high connection and high challenge box. The journey for everyone to get to that point is different, but the best way, according to Dr. Muhammad, is a willingness to be vulnerable.
Dr. Muhammad has found when people are open to being vulnerable it enables them to express the troubles they are facing in life and increase their openness to accept change while connecting with people who have faced similar struggles. This shows them they are not alone and can change the direction of their life or organization towards a positive future. Dr. Muhammad says “When we connect, we build up a currency that we can use to challenge.”
An example he gives for increasing challenge would be holding people accountable to a timeline, which strengthens the communication between people. If the task is not completed on time then our role is to explain how it interferes with our connection and jeopardizes our common goal, by causing obstacles and delays. “ In my experience, holding people to timelines is one of the greatest challenges for people who are most comfortable with just the connection part of the formula.” says Dr. Muhammad
The application of the formula can be seen throughout all walks of life. For instance, Dr Muhammad sees a violation of this formula in the often tumultuous relationship between marginalized communities and law enforcement. There is the presence of challenge often in the absence of deep connection. Applying the formula invites us to make better connections with each other and present challenges to help one another rather than continuing the cycles that have had disastrous effects on communities throughout the nation. Dr. Muhammad states,“This is really about seeing each other as valuable enough to be in a relationship together and honoring that with accountability.”
Media Contact:
Name: Dr. Malik Muhammad
Email: [email protected]
