Nana*
The Way of the Japanese Crane (Part I)
Why Self-Awareness and Trust in Uncertain Times Matter
Published in January 2025 by Susann Naomi Israel
“What comes to mind when you see this Japanese Crane?”
One afternoon last year, I posed this question at the start of a large group intervention with an institutional client. The group, composed of 60 senior professionals in financial services, offered a diverse range of spontaneous reflections and associations: “majestic”, “strong”, “persevering”, “resilient”, and “elegant”. This was the creativity-based opening of an interactive workshop. The primary objective of the two-hour workshop was for the group to reflect on the concept of “trust” – what it meant to them and how they could build it, for example, in context to their client work. But before we could dive deeper, they first needed to trust me – an external facilitator stepping into their space.
To build this trust, I shared a personal glimpse of my cultural, academic, and professional background: two decades in the same sector, guiding clients and teams through crises like the 2001 recession, the 2008 financial crisis, and the COVID-19 pandemic. In challenging times, building self-awareness and trust is not a one-time act – it’s a journey demanding perseverance and resilience, much like the symbolic Japanese Crane.
The drawing accompanying this article is my own, created in April 2021 during a period of deep reflection. I began to move beyond purely factual, left-brain-dominated data exploration into a more reflective space – a space where creative and emotional insights emerge. When we step into this open-minded, right brain territory, we tap into vast, untapped unconscious material, offering new insights. This is something I have studied and explored with deep appreciation throughout the past three years.
What was next?
In our two-hour workshop, we explored three perspectives: The Self, The System, and The World. We began with the more surface-level, fact-based information and gradually transitioned into reflective exercises to uncover deeper layers of understanding. For instance, how can we explore The Self beyond traditional self-assessments and 360-degree feedback tools? These tools are excellent starting points for initiating self-awareness, but they represent only a tiny fraction of what is available to us.
To foster this deeper exploration, we used a creativity-based exercise. This encouraged participants to look beyond the obvious and engage more fully with their reflective capacities. As we moved through each perspective, participants engaged individually, then in pairs, followed by small groups, and finally as a collective. Naturally, the time needed to transition from left-brain analysis to right-brain creativity varied among participants.
In my work, activities like drawing, using colours, or folding origami cranes hold a special place in my practice. These creative exercises may seem unconventional in corporate settings. For many professionals, they seem to conflict with the fast-paced, results-driven demands of today’s business environment. However, under my Sōzō-sei no Tenkai® framework, creativity is not merely a means of self-expression; it’s a gateway to profound insights that can inform the way we approach strategy and transformation (see ‘Roku – Sōzō-sei no Tenkai’).
So what?
As the two-hour session progressed, the challenge holding the space became more apparent. Facilitating silent, reflective exercises – each lasting between 2 to 10 minutes – required careful balance between group dynamics and individual focus. The goal was to experience deep reflection, even amidst the unrest of a large group.
According to an ancient Japanese legend, folding a thousand origami cranes grants a wish from the sacred crane. Folding a single origami crane, however, is an engaging exercise in and of itself. As I distributed colour-patterned paper to the group, those who trusted the process and followed my step-by-step instructions (over 20 precise folds demonstrated via my document camera) found themselves holding an origami crane after 10 minutes of silent folding. There was a noticeable sense of accomplishment and insight when they unveiled their creations.
Those who dropped out midway through the exercise, also gained valuable insights. By observing the others quietly, they were able to engage with the group in a reflective manner. This experience served as a powerful metaphor for the dynamics of trust: sometimes, stepping back and observing is just as insightful as actively participating.
What’s next?
As a facilitator, I learn and grow from every client intervention. Group dynamics – impatience, humour, pride, or uncertainty – are not obstacles but valuable signals. These dynamics are precious inputs that, when approached with curiosity and creativity, can become the foundation for deeper exploration and meaningful change.
I’m excited to continue refining and expanding The Way of the Japanese Crane metaphors, bringing them to individuals, teams, and organisations ready to embrace trust, creativity, and self-awareness.
Let’s connect on LinkedIn to continue the conversation on trust, leadership, and creativity in uncertain times.
Keywords
Japanese crane, origami, reflections, associations, conscious, unconscious, self-awareness, trust
* “Nana” is the Japanese word for “seven”. This is my seventh blog post, following “Ichi – Self-Awareness”, “Ni – Creative Spaces”, “San – Transformation”, “Yon – Reflection”, “Go – Looking back & looking forward”, “Roku – Sōzō-sei no Tenkai”.
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