Arbinger trainer leads outward‑mindset workshop for Elk Grove Unified board

Elk Grove Unified School District held a special board meeting that the district used to host an Arbinger Institute training for trustees and cabinet on turning an "inward" mindset into an "outward" one to improve collaboration and results.

The session began with a land acknowledgement and the Pledge of Allegiance, followed by an overview from Mr. Riley, who told attendees the day would continue with training from Mr. Merchant of the Arbinger Institute and that the board would take a 20–30 minute closed session after lunch to address item one on the agenda (superintendent evaluation). There were no public comments during the meeting.

Mr. Merchant framed the work around two contrasting mindsets. He said an "inward" mindset treats others as "vehicles, obstacles or relevancies" and fuels defensiveness, blame and justification; an "outward" mindset treats people "as people" with objectives and challenges and, he said, leads to more collaborative results. "Notice when your mindset's inward and be quick to turn outward," Mr. Merchant told the room, describing the shift as foundational to changing behavior.

The trainer moved from concept to practice with a series of exercises. He introduced "Meet to Learn," a paired interview exercise asking participants to gather each other's objectives, challenges and aspirations from their handbook. He also introduced the influence pyramid — a bottom‑up framework that starts with improving mindset and building relationships, then progresses to listening, teaching and, if needed, correction — as a way to find steps anyone can take "regardless of others' choices." Videos and short cases (including examples of a nurse coordinator and a police officer) illustrated how listening and small adjustments can defuse high‑cost conflicts.

Mr. Merchant also described "collusion," the pattern by which two people who see each other inwardly reinforce one another's justification and create costly organizational dynamics. He asked participants to map a collusion in their own context and to estimate the time and financial costs if those dynamics continued for a year. "There's a real cost to collusion," he said, urging concrete follow‑up rather than only theory.

Practical application was emphasized throughout. Mr. Merchant offered three short, reusable questions for leaders to ask the people they affect: "How does someone in my role impact you (positively and negatively)?"; "How could someone in my role be more helpful?"; and "How often should I check in and hold myself accountable?" Participants ran two partner rounds using those questions and recorded next steps.

To close, the trainer used a two‑chair metaphor to show how leaders can "turn their chair" first — take responsibility and treat people as people — to end collusion. He encouraged attendees to begin with relationships they could reasonably change, to use the district portal materials for sustainment, and to avoid trying to "fix" the most toxic relationships immediately.

Mr. Riley and the board thanked the presenter; staff reminded the group that board members would take a brief closed session after lunch to review the superintendent evaluation. The meeting adjourned at about 3:04 p.m.

What happens next: participants were asked to commit to at least one follow‑up action — for example, scheduling a "meet to learn" or asking the three questions — and to use the district portal and the trainer's handouts to sustain the practice.