Avoid These 10 Thinking Traps What are some of the thinking traps that we fall into as leaders? I'm not referring to "correlation versus causation" and other logical reasoning problems. There are some common ways of thinking about business leadership that…
Category: Complexity
What is Conscious Capitalism?
By Linda Fisher Thornton What is Conscious Capitalism? In last week's post, I explored how Ethics Means Acting Beyond Self Interest. This week, I’ll explore the same question at the organizational level. What are an organization’s ethical responsibilities? How is conscious…
“Ethics” Means Acting Beyond Self-Interest
By Linda Fisher Thornton "Ethics" Means Acting Beyond Self-Interest Ethics is fundamentally about acting beyond our own self-interests. Can we be ethical without considering others and acting in ways that benefit them? Here are some interesting questions and quotes on the subject.
Differences or Inclusion – Which Are We Focusing On?
Diversity can be Divisive When we talk about diversity, we are noticing differences. That may not seem like a profound statement at first, but think about it for a moment. Diversity is about having different types of employees, right? And that's a good thing for productivity and innovation, isn't it? It is a good thing. But it's not enough. Managing diversity without inclusion as the ultimate goal can make a big difference in the way employees experience our organization.
Developing the Ethical Leader of the Future
by Linda Fisher Thornton On Thursday, I spoke about The Future of Ethics and Business Leadership at the Richmond SHRM Strategic Leadership Conference. My lens was leadership development - how to help leaders be ready to lead ethically in a highly complex, connected future. Here are some success principles for developing "Ethical Leader Future:"
5 More Ways to Avoid the “Rightness” Trap
By Linda Fisher Thornton 5 More Ways to Avoid the "Rightness" Trap The comments kept coming! Here here are 5 More Ways to Avoid the "Rightness" Trap based on social media responses to Is Needing to Be "Right" Unethical? They are each illustrated here with quotes.
10 Ways to Avoid the “Rightness” Trap
10 Ways to Avoid the "Rightness" Trap There were quite a few responses to last week's post about "rightness, Is Needing to Be "Right" Unethical?, which seemed to strike a chord with readers. These are just 10 of the themes raised by readers in their comment. Collectively, these themes represent 10 ways to avoid falling into the "rightness" trap.
Is Needing to Be “Right” Unethical?
by Linda Fisher Thornton We Like to be "Right" Why do we sometimes abandon civility? One reason is that when the discussion gets heated, sometimes we just like to be "right." And sometimes we abandon civility to try to prove that we are.
Collaborative Leadership in a Global Society
What is Collaborative Leadership? What does collaborative leadership look like in a global society? At the societal level it's taking the best that all of us know and can do and putting it together in ways that help everyone.
10 Reasons to Embrace Complexity
Leading Through Complexity and Uncertainty In The Center For Creative Leadership's White Paper, The Future of Leadership Development, Nick Petrie describes the new work environment as "typified by an increased level of complexity and interconnectedness." This new work environment requires new leadership skills, including a willingness to lead when the situation is complex and the outcome uncertain.
Complexity, Creativity and Collaboration
Diversity of Ideas Provides Perspective When dealing with complexity, we need fresh thinking. We need to listen to all ideas that may help, regardless of where they come from in the organization. That involves giving up the notion that we are "right."
Leading Ethically Through Complexity: How to Prepare Leaders
Developing Business Leader Future In response to the post "Business Leader Future: A Sketch" Graham posted a question about how we support leaders who are learning to lead in the ways described in that post. ♦ Here are some of my thoughts on how to help business leaders lead ethically through the complexities of their role:
Precautionary Principle: Profiting With Care
What is the Precautionary Principle? Simply stated, the Precautionary Principle asks us to err on the side of caution. Following the Precautionary Principle as business leaders, for example, we would avoid using product ingredients that may be harmful in addition to avoiding those that we know are harmful. We would do more than simply follow the law - we would make the decision that would be in the best long-term interests of our customers and other stakeholders.
Complexity and Childhood Education
We are Beginning to Understand the Kind of Educational Leadership that Prepares Young Students for Success in Our Complex World. Forward-thinking leaders are advocating these educational approaches and roles that lead to creativity, learning, growth and innovation:
Thinking Beyond Disciplines: Why We Need it
What is Transdiciplinarity? The Institute for the Future and the University of Phoenix Research Institute list transdisciplinarity as #7 in a list of skills critical for Workforce 2020. They define it as "understanding concepts across multiple disciplines."
Leading in Context 