Average customer rating:
- Makes sense out of things that didn't make sense
- A New Way of Understanding the World
- Brilliant Idea
- The Emperor Has No Clothes
- Finally, something that begins to put things together
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Spiral Dynamics: Mastering Values, Leadership and Change
Don Edward Beck , and
Christopher Cowan
Manufacturer: Blackwell Publishing Limited
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ASIN: 1405133562 |
Book Description
Now available in paperback, this bestselling book presents a new framework for understanding the dynamic forces at work in human affairs -not only in business, but also in personal lives, education, and even geopolitics. Focusing on cutting-edge leadership, management systems, processes, procedures, and techniques, Spiral Dynamics synthesizes changes such as increasing cultural diversity, powerful new social responsibility initiatives, and the arrival of a truly global marketplace.Ideal for managers, consultants, and strategists, this inspiring book adds power and precision to the understanding of human value systems and twenty-first century leadership. It draws UK biologist Richard Dawkins ' concept of "memes " and Clare W. Grave's 'Level of Existance Theory' to lay out a very specific toolkit for managing the deepest differences in people. The authors' concept of MEMES represents a new element in the Science of Memetics and why ideas resonate or not. Spiral Dynamics demonstrates how, by applying the right tools at a base level rather than to surface symptoms, any bright, curious human being can begin, quite simply, to change their world.
Customer Reviews:
Makes sense out of things that didn't make sense.......2007-10-01
The model presented about how the paradigms of thinking and how value memes develop over time in a person, organization, or society are brilliantly insightful. This book should be required reading for anyone running a company or organization of any size. The insights that can be gleaned are significant (at least in the lines of development in which one if far enough along oneself).
This is not at all an "easy" book to read. It takes time and thinking, and is probably best read in parallel with a few other people and discussed regularly along the way. I read this book along with another CEO, and a PhD psychologist who specializes in working with family-owned businesses.
--Lee
A New Way of Understanding the World .......2007-07-13
It may not be the "answer to everything" but Spiral Dynamics helps to put a context around why people act in certain ways when presented with certain life conditions. Using the theory of memetics (idea viruses), spiral describes the evolution of humans as a progression from one value system to another along a double helix spiral. Pitched to those in management or leadership, Spiral Dynamics offers insights as to why some people need traditional or hierarchical or ordered or opportunistic or caring or project based workplaces depending on their value meme. The text can be stilted and academic at times and the introduction is confusing, however there are some great insights and well worth reading if you are interested in finding the answers to everything! Pity the colour plates from the hardcover were not replicated in the paperback seeing how Spiral Dynamics relies on the use of colour descriptors.
Brilliant Idea.......2007-07-11
I first heard of Spiral Dynamics when I went to hear Don Beck speak at the Dallas Philosopher's Forum. He was one of the worst speakers I ever heard -- but his ideas were so incredible, so brilliant, that they shined through the poverty of his delivery. When I then went out to buy the book, I encountered the same problem: brilliant ideas, poor delivery. But the ideas are so good, it is work struggling your way through this book just to get the ideas.
The idea is this: thinking and societies exist at different levels of complexity, with new forms of psychoosocial complexity emerging as lower levels become oppressive. It fits well the latest complex systems paradigm in science that takes into account emergence, information, time and process, and fractal geometry. More, it maps extremely well on to the emergentist theory of time developed by J.T. Fraser in books such as "Time, the Familiar Stranger" and "Time, Conflict, and Human Values" and in Frederick Turner's latest book "Natural Religion". The nested hierarchy. evolutionary, emergentist view of nature is THE new paradigm. This and Fraser's works are excellent introductions to these ideas.
The Emperor Has No Clothes.......2007-05-21
A very interesting developmental theory taken WAY to far. The ideas expressed here could have been presented as a helpful extension of the work of psychologist Abraham Maslow and others. Instead, they are framed as comprehensive theory of morality itself, marketed to managers (!) and consultants (!!), as 'leadership lit' no less. It's as if Nietzsche wrote "how-to" books for his developmentally superior ubermensch.
However, the authors have an ace up their sleeve. Spiral Dynamics defines two tiers of human development and pretty much anyone who agrees with the theory is automatically classified as a 'tier two spiral wizard.' Pretty cool- but those who read The Emperors New Clothes as a child might feel a bit uneasy about all of this. It turns out, however, that they feel this because they are still "first tier." Similarly, fans of the work of Karl Popper could see this internal dismissal of external criticisms as the surest sign of non-falsifiable oogy-boogy flim-flam, but again we are assured that that is not the case here. We are not actually bad for thinking this way- just developmentally limited. We are destined to live in the clutches of the 'mean green meme' in the hope of someday bowing to the superior functionality of the philosopher kings and their consulting affiliates.
And kings they are! It turns out there is a heck of a political agenda here. "Wizards," it seems, are instantly able to see solutions to systemic problems- and they need not take seriously the niggling and limited opinions of the lesser-tiered, except to figure out how to win them over. They are "big-picture" sorts, again like Nietzsche's supermen, busy moving the universe forward. They have a duty to run things in this chaotic world. Call it the "Turquoise Man's Burden." You see, these "Wizards" inherently tend to know best and to question their judgment is to betray an almost endearing naiveté. To point out that this is essentially what Plato had in mind when he wrote The Republic 2300 years ago, would, I suspect, be a faux pas. While the idea has yet to really work -and has led to more than a few revolutions- apparently its time has yet again come. From this standpoint, it is interesting that about half of this "developmental theory" is devoted to techniques for shilling ideas to the lesser-tiered.
As someone who grew up in Boulder, Colorado all I can think is that this functional superiority must surely account for the absolutely stunning moral, institutional and financial successes of the city's Integral Institute, which set out to be a sort of "Mensa" for all the lonely "spiral wizards". That it all snowballed into lawsuits and acrimony is only a sign of the sheer incomprehensibility of their greatness.
The bottom line: Much of the developmental theory is actually really good but absolutely ruined by the decision to conflate it with self-help pabulum for the self-righteous and cultish. Two-star stuff.
Finally, something that begins to put things together.......2007-05-13
Spiral Dynamics will give you an edge in assessing people and situations. I am a professional legal mediator. I have found the theories in this book to be of immense help to me in understanding how to approach people and problems in the legal world. I have not read a great deal about the application of Spiral Dynamics in the legal world. I frankly don't think there's a lot out there, and their web site is frankly short on guidance concerning the application of Spiral Dynamics theory in legal mediation and negotiations. I have nevertheless considered approaches to many mediation problems against the background of information I gleaned from this text. I am rather amazed how simply adjusting the language of the mediation to the particular meme-level (or color) of the client suddenly opens the door to progress in communications and the chance to ultimately find common-ground between warring parties. Someone definitely needs to write a follow-up text with practical suggestions as to the application of this theory to mediation and negotiations in the legal world. Lawyers are increasingly turning to mediation as a way of resolving disputes. Someone could make a small fortune teaching lawyers how to utilize these theories not only in negotiations and mediation but also in jury selection in courtroom trials. Oh man, the possibilities are staggering, and lawyers will pay for this kind of knowledge.
Anyway, the writing is interesting, anectodal and fun to read. I would recommend the book to anyone interested in figuring out why no matter how hard you try, the guy next door just doesn't seem to "get it." It also explains why the political vision and understanding of some politicians seems to go right over some people's heads and that of other politicians just leaves you shaking your head.
Book Description
Based on research presented at The Harvard Business School’s first-ever conference on business approaches to poverty alleviation, Business Solutions for the Global Poor brings together perspectives from leading academics and corporate, non-profit and public sector managers. The contributors draw on practical and dynamic how-to insights from leading BOP ventures from more than twenty countries world-wide. This important volume reflects poverty’s multi-faceted nature and a broad range of actors—multinational and local businesses, entrepreneurs, civil society organizations and governments—that play a role in its alleviation.
Customer Reviews:
A collection with a story to tell.......2007-06-29
This work is a seamless compilation of information from the corners of the globe detailing innovative new approaches to the alleviation of global poverty through creative efforts in the private sector. Beyond useful and insightful facts and information, this book goes on to organize and present the knowledge in a framework that serves to effectively establish the context of global poverty and therefore the efforts to alleviate it. Because of this context-building framework, as a reference material, this volume is greater than the sum of its parts.
Book Description
More and more business leaders are catching on to an often-overlooked fact: consciousness is our basic faculty for survival and success. Without it, we forget what's important to us and lose sight of the steps we might take to reach those goals. "Conscious business," explains Fred Kofman, means shining this awareness on every area of your work: in recognizing the needs of others and expressing your own—in seeing the hidden emotional obstacles that may be holding your team back—in making good decisions under pressure—and even in delving into such "spiritual" questions as "Who am I?" and "What is my real purpose here?" In Conscious Business, this visionary teacher and consultant to Google, Microsoft, Yahoo! and other leading companies presents the complete training manual in the breakthrough techniques he has shared with over 20,000 executives on four continents, including: • Unflinching integrity, the key to "success beyond success" • Why culture, not know-how, is the best place to first focus a company's improvement efforts—and how to pull it off • Right leadership, and how it translates into making more money "A conscious business fosters peace and happiness in the individuals, respect and solidarity in the community, and mission accomplishment in the organization," teaches Fred Kofman. With Conscious Business, you hold the definitive resource for maximizing profit and potential in the workplace and beyond. Available in two formats: book and audio CD.
Customer Reviews:
I can't think of anyone who shouldn't read this.......2007-01-31
The hard part about starting or running a business is not the long hours, the tight deadlines, or the stresses of being overworked in the face of an insecure future. The real challenges that make or break us surround dealing with our own integrity, our priorities, and conflicts with others.
This book covers those challenges and offers many tools and examples of how we can manage them and come out ahead having built a stronger foundation and a stronger company.
I personally can't stand the idealistic tones of the book but I will admit, unlike most of these books that I have read, this one is much more grounded inthe harsh challenges of reality such as the fact that, while in business and in dealing with others failure is not an option but success is not always achieved.
If you read this book you will find yourself referencing it as you deal with life on any level because the authors clear mind and direct language gives you the language to describe and communicate the situation and how best to manage it.
CONSCIOUS BUSINESS.......2007-01-29
Fred Kofman does a good job explaining his concepts, however his accent can be a little disconcerting at first. If you are a Landmark Education graduate, the material on these CD's is very nearly a rip-off of the same concepts (i.e., having Integrity, Honoring your Word, etc...). For non-Landmark graduates, these CD's cover many soft-skills concepts that can be effective in your personal life, but he applies them (a little obscurely) to a work environment. If you are trying to get your own business off the ground, "Conscious Business" does not offer strategies for doing so, but rather best practices to remain successful. In other words, you won't find tips regarding how to file your returns, collect data effectively, or document discipline. You will instead find tips about the importance of keeping your word, how to stop stressing about work, and things of that nature. The program was not bad--in retrospect, I would have found it no more than $15 worth of value. Take that for what you will.
A Unique Value Creation Model .......2007-01-16
Business is an essential part of our lives. Doing business consciously, Fred Kofman, a co-founder of the consulting firm Axialent, is an essential part of living consciously. The author presents a business model where managers are more conscious of the inner and outer lives of employees.
Anyone who works intuitively understands there are two types of managers. As a professor of accounting, Kofman begin his classes by having students listen to one of Beethoven's pieces over and over. Gradually the students would realize that the music was not in the CD; but in the listening. In music as in business, Information's only value is in how it is interpreted.
Most recognize the need for smart employees with the latest in technical competency. Kofman argues it is more important, and less recognized, that organizations recruit and retain employees with high-level consciousness.
He draws a contrast between unconscious attitudes and their conscious counterparts. They are:
Unconscious Attitudes.....................Conscious Attitudes
Unconditional Blame.......................Unconditional Responsibility
Essential Selfishness........................Essential Integrity
Ontological Arrogance.....................Ontological Humility
Unconscious Behaviors....................Conscious Behaviors
Manipulative Communication..........Authentic Communication
Narcissistic Negotiation....................Constructive Negotiation
Negligent Coordination.....................Impeccable Coordination
Unconscious Reactions.....................Conscious Reactions
Emotional Incompetence...................Emotional Mastery.
These qualities are simple to understand; yet, they are difficult to implement. They represent common sense; yet, they are not found widely in common practice. They seem natural, yet they challenge deep-seated assumptions individuals hold about themselves, others and their world.
Kofman opens the reader's conscious to a unique resource for maximizing profit and potential in the workplace and beyond. Written concisely and coherently he communicates an uncommon wisdom about the truth of our emotions and healthy interpersonal practices in business and life.
A clarion call for balancing fiscal obligations with ethical and moral responsibilities.......2007-01-06
Written by Fred Kofman (co-founder and president of Axialent consulting company), Conscious Business: How to Build Value Through Values is a straightforward guide to applying conscious awareness to its fullest extent, recognizing the needs of others, and effectively expressing one's own needs order to build responsibility, integrity, leadership, and reputation - all of which are invaluable tools to a business' continued success. Drawing from real-world examples by such famous companies as Microsoft, Yahoo!, and much more, Conscious Business reveals how being mindful of fundamental human virtues and even "spiritual" questions such as "Who am I?" and "What is my real purpose here?" are positive, empowering assets. A clarion call for balancing fiscal obligations with ethical and moral responsibilities for increased success in all dimensions of business life.
Creating a Cooperative Culture of Improving Performance.......2006-12-14
Conscious Business is the first book I've read on an important subject I'd like to tackle as an author: How to move those in an organization from focusing on their selfish interests to concentrating on what creates the most good for the most people . . . with the least potential harm to any individual. I thought that Dr. Kofman did a good job in defining one path to creating mutual benefit in Conscious Business. If people in your organization seem to be emphasizing their own careers rather than the tasks that need doing, this book is a must-read for you!
Let me agree with Dr. Kofman about his warning for readers: It's much easier to understand his principles than apply them. But with practice, you can do great things.
Here are the goals he sets:
"In the impersonal It dimension, the goal is to accomplish the organization's mission, enhancing its ability to continue doing so in the future, and delivering outstanding long-term returns to shareholders. In the interpersonal We dimension, the goal is to establish cooperative, trusting, and mutually respectful relationships, a community of shared purpose and values in which people feel they belong. In the personal I dimension, the goal is to live in a state of flow, feeling a transcendent happiness that comes from living in full integrity, with one's principles and ideals."
As you can see from this quote, Dr. Kofman draws heavily from his interest in Buddhist tradition and other streams of spiritual beliefs that are outside of the Judeo-Christian tradition. The text is enlivened by quotes from many sides of the spiritual spectrum and psychologists. As a result, the material will speak directly and deeply in places to virtually any reader, regardless of background and beliefs.
The risk he points to is a real one: If we don't make our intentions explicit and specific, people will take the knee-jerk route of looking after themselves. That self-focus is the basis of much bureaucratic behavior, procrastination, avoidance, poor customer service, misconceptions, disbelief about what needs to be done, poor communications and over-reliance on tradition.
A key exhibit in the book can be found on page 17 where Dr. Kofman draws a contrast between relying on unconscious versus conscious attitudes in business. Here are the unconscious attitudes and their conscious counterparts:
Unconscious Attitudes.....................Conscious Attitudes
Unconditional blame.........................Unconditional responsibility
Essential selfishness........................Essential integrity
Ontological arrogance......................Ontological humility
Unconscious behaviors.....................Conscious behaviors
Manipulative communication..............Authentic communication
Narcissistic negotiation....................Constructive negotiation
Negligent coordination.....................Impeccable coordination
Unconscious reactions.....................Conscious reactions
Emotional incompetence...................Emotional mastery
The book goes on to devote a chapter to each of the seven conscious attitudes (excluding conscious behaviors and reactions from the list above). Since those attitude titles are not exactly self-explanatory, let me see if I can explain each a little more.
Unconditional responsibility is the Victor Frankl concept of determining your response to a situation, even if it is a situation you cannot change. You take charge of choosing your response.
Essential integrity is acting in accordance with your values, even if the results are less than perfect.
Ontological humility is being open to seeing what's going on from the perspectives of others and valuing those perspectives.
Authentic communication means sharing your emotions, opinions and knowledge openly with those who appear to be headed in the wrong direction . . . and encouraging them to do the same. From that baseline, you can then proceed to develop options that may better fit what's needed.
Constructive negotiation is focused on finding a great solution for everyone, rather than simply winning your point.
Impeccable coordination involves making informed commitments, staying on top of what's needed to meet those commitments and letting others know when things go wrong to devise solutions that may improve matters.
Emotional mastery means being able to function objectively, even if something outrages or frightens you.
As you can see from these terms and concepts, Conscious Business is a book of applied psychology by someone who is well versed in the field. The strength of that approach is that Dr. Kofman can reference psychological works that you may know well to give you a touchstone. The drawback is that the book can seem to be too academic if you aren't familiar with the terms and references.
Two things humanize the book from those weaknesses:
(1) Each chapter opens with an extended example of a business problem involving unconscious behavior and reactions. The key concepts are then explained and applied to turning the extended example into a way of employing conscious behavior and reactions.
(2) Dr. Kofman has had many interesting experiences that he deftly weaves into his story. I was especially impressed by his learning from having lived in a totalitarian regime in Argentina as a youth and his mountain climbing experience in South America.
All that said, the opening of this book was awfully abstract and academic. It wasn't until page 42 that I began to resonate with the material. So be patient. The book is quite accessible and interesting from that point on.
Book Description
Leading Corporate Citizens, Second Edition, explores the insight, vision, values, and learning that it takes to add enough values to a company so that it becomes a leading corporate citizen. This innovative text operates at three levels of leadership: individual, organizational, and societal. The premise is that businesses operate successfully in society when they respect and are responsible to stakeholders, a balance is needed among sectors in society and with nature, and that vision and values can result in distinctive competencies that lead to value-added for companies of the 21st century.
Customer Reviews:
Nothing New.......2003-10-06
I am using this textbook for an MBA course on Social Issues in Management. Convincing MBA students of the importance of social issues is a difficult yet important task. Unfortunately this book is not up to the challenge. Its concepts are overly simple - attempting to reveal a framework in which business exists that once understood should magically reveal win-win opportunities for all stakeholders.
Book Description
Unique in perspective, this book offers a comprehensive values-based approach to professional ethics that is sensitive to the primary ethical issues of the workplace and that offers a positive way for dealing with these issues. It focuses on values important to all professionals and on how people do their work, not what type of work they do, and recognizes the strengths of various moral theories and the ways to harmonize as many moral values as possible. Readings (from literature, philosophy, and the professional ethics canon), exercises, and cases offer numerous opportunities for practice in interpreting values and applying them to the workplace. MORALITY AND THE PROFESSIONAL LIFE. What Professions and Professionals Are. What Morality Is. What Professional Ethics Is. Moral Reasons and Explanations. Moral Theories. Moral Analysis and Case Solving. VALUES AT WORK. Integrity. Respect for Persons. Justice. Compassion. Beneficence and Nonmaleficence. Responsibility.
Book Description
Bestselling author and expert on leadership John C. Maxwell shares the only rule that matters-in business and in life. How does a person judge what is ethical?Sometimes it's clear. In the past year or two, ethical lapses in corporate America have been well documented. But is it always easy to see where the line is in life? What's the standard?And can it work in all situations? John C. Max- well thinks it can. In THERE'S NO SUCH THING AS BUSINESS ETHICS, Maxwell shows how people can live with integrity by using the Golden Rule as their standard-regardless of religion, culture, or circumstances. Along the way, he delves into the desires of the human heart, reveals the five most common pitfalls that throw people off the ethical track, and teaches how to develop the Midas touch when it comes to personal integrity.
Customer Reviews:
Producto equivocado.......2007-10-17
Lamentablemente recibí otro producto "Hoy es Importante" por error. Presenté el reclamo y devolví el producto y en tres oportunidades cometieron el mismo error de envío. Nunca recibí este producto:
There's No Such Thing as "Business Ethics" (Etica La Unica Regla Para Tomar Decisiones)
Save your money and go practice the Golden Rule.......2006-05-11
This more I think about this book, the more thought provoking it becomes. First, I find it amazing that anyone could take a belief that's widely known (practically a cliche), add nothing of substance to it, and actually write a book about it. Second, I find it even more amazing that it took 134 pages to make the Golden Rule applicable to business. Third, and perhaps the most amazing of all, is the fact that I actually spent my own hard earned money on this book. What amazing insights did I think would be uncovered?
I'll save you $9.72 (+s/h) and the 45 minutes it'll take you to read this. Here goes... Unless you were raised by wolves, it's pretty likely you've heard of the Golden Rule. Ok, now think about how this rule can be applied to all of your business dealings. That's it - you got it!
Whew! Now that you have an extra $9.72 in your pocket and 45 minutes of free time, go practice that Golden Rule by treating your kids/grandkids/neighbors to some ice cream.
Return to the Golden Rule.......2004-09-15
In a recent newspaper, in one day ... Enron chief pleads not guilty, Adelphia execs found guilty, no retrial in stock scandal ... and this was just the front page of the business section. On that same page, I noted the use of the phrase, "ethically amoral." Have we finally reached a point where we can construct such phrases? Corruption, moral relativism, the meaning of "is," have you had enough?
If you are looking for some insights into the problem and perhaps an alternative approach, here's your book, There's No Such Thing as "Business" Ethics. Maxwell writes, "...There's only ethics." Maxwell is right, and through interesting stories and common sense he argues for the adoption of the Golden Rule: Treat others the way you would like to be treated.
I read this book in hopes to validate my own research for my book, Swapping Lies! I felt that perhaps my call for a return of honor to the workplace was a bit too much, too naive. I was surprised to read that I am not the only one who feels this way. Maxwell is calling for the Golden Rule! Many will consider the Golden Rule a bit naïve in today's world, yet it is principle that successfully guides us in our business endeavors. A principled and focused leader is not naïve. In fact they are a constant source of strength and confidence to all. Spend just an hour to read this book. It may change you and your company.
Golden Rule as the General Guideline for Ethics.......2004-04-15
Book Overview:
This is a motivating, short, and easy to read book that tries to persuade the reader to adopt and apply the Golden Rule to their life as the ethical standard. Although the title of this book could mislead and create the wrong impression that it is intended to be read by businesspersons, this book can be used by anyone, since the general purpose is to apply the Golden Rule not only to the business environment but also to the personal life of the readers.
The book will generate great results and deep impact in the life of those persons, whom regardless of their social status or occupation, find themselves lost or disoriented regarding to their ethics standards. Throughout examples and real life stories in several aspects, the author illustrates his points and creates consciousness among the readers. At the end of each of the seven chapters, readers will find four to six straightforward questions that will help them look inside themselves and reflect what they have just read.
The author starts the book by citing ethical issues that have been creating concern in our society. Afterward, he focuses in the benefits and the importance of the Golden Rule. Subsequently, readers will find valuable tips of how to start thinking and applying this concept, which give introduction to other concept known as character. In chapter 5, the book encloses five factors that are considered to be the deceivers for people to follow an appropriate ethic path. Later, in the following chapter, the Dr. John C. Maxwell persuades readers to follow eight of his suggestions of how people can develop strong character in order to pursue golden opportunities. Finally, the author invites the readers to pursue the Golden Rule instead of the "Real Gold" by adopting five practices.
The Golden Rule works, This Book Falls Short.......2004-03-02
The application of the Golden Rule to our everyday lives is something that we can all agree is good. John Maxwell does a good job or defining the golden rule, its worldwide acceptance, and how we can apply it to our everyday. It was more like a walk down memory lane; to a time when a teacher or mentor first explained the concept to us. However I do have a few concerns with Mr. Maxwell's book. First there might need to be a better job at researching Fletcher thoughts on Relativism...in his book he labels Fletcher as the father of mordern day Realativism...quoting (or rather misquoting) Fletcher's statement that love can justify anything. I am in not postition to defend Fletcher, for I am not that familiar with his work, however he does not just use the term love. Rather he uses the term Agape Love, coming from the ancient Greek...the highest and purest form of love...one that God would have for us, a term any minister or pastor of the Christian Faith would know very well. Second after page 86 the book get repediative and seems to get off track. This links to my last issue with the book and why it gets a bit off track, as it turns into an advertisement for Mr. Maxwell's corporation, the last several pages are nothing but adverstisements asking you to visit their web site for free character quiz and then taking you down a road of Buy...buy...buy our products. Not what I expected and was somewhat disappointed. In short taking some know concepts, putting a somewhat of a new spin on them and then publishing to add another book to the list of those authored. Part of the disappointment is that I know this book could be better.
Download Description
"Next time someone tells you business can't be done ethically-corners must be cut, negotiations can't be honest-hand them Jon Huntsman's new book. Who's Jon Huntsman? Just someone who started with practically nothing, and built a world-class business that carried him to Forbes' list of America's wealthiest people. Here, he presents the lessons of a lifetime: a passionate, inspirational manifesto for returning to the days when your word was your bond, a handshake was sacred, and swarms of lawyers weren't needed to back it up.
This is no mere exhortation. It's as practical as a book can get. It's about how you listen to your moral compass. It's about how you build teams with the highest values...share success...take responsibility...earn the rewards that only come with giving back. Huntsman built his career and fortune on these principles-from his refusal of the Nixon administration's corrupt demands, to his lifelong commitment to charity, to the way he approaches his biggest deals.
You don't live these principles just to ""succeed"": you live them because they're right. But in an age of many business scandals, Huntsman's life proves honesty is more than right: it's your biggest competitive differentiator."
Customer Reviews:
A Very Important Business Lesson!.......2007-10-22
Jon Huntsman runs through his successful business career showing the reader that you can become a billionaire 'Honestly" and with integrity.
The thing that struck me the most from this book is that Jon Hunstman is a man of true character.
Easy Read and Well Worth It.......2007-02-14
I blew threw this book. It is such an easy read and it held my interest the whole way through. Now, I consider myself different for even having an interest in this book because I think the people who NEED to read this book would never even consider it. Jon Huntsman calls for a return of old time values where your word is your bond and you consider giving more than hoarding.
It was an excellent book and it helped me look at all aspects of my life and work and find room for improvement throughout. I highly recommend it to everyone with a conscience.
A Diamond In The Rough.......2006-04-15
"Play by the rules. Keep your word." This is, easier said than done. But it's still a vital principle to stand and abide by. Honesty and integrity are certainly not always followed in the competitive business world. However integrity, trust, and reputation, is an ideal. And in some industries, the only ones that survive and prosper are those that cultivate, trust.
When someone ascends to the stratosphere in any niche, profession, or circumstance they can advise the rest of us, and base this advice largely on past anecdotal experiences. Author Jon Huntsman has achieved many things and he's had a lot of experiences in life. He worked as a staff assistant to Richard Nixon, on H.R. Halderman's staff. Not willing to cow-tow to unethical requests, he didn't last long in in Nixon's administration. He was also one of the few upper-level staffer to emerge out of Watergate unscathed. Huntsman didn't like Nixon because he didn't give enough to charity. He became a billionaire in the international business realm -- He also came from nothing. The world has grown more complex and fast-paced in recent decades. And appropriately, this book does NOT say that the world of business competition is all roses, because it isn't the case. But the value of integrity is very powerful.
Beginning with Chapter One: Lessons from the sandbox to the philosophical points of this book vs. reality in 2006:
Huntsman strongly advocates building and maintaining employee loyalty. This has proven to be the most productive model. Turnover does lessen it today, however. In recent years there have been several instances of unethical behavior in U.S. business. Indictments and convictions for fraud, and numerous other crimes committed. Is this corruption and criminal activity in U.S. business practices increasing? Or, was it just not as exposed as much in the past? Is the American business mind-set and model changing for the worse? Maybe. Maybe not. Whatever the case, the recent crimes have resulted in a substantial loss of public, regulatory, and legal faith and trust, in accounting, basic transparency. Workers' incomes have declined for decades, but CEOs give themselves multi-million dollar salaries, lump-sum pay raises, and bonuses - even after - pensions are wiped out. The Board prospers even in companies that are losing millions and even billions of dollars, per year.
Who should be reading this book?
I do like Huntsman's withdrawal from Mitsubishi business project in Thailand he'd invested in, by refusing to pay bribes. Unfortunately, companies that want into East Asian markets have to grease some elbows to be allowed in. The corporations and business people that pay, get in. Those that don't, are excluded. It's not right, but that's the way it is. Huntsman did note that he'd made "handshake deals" on price, securing his position, even though later the the price increased shortly thereafter before purchasing. In the U.S. and most places in the world today, "handshake deals" don't work because of the risk and potential loss involved. As for Huntsman take of the high road, when someone "talks about himself" in a self-congratulatory way, my red flags go up a little. Especially if they are an American.
Again, the concept of "Winners never cheat," is an ideal. In reality there are many of the victors who do cheat. But it still....is an ideal....one of which we must abide by, espouse, and practice, if the U.S. will continue to be the dominant player in international business in our global, economically interdependent, and ultra-competitive, world. I strongly believe as studies suggest, that U.S. dominance of economics, creativity and innovation, are because Americans in general, play by the rules, and can be trusted more than many foreign individuals, organizations, and institutions.
Huntsman deserves credit. He recognizes his faults and works toward being a better person. Many of us don't do this.
This book is a positive diamond in the contemporary business rough.
Self-Made Billionaire Justifiably Looks Inward for Unyielding Strength in Character.......2006-01-20
Having just read Senator John McCain's book, "Character Is Destiny: Inspiring Stories Every Young Person Should Know and Every Adult Should Remember", I can see how Salt Lake City billionaire philanthropist Jon Huntsman can get passionate about the same subject. Both books contain the overriding message that there is nothing circumstantial when it comes to people who achieve greatness, that in fact, they achieve greatness as a result of their own character. Whereas McCain uses a diverse gallery of 34 real people as his examples, Huntsman looks more inward toward his own experiences to illustrate the same conclusions. In so doing, he offers a "moral compass" by which business leaders and others can live.
Huntsman reflects on his childhood in Blackfoot, Idaho, where his father imbued him with the ethical standards by which he runs his corporation. He contends that children raised without an emphasis on honesty and virtue will find their truth in evasions and loopholes. Because they get away with it, they grow up to employ the same feeble excuses in their business and professional lives when they are caught doing something we knew we shouldn't be doing. We rationalize that immoral behavior is accepted practice. Shifting responsibility away from ourselves has become an art form. Parental example, whether for good or bad, is undoubtedly the most powerful influence on a child's moral and social development, especially for those not exposed to other role models or a caring educational environment.
It's a compact book, 185 pages, and the ten chapters have titles that seem more appropriate for a Gail Sheehy self-help manual. However, the truths that he espouses have great value and show Huntsman to be someone who lives by his rules. In particular, on his chapter about the obligation to give back, he is not afraid to expose Richard Nixon as someone who did not epitomize character. As his White House special assistant and staff secretary, he saw that Nixon gave only $500 to charity on a declared income of over $400K in 1971. Whether "that pittance was more onerous than Watergate" is arguable, but at least the author infers a valid point about how Nixon's alleged lack of character marked his Presidency.
Today we see leaders who willfully cast off the moral and ethical values they had inherited given the opportunity for personal economic betterment. The dissemination of acquired ethical standards may be more gradual in some cases versus others, as ambitious entrepreneurs succumb to the unrelenting pressure and intensely competitive atmosphere of modern business. Regaining public trust in the private sector, according to Huntsman, is imperative through the execution of a number of key principles - operating businesses and organizations as if they are family-owned; surrounding oneself with associates who listen to their conscience and act accordingly; and of treating customers, colleagues, employees and competitors with respect. His other points are even more fundamental - set the example; revenge is unproductive; return favors and give back to help those less fortunate.
Huntsman has certainly achieved a lot in his life to justify authoring this book, becoming one of the nation's largest philanthropists and raising a son who was recently elected the governor of Utah. Still, I think McCain's more deflective approach of using historical figures as prototypes of powerful character provides somewhat more resonance than an autobiographical treatise. I also could have done without an afterword by FOX News Channel commentator Neil Cavuto or a quote of praise from Dick Cheney. Whether intentional or not, their politically controversial presence undermines Huntsman's invaluable perspective.
A Donation from Jon M. Huntsman .......2006-01-13
Jon M. Huntsman writes, “Donations don’t always have to be money. In many ways, time is more precious than dollars. Giving of one’s time, lending one’s stature, and providing one’s expertise can be as meaningful as money (p.163).” Really, his excellent study is donation for me. I would like to share this donation to everybody with the following notes from this invaluable book:
• “The principles we learned as children were simple and fair. They remain simple and fair. With moral compasses programmed in the sandboxes of long ago, we can navigate career courses with values that guarantee successful lives, a path that is good for one’s mental and moral well-being, not to mention long-term material success (p.15).”
• “Values provide us with ethical water wings whose deployment is as critical in today’s wave tossed corporate boardrooms as they were in yesterday’s classrooms (p.29).”
• “Courage may be the single most important factor in identifying leadership. Individuals may know well what is right and what is wrong but fail to act decisively because they lack the courage their values require (p.66).”
• “As captains of our own character, it is essential we understand the great legacy of trust and integrity. We will be remembered for truthful disclosures and promises kept (p.85).”
• “Your word is your greatest asset; honesty is your best virtue (p.85).”
• “Life is not a game of solitaire; people depend on one another. When one does well, the others are lifted. When one stumbles, others also impacted. There are no one-man teams – either by definition or natural law. Success is a cooperative effort; it’s dependent upon those who stand beside you (pp.90-91).”
• “Some people earn admiration and respect. If you must choose one, however, go for respect every time (p.93).”
• “There is no book written, no guideline crafted or class devised that explain how to activate courage. Courage comes from deep within one’s being. Courage is not the understanding of what is right or wrong. Rather, it is the strength to choose the right course (pp.95-96).”
• “Most companies and individuals seek success and respect. To reach these goals requires a sense of compassion for others and desire to make others happy. Happiness is so meaningful to our lives. It often comes to us when we try to make others happy. Graciousness is catching (pp.127-128).”
• “In a family business, check your ego at the door. There is no room for self-aggrandizement or self-promotion. In a family business, everyone knows the abilities and shortcomings of the others. There are no secrets. The success of family business relies on trust, respect, and love (pp.144-145).”
• “Be a cheerleader for each other. Seek good fortune for the other person first. Most family businesses end up in disarray because of the selfish interests of one or another sibling (p.145).”
• “All companies – public or private – must create a culture in which employees come first and are treated royally. Believe me, they always return the favor (p.150).”
• “It is of little consequence where or how or to whom we give. What really matters is our attitude (p.162).”
• “True giving is doing something for somebody who can never repay you (p.169).”
• “The elders of any society frequently view the younger generation as possessing fewer values than they have, but the fact is we all start out the same. Each generation has unique challenges; no generation has a monopoly on values (p.174).”
Strongly recommended
Book Description
Spiritual Capital presents a new vision of capitalist society that transcends the greed, materialism, and meaninglessness so rampant today. It offers an idea of wealth, profit, and capital that's about more than simply money. "Profit," under this system, would be not merely for private gain but would be used in part for public good. "Wealth" would be that which enriches the deeper aspects of our lives, gained by drawing upon our most fundamental purposes and highest motivations and finding a way to embed these in our work. "Capital" is amassed by serving - in corporate philosophy and practice - the pressing concerns of our world. The author's dream of getting a critical mass of people and organizations to act for what's right rather than for self-serving reasons. Ideally, spiritual capital would reflect a values-based business culture. Instead of emphasizing shareholder value, it would promote "stakeholder value," where stakeholders include the whole human race and the planet itself.
Customer Reviews:
A Wealth of Good Ideas.......2005-09-11
This review is an adaptation of my review published in Personnel Psychology, Summer Issue, 2005.
Zohar is broadly trained and thus taps into diverse resources such as classical literature, physics, religion, and psychology. Marshall is a Jungian-oriented psychiatrist and psychotherapist. Married to each other, the authors would make, I think, engaging conversationalists at my imaginary dinner party, provided that at the table they didn't repeat from their book the following tale by Ovid.
The Greek poet's tale is about Erisychthon, pronounced Erisyathon for any name droppers, a mythological character who, because he was so greedy, was cursed to eat everything in sight including him self after all else had been consumed. He symbolizes, the authors believe, the essence of materialistic capitalism, an insatiable "monster devouring itself."
The authors' main theme is that a "critical mass" of individuals can make a positive difference. This theme seems to have been influenced by Jung's philosophy that "great transformations" in history are a summation of positive changes in individuals.
The authors argue that material capitalism, the kind that predominates in Corporate America and Wall Street, is unsustainable and thus "in a state of crisis." It's depleting our natural resources, creating political and social instability, eroding our moral standards, and degrading the very meaning of life in terms of its deepest values and aspirations. Rather than reject this conventional capitalism altogether, however, the authors advocate transforming it into a more positive, sustainable economic system that they call "spiritual capitalism" in the secular, non-religious sense.
It's defined as the amount of knowledge and expertise available about "meaning, values, and fundamental purposes." It produces not material wealth that ultimately consumes itself but a self-sustaining wealth "that enriches the deeper aspects of our lives." The authors list 12 qualities that companies "high in spiritual capital" would possess. For example, they would be "self-aware," "vision and value-led," and "compassionate" and would "have a sense of vocation."
Are there any companies high in spiritual capital? The authors don't cite any companies that possess all 12 qualities or even most of them, which is an opportunity missed because they developed a set of descriptors that could have been built into a good survey instrument.
The auhors argue that material capitalism is in a state of crisis, which they say is one of negative motivations, with the four primary ones being self assertion or competitiveness, anger, craving or greed, and fear. Most of the book, therefore, is devoted to explaining Marshall's "Scale of Motivations" and in speculating on how it, along with emotional and spiritual intelligence, can be used to raise motivation to a sufficient level among a sufficient number of business leaders to produce a "great transformation" first in their own companies and then for capitalism as a whole.
For his scale, which he has been using in his clinical practice for some 40 years, Marshall expanded Maslow's hierarchy of six needs to eight positive and eight negative motivations. The highest positive motivation is "enlightment," and the lowest negative one is "depersonalization." A person needs to be emotionally intelligent enough, the authors say, to be aware of their own motivational level. This is necessary in order to be able to raise motivations to a higher level. When two persons interact, the authors contend that if one is at a higher level on the scale, then that person can raise the level of the other person. The authors speculate that 2-5 percent of the leadership of any company need to be "knights" at Level 6 and an additional 10 percent need to be "masters" at Levels 4 and 5 in order for the company to start acquiring spiritual capital. It would be rare and impractical to expect anyone to reach the two highest levels, the authors say. This, I have just given you, is a small sample of the authors' very elaborate speculations.
There is much about this book that appeals to me. I agree with their view that the capitalism prevailing today is unsustainable and thus needs to be transformed, not totally dismantled. The authors are creative thinkers who forced me repeatedly to think outside my own relatively narrow paradigms. Some of their ideas are interesting enough to warrant further exploring their possible application throughout business. I've already mentioned the missed opportunity. Another possibility, for instance, would be to do more applied research on their measure of spiritual intelligence beyond a small pilot test that the authors conducted.
Now that I've read the book, I would like to learn more from the authors over a glass of wine and gourmet dinner.
Reconnecting our needs and business imperatives.......2005-02-23
Danah Zohar is still probably best known as an author for her 1990 book The Quantum Self. She is also very well-known as a speaker and is one of the select group of people who has driven forward our understanding of ourselves, our organizations and our society as complex adaptive systems. With her holistic view of the world, she is very sensitive to the connections or failures of connection that have such an impact on society and the lives of individuals. This book has as its primary focus the disconnection between the deepest needs and aspirations of humans and acceptance of the single-minded pursuit of profit as the sole imperative on business other than staying within the law.
She argues that maintenance of this disconnect is ultimately unsustainable both for society and for business. She sets out to show why, and how it is possible to move toward sustainability by accepting the creation of 'spiritual capital' as a parallel goal with building material capital.
The basic concepts on which the book rests include:
People, society and business form a system made up of interconnected sub-systems. For such a system to be sustainable requires that the elements cooperate in producing a balanced environment that nourishes the whole. They are holistic ... self-organizing, and exploratory.
Sustainable capitalism and a sustainable society depend on recognition and nurture of higher motivations:
* We need a sense of meaning and values and a sense of fundamental purpose (spiritual intelligence) in order to build the wealth that these can generate (spiritual capital).
* People, organizations and cultures that have spiritual capital will be more sustainable because they will have developed qualities that include wider, values-based vision, global concern and compassion, long-term thinking, spontaneity (and hence flexibility), an ability to act from their own deepest convictions, an ability to thrive on diversity, and an ability to learn from and make positive use of adversity.
She identifies three forms of wealth and three kinds of associated intelligence:
* Material capital, associated with thinking and rational intelligence, the wealth expressed in money;
* Social capital, associated with feeling and emotional intelligence, the wealth that makes our communities and organizations function effectively for the common good;
* Spiritual capital, associated with being and spiritual intelligence, the wealth contained in our shared meanings, values and ultimate purposes.
Much of the book is concerned with identifying the states of being in which a person or an organization can find itself and the principles required for transformation to a state in which higher values can be met and higher needs satisfied and the system remains sustainable. The principles are based on observation of the behavior of (non-human) complex adaptive systems plus principles for human sustainability taken from spiritual thought through the ages.
The qualities that the author identifies as central to a sustainable organization will be familiar to most readers - self aware, vision and value led, holistic, celebrating diversity and similar qualities. She argues that these are the qualities necessary to maintain a system in the dynamic but self-sustaining state we describe as a complex adaptive system - neither stuck in steady-state inflexibility nor falling over the edge into chaos.
Maintenance of this state requires particular behaviors on the part of enough individuals acting as leaders to induce the organization as a whole to behave in that way. Her belief is that, in spite of the system pressures (such as those from the financial markets) to behave otherwise, a sufficient minority of aware people can bring about the necessary changes.
Presented charge for people to make a difference.......2004-08-08
The collaboration of Danah Zohar and Ian Marshall, Spiritual Capital: Wealth We Can Live By offers a highly critical view of the business and ethical practices of capitalism as it is practiced today, with its amorality vested in short-term self-interest, reaping profits, obsession with shareholder value, isolationist thinking, and reckless disregard of long-term consquences. Arguing for the need for a radical new philosophy for corporate governance that adjusts the meaning and purpose of wealth creation, and using the principles of "spiritual capital" and "spiritual intelligence" to define the needs of humanity and human government, Spiritual Capital is a passionately presented charge for people to make a difference
Book Description
This book challenges readers to examine problems and to be aware of biases. It provides the tools to make informed ethical judgments, and tells readers what is required to form good moral habits and character.
The primary focus of this book is on American business values, but it also examines how those values are influencing people throughout the world, and how American values are, in turn, being influenced by other peoples.
For business advisors and consultants, as well as corporate managers.
Book Description
Richard Barrett, author of the best-selling book Liberating the Corporate Soul, presents his new thinking
Based on his experience working with over 1,000 organizations in 32 countries on cultural transformation for the values-driven organization. He presents a whole system approach to cultural transformation, showing organizations how they can change their culture to become values-driven organizations that support their employees, their customers, their partners, their leaders, and ultimately drive effectiveness and profit.
*New thinking from best-selling author on the value-driven organization
*Integrates cutting-edge technologies available to companies on the web
*Integrates many methodologies into a whole system approach to cultural transformation
Customer Reviews:
Book Review.......2007-01-26
Richard Barrett again does an outstanding job of clearly stating his main points, then building on them with facts and good examples. He is able to expertly blend some of the key principles of other authors -- Ken Wilbur and Don Beck -- with some of his material. The text provides some excellent evaluation tools, both for individuals and organizations. He references a number of websites for additional clarity of some of his points. He has an excellent reference list at the end of the book. Anyone who is looking at leadership and organizational values/vision/mission will do well to read this timely book.
Harry Owens, Jr., MD, MIM
Powerful model to measure & build organizational culture.......2006-07-20
Richard does another excellent job describing the seven levels of consciousness model and how this framework can be used to effectively measure an organization's culture. This process provides a values-based approach within a whole system perspective. Regardless of the status of an organziation's cultural health, this whole system approach provides the opportunity to integrate where an organization is (its current strengths, opportunities, systems and resources) and provides a map to get to where the organization wants to be. A great book that helps make sense of the complexity of organizational culture and how to improve it. Nice work!
Barrett on Values.......2006-04-11
Many of us read Richard Barrett's best-selling book, Liberating the Corporate Soul, and admired his visionary and soul nurturing approaches to building sustainable and enduring organisations. Now he has given birth to another major leap forward in how to develop and sustain values-based organisations. In this new book, Richard demonstrates again his genius at delivering clear conceptual and experience-based thinking on organisation culture as a new frontier of competitive advantage. Building on his experience in carrying out over 600 cultural values assessments in 35 countries, he shows how to build full-spectrum consciousness in leaders and organizations and how to carry out whole-system change to meet the challenges of accelerating change, deepening complexity and growing systemic risks.
George Starcher, President, European Baha'i Business Forum
Books:
- Standards of Practice Handbook, 9th Edition
- Surveillance Countermeasures: A Serious Guide To Detecting, Evading, And Eluding Threats To Personal Privacy
- Survival of the Savvy: High-Integrity Political Tactics for Career and Company Success
- Teach Like Your Hair's on Fire: The Methods and Madness Inside Room 56
- The Bipolar Workbook: Tools for Controlling Your Mood Swings
- The Business Side of Creativity: The Complete Guide to Running a Small Graphic Design or Communications Business, Third Updated Edition
- The Elements of Journalism: What Newspeople Should Know and The Public Should Expect
- The Ethics of What We Eat: Why Our Food Choices Matter
- The Ghost Brigades (Sci Fi Essential Books)
- The Great Fuzz Frenzy
Books Index
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