Unleash Your Complexity Genius: Growing Your Inner Capacity to Lead

by Jennifer Garvey Berger, Carolyn Coughlin

Overview

There is a complexity paradox that we all need to understand. We humans have a natural inclination towards connection, engagement, and creativity – all necessary skills to thrive in complexity. The problem is that the stress caused by uncertainty and ambiguity makes it difficult to tap into this inclination when we need it the most. This book offers a set of practices that help you not only understand complexity but actually hack into your own nervous system to bring your natural capacities back online. By paying close attention to your body, redefining your emotional experiences, and connecting more deeply to others, you can transform the anxiety, exhaustion, and overwhelm that complexity creates. Better still, as you unleash your natural complexity genius, you create the conditions for those around you to flourish in an uncertain world.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781503630475
Publisher:	Stanford University Press
Publication date:	08/09/2022
Pages:	168
Sales rank:	268,863
Product dimensions:	5.00(w) x 8.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

Jennifer Garvey Berger has helped thousands of leaders around the world thrive in complexity. Founder and CEO of Cultivating Leadership, she is the author of Unlocking Leadership Mindtraps and Changing on the Job: Developing Leaders for a Complex World.
Carolyn Coughlin is Board Co-Chair and Founder, Cultivating Leadership. She has been an executive coach, facilitator, and leadership development specialist for over 20 years, helping leaders use the wisdom of their bodies to find success with ease.

Table of Contents

Introduction 1

1 It's Not Just Out There, It's in Here: Your Nervous System Meets Complexity 6

2 Start with the Present: The Genius of Noticing 29

3 Adjust Yourself First: The Genius of Breathing, Moving, and Sleeping 43

4 Create the Conditions for Things to Change: The Genius of Experimenting 66

5 Emotions Are the New Facts: The Genius of Laughing and Wondering 83

6 Connections Matter More Than Competence: The Genius of Loving 108

Our Gratitude 145

Notes 151

Editorial Reviews

"The arrival of Unleash Your Complexity Genius is perfectly timed to help us navigate the moment. Compassionate and actionable, this wonderful book can help you access and use your innate genius for handling the complexity all of us find ourselves confronting today. I promise that you will find yourself taking a calming deep breath within the first few pages. But don't stop there, or you'll miss valuable tips for navigating your most perplexing challenges with humility and grace."—Amy C. Edmondson, Professor at Harvard Business School; author of The Fearless Organization

"Imagine you could be in a fabulous workshop, taught by world-renowned facilitators, who are gifted at holding a space for your learning. Now imagine you can experience the workshop as quickly or slowly as you like, and you can re-take any part of it you want to do over. That is your opportunity in Unleash Our Complexity Genius. Don't just "read" this book. Open the cover and enter the workshop!"—Robert Kegan, Chief Knowledge Officer, The Developmental Edge, LLC

"Simple yet powerful insights into how to find and unlock your own genius for dealing with complexity. Using GEMs, you will learn how to be yourself, deliver bigger outcomes, and make whatever you do enjoyable. Jennifer has worked closely with my leadership team, and I can attest for the applicability and efficacy of her advice."—Vinod Kumar, CEO, Vodafone Business

"In today's world, effective leadership requires thriving in an increasingly complex world. Unleash Your Complexity Genius is an invaluable guide to proven practices to grow as a leader and be energized by facing complexity. I have benefitted immensely from these concepts in my own leadership journey and my work with these extraordinary authors."—Vas Narasimhan, CEO, Novartis

"Jennifer and Carolyn continue to do incredible work to help us handle our complex, confusing and uncertain lives. Combining their expertise in adult development, biology and neurology with their experience in organisational and human behaviour, this book offers enlightening case studies, pinpoint diagnoses, and valuable advice. Even more generously, they have developed multiple practices to help brain and body reach peak fitness for this challenge of our times."—Nick Studer, CEO, Oliver Wyman

From the Publisher

"The arrival of Unleash Your Complexity Genius is perfectly timed to help us navigate the moment. Compassionate and actionable, this wonderful book can help you access and use your innate genius for handling the complexity all of us find ourselves confronting today. I promise that you will find yourself taking a calming deep breath within the first few pages. But don't stop there, or you'll miss valuable tips for navigating your most perplexing challenges with humility and grace."

Professor at Harvard Business School; author of The Fearless Organization - Amy C. Edmondson

"Simple yet powerful insights into how to find and unlock your own genius for dealing with complexity. Using GEMs, you will learn how to be yourself, deliver bigger outcomes, and make whatever you do enjoyable. Jennifer has worked closely with my leadership team, and I can attest for the applicability and efficacy of her advice."

Vodafone Business - Vinod Kumar

"Imagine you could be in a fabulous workshop, taught by world-renowned facilitators, who are gifted at holding a space for your learning. Now imagine you can experience the workshop as quickly or slowly as you like, and you can re-take any part of it you want to do over. That is your opportunity in Unleash Our Complexity Genius. Don't just "read" this book. Open the cover and enter the workshop!"

LLC - Robert Kegan

"In today's world, effective leadership requires thriving in an increasingly complex world. Unleash Your Complexity Genius is an invaluable guide to proven practices to grow as a leader and be energized by facing complexity. I have benefitted immensely from these concepts in my own leadership journey and my work with these extraordinary authors."

Novartis - Vas Narasimhan

"Jennifer and Carolyn continue to do incredible work to help us handle our complex, confusing and uncertain lives. Combining their expertise in adult development, biology and neurology with their experience in organisational and human behaviour, this book offers enlightening case studies, pinpoint diagnoses, and valuable advice. Even more generously, they have developed multiple practices to help brain and body reach peak fitness for this challenge of our times."

Oliver Wyman - Nick Studer