Appreciative Intelligence: Seeing the Mighty Oak in the Acorn

by Tojo Thatchenkery and Carol Metzker

Book Overview

"Provocative . . . reveals the ability behind exciting and unexpected innovations, turnarounds, or accomplishments that were once considered impossible." --W. Warner Burke, Edward L. Thorndike Professor of Psychology and Education, Teachers College, Columbia University

Appreciative Intelligence provides a new answer to what enables successful people to dream up their extraordinary and innovative ideas; why employees, partners, colleagues, investors, and other stakeholders join them on the path to their goals, and how they achieve these goals despite obstacles and challenges. It is not simple optimism. People with appreciative intelligence are realistic and action oriented--they have the ability not just to identify positive potential, but to devise a course of action to take advantage of it.

Drawing on their own original research and recent discoveries in psychology and cognitive neuroscience, Thatchenkery and Metzker outline the evidence for appreciative intelligence, detail its specific characteristics, and show how you can develop this skill and use it in your own life and work. They show how the most successful leaders are able to spread appreciative intelligence throughout an organization, and they offer tools and exercises you can use to increase your own level of appreciative intelligence and so become more creative, resilient, successful, and personally fulfilled.

"An inspiring and practical account of how to develop the capacity to see potential within the present and to develop this capacity within oneself and in others." --Jane E. Dutton, William Russell Kelly Professor of Business Administration and Professor of Psychology, Stephen M. Ross School of Business, University of Michigan

"A compelling justification for . . . what endows successful leaders with the qualities of persistence, conviction, comfort with uncertainty, and resilience to overcome challenges." --Dr. V. Nilakant, coauthor of Change Management

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1576753530
• ISBN13: 9781576753538
• Release Date: May 2006
• Publisher: Berrett-Koehler Publishers
• Length: 214 Pages
• Weight: 1.15 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.4" x 9.5"

Customer Reviews

Powerful message and tools for [agile] leaders

This a book with a fresh, powerful message and tools for leaders everywhere. It is especially valuable in the Agile community where we are trying to clearly define and capture what leadership and innovation mean on Agile projects. I found myself drawn in page after page as stories of "reframing", "appreciating the positive", and "seeing how the future unfolds from the present" unfolded to to articulate the contruct (not concept) of Appreciative Intelligence. In my opinion, the latter half of the book is better suited for those interested in practical application. Also be warned that the considerable erudition of the authors shows up in a flood of references that might slow down your reading. All in all, a great book with fresh thinking and tools for those interested in leadership and innovation. [...]

Building on the Mighty Legacy of Appreciative Inquiry, Thought, and Action

In a remarkable turn of events, this week's Fortune magazine cover article highlights the ways that former GE CEO Jack Welch's management maxims, once taken as gospel by leaders around the world, are now being questioned and even rejected. Welch is credited with reinvigorating Six Sigma, the penultimate tool set for organizational improvement. It's probably no coincidence that Tojo Thatchenkery and Carol Metzker's new book on Appreciative Intelligence (Seeing the Mighty Oak in the Acorn) should emerge at the same time to offer a powerful alternative to traditional forms of management thinking that have spawned problem solving, "forced ranking," and other deficit-oriented approaches to organizational change. Appreciative Intelligence is defined by the authors (full disclosure: Thatchenkery and I were in graduate school together nearly twenty years ago but have had virtually no contact since then) as consisting of three components: reframing, appreciating the positive, and seeing how the future unfolds from the present. The book is full of wonderful case examples, both for-profit and non-profit settings, of how the principles of Appreciative Intelligence can be understood and practiced. There are simple methods for profiling one's own levels of Appreciative Intelligence, awareness and action. While researchers will find several chapters digging into the biological basis for Appreciative Intelligence of considerable academic interest, probably the biggest payoff of this book for organizational practitioners is the last chapter on how to apply the principles to employee development efforts. As the process owner for career development within a major global technology company, this book provides powerful support for continuing to find ways to build on the internal talent that many companies and organizations possess by focusing on future potential - seeing the mighty oak in the acorn - and helping to realize that potential in ways that benefit the individual and the enterprise.

If You Want to Bring Out the Best in Your Organization and Yourself, Buy This Book!

When you search for problems, you find problems.. You and your organization can get mired in negativity. On the other hand, if you seek and tap into what's positive in individuals and organizations, you focus on possibilities and potential -- the oak in the acorn. Thatchenkery and Metzker have drawn a roadmap to discovering and nurturing the best in people (including yourself) and organizations by encouraging four qualities - persistence, conviction that one's actions matter, tolerance for uncertainty and irrepressible resilience. Their well-written, timely, and compelling book will prove useful for organization development professionals, human resource specialists, and executives alike who want to foster excellence not only in their organization but also in themselves.

An excellent contribution that will be of interest to practitioners and scholars

The authors Thatchenkery and Metzker have produced a remarkable book that is not only thorough and solid which will clearly hold the attention of the scholar, but also an approachable and practical piece of work that will be of immense value to the practitioner. The notion of Appreciative Intelligence is intuitively appealing and the authors do a fine job of building clear and convincing arguments as to why it is an important and impactful concept in the realm of human affairs. However, what excites me most is that, Appreciative Intelligence, much like Emotional Intelligence did, has the potential to push the boundaries of both theory and practice.

Great book - highly recommended

'Appreciative Intelligence: Seeing the Mighty Oak in the Acorn', by Tojo Thatchenkery and Carol Metzker, is a wonderful book that can transform the way you look at people and situations in your professional environment as well as family environment. Authors have correctly identified the factor that some people seem to have, that make them see things differently than most of us. AI may be present in all of us albeit in varying degree. Good news is that you can nurture it and sharpen it once you realize the presence of it within you. The real life examples given in the book serves very well as tools to this effect. This is a beautifully written book that can enhance your management skills and enable you to look at people and situations in a positive way. Highly recommended for general reading as well as for in depth study.