Michael J. Gelb's Blog

Michael J. Gelb Named “Center for Humanistic Management” Senior Fellow

| Aug 14, 2020 |
Michael Gelb Named Center for Humanistic Management Senior Fellow

Michael J. Gelb has been named a senior fellow of the Center for Humanistic Management at the Gabelli School of Business and will serve on the advisory board of the Gabelli School’s Leading People & Organizations area.

Professor Michael Pirson, the William J. Loschert Endowed Chair in Social Entrepreneurship and director of the Center said, “We are delighted to welcome Michael Gelb. He brings a unique combination of thought leadership in the realm of ethical, conscious business and outstanding expertise in helping individuals and organizations think and operate in more creative and innovative ways.”

The Center for Humanistic Management is a research center with active outreach to practice and policy, and a commitment to developing novel pedagogical approaches with a focus on social innovation. As part of the Humanistic Management Network, a guiding principle of the Center is that human autonomy realizes itself through social cooperation, economic relations, and business activities that can foster human life and well-being.

As a pioneering practitioner and thought leader in the fields of creative thinking, executive coaching, and innovative leadership, Michael J. Gelb has guided clients to create and evolve conscious cultures that foster innovation and promote human flourishing. He has served as an executive leadership coach and consultant to AT&T, DuPont, Genentech, KPMG, Merck, Microsoft, Nike, YPO, and many other organizations.

Gelb is the author of 17 books including How to Think Like Leonardo Da Vinci, The Art of Connection, Innovate Like Edison, Body Learning and The Healing Organization: Awakening the Conscience of Business to Help Save the World, co-authored with Raj Sisodia. His books have been translated into 25 languages and have sold more than one million copies.

Gelb holds a BA in psychology and philosophy from Clark University and an MA in psychophysical reeducation from Goddard College. In 2003, he received a Batten Fellowship in Innovation from the University of Virginia. He also co-directed the acclaimed Leading Innovation Seminar at the Darden Graduate School of Business for more than 10 years.

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Message for Italy & Humanity: Leonardo da Vinci inspires our courage

Michael J. Gelb shares practical tips to help you cultivate resilience a la Leonardo da Vinci, humanity’s greatest genius. His wisdom is needed, now. Leonardo says “…gather strength from distress, and grow brave by reflection…”

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Coronavirus: What Would Leonardo Advise?

Leonardo da Vinci is humanity’s greatest genius. His wisdom is needed, now.

The Black Death gives birth to the Renaissance

Humanity’s greatest pandemic, thus far, The Black Death of 1347–1351, arose in China, and spread to Europe with devastating consequences, especially in Italy. Estimates of the Eurasian death toll in that four-year period range from 75 to 200 million. The population of the city of Florence was reduced by 50%. Outbreaks of varying severity continued in Europe for the next 400 years.

Born just outside Florence in 1452, Leonardo da Vinci lived through a series of pandemics including one when he lived in Milan that killed about 30% of the population. Leonardo’s life and work can’t be fully appreciated without an understanding of the effects of this scourge on the consciousness of the time. Many scholars posit that the Black Death was the critical catalyst that gave birth to the Renaissance. As we face what is, in our lifetime*, an unprecedented public health crisis, let’s focus on his urgent and important guidance for our well-being.

( * Unless you are more than 102 years old and were alive when the Spanish Flu of 1918–20 infected almost thirty percent of the world’s population and killed more than 50 million people.)

Our contemporary understanding of pathogens, sanitation and epidemiology can now help us limit and contain the damage done by infectious disease. Humanity is much safer thanks to the pioneering work of Barton, Bassi, Lister, Nightingale, Pasteur, and Semmelweis, et. al.

Hundreds of years before those scientific and practical stalwarts, Leonardo championed the notion of hygiene and what we now call “social distancing” as a means to prevent the spread of infection. The cramped housing and overcrowded, filthy streets of Milan appeared to the Maestro as breeding grounds for contagion and inspired his remarkable city planning drawings and designs that promoted much greater sanitation, efficiency and beauty.

Leonardo da Vinci, city planning drawing. Image: Wiki Commons

“Learn to preserve your own health.”

On a practical, personal level Leonardo counsels: “Learn to preserve your own health.” He advises that we take responsibility for our wellness through a healthy lifestyle. This is important at the best of times, but even more so now.

The Maestro urged his students to dine on fresh, wholesome foods, (he was a vegetarian), and to savor the aesthetic pleasure of every meal. He countenanced the enjoyment of a little red wine with dinner, and recommended that we drink water liberally, get moderate exercise every day, and be sure to get plenty of rest and relaxation. He also advocated the restorative power of being in nature.

More than 500 years ago Leonardo counseled, “Avoid grievous moods and keep your mind cheerful,” anticipating what we now call psycho-neuro immunology. Contemporary science has validated Leonardo’s advice, our attitude effects our immune system, from moment to moment. So, heed the advice of history’s greatest genius and embrace a positive attitude. Recent research makes it clear that optimists live longer. We don’t get sick as often, and if we do get sick, we recover faster.

A few simple, practical tips to help you cultivate a resilient Da Vincian attitude:

Adopt a mindset of positive protection rather than fear and anxiety and affirm it every time you wash or sanitize your hands. Feel empowered by the wisdom that helps you preserve your own health and the health of your family, friends and community.


Prevent infection by spreading affection. Emotions are contagious, for better or for worse, so be careful what you catch and spread. Love and connection are the greatest immune strengtheners. Even as you keep your social distance, for the moment, you can still express affection to all your friends and family, by writing, calling and sending good wishes.






Stay informed, but don’t obsess on the news or social media.


Keep a gratitude notebook. People who count their blessings rather than their burdens are more adaptive, optimistic, and report a significantly greater experience of well-being. Every morning write a list of 3 things that inspire you to feel grateful. After you compose your list, spend a few seconds focusing on the feeling of gratitude for each thing you’ve written down. After you’ve reviewed your list, just “float” in the feeling of gratitude for a moment. Repeat the process in the evening. A recent study at Stanford University concluded, “In an experimental comparison, those who kept gratitude journals reported fewer physical symptoms, felt better about their lives as a whole, and were more optimistic about the upcoming week compared to those who recorded hassles or neutral life events.”


Create a positive, uplifting beautiful environment. A couple of years ago I was leading a think like da Vinci seminar for a group of nurses who worked in PTSD wards in Veterans Administration Hospitals. I asked them to explore how to make daily life at the hospital a more beautiful experience for their patients. As they contemplated the question it became apparent that they needed to rethink the set up in their waiting room. Like most waiting rooms, there was a television set that was usually tuned to CNN or Fox News. So traumatized veterans were being exposed to the accidents, scandals, disasters and murders regularly reported as so-called news on these outlets. It became instantly apparent to them that replacing the news with videos that showed relaxing scenes of nature, underscored by soothing music would make their patients experience more beautiful. And then many other ideas began to flow — they proposed the idea of creating an “art exhibition” on the bare walls, and replacing the tabloids and other typical waiting room periodicals with more inspiring literature, their enthusiasm grew as they conceived the idea of keeping a bouquet of fresh flowers on the registration table and infusing the air with delightful aromas like Leonardo’s favorite combination of lavender and rose. Of course, their prime focus was on making the lives of the veterans more beautiful but they realized that they themselves walked through that waiting room many times a day and that beautifying it would enrich their lives as well. Beauty is an antidote to stress. Beauty is healing. And as Leonardo understood it inspires us to think more creatively! So everyday, do something to make your life more beautiful, and to make life more beautiful for someone else.


Contemplate the Vitruvian Man. Leonardo’s Vitruvian Man, was drawn as an illustration for his friend’s book on divine proportion. Vitruvius (c. 80–15 BCE) was a Roman architect who believed that the human form expressed the principles of universal harmony and that those principles also formed the basis of harmony in architecture and city planning. The original drawing is in the collection of the Accademia di Belle Arti in Venice, Italy, but the image is universally familiar. It appears on the Euro coin and was the symbol for Skylab 3, and it’s used as a logo by countless health care and fitness organizations around the world, from Yoga and Pilates studios to physical therapy and chiropractic clinics.







Leonardo’s Vitruvian Man. Image: Wiki Commons

Why is the image of the Vitruvian Man so compelling more than 500 years after the maestro crafted it? The reason is that Leonardo succeeded in representing the human form as an expression of universal harmony, and like all works of great art, it resonates deep in our psyche. The figure appears to be alive, with unruly hair, distinct facial features and radiant energy. Leonardo’s Vitruvian Man is a powerful work of art that conveys a message of wholeness, vitality and power.

Healing Through Unity

Leonardo described sickness as the “discord of the elements of the human body” and healing as, “the restoration of discordant elements.” Now is the time, as individuals and as a society, that we need to focus on the restoration of discordant elements through a solution-centered, collaborative approach to creativity and innovation.

We must do this in the face of grave uncertainty. How? Smile like Mona Lisaand Think like Leonardo.

The Maestro said:

“I love those who can smile in trouble, who can gather strength from distress, and grow brave by reflection. It is the business of little minds to shrink, but they whose heart is firm, and whose conscience approves their conduct, will pursue their principles unto death.”

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Reclaim Your Birthright of Genius

You were born with unlimited creative potential, but most of us are de-geniused. How do we get de-geniused? And what can we do to get re-geniused? How can you reclaim your birthright of genius?
One of the best ways to get re-geniused is to spend time with geniuses (actually or virtually).
In Memoriam: Murray Gell-Mann (September 15,1929 - May 24, 2019)

Murray Gell-Mann emerged into our lives in 2010 through a dear friend, Felicity Broennan, who introduced us based on our mutual passion for wine and creativity. The photos here are from a few of the many fabulous evenings we enjoyed with Murray over the years, including dinners with other extraordinary characters such as playwright Sam Shepard, poet N. Scott Momaday and philosopher Rebecca Goldstein.

Bonding with Murray wasn't always easy, especially if you were sensitive to having your knowledge of word and name derivations and pronunciations challenged and publicly corrected, but we made a real connection when I volunteered to organize his wine cellar. The elegance of Murray’s thinking in helping to evolve Chaos Theory wasn’t apparent in his collection. It was just plain chaotic! Fine Bordeaux were hidden amidst cases of plonk. Rare Burgundies were intermingled with generic Merlots. Recent releases were stacked with wines that were getting close to or already beyond their expiration date.

Murray was thrilled with the reordering and clean up and we were all rewarded when he opened a magnum of 1955 Latour that offered a degree of complexity that transported us all to another dimension of shared appreciation.

Beyond enjoying wine and conviviality our evenings were organized around discussions of the relationship between truth, beauty and goodness and the role of creativity in living “The Good Life.” One of the most stimulating conversations began when Sam Shepard stated that he felt that creativity was a gift that wasn’t readily available to the average person, whereas Murray argued that everyone had the capacity to develop their creative power if they were curious and passionate enough.

Murray’s curiosity and passion for nature (especially birds), women (especially Felicity), wine, language, humor, music, archeology, world cultures and of course physics, served as an attracting force that drew other guests to think in new ways. These conversations helped to inform my 2014 release Creativity On Demand: How to Ignite and Sustain the Fire of Genius.

Here’s a brief excerpt:

Recover Your Creative Birthright

Who are the most imaginative, playful, curious, passionate beings? Children! Every healthy child is born with an unlimited potential to create. And children are pure manifestations of creative energy. That’s why they are all charismatic. The adults we call geniuses are those who have maintained their childlike charisma by continuing to cultivate their imagination, curiosity, passion, and playfulness as they grow up and then channeling it all into their chosen discipline.

Sigmund Freud wrote a book about Leonardo da Vinci in which he noted, “The great Leonardo remained like a child for the whole of his life . . . Even as an adult he continued to play, and this was why he often appeared uncanny and incomprehensible to his contemporaries.” At age eighty-five, Nobel Laureate Murray Gell-Mann displays a marvelously playful attitude and a wickedly sharp wit. Murray explains, “I chose the name ‘Quark’ [the elementary particle he conceived that revolutionized physics) because it was quirky and amusing. I’m driven by insatiable curiosity about the nature of the universe and I’ve always viewed my work as a delightful game.”

Like Leonardo and Murray, you were born with a neural and energetic endowment that gives you unlimited creative potential. We inherit a birthright of genius, but with rare exceptions, most of us are de-geniused. How do we get de-geniused? And what can we do to get re-geniused?

~ from Creativity On Demand: How to Ignite and Sustain the Fire of Genius.

One of the best ways to get re-geniused is to spend time in either actual or virtual modes with geniuses. You can start by watching Murray’s wonderful TED talk on the relationship between Truth, Beauty and Physics.

 

Murray Gell-Mann & Michael Gelb with Michael's books How to Think Like Leonardo da Vinci, & Wine Drinking for Inspired Thinking.

N. Scott Momaday, Michael Gelb & Murray Gell-Mann

The Delight Song of Tsoai-talee (excerpt)

“...You see, I am alive, I am alive

I stand in good relation to the earth

I stand in good relation to the gods

I stand in good relation to all that is beautiful

I stand in good relation to the daughter of Tsen-tainte

You see, I am alive, I am alive.” 

― N. Scott Momaday

from In The Presence of The Sun: Stories and Poems

Sam Shepard, Felicity Broennan, Murray Gell-Mann, & Michael Gelb

Deborah Domanski with Murray Gell-Mann at Deborah's musical performance of Shakespeare's TEMPEST  with Sir Derek Jacobi.

Champagne Toast with Michael & Murray. CHEERS!

Murray's form has returned to the complexity from which it emerged, but his brilliance will shine on into eternity... 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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The Giving Pledge Needs the Healing Oath

“Billionaires contribute to a diverse range of causes focused on alleviating suffering and elevating joy such as overcoming poverty, refugee aid, disaster relief, global health, education, women and girls’ empowerment, medical research, arts and culture, criminal justice reform, and environmental sustainability.
These are noble efforts, but does the philanthropy make up for the harm inflicted upon workers, customers, communities and the environment, by the way the wealth is created?”
















































I’m blessed to live near the Rockefeller State Park Preserve in New York.

Over 1,600 acres, including 55 miles of well-maintained carriage trails, have been given to the state by the Rockefeller family to protect the natural beauty of the area and for public use and enjoyment. I walk the trails every day when I’m home and my route takes me past the famous Sleepy Hollow Cemetery where many of John D. Rockefeller’s contemporaries are buried, including Andrew Carnegie. Rockefeller, Carnegie, and other titans of the industrial revolution did much to make American capitalism a dynamic and constructive force in the world. And their generous philanthropic efforts continue to benefit society through support of education, health care, the environment, and the arts.

The ethos of their time was well expressed in Carnegie’s Dictum:

In the first third of life get as much education as you can.

In the second third of life earn as much money as you can.

And in the final third of life give away as much as you can.

John D. Rockefeller added:

“I believe the power to make money is a gift of God…to be used…for the good of mankind. Having been endowed with the gift…it is my duty to make money… and to use the money I make for the good of my fellow man according to the dictates of my conscience.”

In 1889 Carnegie published “The Gospel of Wealth,” an article that urged the rich to use their wealth to improve society. It stimulated a wave of philanthropy and was a precursor of The Giving Pledge initiated by Bill Gates and Warren Buffet in 2010.

The Giving Pledge is a public commitment by some of the world’s wealthiest individuals and families to devote more than half of their wealth to charitable causes. Originally developed and focused in the United States, the Pledge has been embraced by philanthropists globally and has been made by 204 of the world’s wealthiest people from more than 20 countries including Australia, Brazil, Canada, China (mainland and Taiwan), Germany, India, Israel, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, Ukraine, UAE, and the United Kingdom.

These billionaires contribute to a diverse range of causes focused on alleviating suffering and elevating joy such as overcoming poverty, refugee aid, disaster relief, global health, education, women and girls’ empowerment, medical research, arts and culture, criminal justice reform, and environmental sustainability.

These are noble efforts, but does the philanthropy make up for the harm inflicted upon workers, customers, communities, and the environment, by the way the wealth is created?

Consider the case of Carnegie Steel. When his fortune fell behind that of John D. Rockefeller in the early 1890s, largely due to a decline in the price of steel, Carnegie had his right-hand man Henry Frick craft a plan to increase profit margins by lowering labor costs drastically. Frick was also looking to “break” the increasingly powerful Amalgamated Association of Iron and Steel Workers, which had been formed in 1876, and had been successful in negotiating better wages for workers than at most other steel mills. When the Union contract at the Homestead steel works in Pennsylvania expired Frick announced that workers would now be required to work six days a week instead of five, and 12 hours a day instead of 10. And, their pay would be reduced. And he refused to negotiate these terms with the union.

To the workers, this was adding insult to real injury. According to Carnegie’s biographer Peter Krass, 20 percent of all male deaths in Pittsburgh in the 1880s were due to fatal accidents in the steel mills, with many steelworkers collapsing from exhaustion and dying on the job.

When the workers protested, Frick called in the Pinkerton National Detective Agency, essentially a private militia that around that time had more men and guns than the standing U.S. Army. The Pinkertons first sought to quell the worker uprising through threats but when the workers refused to back down, they opened fire; nine workers were killed and 40 wounded. That, of course, led to further violence, seven Pinkerton detectives were killed and 20 wounded. An anarchist, unconnected to the union, later stabbed Frick and nearly killed him. Appalled by the violence on both sides, 26 states passed laws against hiring outside guards within seven years.

Eventually, Carnegie emerged victorious, as the union was broken, wages were lowered, working hours increased, and profitability rose. Carnegie had once championed the rights of workers and supported the idea of unions, but his ideals were compromised by his need to dominate. The tragedy at Homestead cast a pall over the rest of his life. In a letter to British statesman William E. Gladstone, he wrote that this was effectively his life’s greatest regret. In his autobiography, he wrote, “Nothing…in all my life, before or since, wounded me so deeply.”

This ugly episode contributed to a hardening of the divide between labor and management. To many people, that divide seems normal; labor and management have come to be seen as natural enemies. But why should the employees of a company be enemies with its founders and leaders? The divide between labor and management is based on a pseudo-Darwinian idea of competition for a limited amount of resources; if management has more, labor has to have less and if labor has more, there will be less profit.

 

“These are noble efforts, but does the philanthropy make up for the harm inflicted upon workers, customers, communities, and the environment, by the way the wealth is created?”

 

It is a mercantilist, fear-driven, scarcity-based “zero sum” way of thinking about business. It views owners and workers as combatants over a limited pool of financial wealth, rather than as fellow participants in a system of multifaceted value creation.

Coldhearted, hyper-competitive capitalism, driven by ego, power, and greed led to gross exploitation and abuse of workers. As greed, exploitation, and dehumanization became the norm, the gulf between labor and management deepened, and unions became increasingly militant and this created fertile ground for Marxism, socialism, and communism. That led to an extraordinary amount of suffering all over the world for the next hundred years, with tens of millions of people dying in the global battle between capitalism and communism. All of it was unnecessary. A caring rather than warlike approach to commerce would have avoided this whole epoch in our history.

Business pervades our lives now, much more than in the heyday of Carnegie and Rockefeller. More than governments, non-profits, or religious institutions, business is the dominant force in contemporary life, for better and for worse. In free societies, the vast majority of our needs are fulfilled by corporations and small businesses. Most people are employed by private enterprises. The ways in which these organizations operate has a huge impact on every aspect of our lives: our material well-being; our physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual health; and our ability to be present and function well as parents, spouses, community members, and citizens.

For the most part, businesses have succeeded in meeting our material needs and elevating our collective flourishing. Over the past two hundred years, almost every indicator of human well-being has risen sharply in concert with the spread of free market capitalism. We live longer, are more educated, produce and consume more, and enjoy more leisure time than our ancestors. We have miraculous technologies that allow us to access people and learn nearly anything in just a few keystrokes. And we are living in the most peaceful and prosperous time in history. This is all enabled by the dynamism and innovation that are the hallmarks of the capitalist system.

Many people are thriving. There’s more freedom for entrepreneurs to generate wealth in creative and useful ways. Yet, even as we progress in so many ways, we allow drastic, unnecessary suffering to continue—and business plays a huge role in causing it. The pandemics of obesity, opioid addiction, alcoholism, depression, anxiety, gun violence, and the corruption of our planetary ecosystem are all exacerbated by the way business is conducted.

Circumstances are still extremely harsh for the majority of people. Although global life expectancy has risen dramatically, fifteen thousand children under the age of five still die every day from preventable causes. Although, according to data compiled by the World Bank, more than one billion people have been lifted out of extreme poverty (defined as $1.90 per person per day) since 1990, half the world’s population still live on less than $5.50 a day. Life for nearly half of humanity remains a daily struggle for survival.

 

“More than governments, non-profits, or religious institutions, business is the dominant force in contemporary life, for better and for worse.”

 

And in America, the richest nation in human history, 78% of full time employees live paycheck to paycheck and 60 percent of households are technically insolvent, which means that their liabilities exceed their assets. Most are going further into debt every year. 71% of employees report that they suffer from severe financial stress.

But suffering doesn’t disappear with rising prosperity. For example, the towns of Aspen, Colorado and Palo Alto, California are two of the most prosperous communities in the United States, indeed in the world. Yet, they also have rates of depression, addiction, and suicide that far exceed the U.S. average. Aspen’s rate is three times the U.S. average, while Palo Alto has the highest teen suicide rate in the country. Whatever one’s level of income, when meaning and purpose are absent, when we feel dehumanized and objectified, we experience emotional and spiritual suffering.

The Giving Pledge is a fabulous idea. Please go to their website and see who the signatories are, and who they aren’t. The Giving Pledge organization provides a forum for these generous philanthropists to share their challenges, successes, and failures, so they can be smarter about giving.

But we must also become smarter about how the money is made in the first place. It’s time for business to take the lead in healing the divisiveness and unnecessary suffering in our world. We propose that The Giving Pledge be taken in concert with The Healing Oath. The Giving Pledge is just for billionaires, but The Healing Oath is for all of us who lead or aspire to lead.

Thanks to the work of my co-author Professor Raj Sisodia, and many others, we now know that companies that care for all their stakeholders—employees, customers, suppliers, communities, and the environment—aren’t just better places to work, they’re more profitable.

This idea is surging into the mainstream as evidenced by the recent (August 19, 2019) announcement by the Business Roundtable declaring that the idea that companies must maximize profits for shareholders above all is no longer viable. This influential group, representing 192 large companies, affirmed a new ideal: business must rebalance its purpose and focus on the needs of all stakeholders, rather than just shareholders.

In his most recent annual letter to CEOs, Chief Executive of BlackRock (whose more than $6 trillion under management make it the world’s largest asset manager) Larry Fink emphasized that business must take the lead in healing the world:

“Unnerved by fundamental economic changes and the failure of government to provide lasting solutions, society is increasingly looking to companies, both public and private, to address pressing social and economic issues. These issues range from protecting the environment to retirement to gender and racial inequality, among others.”

Fink makes a compelling case that a clearly defined purpose is critical for companies that wish to thrive in the long term. He explains, “Purpose unifies management, employees, and communities. It drives ethical behavior and creates an essential check on actions that go against the best interests of stakeholders.”

Fink knows that we are at the beginning of the greatest wealth transfer in history, as boomers shift an estimated $24 trillion to millennials. He cites a recent survey of millennials in which they responded to a question on what the primary purpose of business ought to be by agreeing overwhelmingly that “improving society” was a greater priority than “generating profit.”

Fink explains, “As wealth shifts and investing preferences change, environmental, social, and governance issues will be increasingly material to corporate valuations.” And he concludes, “At a time of great political and economic disruption, your leadership is indispensable.”

This isn’t just true for CEOs, it’s true for us all.

 

“Whatever one’s level of income, when meaning and purpose are absent, when we feel dehumanized and objectified, we experience emotional and spiritual suffering.”

 

Nevertheless, when asked about the purpose of business, most people still think it’s a dumb question, assuming that “make money” is the only possible answer.

You need to inhale and exhale in order to live, but you probably wouldn’t say that the purpose of your life is breathing. Profit is to business like oxygen is to your system, it’s essential for life but it isn’t the purpose. The purpose of business is to alleviate suffering and elevate joy, to meet human needs through enterprise and innovation, while generating abundance and improving the quality of life for all stakeholders.

Inspired by the U.S. Declaration of Independence, the United Nations adopted a Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948. Article 1 states: All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act toward one another in a spirit of brotherhood. Imagine what would happen to our world if we transformed our way of thinking about business so that it was based on a spirit of brotherhood that elevated reason and conscience and promoted freedom and equality.

Imagine a world in which business makes human flourishing its first priority.

Imagine what that would mean for the mental, physical, emotional, and spiritual wellbeing of people at work—and for their children, families, and communities.

Imagine the consequences for the quality of the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the land and seascapes that support our lives.

As more businesses embrace the path of healing, we believe that the walls separating labor and management will start to crumble as all realize that creative collaboration yields more fulfillment and wealth for all parties. We believe that our political divides will begin to ease as the values that unite us—liberty, prosperity, dignity, fairness, and love— come to life in our workplaces.

The time for healing is now. Now is the time to redefine success so that it includes and promotes the values and traits that we cherish.

We are at an inflection point. The era of focusing exclusively on shareholder return is no longer sustainable. The idea that it’s acceptable to exploit people and planet and then make up for it later with charity is no longer viable. It’s time to transform the world of business and make it about love and healing instead of fear and survival.

This is an idea whose time is now, and you can play a role in making it happen. How? Former U.S. Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy offered a perspective that lives on fifty years after his assassination: “Few will have the greatness to bend history itself, but each of us can work to change a small portion of events. It is from number-less diverse acts of courage and belief that human history is shaped. Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring those ripples build a current which can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance.”

 

“Imagine a world in which business makes human flourishing its first priority.”

 

On my last walk in the Rockefeller Preserve I stopped near Carnegie’s grave and got the sense that if he and Rockefeller were around today they’d be right there with Buffett, Gates, et.al. on The Giving Pledge.

In the 1890s and early 20th century it didn’t occur to them that they could generate wealth by caring consistently for all their stakeholders, and they were operating under the assumption that the Earth’s resources were unlimited and could be exploited forever without consequence. But now we know better.

Carnegie wrote: “If you want to be happy, set a goal that commands your thoughts, liberates your energy, and inspires your hopes.” We hope you’re inspired to join us in changing the way we think about business so that we can liberate the awesome energies of capitalism to heal our world.

 

If you’d like to be part of this movement, begin by taking The Healing Organization Oath. Place your left hand on your heart and raise your right hand and proclaim: Primum non nocere (First, do no harm). I will operate my business in a way that causes no harm to others or to the Earth. Malus eradicare (Root out evil) I will never enable or collude with abuse or exploitation. I will be an everyday hero who stands up for fairness, truth, beauty, integrity, and basic goodness. Amor vincit omnia (Love conquers all) I will operate from love. I will measure success by the fulfillment, abundance, and joy I generate for others.
If you’d like to sign the The Healing Oath petition and make your commitment public to inspire others then please go to www.HealingOrganizations.com.

































The Healing Organization: Awakening the Conscience of Business to Help Save the World

Raj Sisodia, Michael J. Gelb
The image of modern corporations has been shaped by a focus on profits over people and the environment, but this approach to capitalism is no longer viable.







The Healing Organization:
Awakening the Conscience of Business to Help Save the World

by Raj Sisodia & Michael J. Gelb

The image of modern corporations has been shaped by a focus on profits over people and the environment, but this approach to capitalism is no longer viable. We are at an inflection point where business must take the lead in healing the crises of our time. The Healing Organization shows how corporations can become healing forces.

The post The Giving Pledge Needs the Healing Oath appeared first on Michael Gelb.

Regenerative Capitalism

Moral Sentiments at the Business Roundtable

by Michael J. Gelb

Commenting
on the Business Roundtable’s recent headline-making declaration that
the doctrine of shareholder primacy has outlived its usefulness, Johnson
& Johnson CEO Alex Gorsky observed, “it isn’t an achievement, it’s a
call to action.”

Why are so many of the world’s leading
corporations beginning to heed this call, rethinking the core
assumptions driving what they do? Adam Smith, the genius of economics
and social psychology, who generated the framework for contemporary
capitalism, would say that public disapproval weighs on the conscience
of business leaders and ultimately leads to change.

In The Wealth of Nations
Smith predicted accurately that free markets would generate
unprecedented prosperity. He influenced Benjamin Franklin directly (they
dined together in Edinburgh in the early 1770s) and his ideas became
central to the defining identity of the United States.

Before The Wealth of Nations, Smith published The Theory of Moral Sentiments
in which he proposed the ethical philosophy upon which capitalism and
all societal institutions must rely. He understood capitalism as a
system of cooperation based on a balance of fundamental human
motivations: self-interest and caring for others. We are not just
self-interested creatures; that would render us sociopathic. Smith
emphasized that capitalism needed a conscience. For Smith, profit isn’t
an end in itself but rather the means to promote the common good.

But,
since 1970 when Milton Friedman’s argument for shareholder primacy
became the dogma imparted in most business schools, and when quarterly
earnings reports began to become more important than the long-term
interests of stakeholders, things have gone awry. Beyond the dramatic
stories of obviously sociopathic enterprises (try an internet search for
“Most Hated Companies” or “Sociopathic Capitalism” and you’ll recognize
many familiar names) “business-as-usual” at the average company has
contributed to a situation in which more than half of American
households are technically insolvent, where the disparity between the
affluent and the working poor has been growing for 40 years, with
suicide rates rising more than 25% in the last 20 years.

Smith,
who was deeply committed to helping the poor and disenfranchised through
the dynamism of capitalism always emphasized that society is
interconnected and that rising prosperity must be leveraged for the
benefit of all.

That interconnection is more apparent today than
ever before and what we are witnessing is the effect of the call to
conscience from the population who are increasingly aware that our
wounded ecosystem, our metastasizing economic inequality, our epidemics
of obesity, opioid addiction, anxiety, suicide and the gunning down of
school children are indicators that something must change.

Until
recently most large companies believed that departments of “corporate
social responsibility” and “sustainability initiatives” might be enough
to assuage public disapproval, but there’s a glaring conflict between
CSR and record stock buybacks and it’s increasingly clear that existing
sustainability initiatives aren’t enough to mitigate impending
environmental disaster. These efforts are widely viewed as public
relations schemes and as insufficient palliatives at best.

Companies still operating under Friedman’s dictum that The Social Responsibility of Business is to Make a Profit
have a hard time selling their CSR initiatives, to employees and the
public, and more and more people are realizing that the notion of
“sustainability” isn’t sustainable.

Instead, we must, as the Business Roundtable and many others are beginning to understand, reorder our priorities and put people and the general welfare first. The good news is: Companies who do this discover that they become more profitable in the long term, as the research of my co-author Professor Raj Sisodia and his colleagues demonstrates convincingly.

This has been called Creative Capitalism by Bill Gates, and Conscious Capitalism by John Mackey and Raj Sisodia, and I’d like to suggest a new name: Regenerative Capitalism.

Modern
democracy and capitalism took root in the United States, evolved here,
and then spread to other parts of the world. Despite difficulties and
setbacks, these two operating systems remain the twin hopes for human
welfare. But we are at an inflection point, a critical juncture in
history where we must evolve these operating systems to meet the crises
of our time.

Business is poised to play the key role in this evolution that can heal our planet and provide greater prosperity, abundance, health, and happiness for millions of people who are suffering needlessly.

When leaders awaken conscience and
consciousness they begin to discover the creativity needed not just to
sustain our lives and demonstrate responsibility, but to heal and
regenerate our society.

Michael J. Gelb is co-author, with Professor Raj Sisodia, of The Healing Organization: Awakening the Conscience of Business to Help Save the World.

The post Regenerative Capitalism appeared first on Michael Gelb.

Why Create?

Today we take for granted the idea that creativity is a human
attribute. The question “Why Create?” is predicated on the assumption
that we have the option do so. But that assumption has only been around
for about 500 years. Prior to the Renaissance, the notion of individual
creativity didn’t exist, because the concept of individuality as we now
understand it didn’t exist. Paintings, for example, remained unsigned,
and painters, anonymous, because the individual was considered
unimportant. All creative power was vested Above.

On a larger scale, great Gothic cathedrals like Chartres were the
products of thousands of people toiling anonymously in collaborative
efforts that continued over hundreds of years. The great cathedrals were
deliberately designed to give the person who entered them an
overwhelming feeling of insignificance in the presence of an omnipotent
and omniscient Deity.

Individualism Recognized as a Value

A
remarkable shift occurred during the Renaissance, when the power and
potency of the individual began once again to be celebrated, as they had
been in Greek and Roman times. In 1486, the Renaissance scholar and
philosopher Pico della Mirandola offered his Oration on the Dignity of Man,
heralding the shift from the medieval worldview, which disempowered the
individual, to the revolutionary notion that we humans, unlike other
creatures, have been placed at the very center of the universe, and
blessed with powers of free will and creativity that are unlimited and
virtually godlike.

Pico articulated the revolutionary notion that creativity is part of
our expression of free will, part of what makes us uniquely human. He
celebrates the notion that we create because we can. Leonardo da Vinci’s
Vitruvian Man (a.k.a. “Canon of Proportion”) and Michelangelo’s “David”
are the best-known symbols of this humanistic rebirth of individual
creativity. But there is one man, Filippo Brunelleschi, who was the
pre-eminent force in the emergence of the new human-centered worldview,
for he both literally and figuratively created a new human-centered
perspective. Just as the Gothic cathedrals had communicated a message
about humanity’s place in the universe, Brunelleschi’s architecture sent
an equally profound but very different message, as best exemplified by
his dome for the Florence cathedral.

Standing beneath Brunelleschi’s heavenly dome, one feels oneself to
be at the center of Creation. One does not feel overpowered and
belittled, but exalted and uplifted in this sacred space. Humankind’s
centrality and importance are also affirmed in Brunelleschi’s invention
of three-dimensional perspective in art; which he taught to Massaccio,
who produced the first Renaissance painting and to Donatello who created
the first Renaissance sculpture. And Brunelleschi exemplified the new
ethos in his own life by registering the world’s first patent for an
invention (his remarkable ox-hoist) – patents being the legal and
economic expression of the value placed on the individual’s intellectual
capital.

Emergence of the Renaissance Man

Although Brunelleschi is the seminal
force, Leonardo da Vinci reigns as the supreme expression of the
“Renaissance Man” or “Uomo Universale” (Universal Man). DaVinci serves
as a global archetype of individual creative possibility. In 1994 Bill
Gates paid $30.8 million dollars for 18 pages of DaVinci’s notebooks.
Why did Gates pay so much? Because he can! And, it’s easy to imagine
that Gates recognizes that his own legacy resides in his role in the
transformation from the Industrial Age to the Information Age; and that
he wanted to associate himself and his brand with the works of a man who
embodies the spirit of the dawn of that earlier new age.

The Renaissance, with its brilliant
artists and architects, sculptors and scholars, taught us anew that
creativity is our birthright, a gateway to our highest expression, the
secret of individuation and personal fulfillment, and the secret of the
art of living. Creativity may also be a means to earning a good living,
as quite a number of artists discovered during the Renaissance. Before
we explore the loftier motivations for creating let’s examine the
relationship between creativity and profit.

The feudal system of the Middle Ages
collapsed because, among other things, of the invention of the
long-range cannon (built by a Hungarian engineer named Urban), which
could blast through the walls of the feudal fortress. As fortress walls
crumbled the printing press, magnetic compass, mechanical clock,
microscope and telescope expanded European horizons exponentially. The
technological breakthroughs that drove the transformation of the Middle
Ages into the Renaissance were all made possible by the funding that
became available as innovative accounting and banking systems evolved.
Brunelleschi, Leonardo, Michelangelo, Raphael and all their fellow
geniuses wouldn’t have created much of anything without the Renaissance
equivalent of corporate sponsorship. If the Sforza, Medici and a
succession of Popes hadn’t provided the capital, the Florence cathedral
would’ve remained open to the elements and there would have been no
“Last Supper,” “David” or “School of Athens.” As Professor Lisa Jardine
author of Worldly Goods: A New History of the Renaissance emphasizes,

“…those impulses which today we
disparage as ‘consumerism’ … occupy a respectable place in the
characterization of the new Renaissance mind… A competitive urge to
acquire was a precondition for the growth in production of lavishly
expensive works of art. A painter’s reputation rested on his ability to
arouse commercial interest in his works of art, not on some intrinsic
criteria of intellectual worth.”

Creativity as Vocation

Those of us who “arouse commercial
interest” through our creative endeavor — writers, photographers,
creative directors, web designers, graphic artists, composers, painters
and performers – are part of a great heritage of creating art for cash.
As literary legend Dr. Samuel Johnson put it: “No man but a blockhead
ever wrote, except for money.”

Capitalism provides the most energy and
opportunity for creative expression. And the United States of America —
founded on the remarkable idea that we are all created equal and have an
inalienable right to “life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness” — is
the greatest capitalist entity in history thus far. Our nation’s
youthful optimism, diversity and emphasis on freedom and equality
fosters an environment where creativity and innovation are more the
cultural norm than anywhere else. Yet, as we transition out of the
Industrial Age, and face unprecedented environmental, social and global
challenges, the ability to think creatively becomes more urgent and
important.

Historian of science George Sarton
writes: “Since the growth of knowledge is the core of progress, the
history of science ought to be the core of general history. Yet the main
problems of life cannot be solved by men of science alone, or by
artists and humanists: we need the cooperation of them all. “Sarton
concludes that Leonardo’s “outstanding merit” is in his demonstration
that “the pursuit of beauty and the pursuit of truth are not
incompatible.”

For Leonardo, creativity was a function
of the marriage of art and science. He emphasized, for example, that the
ability of the artist to express the beauty of the human form is
predicated on a study of the science of anatomy. But Leonardo’s science
was also based on his art.

Imagination and Creative Thinking Lead to Invention

Leonardo urged his students to awaken the
generative power of imagination in an unprecedented way. Offering “a
new and speculative idea, which although it may seem trivial and almost
laughable, is none the less of great value in quickening the spirit of
invention.” He urged students to contemplate abstract forms – patterns
of smoke, clouds, and swirls of mud – and to allow the imagination to
run freely to discover in these mundane forms “the likeness of divine
landscapes … and an infinity of things.” The Maestro then counsels that
the ideas generated in this flight of the imagination “may then be
reduced to their complete and proper forms.”

In the thousand years before DaVinci in
Europe there was very little encouragement to “quicken the spirit of
invention” by seeking “divine landscapes” or searching for “an infinity
of things.” Before Leonardo the concept of “creativity” as a human
function and an intellectual discipline didn’t exist. Inspired by
Brunelleschi and Alberti, Leonardo effectively invented the modern
discipline of “creative thinking.”

Just as Leonardo helped to invent the art
of creative thinking he also points us toward a compelling reason to
create: to know ourselves and the world around us – to appreciate truth
and beauty — through mirroring the creative source. In his classic work The Creators: A History of Heroes of the Imagination,
Daniel J. Boorstin addresses the mystery of the motivating forces of
creativity. He notes, “the human need to create has transcended the
powers of explanation.” Boorstin adds, “Peoples of ancient Egypt, Greece
and Rome who did not know a Creator-God, who made something from
nothing, still created works unexcelled of their kind. And peoples of
the East who saw a cosmos of cycles created works of rare beauty in all
the arts. Across the world, the urge to create needed no express reason
and conquered all obstacles.” Boorstin summarizes the prologue of his
journey through the history of Heroes of the Imagination,
by proclaiming his intention to “describe the who, when, where, and
what.” But, he concludes, “the why has never ceased to be a mystery.”

Creativity and Immortality

Of course, as Boorstin speculates, “Man’s
power to make the new was the power to outlive himself in his
creations.” In other words, for some, the motivation to create is to
achieve immortality. And, of course, it isn’t necessary to posit or
believe in God in order to create, but as Vincent van Gogh expressed it,
“I can do very well without God in both my life and my painting but I
cannot…do without something which is greater than I, which is my life,
the power to create.”

The Chinese philosopher T’ang Hou
reflects on the nature of the power – the “something greater” referenced
by van Gogh: “Landscape painting is the essence of the shaping powers
of Nature. Thus, through the vicissitudes of yin and yang – weather,
time, and climate – the charm of inexhaustible transformation is
unfailingly visible. If you yourself do not possess that grand wavelike
vastness of mountain and valley within your heart and mind, you will be
unable to capture it with ease in your painting.”

There is a creative force in the universe
that we can all experience in our hearts and minds as a “grand wavelike
vastness.” In creative endeavors we open ourselves to discover our
harmony with “something greater” and, if we persevere, something true
and beautiful just might emerge. As Ansel Adams expresses it, “Sometimes
I do get to places just when God’s ready to have someone click the
shutter.”

So “Why Create?” There are infinite
reasons — to make visible the charm of inexhaustible transformation, to
become more susceptible to grace, to achieve immortality, to know the
mind of God, to manage change, make a living or make a life; but the
simplest is: just because we can.

The post Why Create? appeared first on Michael Gelb.

The Need for Conscious Capitalism

September 4, 2019

from Greater Pacific Capital Newsletter, September 3, 2019

There has been a marked shift over the last several years with both investors and businesses increasingly developing a more holistic approach focused on both profit maximisation and having a positive social impact on various stakeholders including customers, suppliers, employees, and the overall environment.

With the world facing unprecedented risks [1] in terms of rising inequality, environmental degradation [2] , national populism [3] , the urgency of investors and businesses adopting a more ‘conscious’ approach to capitalism is all the more important.

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Michael J. Gelb and Raj Sisodia are two of the leading authorities on how businesses and leaders can evolve towards and benefit from a more comprehensive and caring approach to managing their various stakeholders.  In their upcoming book, The Healing Organization: Awakening the Conscience of Business to Help Save the World, they discuss the need and rationale for businesses to transform, along with various examples of how companies have benefited by adopting such an approach.  Greater Pacific Capital talks to Michael about their journey and what businesses and investors can and should do to make capitalism more conscious and creative.

The Interview

What were the personal experiences that you had that drove
you to spend time on evangelizing ‘conscious capitalism’ in the
workplace? How did you get to know Raj and decide to work together on
this book?

In 1982, with an idealistic dream to help save the world, I moved to Washington, D.C.—a place where it seemed that creative thinking, accelerated learning, and innovative leadership strategies were most desperately needed.  I began offering open-enrolment three-day ‘High Performance Learning’ seminars but was disappointed to discover that there were only a few registrants from government or the political sphere. Fortunately, the programs were popular with business people and this led to many opportunities for me to teach and consult with companies in the D.C. area and beyond.  This was the beginning of my realisation that the dynamism of business made it, rather than government, the greatest point of leverage for making a positive difference in the world.

In 2006, Raj, who became a friend after he had engaged me to teach
creative leadership to his Executive MBA students at George Mason
University, sent me a copy of the draft manuscript of his seminal book
‘Firms of Endearment: How World Class Companies Profit from Passion and
Purpose’. Raj and his co-authors made a compelling business and academic
case for what I had dreamed might be possible.  Suddenly, I realised
that I wasn’t just a solo practitioner with a Quixotic notion of making a
better world through helping businesses become more creative,
conscious, and compassionate; I was part of a movement.  I shared with
Raj how much his books had inspired me and he said that my books had a
similar effect on him.  So it was natural for us to explore the
possibility of writing something together.

For forty years, I have worked with visionary leaders around the
world to support them in nurturing more innovative and human-centred
cultures and to equip them with creative thinking tools and strategies
that help translate ideals into reality.  The Healing Organization
represents an expansion of my own learning about what’s possible. 
Tempered by the decades, the dream with which I began my career is
stronger and more vital than ever: I dream that together we can create a
new story of business based on awakened conscience, through which we
can help save the world.

The Healing Organization provides
lots of examples of how, as you put it, “companies can profit from
passion and purpose.”  What, in your view, are the best examples of this
that you have seen?

There are two that stand out because they inspired us as exemplars of
The Healing Organization: Southwest Airlines and Barry-Wehmiller.

Southwest’s stock market symbol is LUV, and it truly does operate
with a sense of love and care towards all of its stakeholders.  In its
nearly 50-year history, the company has been consistently profitable. 
They’ve never had a strike, even though it is the most heavily unionized
airline in the United States. They’ve never resorted to layoffs, even
after 9/11 when all the other major airlines had massive layoffs. The
passion and commitment of Southwest’s employees are phenomenal. It is a
reflection of the business philosophy that long-time CEO Herb Kelleher
articulated as: “The business of business is people-yesterday, today and
forever.”

With nearly $3 billion in revenues in 2018, and a share price
compounding at a rate of 17 percent for twenty years, Barry-Wehmiller
has been built by Bob Chapman through the acquisition of more than a
hundred companies, most of those were struggling or dying businesses,
initially concentrated in small industrial towns in Wisconsin, Ohio, and
Pennsylvania.  Chapman has never sold one of these businesses, rather
he has revitalized them and in the process he has healed the lives of
countless stakeholders.  Bob Chapman does not so much acquire companies
as adopt them.  His “Truly Human Leadership” formula is simple and is
expressed in a statement prominently displayed on the wall at the
company’s headquarters in St. Louis: “We measure success by the way we
touch the lives of people.”

The Healing Organization makes a
compelling ‘business case’ for implementing initiatives to mitigate
environmental and stakeholder impact and making a positive contribution
to the world. Is it empirically proven that this works and improves
profits and other measurable benefits?

Let’s pause and consider the premise of this question.  The
traditional, narrow, shareholder-primacy approach to business, focused
purely on financial outcomes, is rarely called on to justify itself in
the face of blatantly obvious negative consequences in other dimensions.
 The burden of proof is always on the more humane approach to business
to justify its existence.  The human case and the business case must no
longer be viewed as a trade off or compromise.  We need a new way of
thinking about business that promotes human flourishing based on a
recognition of the essential interconnection and interdependence of all
stakeholders.

Moreover, business is not a hard science, like chemistry.  There are
too many variables to be able to “prove” anything beyond a sceptical
person’s ability and desire to invalidate any findings.  There is,
however, plenty of evidence that shows that operating with a clear sense
of purpose and having a holistic mindset that includes the well-being
of all stakeholders pays off in the long run, not only in financial
terms but in many other dimensions.

Businesses create, but can also destroy, at least eight kinds of
wealth: financial, intellectual, social, cultural, emotional, spiritual,
physical and ecological.  All of these matter.  Traditional businesses
focus exclusively on financial outcomes and treat everything else that
happens as a side effect or as they say in the military: ‘collateral
damage’.  The Healing Organization rejects that idea. There are no side effects; there are only effects.  We do things and there are consequences.  The Healing Organization operates with awareness of the spectrum of effects it creates and aims to make them positive.

There has been a recent ‘trend’ towards adoption of “ESG” [4]
practices by firms across sectors, and particularly in our industry
(financial services).  You have also seen the rise of “ESG Funds” that
invest in what they classify as conscious enterprises.  What do you
attribute this shift to?  Do you think a critical mass of enterprises
have started taking this seriously?

Yes.  This is now a mega-trend reflecting our growing consciousness
of the limitations of the traditional approach to business.  We are at
an inflection point, where instead of being viewed as “nice add-ons” ESG
criteria will be considered foundational to any business.  In other
words, the way we invest our money matters.  By making the decisions
that we do, we are choosing to give life to certain things and not give
life to other things.  We must invest in businesses that are enhancing
the flourishing of life on the planet, in every dimension.  Anything
less will soon be deemed simply unacceptable.

What is the best mechanism to implement these initiatives in
corporations so that it goes beyond being a ‘tick the box’ exercise?  If
the business case is easily provable, is evangelising it even required?
Since the change has to be driven by people and business leaders, how
do you fundamentally transform the way people behave?

Evangelising is “spreading the gospel” and gospel means good news. 
The bad news is that many people are still stuck in an old mental model
that assumes that business is all about profit maximization; after all,
Milton Friedman said so, so it must be true!  That means selling as much
and charging as much as we can, whether customers are benefited or not.
 It means paying your employees as little as possible, squeezing your
suppliers when you have the ability to do so, externalizing burdens on
to society when you can get away with it and pushing many costs into the
future for our children and their children to bear.  This way of
thinking is habitual and despite the increasing awareness that it is no
longer viable many remain stuck in this trap.

Of course, the superior financial performance of conscious businesses
is an opportunity but also a trap.  Too many leaders are attracted to
this idea simply because they see it as a way of making even more money.
 In that case, we warn them that it probably will not work.
 Ultimately, you have to do the right things for the right reasons.
 Leaders have to believe in their heart and soul that having a positive
impact on the lives of all of the stakeholders is inherently important
because it is intrinsically the right thing to do, not just because it
is likely to result in higher profits.  This requires a shift in
consciousness that is not easy to bring about in many who have succeeded
very well in financial terms under the old system.

There will always be box-tickers and those who are just waiting to
see what is the latest business jargon they need to incorporate in order
to get along or assuage their guilt, and then there are leaders with
genuine conscience.  The Healing Organization is call to
leadership, a call to conscience, an appeal to the best in the human
spirit.  And, yes, it’s becoming apparent that companies that operate
from a higher purpose beyond just making money will thrive.  These
“Firms of Endearment” are not only much healthier places to work, they
are loved by their customers and communities and they are more
profitable than companies that focus solely on financial return.

Previous generations didn’t know that this was possible.  Once you
know that this is possible, why would you consider doing anything else?

There has been a sharp increase in ‘social enterprises’,
particularly in the developing world, which are focused on delivering to
the bottom of the pyramid, sustainably, while being profitable. How (if
at all) is a ‘Healing Organization’ you refer to different from these
‘social enterprises’?

Many of those social enterprises are indeed healing organizations by
the very definition of what they are seeking to do.  But healing
organizations are not limited to social enterprises focusing on the
bottom of the pyramid.  Every business in every sector in every country
can and should strive to be a place of healing for the people who work
there, a source of healing for those it serves, and a force for healing
in society.  Suffering is not the exclusive domain of people at the
bottom of the pyramid, though the quality of suffering and the intensity
of it obviously varies.

The book notes that “We are at an inflection point, a
critical juncture in our history where we must awaken conscience and
consciousness to evolve these operating systems [democracy and
capitalism] to meet the crises of our time.” Both these ‘operating
systems’ themselves are undergoing crisis today and giving rise to more
insular attitudes and anxiety due to rising inequality, automation, etc.
which in many ways act as barriers to the adoption of some of the
initiatives that you propose: how do you address this issue?

We have to wade through the muck and slime to get to the other side.
 We are now in a necessary period of taking stock of what has worked and
what is not working in our systems of governance and capitalism.  It is
the kind of pain that is inherent in transformation, as when a
caterpillar dies to itself but eventually emerges as a butterfly.  The
difference is that ours has to be a conscious process; we have to choose
to evolve.  There are many glaring faults in the way we have practiced
democracy and capitalism, but that does not invalidate their fundamental
and essential role in shaping the future of humanity.  The Healing Organization
proposes a new way of thinking about capitalism and democracy that
celebrates and elevates the creative power of these twin operating
systems.

The book’s focus is admittedly relatively US-centric.
European and Scandinavian enterprises have evolved a model of “social
capitalism” which considers a broader array of stakeholder
responsibilities (including to the environment).  Europe seems to have
gotten there without the ‘savage capitalism’ phase the US went through,
which you discuss in the book.  Do you feel the US ended up with an
economic advantage because it went through this phase first?

The economic advantage of the US is more to do with the positive
elements of its ethos, the proverbial American Dream, that for the first
time gave citizens a sense that they could achieve prosperity through
creativity, innovation and hard work rather than through class,
inheritance and status.  This was a radical, new idea supported by the
rule of law, and it has generated the greatest dynamism, opportunity and
prosperity the world has ever known. And it has become a global dream
as potent in Bangalore and Beijing as it is in Boston and Bangor.   The
“savage phase” is a perversion of that ideal, and it also manifested in
parts of Europe during the Industrial Revolution, when working
conditions at many factories in places like Manchester were horrific. 
In Part 1 of the book we aim to show from a historical, philosophical
and psychological perspective how capitalism went awry in the US and
elsewhere and how it is beginning to self-correct, and how that
correction process can accelerate and evolve.

Some may argue that the industrial age of “savage capitalism”
in the US was a necessary epoch for it to progress to the information
and services driven market that it is today.  Can the same principles be
applied in a poorer, pre-industrial market like India, which still
needs to go through rapid industrial growth in order to provide a basic
standard of living, health and education?  In other words, can poorer
markets ‘afford’ this at this stage of their development? Are there good
corporate case studies of this in developing markets at scale?

From the top of Maslow’s Pyramid it’s easier to craft visionary ideas
that may serve the 50% of the global population who are engaged in a
daily struggle for survival.  But, it’s a mistake to imagine that
conscious capitalism or the idea of healing businesses is a luxury item
that can only be afforded by rich countries.  If anything, there is an
even greater need to operate in this manner in poorer countries.  That
is because the suffering is more intense and people are closer to the
edge.  There are many examples of great conscious, healing companies in
the developing world.  One of the best known is the Tata Group of
companies in India, which have been operating in this manner for over
130 years.  The Tata Group has always considered society to be its first
stakeholder and has seen its role as a steward of our shared resources
for our shared prosperity.

Is democracy a necessary condition for implementing conscious
capitalism? How could this be implemented in a large non-democratic
country like China?

Democracy and capitalism do go hand-in-hand; both are rooted in
freedom, dignity and respect for individuals.  But it is still possible,
at a company level, to operate as a conscious business, regardless of
whether the political system embraces democracy or not.  To the extent
that a non-democratic country allows for free enterprise, we still have
the opportunity to choose to operate in this way.  We are starting to
see this in China with a kind of homegrown conscious capitalism movement
that is rooted in China’s pre-communist heritage of Buddhism,
Confucianism and Taoism.  The fact is that the consequences of
unconscious or lower consciousness capitalism have been extremely dire
in countries like China, where the environment has been hugely damaged
and an estimated 1 million people a year die from overwork.

What would be your recommendations to the investment
management industry?  There is already a large-scale move towards
‘responsible’ or ‘impact’ investing with a focus on environmental
impacts, social and labour impact, and governance.  What more can and
should the industry do to drive conscious capitalism?

Look for companies with a clearly articulated purpose that aligns
with societal imperatives, shared values that are real and meaningful,
and impact on the overall quality of life of customers and employees,
and a commitment not only to do less harm but to actually restore the
environment.

How should GPC, as an ‘impact investor’, think about this, and what should we seek to do differently?

GPC is poised to be a great healing organization.  You are way ahead
in terms of global, creative, strategic thinking and you have an
inspiring intention to “Succeed in situations that are dynamically
shaped by the aspirations of rising peoples, their society, markets and
rapidly changing environment – where rules seem to apply but are often
rewritten and so require unusual thinking.”   And we propose that you
articulate even more clearly the “Moral Sentiments” that guide your
investments.

About the Authors

Michael J. Gelb is the world’s leading authority on
the application of genius thinking to personal and organizational
development, and the author of 16 books, including the bestseller How to
Think Like Leonardo da Vinci. His books are available in 25 languages
and have sold more than one million copies. Michael helps organizations
around the world develop more creative, innovative and conscious
cultures.

Raj Sisodia is the FW Olin Distinguished Professor
of Global Business and Whole Foods Market Research Scholar in Conscious
Capitalism at Babson College. He is also Co-Founder and Co-Chairman of
Conscious Capitalism Inc. Raj has published ten books, including
Conscious Capitalism: Liberating the Heroic Spirit of Business, Firms of
Endearment: How World Class Companies Profit from Passion and Purpose,
and Everybody Matters.

To pre-order The Healing Organization, please click on this link.

For other articles from Michael and Raj, please refer to: https://healingorganizations.com

[1] Please see the Sign of the Times Leader from November 2018, Rising Global Risk (and its Implications for India)

[2]
Please see the Sign of the Times Leader from June 2015, Cleaning Up
India Worth $250bn: The Moral and Economic Imperative of a Clean
Environment

[3] Please see the Sign of the Times Leader from August 2019, National Populism and the New World Order

[4] “ESG” refers to Environmental, Social and Governance

©2019 GPC, Greater Pacific Capital LLP. All rights reserved

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Want creativity, innovation & a meaningful life?

(Unless you want creativity, innovation & a meaningful life)

Michael J. Gelb - November 29, 2018, 10th Annual Global Peter Drucker Forum

About ten years ago the magazine of the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics published an article entitled “What Can I Do With My Liberal Arts Degree?” The article begins by asking a question that many parents have asked their children when they announced that they wanted to study philosophy, history, art or music:

“What the heck are you going to do with a degree in that?”

The assumption is that the study of “soft”, human-centered questions has little practical value, unless one is seeking a career as a philosophy, history, art or music teacher. If you want to be successful in an era of high technology and big data, then the so-called “hard” disciplines of science, technology, engineering and math are presumed to be the preferred path.

This notion manifests in the STEM initiatives sponsored by many companies and governments today — promoting the importance of Science, Technology Engineering and Math.

But, now more than ever, we need to integrate the hard and the soft, the technological and the human, the scientific and the artistic ways, of making sense of our world. Brilliant thinkers like fellow panelist Fred Kofman make compelling cases for Why this integration is essential.

My passion is exploring and teaching How we can find this balance within ourselves. How can we in real terms discover the integration of yin and yang?

Learning from Leonardo da Vinci

Baby ducks learn to walk by imitating their mothers.  Learning by imitation is fundamental to many species including humans.  The good news for us, as adults, is that we can choose whom we wish to imitate. If we are interested in the balanced, full expression of our human potential then Leonardo da Vinci can serve as an unparalleled role model.

When I was a child I had 2 heroes, Superman and Leonardo da Vinci.  I remember when I discovered that Superman was only a comic book character, but Leonardo was real. 

His "Mona Lisa" and "Last Supper" are among the greatest miracles of human expression. His scientific and technological innovations were far beyond his time — he conceived the concept of automation, sketched out the ball bearing, and invented the parachute before anyone could fly! 

That’s thinking ahead!

Leonardo serves as a universal archetype of the fulfillment of human potential and a practical role model for the integration of technology and humanities.

Before I share the 7 principles for thinking like Leonardo, let’s consider the context in which our contemporary understanding of the Humanities arose.

The Marriage of Art & Science

Humanism and the idea of individual creative potential go hand-in-hand. Prior to the Renaissance, the notion of individual creativity didn’t exist, because the concept of individuality as we now understand it didn’t exist. Paintings, for example, remained unsigned, and painters, anonymous, because the individual was considered unimportant. All creative power was vested Above.

Gothic cathedrals like Chartres were the products of thousands of people toiling anonymously in collaborative efforts that continued over hundreds of years. The great cathedrals were designed to give the person who entered them an overwhelming feeling of insignificance in the presence of an omnipotent and omniscient Deity.

A remarkable shift occurred during the Renaissance, when the power and potency of the individual began once again to be celebrated, as they had been in classical times. In 1486, the Renaissance scholar and philosopher Pico della Mirandola offered his Oration on the Dignity of Man, heralding the shift from the medieval worldview, which disempowered the individual, to the revolutionary notion that we humans are blessed with powers of free will and creativity that are unlimited and virtually godlike. 

500 years ago, Pico emphasized the importance of reengaging with the humanities. And he articulated the idea that creativity is part of what makes us uniquely human. Leonardo da Vinci’s “Vitruvian Man” and Michelangelo’s “David” are the best-known symbols of this humanistic rebirth of individual creativity. But there is one man, Filippo Brunelleschi, who was the pre-eminent force in the emergence of the new human-centered worldview, for he both literally and figuratively created a new human-centered perspective. Just as the Gothic cathedrals had communicated a message about humanity’s place in the universe, Brunelleschi’s architecture sent an equally profound  but different message, as best exemplified by his dome for the Florence cathedral.

Standing beneath Brunelleschi’s dome, one feels oneself to be at the center of Creation. One does not feel overpowered and belittled, but exalted and uplifted in this space. Humankind’s potential is also affirmed in Brunelleschi’s invention of three-dimensional perspective in art; which he taught to Masaccio, who produced the first Renaissance painting and to Donatello who created the first Renaissance sculpture. And Brunelleschi  also registered the world’s first patent for an invention (his remarkable ox-hoist) – thereby formalizing the legal and economic expression of the value placed on individual creative capital.

Ever since Brunelleschi got the first patent there’s been an evolving relationship between creativity, the humanities and business.  Then as now, technological developments drive profound change.

The feudal system of the Middle Ages collapsed for many complex reasons but accelerating technology was key, starting with the invention of the long-range cannon, which could blast through the walls of the feudal fortress. As fortress walls crumbled the printing press, magnetic compass, mechanical clock, microscope and telescope expanded European horizons exponentially. The breakthroughs that drove the transformation of the Middle Ages into the Renaissance were all made possible by the funding that became available as innovative accounting and banking systems evolved.

Brunelleschi, Leonardo, Michelangelo, Raphael and all their fellow geniuses wouldn’t have created much of anything without the Renaissance equivalent of corporate sponsorship. If the Sforza, Medici and a succession of Popes hadn’t provided the cash, the Florence cathedral would’ve remained open to the elements and there would have been no “Last Supper,” “David” or “School of Athens.”

The entrepreneurial spirit provides the most energy and opportunity for creative expression.  And now, as we face unprecedented global environmental, financial and social challenges, the ability to integrate science, technology, profit, art and the humanities is more urgent and important than ever.

Historian of science George Sarton writes:

“Since the growth of knowledge is the core of progress, the history of science ought to be the core of general history. Yet the main problems of life cannot be solved by scientists alone, or by artists and humanists: we need the cooperation of them all.”

Leonardo gave practical advice to his students on how to cultivate that cooperation through the marriage of art and science.  I spent years studying Leonardo’s notebooks and literally walking in his footsteps and aiming to see the world from his point of view with one unifying question:  What can we learn from him to fulfill our human potential?

Here’s a brief overview of the 7 da Vinci principles as described in How to Think Like Leonardo da Vinci: Seven Steps to Genius Every Day :

 

1. Inspire Curiosity: Curiosità





Who asks the most questions?
Who has the most vivid imagination? 
And who has the most energy? 

Children.

Curiosity is our birthright. 

Passionate questioning allows children to learn rapidly in the first five years of life. But then we send them to school, where they learn that answers are more important than questions.

Geniuses like da Vinci, however, maintain a passionate curiosity throughout life.  And the most creative, innovative businesses are alive with the spirit of Curiosità.

 

2. Cultivate Independent Thinking: Dimostrazione

Besides the strictures of the Church, what was the biggest impediment to independent thinking at the time of Leonardo? 

Information was hard to get. Books were rare. And only available in Latin, which you wouldn’t have learned unless you were from a noble family. (Leonardo taught himself Latin when he was 40 years old so he could read the classics as they became available).

What’s the impediment to independent thinking today? Too much information!  How do we cut through the tsunami of spam to think for ourselves?

Leonardo provides relevant guidance.  He noted,

“The greatest deception men suffer is from their own opinions.”

 

3. Sharpen Your Senses: Sensazione

In business, this translates into listening well and being observant — simple advice that's difficult to heed in an increasingly distracted world.

Leonardo guides us to sharpen all our senses, and put more dolce in our vita, by cultivating the appreciation of beauty.

 

4. Embrace Uncertainty: Sfumato

The essence of creativity is to be willing to be surprised. That's the -nova in innovation.

Leonardo counsels us to smile in the face of uncertainty and ambiguity so creative ideas can emerge.

 

5. Balance Logic and Imagination: Arte/Scienza

Like Leonardo da Vinci, be a whole brain thinker.  Use mind mapping, a practical method inspired by Leonardo’s note-taking, to integrate logic and imagination and generate more ideas in less time.

 

6. Balance Body and Mind: Corporalità

In addition to being an artistic and scientific genius, Leonardo was also an exceptional athlete, widely known as the strongest man in Florence, and an accomplished fencer, horseman and juggler.

We think of creativity as an intellectual exercise, but it requires tremendous energy. Leonardo gives specific practical advice on how to cultivate health and wellness. He advises,

“Learn to preserve your own health.”

 

7. Make New Connections: Connessione

Leonardo noted:

“Everything connects to everything else.”

Like Peter Drucker, he guides us toward a systems perspective, to look for connections and patterns, to take a more holistic view of ourselves and our organizations. STEM to STEAM

In a meta-study coordinated at MIT, researchers discovered that scientists and engineers who are involved in an artistic pursuit, in other words, engaged in the humanities, are much more likely to be outstanding scientists and engineers.

Indeed, compared to general scientists, technologists, etc. members of the US National Academy of Sciences are 1.7 times more likely to be involved in the humanities/arts, members of the British Royal Society are 1.8 times more likely to be involved in the humanities/arts and Nobel Laureates are 2.8 times more likely to be engaged in the humanities/arts.

STEM must be replaced by STEAM.

Science, Technology, Engineering,  ART and Math.

And Leonardo da Vinci can serve us as the supreme role model for the power of STEAM.

Michael J. Gelb is the author of the international best-seller How to Think Like Leonardo Da Vinci and a new book, The Art of Connection: 7 Relationship Building Skills Every Leader Needs Now.

      michaelgelb.com

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Let Mona Lisa Help You Manage Change

By Michael J. Gelb
Utilizing Creativity to Manage Change

I led my first 5-day management retreat for the International Field Service Leadership Team of Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) in 1979. The theme was “Utilizing creativity to deal with accelerating change.” DEC’s Field Service Team was ahead of the curve relative to the rest of the company. But their corporate leadership failed to anticipate the rise of the personal computer, and eventually Compaq acquired DEC.

Years later I gave a keynote speech at the global management conference for Compaq and reconnected with many of the participants from our original seminar. Then, a few years after that, I worked with Hewlett-Packard when it acquired Compaq. None of us knew, in that first seminar, just how fast change would accelerate.

The One Key Trait for Successful Entrepreneurs

As the rate of change accelerated through the 1980s and 90s, corporations began to seek managers with a high “tolerance for ambiguity.” More recently, Forbes described tolerance for ambiguity as “The One Key Trait for Successful Entrepreneurs.”

Psychologists define three causes for the anxiety associated with ambiguity: novelty, complexity, and perceived insolubility. In other words, if its new, complicated, and you don’t have any idea how to solve it, you experience anxiety. Creativity, in art or business, requires finding something new, simplifying the complex, and discovering solutions that are unexpected.

Embrace Ambiguity

So, let’s replace the notion of tolerating ambiguity with the idea of embracing it.

The ability to embrace ambiguity and change is the most distinguishing characteristic of the creative mind. This isn’t just for artists, it’s now an essential competency for everyone.

Leonardo da Vinci understood this five hundred years ago. His Mona Lisa is the most famous work of art in history, renowned for her mysterious smile.

Mona Lisa helps you manage change

Why is Mona Lisa smiling?

The best way to discover this is to assume Mona’s posture and imitate her famous smile. Try this for ten seconds now.

How do you feel when you smile like Mona Lisa? I recently asked this question to a group of gifted children. After a few moments, a girl sitting in the back of the room exclaimed, “She’s got a secret.” And then a boy in the front said, “She knows that everything has an opposite!” And then the children offered examples — light and dark, good and bad, night and day, life and death.

When I led the same exercise with a corporate group, one person responded, “I read in the Wall Street Journal that the famous smile was caused by a dental problem.”

The gifted boys and girls did a much better job of perceiving Mona’s expression of perspective in the face of uncertainty. Mona’s fame, in addition to the unprecedented mastery in her execution, rests on the ambiguity that da Vinci creates, the sense of dynamic tension. The ability to embrace dynamic tension is at the heart of the creative process and it’s even more important now than it was in the Renaissance.

Legendary CEO Jack Welch advised, “Change before you have to.”  So learn to smile in the face of change now, and know that uncertainty sets the stage for real creativity.

For more help with managing change, visit MichaelGelb.com

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