The Prepared Mind of a Leader
Eight Skills Leaders Use to Innovate, Make Decisions, and Solve Problems
William Welter and Jean Egmon
In a complex business climate, people need to make informed decisions and learn how to think flexibly. A leader’s most important asset is the ability to sense changes in the environment and adapt to them quickly. The Prepared Mind of a Leader presents an original and effective way to think more flexibly about innovation, strategy, change, and problem solving.
It helps leaders anticipate challenges and prepare for both the intended and unintended consequences of change by laying out a program for developing, maintaining, and mobilizing eight key skills: Observing, Challenging, Reflecting, Reasoning, Imagining, Deciding, Learning, and Teaching. These skills provide a framework that the thoughtful leader or manager can use to approach issues of strategy, innovation, and more. Chapters feature interactive tools that will help readers develop each of the key skills.
Published by Jossey-Bass Publishers
Praise for The Prepared Mind of a Leader
The Prepared Mind of a Leader is the best kind of business book—it provides a timely and practical framework for how to think, not what to think. This is a must-read for the next generation of leaders, and those who are preparing them to lead.
— Clark Callahan, executive director, Tuck Executive Education