“If your strategy does not leverage polarity, then it’s not strategic…” -Bob de Wit & Ron Meyer For decades, I’ve used the powerful quote in this Note’s title, so I thought – let’s do a quick summary of Strategy Synthesis to capture the 10 key pairs, their meaning, and how polarity thinking shapes effective strategic [...]
Maria Popova (See: The Marginalian) is on my short-list of people and groups that provide an “Island of Coherence in a Sea of Chaos” in these strange and challenging times. Below is the lead-up to her amazing piece from today on Steinbeck’s Sea of Cortez. And also, my Polarity Map (Quest for Certainty And Openness [...]
Friend and Certified Polarity Practitioner in Germany, Thomas Schumacher, knew I was departing Amsterdam for Stockholm for the “Bridging Polarities” Inner Development Goals Summit. So, he thoughtfully sent me some reading material for the plane from the Academy of Management Learning & Education -- “Cultivating a Collective Paradox Mindset: Design Principles for Learning Interventions.” It’s [...]
This story was originally published at idgstories.com here. My story centers on work I did with two visionary leaders from Brazil, Roseangela Angonese and Julio Agostini. We combined dimensions of Collaborating + Acting to scale Thinking in ways that supported SDGs 11 and 13– sustainable cities and climate action. Country: United States IDG HUB: IDG Washington, D.C. [...]
Richard Rohr has dedicated his life to teachings that blend mysticism, contemplative practice, and social justice. Every morning I receive a meditation from this American Franciscan priest and spiritual writer. While I don’t read them every single day, I can say that over the past ten years the cumulative effect of the days I have [...]
Emilio J. Castilla’s recent book, The Meritocracy Paradox: Where Talent Management Strategies Go Wrong and How to Fix Them (2025) will likely fall victim to the anti-woke book-ban with the current administration's exclusive focus on “merit.” What’s wrong with merit hard work and talent? Nothing. Why is this book a chopping block? Because it focuses [...]
You used the term “And-vantage” in the presentation. What did you mean? Leveraging polarities increases speed, sustainability, and sustained success of change. Supplementing Or-thinking with And-thinking expands our ability to see the whole picture, work collaboratively, and even love more fully (Remember the two sayings: “Seeing is Relieving” and “Seeing is Loving”). We already have [...]
One of my greatest professional honors since 2014 has been serving as an Adjunct Faculty member in the KEY Executive Leadership Program at American University—a program dedicated to developing senior-level public sector leaders. I deeply admire these leaders for the depth and breadth of their mission-driven dedication to people in general, and to our country [...]
Among Among many clients lately, the topic of TRUST has been top of mind. So, I've found myself dredging years of presentations, articles, and Polarity Maps on the topic. There’s enough for a whole series of “Cliff’sNOTES” on the topic, but I leave for China for a full month in a few days, so there [...]
Like an electric shock -- that line grabbed me even more than other great ones. After I shared the “Light in My Darkness” Cliff’sNOTE, with my sister Lori, she sent me a note saying it reminded her of Maria Papova’s 20 Ways to Matter. To me, this is another wonderful example of a piece that [...]