Appreciative Intelligence: Seeing the Mighty Oak in the Acorn

“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

Tojo Thatchenkery, PhD, is a professor of organizational learning at the School of Public Policy, George Mason University. He is the author of several books and articles on change management and has consulted with many international organizations, including IBM, Lucent Technologies, the American Red Cross, British Petroleum, and the International Monetary Fund.
Carol Metzker has a master's degree in organizational learning from George Mason University and has more than fifteen years’ experience in communications and corporate environments.