Facilitating Genius: Illuminating Brilliance in Your Organization

John Lesko

Description

Facilitating Genius: Illuminating Brilliance in Your Organization is a practical guide for leaders, executives, facilitators, and coaches on the art and science of creative problem-solving. This book is the product of 10+ years of research and the lessons learned from providing professional services to clients from private, public, and non-profit organizations.

In Facilitating Genius, the author draws on his experience as a certified facilitator and leadership coach. He briefly introduces the theory of multiple intelligences, shares 25 short vignettes of genius achievement, and offers four case studies where the reader can then test their problem-solving skills as they "consult" with the geniuses revealed in this book.

Readers are encouraged to identify the type of "smarts" they possess and can easily do so by way of the links provided in this book. Each of the eight intelligences are defined and at least three representative geniuses for each type are offered in this text. This book is well illustrated and has quotes and prompts embedded into each of the 25 sample stories of extraordinary achievement. And as an added bonus there are worksheets provided for the reader to use individually or in small groups within his or her organization.

Sujets

• Problem Solving
• Decision-Making
• Gestion et management
• Economics
• Business

Informations

• Publié par: eBookIt.com
• Date de parution: 22 avril 2015
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781456624637
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 2 Mo

Extrait

FACILITATING GENIUS:
ILLUMINATING BRILLIANCE IN YOUR ORGANIZATION
 
 
BY JOHN LESKO
 
 
A PRACTICAL GUIDE FOR LEADERS, EXECUTIVES, FACILITATORS, AND COACHES ON THE ART AND SCIENCE OF CREATIVE PROBLEM-SOLVING

FACILITATING GENIUS:
ILLUMINATING BRILLIANCE IN
YOUR ORGANIZATION
 
 
© 2015 by John Lesko. All rights reserved.
 
Published in eBook format by eBookIt.com
http://www.eBookIt.com
 
 
ISBN-13: 978-1-4566-2463-7
 
 
No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems, without permission in writing from the author. The only exception is by a reviewer, who may quote short excerpts in a review.
 
Inquiries regarding requests to reprint all or part of Facilitating Genius: Illuminating Brilliance in Your Organization should be addressed to the author c/o JohnLesko.Biz, LLC, 15289 Bowmans Folly Drive, VA 20112
 
Contact the author via e-mail at [e-mail] . All inquiries and ideas on how to improve this book are welcome.

DEDICATION
This book is dedicated to my loving wife, son, and daughter.
 
Debbie has encouraged me over the years in ways too numerous to list here. She has stood by my side during thick and thin. Periodically she reminds me that, “Your next book isn’t going to write itself.” And then she suggests - ever so diplomatically - that I get back to work or to my office. She keeps me focused.
 
If Jonathan were the author of this book, it would be more crisply written. It would also likely have a more worldly sampling of genius achievements. Note to self: Start a clip-file on geniuses from other cultures beyond the English-speaking world.
 
And, if I had consulted with Kelsey earlier in the creative process, I am sure that I would not have struggled as much with the crafting of this text or with illustrating the key concepts found in this book.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I have already mentioned my immediate family on the previous page with regards to their dedication to me and my reciprocal love for them. That said, I must also acknowledge their intellectual and professional contributions to this project.
 
Jonathan and Kelsey both proofread pre-publication versions of this book. They painstakingly read and marked each version from cover to cover. This review coupled with their insightful comments significantly improved the text. From them I learned, that whenever they both identified an awkward phrase, a bit of incorrect grammar, or an incomplete thought, this was proof enough that I needed to revise, fix, or finish what I erroneously thought was “good enough.”
 
Jonathan’s assistance with the book’s coherence and with the case studies is much appreciated. Kelsey’s design of the cover art and various worksheets merit a special “shout out.” I am grateful that Deb and I were able to send both of our grown children off to college. We are equally grateful that they were good students. We seem to have gotten our money’s worth with regards to their college educations.
 
A special thanks is due to a long-time friend and Army buddy, Harry Colin. Harry is likely the most well-read individual I know. His overall review and comments of this book shaped the structure and the flow significantly. At our next face to face reunion, I am buying the first round of Bier. Prost!
 
Patrick Kirchner is a 20-year veteran of the United States Marine Corps. He holds several degrees and a professional certificate (or two) from accredited universities. Patrick calls himself is a Professional Futurist. I call him one hell of an editor. We met at the local aikido dojo. I was pleasantly surprised at the interest he showed in my work. I am indebted to him for the thorough review he gave to this book.
 
Nya Alemayhu’s assistance with editing my final draft was an unexpected blessing. She painstakingly read this book cover to cover and identified errors in spelling or grammar that others had missed. Her fresh eyes also found several places where I repeated myself or where I needed to better articulate the message to the reader.
 
Kudos to Laurie Durnell of The Grove Consultants International for her kind words and periodic notes - spaced years apart - asking, “How’s the book coming along?
 

So ...
 
Q: Where would this author be without the support and tireless work of his family, friends, and professional colleagues?
 
A: Still toiling away with an incomplete manuscript and an unrealized New Years resolution.
 
Thank you, one and all.

 
Kudos to my coach, Cynthia Miller of Purposeful Solutions. She represented both the facilitation and coaching communities. We have worked collaboratively to support clients in the past. On this project she was not monetarily paid for her work. I am indebted none the less and will have to think of an appropriate way to thank her.
 
Kudos to my West Point classmate, Greg Kogut, for his friendship and encouragement.
 
And, to my best friend, soul mate, and loving wife, Debbie ... I am at a loss for words and cannot possibly summarize all that she has done for me, given to me, nor explain how she inspires and care for each member of our family. While I was writing and others edited this book, she was enrolled in an on-line course in writing and editing. We spent a number of hours comparing one style manual to another, debating in which case to use “which” versus “that,” or if I was being consistent in the use of the Oxford comma.
 
Much of the credit - as you see - belongs to family, friends, and colleagues. Any errors found within the final text should be attributed to me, and me alone. Why? Likely because, others have pointed out a better way, an awkward phrase, a data gap, etc. and I then stubbornly refused to listen to their advice.
PREFACE
F ACILITATING G ENIUS
 
1. Facilitating - To free from difficulties or obstacles. To make easy; to aid or assist.
 
2. Genius - Exceptional or transcendent intellectual and creative power. A natural talent or inclination. One who has such a talent or inclination. From mythology: The prevailing spirit or character, as of a place, person, time, or group. A guardian spirit of a person or place. A person who has great influence over another.
 
 
Reference: The American Heritage Dictionary - New College Edition, 1975.
 
 
Early in my career a mentor once hinted, “There is wisdom in all organizations and your job is two- fold. First, you must help others find it. Then, you need to help the group apply this wisdom to the challenge at hand.” I truly believe that my mentor was “spot on” in sharing this insight. There is untapped wisdom in most groups and nearly all organizations.
 
In my career as a Certified Professional Facilitator and Leadership Coach, I have tried to help my clients find the wisdom that is in the room. Doing so has not always been easy. Sometimes there is only the inkling of wisdom present. Wisdom evolves over time from the initial discovery to a point where it is refined and improved upon by the group. Wisdom rarely pops out of nowhere. Rather it emerges and grows organically.
 
Analysis and synthesis are needed. Introverts must ponder. Extroverts must talk it through. Groups many times struggle with defining their problem statement. They will cycle through divergent and convergent thinking. Individuals, groups, and teams must pass through the so-called “groan zone” before viable solutions emerge. True wisdom makes itself known over time and only after the hard work is done.
 
In my practice as a facilitator and leadership coach, I have grown to believe that there are several “aha!” moments uncovered during the group problem-solving process. And where an individual may not yell out “Eureka!” when that proverbial lightbulb is lit, I do believe that there is genius in all organizations just waiting to be released.
 
My application of the lessons, question sets, and problem-solving techniques found in this book have evolved. This book is over ten years in the making. I have presented many of the ideas found here in various workshops and seminars. My clients have “consulted” with many of the geniuses found in this book and have discovered or rediscovered their own gifts and talents along the way.
 
Others have written extensively about the question, “What is genius?” This book is NOT another dissertation on genius. Rather, it is meant to be a practical guide on identifying and harnessing the genius that is in the room. It is written in the spirit of discovery, suggesting that we maintain our curiosity, and that we try to learn something useful in our daily problem-solving.
 
The problem-solving techniques outlined in this book are based on the work of many others. I have tried my best to give credit where credit is due. Where possible I have shared links to my sources, cited my references, offered suggestions for where one might learn more, and supplied photo credits when and where they are available. That said, much of the text contains paraphrases from several works. You will also find throughout this book samples of my art. Some illustrations are composite images with dialog bubbles added to make a point or attempt a joke. And you will find a number of my doodles too.
 
You will find an extensive bibliography in the back of this book. At one time or another, I have cracked open each of these books. Many I own and they rest on the shelves of my personal library. Others you will find at a good public library.
 
This book is intended to be a practical guide for leaders, executives, project managers, facilitators, and coaches on the art and science of creative problem-solving. Designed for use by individuals, small groups, and teams; this book helps you when you are wrestling with both simple and so-called “wicked problems.”
 
When I call a problem wicked, I am not using a New England vernacular. Rather, wicked problems are difficult or impossible to solve. T