Foreword, Peter Senge
Introduction: The Problem with Tough Problem
Part I: Tough Problems
"There Is Only One Right Answer”
Seeing the World
The Miraculous Option
Part II: Talking
Being Stuck
Dictating
Talking Politely
Speaking Up
Only Talking
Part III: Listening
Openness
Reflectiveness
Empathy
Part IV: Creating New Realities
Cracking Through the Egg Shell
Closed Fist, Open Palm
The Wound That Wants to Be Whole
Conclusion: An Open Way
Notes
Bibliography
Index
About the Author
Adam Kahane is a leading designer and facilitator of processes through which business, government, and civil society leaders can together solve their toughest problems. He has worked in more than fifty countries, in every part of the world. He is a founding partner of Reos Partners and of Generon Consulting.
“Many people have written about the healing power of dialogue.
None, however, has put that power to the test under more extreme
conditions with greater success than Adam Kahane. Informative,
inspiring, and beautifully written. Highly recommended.”
—David Korten, President of the People-Centered Development Forum,
and author of When Corporations Rule the World
“This generative dialogue approach offers real opportunities for
governments to engage with stakeholders to build trust and create
exciting new resolutions to multi-faceted social and governance
challenges.”
—Clare Beckton, Assistant Deputy Attorney General of Canada
“Adam Kahane’s book invites us to dare to move back into that
sacred space of silence: a space where we listen and hear with our
hearts, and not only with our heads. The stories he tells celebrate
the amazing transformation that takes place when we have the
courage to be vulnerable and speak openly and honestly—where
passion is not used to defend an ideology or position, but is
directed at enhancing a shared commitment for a common purpose.
This is a book that needs to be read now.”
—Njongonkulu Ndungane, Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town
“Adam Kahane presents a very strong case for how authentic dialogue
can change the world. A fascinating mix of both large ideas and
practical details, winnowed from decades of experiences in many
countries and institutions around the world. A definitive work on a
transformational social innovation.”
—Nicanor Perlas, recipient of the Right Livelihood Award
(Alternative Nobel Prize), and author of Shaping Globalization:
Civil Society, Cultural Power, and Threefolding
“A brave and powerful book.”
—Len Lindegren, former Global Strategy Leader,
PricewaterhouseCoopers
“This fascinating book paints both seemingly unsolvable problems
and a path towards sustainable solutions. A ‘must read’ for those
who want to be part of creating such new realities.”
—Jeroen Bordewijk, Senior Vice President, Unilever
“Being successful in business today means being able to solve
complex challenges in a dynamic global environment, while building
teams that can handle change creatively. This book shows us how to
unlock the creativity of diverse teams to find solutions that
work.”
—Katherine Taylor, Director General, General Electric Medical
Systems Mexico
“This book makes a strong case, from fascinating inside stories
about the really tough problems in the world, that success depends
on leaders learning to listen. Recommended reading for all decision
takers dealing with tough problems.”
—Arie de Geus, former Group Planning Coordinator, Royal
Dutch/Shell, and author of The Living Company
“A book that needs to be read everywhere people have differences—in
politics, the church, labor, the academy, and business. Kahane’s
message is wise, honest, and above all realistic. A gift for our
time.”
—W. Brian Arthur, Citibank Professor, Santa Fe Institute
“This is a profound and important book. It is special in both the
simplicity and authenticity of the writing, and the value and far
reaching impact of its message. It offers a ways of thinking and
acting that can heal the woundedness of our organizations and our
communities. I recommend it wholeheartedly.”
—Peter Block, author of Flawless Consulting, Stewardship, The
Empowered Manager, The Answer to How Is Yes, and Freedom and
Accountability at Work
“Adam Kahane has written a useful and powerful book. It turns out
that the rational, structured approach is just the beginning.
Success occurs only when people deeply listen and talk with each
other.”
—Harrison Owen, author of Expanding Our Now, Tales from Open Space,
and Open Space Technology
“Adam Kahane is one of those all too rare ‘warriors for peace’ who
is willing to immerse himself totally into our world’s most
intractable conflicts. In story after story, we witness the
remarkable transformation of isolated individuals—separate,
hostile, closed to one another, with fixed positions—into a single,
complex, organism with a common goal, fresh thinking, and, most of
all, hope. Kahane makes it crystal clear that deep talking and
listening do not come easily, but when they do, the world
moves.”
—Barry Oshry, author of Seeing Systems: Unlocking the Mysteries of
Organizational Life and Leading Systems: Lessons from the Power
Lab
“Kahane puts into words wisdom glimpsed from the cauldron of real
world experience. He renews our hope that it is possible to map a
better future and sustains our faith that the heart can be a
guide.”
—Alan Briskin, author of The Stirring of Soul in the Workplace
“This book is a gem—in a class of its own. It explains simply and
eloquently the essence of the process of non-violent, voluntary
transformational change in social systems that seem stuck in
hopelessness.”
—Arun Maira, Chairman, The Boston Consulting Group India
“This book is a victory for those of us who believe that even the
most intractable of our societal problems can be successfully
addressed through the efforts of people of good will. It inspires
us with real stories of unlikely groups of people separated by
gulfs of fear, history, rage and violence, sitting down and
bridging chasms of mistrust through the simple human acts of
speaking and listening from the heart. I recommend it highly.”
—Robert Gass, Rockwood Leadership Program; former President, ARC
International
“This book includes the story of the Visión Guatemala team, in
which a group of us, who in the ordinary course of events would
never have met or worked together, had an unprecedented experience
that opened up new horizons for us and for our country. Adam helped
us cultivate our dreams and ideals, and gave us the energy and hope
to act to renew our society.”
—Raquel Zelaya, former Secretary of Peace, Guatemala
“I have facilitated dialogue and problem-solving in many of today’s
‘intractable’ conflicts—Cyprus, the Caucasus, Kosovo, and Colombia,
among others. This book offers valuable new approaches for working
in these situations. It goes beyond dialogue, and offers ways of
building on dialogue to create new realities.”
—Diana Chigas, Conflict Management Group and Fletcher School of Law
and Diplomacy
“Tough problems is an understatement. This book provides a road map
for solving the intractable and the tragic. Companies facing
extinction, communities on the brink, and countries in
crisis—Kahane has used his tools in all these contexts, and serves
them up admirably in this volume.”
—Michel Gelobter, Executive Director, Redefining Progress
“This book offers us stories of profound transformation—and with a
refreshing directness teaches us ways of talking and listening that
can embrace the toughest problems. The packing of so much practical
wisdom into such a small space creates a jewel of inspiration.”
—Betty Sue Flowers, Director, Lyndon Baines Johnson Presidential
Library
“Adam Kahane is one of those rare action-intellectuals who combines
a deep theoretical understanding of social change and group process
with actual experience in situations of conflict and turmoil, where
people are desperate for solutions but unable to secure what they
need. Adam brings the catalyst for change.”
—James Garrison, President of State of the World Forum and author
of America as Empire
“At the heart of many of our most intractable problems lies the
belief that reflection and action are somehow separate. Solving
Tough Problems goes a long way in healing this rift. In doing so it
elegantly sets out a direction for us to follow if we are to shift
radically our current destructive patterns of behavior.”
—Zaid Hassan, Cultivation Unit, Pioneers of Change
“This is a book about miracles, not the kind of miracles produced
by angels but the kind produced by people listening and talking to
one another. When faced with tough, complex problems such
conversations are likely to be more helpful than yet more
‘objective’ analyses.”
—David Brooks, Founding President, Friends of the Earth Canada
“Adam Kahane pens his mind and heart in prose reminiscent of
personal letters to an intelligent friend. His theme is simple and
admirable: how to replace the power of violence with the power of
listening-and-talking, of regenerative dialogue. His stories move
me, unveiling, as no other book, how the informed and reflective
heart is the essential compliment to rational, strategic
thought.”
—Peter Warshall, editor, Whole Earth, the magazine of the Whole
Earth Catalog
“The world we live in requires that we all take responsibility for
the good of the whole; our collective future depends on it. Adam
Kahane has given us a lovely treatise on how that can happen
individually and collectively through open minds and open
hearts.”
—Carolyn Lukensmeyer, President and Founder, AmericaSpeaks
Ask a Question About this Product More... |