Preface.
Hijacking Our Minds. Mental Models. What We See Is What We Think.
The Importance of Mental Models. Thinking the Impossible. Endnotes.
I. RECOGNIZE THE POWER AND LIMITS OF MENTAL MODELS.
1. Our Models Define Our World.II. KEEPING YOUR MODELS RELEVANT.
3. Should You Change Horses?III. TRANSFORM YOUR WORLD.
8. Dismantle the Old Order.IV. ACT QUICKLY AND EFFECTIVELY.
10. Develop the Intuition to Act Quickly.How often have we heard: "You can do anything once you set your mind to it," or "It's all in the way you look at it." This book helps readers unleash the straitjacket of your current thinking and unleash your potential with powerful new mental models so you can do the seemingly impossible! Jerry Wind and Colin Crook explain how your mental models stand between you and reality, distorting all your perceptions... and how they create both limits and opportunities. Next, they show how to keep your models relevant and fresh. You'll learn how to develop new ways of seeing; when to change to a new model; how to swap amongst a portfolio of models; how to "zoom in and out" to understand complex environments; and how to do "mind RD" -- improving your models through constant experimentation. Wind and Crook tell why it's so hard to change mental models, and offer practical strategies for dismantling the "hardened missile silos" that are your old and obsolete models. Finally, they show how to access models quickly through intuition, and help you assess the effectiveness of any mental model. With profiles on Howard Schultz, Oprah Winfrey and Andy Grove the authors provide real examples of their ideas in action. Simply put, this is the first "hands-on" guide to enhancing your mental models: the key to breakthrough success in business -- and in life.
Yoram (Jerry) Wind is The Lauder Professor, Professor of Marketing, Founding Editor of Wharton School Publishing, and Academic Director of The Wharton Fellows Network at the University of Pennsylvania. He is also the Founder and Director of the SEI Center for Advanced Studies in Management, The Wharton School's think tank. Wind led the development of a number of key Wharton programs including the reinvention of the Wharton MBA curriculum and the creation of the Wharton Executive MBA Program. Among his many affiliations is former chancellor, the International Academy of Management (IAM). One of the world's most cited marketing authors, his books include Driving Change: How the Best Companies Are Preparing for the 21st Century, and The Power of Impossible Thinking. Dr. Wind has served as an advisor to many Fortune 500 firms and non-U.S. multinationals throughout the financial services, pharmaceuticals, information, and consumer packaged goods industries, and as advisor and board member for a wide range of entrepreneurial ventures. His consulting focuses on global corporate and business strategy, corporate transformation, marketing strategy, and especially new business development. He is the recipient of all the major marketing awards. Wind received a Ph.D. from Stanford University.
Colin Crook is senior fellow of The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, Advisory Board member of Rein Capital, editorial board member of the journal Emergence and has served on numerous National Academy committees and advisory groups. He has provided advice to governments and businesses around the world, and is a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering (UK). He was formerly Chief Technology Officer for Citicorp.
"This is an important book that 'makes sense of how we make sense.'
The authors provide a thorough, fresh, and compelling exploration
into the dimensions of mental models. All leaders who want to be
more effective in their actions would be served well to leverage
the principles in this book to learn about how they think and make
sense of the world around them."Nick Pudar
Director of Strategic Initiatives, General Motors"This is a really
great piece of work. It is 'immersion into the process of insight'.
Truly a valuable addition to any forward-thinking person's library
in light of the rapid change we face in today's world—business and
personal."J.Allen Kosowksy, CPA
Forensic Accountant and Director, 0N2 Technologies"A masterfully
written book that is sure to capture the attention of every
thinking person who's willing to look at the world of business
through new lenses. The Power of Impossible Thinking is both timely
and intriguing."Kathy Levinson, Ph.D.
Author of The 60-Second Commute "Tough-minded managers like to
think they see the world as it is. Wind and Crook, drawing on
recent neuroscience research, demonstrate that none of us,
tough-minded or not, do anything of the sort. What we perceive as
'the world' is as much inside our heads as outside. By realizing
that and making choices about how we see things, we can become much
more effective managers."Rob Austin, Ph.D.
Harvard Business School and co-author of Artful Making"While most
of us may recognize that the world we respond to is more in our
mind than in any physical reality, often we don't have a clue why
this is so. This very important book clearly explains how our
mental models work to construct these distinct inner worlds. And
more importantly it offers empowering advice on how we can use this
knowledge to work for us rather than against us in creating a
better outer world for ourselves, our organizations, and our
societies."Charles C. Manz
Best-selling author of SuperLeadership, Fit to Lead, and Temporary
Sanity"Today, life moves at hyperspeed. Hence, the age-old human
skill of pattern recognition is more essential to our health and
happiness than ever before in history. The Power of Impossible
Thinking is a wonderful guide to help you understand the patterns
you recognize and—critically—when those patterns serve you well,
when they don't, and what you can do about it."Douglas K. Smith
Co-author of The Wisdom of Teams and author of On Value and
Values"I have been trying to explain why Japan has fallen into a
pitfall and cannot come out of even the simplest problems. One can
call it an innovators dilemma, but that does not solve the problem.
This book suggests we have to go back to the basics of reviewing
our underlying 'mental models' now and then, and only then, have to
construct a new model, perhaps plural, and move onto exploring the
new terrain."Kenichi Ohmae
Author of the international bestseller, The Borderless World"Jerry
Wind and Colin Crook have one of the most powerful messages there
is about dealing with the present changing world. Perspectives are
prisons, they say. The only way to thrive in the coming environment
is to cultivate the ability to sense the new patterns and
relationships as (and before) they emerge—otherwise you'll be
locked in the past. This book can get you out of that jail."John L.
Petersen
President and founder of The Arlington Institute and author of
Out of the Blue: How to Anticipate Wild Cards and Other Big
Surprises"The Power of Impossible Thinking is a health spa for the
executive brain. Poor mental models can do more than ruin your
reputation, your organization, or your team. How many times do we
ignore market changes because of personal bias? Thanks to Wind and
Crook we have a new vast insight into 'making sense' to help global
leaders master the models needed for successful leadership
behavior."Cathy L. Greenberg, Ph.D
Executive Director, Institute for Strategic Leadership,
LeBow College of Business, Drexel University"Everyone is familiar
with exhortations for mindset change, attitudinal change and
paradigm shift. But slogans are not solutions and words are not
deeds. What is missing is a "how to" book. Wind and Cook have
brilliantly filled this chasm of need with an extraordinary book
that revolutionizes businesses, individual lives and society." Dr.
Y Y Wong
Chairman and Founder, The Wywy Group of Companies"Wind and Crook
have written a marvelous book that can teach you how to think more
effectively in personal and business settings. Read it and
learn!"Drea Zigarmi
Author of The Leader Inside: Learning Enough About Yourself To Lead
Others and co-author of Leadership and the One Minute Manager"We
like to say, 'See it with your mind's eye.' Wind and Crook show us
that our mind is our eye. What we think is what we see, and what we
see directs how we act. Not only do the authors make this paradigm
clear, but they offer concrete and practical ways to change our
mind's eye and as a consequence change our actions and the results
we get. The value of that is hard to top."J. Stewart Black,
Ph.D.
co-author of Leading Strategic Change
and Professor, University of Michigan Business School"This is a
very important book. It deals with truly fundamental issues—both
for practitioners as well as academicians—relating to making sense
out of a variety of complex events in the real world, and how to
keep an open mind regarding all of this. We often become
'prisoners' of set routines and behaviors, and thus gradually grow
less and less effective. This book points the way out of this
dilemma--in a most convincing sense. Models, properly focused
around the best in human minds, are key here. These can help us
understand paradigm shifts, maintain relevance, and keep momentum.
To see things differently becomes central. The book makes seminal
contributions here. It provides a strong, rigorous—and
practical—conceptual base for this! I am equally impressed with the
book's focus on implementation, both in terms of setting out an
agenda for transforming one's world, as well as in terms of
pointing out how action can be achieved—quickly and
naturally—following the prescriptions of the book. All in all, I
find the book to be a true seminal contribution, with a strong
conceptual underpinning, convincing empirical verification, and
realistic implementational focus. This book will become a must, for
practitioners and academicians alike."Dr. Dr. h.c. Peter
Lorange
President IMD, The Nestle Professor"The authors have done a
masterful job examining the power and limits of our mental models
and how to better accomplish change in the complex world ahead....
This book offers a road map with a real set of attributes that can
help us make the tough choices in a time of transition.... I would
put this book at the top of my 'keeper' list for those on the front
lines of change management and mission accomplishment."Ken
Minihan
Lt. General, U.S. Air Force, Retired
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