Margaret J. Wheatley
Margaret J. Wheatley
Margaret J. Wheatleyis an American writer and management consultant who studies organizational behavior. Her approach includes systems thinking, theories of change, chaos theory, leadership and the learning organization: particularly its capacity to self-organize. Her work is often compared to that of Donella Meadows and Dee Hock. She describes her work as opposing "highly controlled mechanistic systems that only create robotic behaviors."...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionWriter
CountryUnited States of America
thinking want moments
Thinking is always dangerous to the status quo. [...] The moment you start thinking, you'll want to change something.
world process
This is a world of process, not a world of things.
business thinking use
I think we have to notice that the business processes we use right now for thinking and planning and budgeting and strategy are all delivered on very tight agendas.
learning grace curiosity
The search for the lessons of the new science is still in progress, really in its infancy. In this realm, three is a new kind of freedom, where it is more rewarding to explore than to reach conclusions, more satisfying to wonder than to know, and more exciting to search than to stay put. Curiosity, not certainty, becomes the saving grace.
integrity learning self
Self-production: the characteristic of living systems to continuously renew themselves and to regulate this process in such a way that the integrity of their structure is maintained. It is a natural process which supports the quest for structure, process renewal and integrity.
real war views
We experience problem-solving sessions as war zones, we view competing ideas as enemies, and we use problems as weapons to blame and defeat opposition forces. No wonder we can't come up with real lasting solutions!
death effectiveness destroying
Destroying is a necessary function in life. Everything has its season, and all things eventually lose their effectiveness and die.
believe past ideas
In the past, it was easier to believe in my own effectiveness. If I worked hard, with good colleagues and good ideas, we could make a difference. But now, I sincerely doubt that.
political independence connecting
Independence is a political concept, not a biological concept.
change organization two
Organizations are now confronted with two sources of change: the traditional type that is initiated and managed; and external changes over which no one has control.
creative life-is
Life is creative. It makes it up as it goes along.
motivation organization leader
Even though worker capacity and motivation are destroyed when leaders choose power over productivity, it appears that bosses would rather be in control than have the organization work well.
healing belief assumption
I've found that I can only change how I act if I stay aware of my beliefs and assumptions. Thoughts always reveal themselves in behavior.
knowledge learning reality
In this new world, you and I make it up as we go along, not because we lack expertise or planning skills, but because that is the nature of reality. Reality changes shape and meaning because of our activity. And it is constantly new. We are required to be there, as active participants. It can't happen without us and nobody can do it for us.