The Dance of Leadership: The Art of Leading in Business, Government, and Society : The Art of Leading in Business, Government, and Society

Most successful leaders know that leadership is an art, not a science. They recognize that beyond all the sophisticated systems and theories, the strategies and tactics, leadership is ultimately about intangible things such as timing, intuition, and passion This book shows how successful leaders can master the artistic aspects of their work. It guides readers to the ways that the leadership can be practiced and learned. ''The Dance of Leadership'' explores the art of leadership by examining the perspectives, training, and insights of artists, most particularly in the fields of music and dance. The authors look at how these people learn their craft, practice their skills, and attain mastery of their art. Then they adapt these lessons from the arts to the experiences of successful leaders in all fields. This book incorporates in-depth interviews with some of the world's premier artists and writers, as well as dozens of leader business, government, the military, and sports. The result is a book that celebrates the art of leadership - but an art that can learned, developed, and practiced. @00000DenhardtBlurbs CONTENTS 7 PREFACE 9 1 Exploring the Art of Leadership 13 What Is the Art of Leadership? 16 Drawing Lessons from the Arts 21 A New Language for Leadership 26 Reprise 30 2 The Interplay of Space, Time, and Energy 32 The Elements of Dance 34 Working with Space 38 Working with Time 43 Working with Energy 50 Reprise 54 3 Understanding the Rhythms of Human Interaction 55 The Roots of Rhythm in the Human Experience 59 How Rhythms Interact with One Another 65 The Tempo of Groups and Organizations 67 Cycles, Stillness, and Nonmetric Rhythm 73 Leading with Rhythm 78 Reprise 87 4 Communicating in Images, Symbols, and Metaphors 88 Empathy and Emotion 91 Evocative Speaking 98 Physicality and Movement 110 Reprise 115 5 Improvising with Creativity and Spontaneity 117 The Elements of Improvisation 121 Leading Improvisational Organizations 138 Reprise 143 6 Leading from Within 145 The Inner Disciplines 148 The Inner Resources 164 Reprise 172 7 Learning the Art of Leadership 173 The Studio Experience 176 Lessons from Learning the Arts 180 Reprise 185 APPENDIX: LIST OF INTERVIEWEES 187 REFERENCES 191 Chapter 1 191 Chapter 2 191 Chapter 3 192 Chapter 4 193 Chapter 5 194 Chapter 6 195 Chapter 7 195 INDEX 197 Annotation Most successful leaders know that leadership is an art, not a science. They recognize that beyond all the sophisticated systems and theories, the strategies and tactics, leadership is ultimately about intangible things such as timing, intuition, and passion. This book shows how successful leaders can master the artistic aspects of their work. It guides readers to the ways that the art of leadership can be practiced and learned. The Dance of Leadership explores the art of leadership by examining the perspectives, training, and insights of artists, most particularly in the fields of music and dance. The authors look at how these people learn their craft, practice their skills, and attain mastery of their art. Then they adapt these lessons from the arts to the experiences of successful leaders in all fields Showing how successful leaders can master the artistic aspects of their work, this book guides readers to the ways that the leadership can be practiced and learned. It explores the art of leadership by examining the perspectives, training, and insights of artists, and also incorporates in-depth interviews with some of the world's premier artists