The Power of Collective Wisdom: And the Trap of Collective Folly

In a world facing increasing complexity, ambiguity, and uncertainty, it is both good and necessary to be reminded of deeper truths and practical principles for creating lasting change. Winner of the Nautilus Award for Conscious Business and Leadership, this book is for leaders, groups, communities, and networks desiring to increase our human capacity for creativity, well being, and social change. The Power of Collective Wisdom is a foundational book for anyone exploring the higher potential of groups or wanting to find personal ways of being a better leader, organizer, or collaborator. Readers will be impressed by the depth of insight and accessible style that offers both inspiration and practical real world knowledge.

"When you connect your dots, good things happen. When many find their dots interconnected, great things can happen. Collective wisdom doesn't imply convergent thinking. An intra-connected group gains traction by respecting its members' diverse perspectives. Intra- connected groups function with a picture window view, so decisions are based on what's best for all."

—Jim Pawlak, Business Reviewer, The Dallas Morning News

"Supported by the visionaries of the Fetzer Institute, this book is required reading for anyone interesting in collaborative social change. Based on nine years of research, The Power of Collective Wisdom shows how we can reliably tap into the extraordinary co-creative potential that exists whenever human beings gather together."

—Paul Born, President, Tamarack An Institute for Community Engagement

“The most significant challenges of our time— social, economic, and environmental— are calling for leaders to understand, trust, and draw upon relational and cocreative capacities. This inspiring and practical book points the way. Not only have authors Briskin, Erikson, Ott, and Callanan written about collective wisdom, they have created it.”

—Diana Whitney, PhD, author of The Power of Appreciative Inquiry

“I think we are all seeing the growing need and yearning for approaches that enable people to think wisely together about critical issues and concerns. This pioneering book helps illuminate the lived experience of collective wisdom and invites us to create the conditions that make its appearance more likely. It is a great contribution to both theory and practice in this rapidly growing field.”

—Juanita Brown and David Isaacs, cofounders, The World Café, and coauthors of The World Café

"Lao Tzu reminds us that anything propelled by wisdom serves the greater good. The Power of Collective Wisdom illustrates the inspirational possibilities available when the health of the larger whole becomes more important than personal agendas. It is practical, instructive, and relevant to our times."

—Angeles Arrien, Ph.D. author of The Four-Fold Way