New Practices for a New World: The Human Potential Project and the Power to Transform with Chris Majer, MPA
Dr. Chris Stout
LinkedIn Top Voice | Best Selling Author | Adventurer | Startup Whisperer | (Accidental) Humanitarian | APA's "Rockstar" Psychologist | éminence Grise
“The pandemic has changed most everything—that’s not news. What is perhaps causing people the most unease is that it has removed the illusion of certainty” opines Chris Majer, a noted speaker, author, and designer of organizational transformation processes. He is an authority on organizational cultures, high performing teams and the practices of authentic leadership. He has generated a new body of work that builds on his past success and it is entitled, “New Practices for a New World."
“We tend to think of our organizations as finely-tuned machines that have systems and processes designed to consistently produce services and products for our customers. This machine analogy fits in a world where we think things are predictable, and where we have some certainty about at least the near-term future. That illusion has been shattered and, in the moment, no one knows what the next few months hold, let alone the next few years.”
“There are two basic ways that organizations can respond. There are those that will ‘hunker down,’ slow down, and try to operate at a minimal level until they can do enough analysis to again have a sense of certainty about how to move. These companies are likely going to find themselves waiting for a long time, and when they finally realize that certainty isn’t the outcome of analysis but it is in fact an emotional state, they will be playing catchup and are likely too far behind.”
The other option is to forget about certainty, and understand that in an ever-changing world it’s not the strong who survive, it’s the most adaptable. They who change first and fastest win!
That of course sounds great, but none of our historical business practices, systems, processes, or measurements are geared for such a world. Thus, you guessed it—it’s time for new practices because now it really is a new world.
"As we all face a new world, companies everywhere are struggling to find new ways of working, new ways to provide value, and some sense of certainty in this crisis-driven reality."
Chris Majer has a lot to say about building a practice that will enable you to stay calm while the world around you swirls in confusion, facing down the daunting challenges, and making consistently powerful choices.
He is a startup founder, adventurer and expert on learning and on transformation--at the individual level, at the pro-athlete level, and at the elite military and Fortune 500 Corporate levels. Chris is the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of The Human Potential Project or HP2 and author of The Power to Transform. Chris earned a BA in political science and went on to study organizational development, earning a master’s degree in public administration from the University of Washington, after which he worked as a political consultant.
He also was competitive rugby player for 11 years, and then began his work as an entrepreneur, founding the first iteration of HP2 in 1981. The company designed and delivered a series of groundbreaking programs to the U.S. Army and to the corporate world, where they were soon generating remarkable results.
Under Chris’ leadership, the firm grew from a startup to a company of more than 80 professionals working globally. In fact, Chris was the principal architect of organizational transformation projects for such corporate clients as AT&T, Cargill, Microsoft, Intel, EDS, Amgen, Capital One, and Allianz Life. His work has been conducted across the US, Canada, Mexico, Argentina, France, the UK, Australia, India, and Malaysia.
Chris has been featured on the Today Show, The News Hour, and Charlie Rose, and his work has been written about in Time, Esquire, People, Men’s Health and Leaders Magazine.
He has served as the Chairman of the Board for Seattle Community Youth at Risk, as a board member of the Mt. Zion School, Chairman of the Mobius Science Center and continues to be committed to building a better world.
All of these influences have come together to shape his work, and much of which is detailed in his new book, The Power to Transform (which I very much enjoyed by the way), and in this episode, we discuss it in depth.
“A perfect fit for aspiring leaders.” Howard Behar, retired President of Starbucks
Chris is one of a kind. He’s clearly established himself as an innovator and leader in developing human potential. This book is the key to getting your life on track and staying on track. An absolute recommendation.” Charles Koppelman, Chairman of the Board at Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia
“Chris’ new book makes the power of transformation available to everyone.” Nike’s Director of HR
We unpack Chris’ book and his approach using complex philosophical and linguistic concepts used to inform the practices that produce transformational change. The difference is rather than the usual application at a corporate-level, his book is focused on the individual.
Each chapter is structured with an area-by-area focus, and they build upon one another with exercises to be tested in real-world application. He discusses learning in a New World and building practices for authentic learning. He explains the development of the concept of that he calls "embodied competence" and ends with a poignant chapter on what “Being a Stand” means in terms of personal integrity and ethic.
Chris demonstrates living life in full, and he helps others to do so as well.
Listen to this episode on iTunes or download here. You can also listen on Overcast, SoundCloud, Stitcher, Spotify, Google Play Music, and iHeartRADIO as well.
Please subscribe on your favorite platform and never miss an episode. Here are the show notes.
“Living a Life in Full” is the conversation you always wanted to have with that person who gave an amazing TED talk, or the author of one your favorite books, or that inspirational Olympian you always wanted to know more about.
This show is for the intellectually curious. You want to not just know more about the interesting and the innovative, but also what makes them tick, and maybe even what makes them laugh. It’s graduate-level conversations with those making a difference in the world and the lives of others.
This show brings you new ideas and approaches so you can live a life in full. The show is equal parts information and inspiration, but without the aphorisms and Pablum. We cover a wide range of topics in an engaging way—from Burning Man to The Renaissance Weekend, from the United Nations to top universities, Nobel Laureates to astronauts—we have an amazing Rolodex.
Interviewees are a who’s who of high performance athletes, bestselling authors, high-caliber leaders, world changing humanitarians, innovative researchers, amazing start-up founders, clever life-hackers, paradigm busting thought-leaders and global innovators.
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If you’d like to learn more, please do at https://DrChrisStout.com. You can follow me on LinkedIn and Twitter as well. Join my email list to keep in touch. Tools and my podcast are available via https://ALifeInFull.org. If you liked this article, you may also like:
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President at Citizen 007 Media
4 年Looks interesting and timely. I need to read this ! “As we all face a new world, companies everywhere are struggling to find new ways of working, new ways to provide value, and some sense of certainty in this crisis-driven reality."