Customer Reviews

Creating We: Change I-Thinking to WE-Thinking & Build a Healthy, Thriving Organization

5 star:		(13)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Judith Glaser has herself tapped into the "we" philosophy that she so ably illuminates in her excellent new book. She has synthesized insights, anecdotes and examples from her very wide and deep circle of colleagues and clients and has created something both highly original and highly applicable. The book itself puts into practice the values it espouses, considering all of the different perspectives that must somehow get melded together in order for organizations to function well. By skillfully mixing stories, models, and practical advice, "Creating We" clearly spells out, for individuals, teams and entire organizations, what to do, and what not to do, in order to be successful.

Never before have I read a no nonsense book about business, relationships and daily problem solving that I can apply to my own life as well. Ms. Glaser approaches her ideas and concepts in a totally fresh and inspiring way. Most leadership books give you the theory of problem solving but in Creating We, the author encourages readers to come out of the "group think" and aspire to even greater heights of productivity, community spirit and a more intutive sense of self awareness...This is the bible for anyone searching to find more success in every area of their lives.

"Creating We" is the definitive guide to managing - your business, your relationships, your life. It provides a step-by-step method that works in all situations to create the leader that is in everyone. It shows you how to turn situations around so that you become the one responsible for its succcess. It shows you how to re-position yourself as the leader - in all life's situations and relationships. Most particularly, it shows how you can be the catalyst for your business' success regardless of where you stand on the corporate ladder. I found this book invaluable in changing how I perceive every situation. I recommend it to everyone, as a primer for how to conduct your life.

Author and management consultant Judith E. Glaser helps organizations deal with change and challenges. She describes real companies and managers, and tells stories of how they worked through the issues that confronted them. While her narratives are instructive, albeit peppered with "I" and "WE" jargon, the process of changing organizational beliefs and attitudes isn't quick or easy. Therefore, even Glaser - with her expert background - can't provide any fast ways to convert an organization from "I-centric" attitudes to "WE-centric" attitudes. Instead, she shows the difference between I-thinking and WE-thinking, and provides tools that leaders can use to instill a WE-oriented corporate ethos. Although changing an organization's culture is a matter of great patience, we believe that managers who study this book's concepts will be able to boost their companies' productivity, adaptability and internal cooperation - over time.

I have read this book in the context of my management of medical care application in a University-based system. I have found this to be an excellent book, with a plethora of useful information. This book is not a pedantic technical analysis nor a passive bedtime story book: it's a lean, mean primer on building a succesful organization.

Of the several hundred books I have read over the years related to the business topics of leadership and executive coaching, organizational change, and creating dynamic, positive work cultures, in my estimation, Creating WE, by Judith Glaser, is one of the Top 5 on my personal list of the best 15-20 - a must read for anyone who is serious about doing what every leader should want to do -- "making a positive difference" as a leader.

Judith Glaser is one of a few of the "thought leaders" in this field today that I have taken the time to carefully research and study their work.

In Creating WE, I believe Judith captures and clearly details many of the core essential elements that leaders and organizations need to demonstrate and build into the fabric of their corporate cultures.

Over the past 10+ years, there have been some great works published by respected authors such as Marshall Goldsmith, Ed Gubman, Dan Pink, and Daniel Goleman, just to name a few of the best, who have tried to inspire us and guide us in how to improve leadership capabilities, attract, engage, and retain the best talent possible, and create "workplace or employer of choice" cultures.

In my view, through rich and practical models, actual case studies, and truly unique insights into some of today's emerging "best practices", Creating WE shows us a very clear path to help leaders and organizations get to the next level in the areas of employee engagement, creating "employer of choice" cultures, and true leadership excellence.

Business research today makes a very compelling case that the companies who have successfully "cracked the engagement code" are more the successful and more profitable "market leaders" in their industries.

This is a "must read" for organizations and leaders who truly desire to create and/or sustain high employee engagement, commitment, and loyalty, should read this book CAREFULLY, and figure out how to put into place, workable "WE-Centric" strategies.

Author Judith E. Glaser has helped numerous organizations large and small to change and deal with challenges. She tells stories about real organizations and managers and how they worked through their challenges. While the stories provide a learning tool, changing organizational beliefs and attitudes isn't quick and easy. Therefore, Glaser — even with her background — can't provide fast solutions to convert an organization from I to WE.

Instead, the author shows the difference between I-thinking and WE-thinking and provides tools for leaders to use while working toward WE-thinking and changing the organization's culture. It takes time, patience, and practice to make a change.

Judith E. Glaser's life turned upside down when she fought and won a battle with cancer. Her husband, president of a pharmaceutical company working on a cure for cancer, worked with the idea of reminding cells how to be normal, which in turn makes them healthy. Her battle, her work, and her husband's work led her to discover that cancer cells and toxic organizations have much in common. "Healthy cells" and "healthy organizations" succeed when they work together as a whole instead of separately.

Creating We consists of three elements for changing organizations from I-thinking to WE-thinking. "Believing WE" is about changing attitudes and beliefs in organizations and how employees should behave. "Learning WE" is about getting rid of old beliefs like the manager is in charge and that employees shouldn't speak up and adapting a healthy exchange of ideas between managers and employees. "Becoming WE" means changing the thinking and responding from I to WE.

The book provides many questions for managers to ask and explore as they go through their "I to WE" journey. Don't expect a speedy and painless adventure as the book covers a lot of material. Adopting "WE" means changing your way of thinking, conversing, and behaving. Companies that transform their cultures from "I" to "WE" experience side effects of innovation, cooperation, open conversations, and overall good health.

Executives and managers who study and reference the book's concepts, questions, and adopt the "WE-centric" thinking and philosophy will help their companies get the most out of every employee and enjoy success.

Judith has been the catalyst for transformational success for an impressive resume of clients but her writing style clearly reflects the thoughts of a person who has not elevated herself above the common person. I could not put this book down and was compelled to finish reading it over one weekend. To me personally, this is a book about understanding that organizations are made up of people and people are about relationships. Creating WE... reminds us that the language we use shapes our thoughts, feelings, and actions. Judith's message is unmistakably clear:

· "You can't lead until you know yourself."
· "We are all connected through our emotions and our energy."
· "We are all connected through our families, organizations and communities."
· "We are all connected through our beliefs we hold about the world."
· "We are connected at the heart and at the head."

In "Creating WE..." Judith Glaser has given us truth that applies to all phases of life. It is one of the best books I've ever read about leading, and I recommend it as a must read for anyone that aspires to be a transformational leader. Judith takes us on a journey of understanding culture and what it takes to create a healthy culture that transforms an organization from one that is just getting by, to one that thrives and accepts new challenges head on. She tells us, in very simple terms, that the highest potential of any organization is achieved through the nature of the relationships within. She shares some interesting anecdotes, teaches us the steps to take to become WE-centric and finally tells us what to expect as we begin living the life of a WE-Thinking leader. Don't miss this opportunity for personal growth.

Reading "Creating We" is like working with a master coach. As you read, you can get an accurate picture of yourself as a leader, and see the powerful impact your actions, and especially your conversations, have on your business and your employees. It's also a great book to give to a leader, boss, or manager who needs to develop awareness of the impact they are having on others.

One of the many critically important lessons I learned from this book is how everything happens through conversations, that when we talk with each other, we either strengthen our relationship or we erode it. The author offers sage advice and interesting examples of how to make conversations transparent, how to be sensitive to other people through conversations that help us grow rather than turn us against each other, and how to let go of what's not working and focus on what a team can create together.

The basic premise of the book is that our role, whether we are a corporate executive or an entrepreneur heading our own company, is to step outside of our self-centric needs and learn to focus on creating we-centric environments where innovation can thrive.

The book offers numerous clear exercises to help us handle delicate situations, such as confronting adversaries or giving constructive feedback when performance does not reach our expectation. The book contains a wealth of tools for having what Glaser categorizes as "courageous," "vital" and "difficult" conversations.

I especially enjoyed the behind-the-scenes leadership stories from companies that range from small to multi-billion dollar. Glaser candidly depicts her work with CEO Steve Sadove and the "Clairol makeover" of the mid-90's, the effect that working with Donna Karan had on her thinking about corporate culture; her perspective on Coach arid its customer-focused organization; and how she helped Bob Lutz turn around Exide. There is something of vital importance here for everyone, as Glaser includes stories of working with startup companies going through growth pains.

I know this is a cliché, but in this case it applies perfectly: if you read just one business book this year, make it Creating We!

Judith Katz
Founder and President
Katz Creative,Inc.
Manhattan

As part of two management book club groups; to date, this is by far the most outstanding book on leadership that both groups have decided to read and discuss.

Judith Glaser is brilliant in the way she is able to break down the most complex issues in organizations today and put them into basic Vital Principles. She takes if further by helping us to put a mirror in front of ourselves to see if we are capable of changing to become a new style "WE-centric" leader, working successfully through collaboration, or remaining caught up in the web of the "I-centric" past.

There are so many powerful quotes in the book:

"When we are at the edge, we have a choice. We can turn away from others and try to handle the challenge on our own, or we can turn to others for help.

Old-style leaders and managers believe they should have all the answers and their people expect solutions to come from the top.

New-style leaders and managers don't believe they have all the answers, but they engage people in coming up with them. I call this WE-centric leadership.

WE-centric leaders realize that WE is the power that fuels corporate growth. They know they don't need to know all the answers, and they also know that in the face of unprecedented change, inclusive behaviors radically shift the power dynamics toward partnering and positively influence productivity and quality in a company."

Her lessons are endless. And while we feel like we've heard the same old "to do's" over and over again, Judith provides clear-cut action steps to help us begin changing the way we lead. Here are the key chapters, each with stories, new practices and how to's:

Chapter 1: What Happens When Bosses Are Domineering, Insensitive & Tough?
Chapter 2: What Happens When Bosses Don't Listen & Think They Know it All?
Chapter 3: What Happens When Employees And Management Don't Trust Each Other?
Chapter 4: Reinventing a Challenging Culture!
Chapter 5: The Comfort of Comfort Zones... How to Interrupt Old Patterns!
Chapter 6: How to Open the Space for Growth!
Chapter 7: How to Transform Conversations!
Chapter 8: How to Create Our "WE" Story!
Chapter 9: How to Trigger Corporate Caring!
Chapter 10: Real Success Stories About Living We!
When You Run into Trouble - How to Make UP!

She helps us to realize that up to now, most of us have lived in a world that we know ourselves only from the inside out ~ it's how we see ourselves. She questions whether we have the guts to discover what people really think of us from the outside in ~ how we make others feel about our leadership.

All leaders and managers who are interested in shaping and crafting a successful future should read this book. It will help you develop a clear self-awareness of how you affect others you lead now, and how that impact will affect the future.