The Secret Life of the Corporate Jester: A Fresh Perspective on Organizational Leadership, Culture and Behavior [Hardcover]

David T. Riveness (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1, 2006

Today, more than ever, individuals are searching for ways to positively contribute to organizational leadership, culture and behavior. To do that successfully, they need insight into organizational truth as well as strategies to reveal that truth to others in a way that does not cause defensiveness or resistance. Jesters are needed as much today just as they were in the courts of old. David Riveness, in his insightful and entertaining book The Secret Life of the Corporate Jester, reveals how to adopt and apply a "jester's perspective." The perspective and behaviors of a jester can be understood and adopted by anyone regardless of his or her organization, role or position. Those who apply what they learn from this book can wield significant influence and bring about remarkable positive change. David Riveness is the founder and CEO of Corporate Jester, an organization created to assist individuals and organizations learn, develop and apply strategies for success. As part of this role, he delivers personalized keynote addresses, learning sessions and coaching for companies, organizations, and individuals. Prior to founding Corporate Jester, David served as the Director of Global Facilitations for Eagle's Flight, a worldwide innovator in the development and delivery of practical training programs for organizations. While at Eagle's Flight, he facilitated and implemented hundreds of training programs with such industry leaders as Warner Bros., NIKE, ESPN, Pfizer, The American Heart Association and Citibank on a variety of topics relating to organizational and individual effectiveness. David has hosted dynamic training workshops and speaking engagements ranging from small groups to large workshops with 3,500 attendees. He has worked as a facilitator and speaker around the world, including such diverse locations as India, China and Brazil.

Editorial Reviews

Review

The Secret Life of the Corporate Jester is a fun and intriguing read filled with insights into what it takes to be a successful leader in today's complex corporate environments. I love the entertaining way the story unfolds, holding your attention and interest as it leads you through self discovery, revealing the path to forward your own leadership development. --Mary Peery, Senior Vice President, Strategic Change Management, Hewlett Packard

Review

This book will quickly change your perspective on managing and leading. Every person that wants to influence culture change and build leadership in any organization should give this a read.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 112 pages
• Publisher: Jardin Publishing (August 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0977685624
• ISBN-13: 978-0977685622
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (34 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,945,836 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Beyond an exceptional book... Dave Riveness really gets it, August 14, 2007

By 

Greg Inozemcev (New York, NY) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Secret Life of the Corporate Jester: A Fresh Perspective on Organizational Leadership, Culture and Behavior (Paperback)

Sure, you've seen all the terrific reviews about The Secret Life of the Corporate Jester, but what you're not reading is how fantastic Dave Riveness is as a facilitator and trainer! After reading his book and sharing it with my team, we enjoyed it so much that we invited Dave to join us for a leadership development event. Dave's dynamic, interactive learning sessions brought to life the entertaining stories, effective exercises, and thought-provoking questions in his book and enabled us to realize the potential of uncovering blind spots. Thank you, Dave, for inspiring new ways of thinking and guiding people to do the right thing.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Jesters revealing blindspots, August 4, 2006

By 

Keith Lewis (Austin, TX United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Secret Life of the Corporate Jester: A Fresh Perspective on Organizational Leadership, Culture and Behavior (Paperback)

After you read a book, a good book, something sticks with you. What sticks with me is the author's idea of blindspots. We all have them. The question is do you have a jester to help you see them?

"The Secret Life..." uses analogy and story to highlight an opportunity to be our own jester and seriously reflect on our behavior.

Wish I had learned how to do this earlier in my career!!!

Keith Lewis

President

To Point B

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Speaking Truth to Power: read this book, August 1, 2006

By 

Frank O'MAHONY "SantaFeFrank" (Santa Fe, NM) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Secret Life of the Corporate Jester: A Fresh Perspective on Organizational Leadership, Culture and Behavior (Paperback)

If you've ever wanted to get past the gatekeepers to the Truly Big Cheese in your organization - or somebody else's - read this book. And if you Are that Big Cheese, read the book too, because otherwise you'll never know where to go, and whom to ask, to find out what's really going on in your organization and how to fix it.

This is a great read for sitting on the beach or waiting for your plane to stop circling and land at LAX. And you'll find out that don't have to wear a funny hat to be a jester.