Humble Consulting

SEVENThe New Kinds of Adaptive Moves

In this final chapter I tackle some of the realities of helping with complex, messy problems, and flesh out a little more what it means to make an adaptive move, as contrasted with “major” diagnostic interventions or solutions designed either to solve the problem or build some specific skill. The adaptive move is not another “tool” in the consultant’s bag and there are no formulas for “what to do when,” because so much depends on the actual situational complexities, which include the personalities of the consultant and the client and the need to combine personalization and authenticity in building the relationship.

The Adaptive Move as Both Diagnosis and Intervention

In most consulting models, it is stated ...