The Essentials of Theory U

The Essentials of Theory U

by C. Otto Scharmer
Released March 2018
Publisher(s): Berrett-Koehler Publishers
ISBN: 9781523094424

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Book description

Creating a Better Future

This book offers a concise, accessible guide to the key concepts and applications in Otto Scharmer's classic Theory U. Scharmer argues that our capacity to pay attention coshapes the world. What prevents us from attending to situations more effectively is that we aren't fully aware of that interior condition from which our attention and actions originate. Scharmer calls this lack of awareness our blind spot. He illuminates the blind spot in leadership today and offers hands-on methods to help change makers overcome it through the process, principles, and practices of Theory U. And he outlines a framework for updating the “operating systems” of our educational institutions, our economies, and our democracies. This book enables leaders and organizations in all industries and sectors to shift awareness, connect with the highest future possibilities, and strengthen the capacity to co-shape the future.

Table of contents

  1. Cover
  2. Title Page
  3. Copyright Page
  4. Dedication
  5. Contents
  6. Preface
  7. Part I: A Framework for Seeing the Field
    1. 1. The Blind Spot
      1. Three Divides
      2. The Blind Spot
      3. In Front of the Blank Canvas
      4. Arriving at MIT
      5. Learning from the Future as It Emerges
      6. Building the Container
      7. Social Fields
    2. 2. Theory U—Form Follows Consciousness
      1. Making the System See Itself
      2. A Moment of Seeing
      3. The Process: Three Movements
      4. Mapping the Deeper Territory
      5. Three Instruments of Inner Knowing
      6. Three Enemies on the Journey Down the Left Side of the U
      7. Two Barriers to Moving Up the U
      8. Presencing and Absencing
    3. 3. The Matrix of Social Evolution
      1. The Grammar of Social Fields
      2. Attending
      3. Conversing
      4. Organizing
      5. Coordinating and Governing
      6. Field 1 to Field 4: A Journey of Inversion
      7. Making the System Sense and See Itself
    4. 4. The Eye of the Needle
      1. “I Expect a Lot from You”
      2. Reintegration of Matter and Mind
      3. The Essence of Systems Thinking
      4. Through the Eye of the Needle
      5. Inverting the System-Self Relationship
      6. From Reacting to Regenerating
  8. Part II: A Method for Consciousness-Based Systems Change
    1. 5. One Process, Five Movements: Innovating from the Future
      1. Co-initiating: Uncovering Shared Intention
      2. Co-sensing: Seeing Reality from the Edges of the System
      3. Presencing: Connecting to the Highest Future Potential
      4. Co-creating: Crystallizing and Prototyping the New
      5. Co-shaping: Grow Innovation Eco-systems
  9. Part III: A Narrative of Evolutionary Societal Change
    1. 6. Upgrading Society’s Operating System
      1. Economy 4.0
      2. Democracy 4.0
      3. Cross-Sector 4.0
      4. 4.0 Lab
    2. 7. Returning to the Roots
      1. With Compliments to the East German KGB
      2. Staying on Course
      3. “I Can’t Not Do It”
      4. u.lab
      5. Get Involved
  10. About the Author
  11. About the Presencing Institute
  12. Index

Product information

  • Title: The Essentials of Theory U
  • Author(s): C. Otto Scharmer
  • Release date: March 2018
  • Publisher(s): Berrett-Koehler Publishers
  • ISBN: 9781523094424