Robert E. Quinn, Deep Change: Discovering the Leader Within. Jossey-Bass, 1996.
Sequel: Quinn, Build the Bridge as You Walk On It
Referenced in:
- Leadership Development Through Character Formation
- Creating Change Receptiveness, Overcoming Change Resistance
LifeandLeadership.com Summary
Leaders who are in the trenches need reservoirs from within to maintain stamina and keep challenging those they lead. Often this requires sweeping transformation. Quinn writes in “business-ese” and describes it as the hard choice between slow death or deep change. Translated into “church-ese,” it is often the choice between those who have learned the ropes of congregational careers and simply coast along in their “good jobs,” and those who keep redefining reality to keep ministry fresh. Quinn emphasizes the fact that the challenge with organizational change is often the leader’s fear of what it will mean for him or her. Leaders must engage the heroic journey to find true vitality again over against simply being busy with tasks that give the appearance of industry but are actually excuses for the hard work of change. Leaders must reinvent self periodically, or “remythologize” by rewriting the scripts that are playing out in their lives. They must fight the temptation to cut off the flow of criticism and come face-to-face with the need to change. By so doing, leaders model the change they seek in others. It is peppered throughout with thought-provoking statements, parables, illustrations and exercises. With tools such as “The Transformational Cycle” Quinn helpers leaders “confront the undiscussable” and develop a vision from within. This book is an excellent guide to the process of transformation.
From the Publisher
Don’t let your company kill you!
Open this book at your own risk. It contains ideas that may lead to a profound self-awakening. An introspective journey for those in the trenches of today’s modern organizations, Deep Change is a survival manual for finding our own internal leadership power. By helping us learn new ways of thinking and behaving, it shows how we can transform ourselves from victims to powerful agents of change. And for anyone who yearns to be an internally driven leader, to motivate the people around them, and return to a satisfying work life, Deep Change holds the key.
About the Author
Robert E. Quinn helps business and goverrnment leaders understand the paradoxes, competing demands, and contradictons of organizational life through his teaching, consulting, and his published works. He is professor of organizational behavior and human resource management at the Graduate School of Business, University of Michigan-Ann Arbor and consults with hundreds of organizations, including Fortune 500 companies, public agencies, and volunteer organizations.
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