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Leadership & The Act of Will: Part 2

Posted on June 27, 2014 by James Scouller

This is the second in a series of five blog articles on the act of will (to return to the first in the series click here).

The act of will is the art of figuring out what to do and getting it done. All leaders, ultimately, have to get things done and this is why it’s so helpful for them to understand that the act of will is a process with six stages. Continue reading →

Leadership & The Act of Will: Part 1

Posted on June 15, 2014 by James Scouller

This is the first in a series of five blog articles on the act of will. The act of will is the art of figuring out what to do and getting it done. All leaders, ultimately, have to get things done and this is why it’s so helpful for them to understand that the act of will is a process with six stages.

The act of will is not just a matter of deciding or choosing, as some people think. There is more to it than that. Roberto Assagioli outlined the six stages of the act of will in his book, The Act of Will nearly fifty years ago. His six stages were:

1. Purpose (or aim or goal)/evaluation/motivation/intent

2. Deliberation

3. Choice and decision

4. Strengthening faith/conviction/certainty

5. Planning

6. Directing the execution

Before explaining them, I’d like to make two points: Continue reading →

Responsibility and Leadership

Posted on June 5, 2014 by James Scouller

Over the last five years, many leaders have told me stories about performance issues with a colleague. In essence, the person isn’t performing well and the leader is unhappy about it. I’ll usually ask them what they’ve already tried and they’ll either tell me they haven’t raised the issue, or they have, but they’ve used vague language and not said what they really wanted to say. Either way, the underperformance continues because they’ve avoided the problem.

When I ask why they typically say, “I can’t do or say so-and-so because he/she will feel hurt or they will lose confidence.” When I probe further, the truth eventually emerges: Continue reading →