Published in 2014
352 pages
Diana Renner is a leadership educator and award-winning author. As the director and co-founder of the Uncharted Leadership Institute, she helps individuals and organizations navigate uncertainty and make progress on complex challenges. Diana is an adjunct lecturer at Monash University and Adelaide University, and an associate with Melbourne Business School in Australia. She was also guest faculty at University of Texas, Austin and Harvard University Kennedy School of Government. Diana’s first book, Not Knowing: the art of turning uncertainty into opportunity co-authored with D’Souza, won Chartered Management Institute’s 2015 Management Book of the Year Award in the UK, and has been translated in ten languages. Her second book, also with D’Souza, Not Doing: the art of effortless action was published in March 2018.
Steven D’Souza is an associate fellow at Said Business School, University of Oxford, author of Brilliant Networking (Prentice Hall), and co-author of Made in Britain. He is also the director of Deeper Learning Ltd.
What is this book about?
In order to thrive in uncertain times, this fascinating book proposes we head, uncomfortably, towards the unknown, rather than away from it. By developing a unique relationship with Not Knowing we discover a new way of living, working and succeeding in our modern world.
This book re-frames the concept of Not Knowing, from being in a fearful place of weakness and ignorance, moving to something we must engage with personally. It introduces us to a new paradigm, where Not Knowing becomes an exciting opportunity, where we are no longer limited by what we already know and our habitual reactions to things that life throws at us, so that deeper knowing can emerge, full of rich possibilities and wisdom.
You will be led on an inspiring journey into Not Knowing, encouraging you to develop an exploratory mindset, so that you may face the unknown and thrive, rather than merely survive. With a diverse range of inspirational stories from people in all walks of life, you will learn the mindset and skills of those who not only tolerate the unknown but use it to their advantage – to experience joy, creativity, excitement and possibility for their whole lives.
In this book you will learn how Not Knowing enabled:
• A veteran and CEO of an architecture firm to rescue his company from bankruptcy to become one of the fastest growing outfits in the US
• A small engineering company in Colombia to increase annual sales from $4 million to $56 million by throwing out the rule book and moving from a place of control to a place of trust
• An engineer and chef to discover a ‘secret sauce’ by making a mistake which took three years to replicate
• A Deputy CEO of a media company to manage a significant transition in the industry by leading his team into the unknown.
