Contents and Abstracts1A New Consciousness in Business chapter abstract
Chapter 1 provides an introduction to Quantum Leadership based on experiencing reality as whole and interconnected. Readers learn what it is, why it's effective, and how it's different from other leadership models. Organizing constructs such as flourishing, consciousness, and mindfulness practices are presented and discussed. In the Quantum Leadership Model, consciousness is the mother of all capital, with mindfulness practices a key variable. Only when we experience a consciousness of connectednessto purpose, community, and naturecan we develop profit strategies for human flourishing. Two types of consciousness are illustrated through the telling of Dieter's and Lihua's stories.
2A Personal Experience: The Frederick Chavalit Tsao Story chapter abstract
Chapter 2 introduces the book's key ideas through Fred Tsao's personal story. It tells of his accomplishments as owner and chairman of IMC, a private multinational shipping, real estate, and financial services company. His evolutionary journey vividly portrays a new model of leadership aimed at creating wealth and serving humankind. Readers learn why he came to see consciousness as the ultimate form of capital and how it helped him grow his business. Through Fred's story the reader is able to see quantum leadership as a vital form of enterprise with an inherent sense of stewardship and intergenerational orientation. This chapter is particularly relevant to family-owned businesses.
3An Organization's Journey: The IMC Story chapter abstract
In Chapter 3, Fred Tsao continues to explore his evolutionary journey and its relevance for a new transformative kind of leadership. He enlarges on his views about the transformation in consciousness required by managers to be guided by a congruent worldview while being able to embrace change in turbulent times. The reader sees how IMC has undergone continuous evolution under his leadership and developed a core philosophy based on principles at the intersection of quantum science and traditional Chinese wisdom. Readers learn how, to promote the concept of flourishing, AITIA was established, an institute to support the evolution of consciousness in the context of business. The culmination of the IMC journey so far is the creation of Octave, a transformational business model based on the promotion of a consciousness of oneness in a twenty-first-century global context.
5The Quantum Leadership Model chapter abstract
Chapter 5 describes the Quantum Leadership Model (QLM) and the factors that drive it. It offers an evidence-based framework for the evolutionary progression that quantum leaders represent: an emerging fourth transition of business toward full-spectrum flourishing. The idea is that each of us is capable, through mindfulness practices that give us a direct experience of connectedness, to quiet our five senses and interrupt our analytic thinking long enough to cultivate broader perception and greater awareness of our essential connectedness to others and to the natural environment. We call this broader perception and awareness a consciousness of connectedness. The QLM is built on extensive data and analyses showing the relationships between practices of connectedness, a consciousness of connectedness, business leadership attributes, and positive business outcomes.
6The Science of Connectedness chapter abstract
Chapter 6 looks at the science underpinning the practices of connectedness and their benefits. It attempts to locate quantum leadership within the truly transformational epoch of scientific discovery in which we find ourselves. It offers a multidisciplinary overview of the way these scientific advances are changing our understanding of the everyday world and our place within it. Quantum leadership does not merely belong within this new outlook but is a necessary response to it. Readers learn about the emerging science-based view of an interconnected universe and how it is converging on traditional Eastern philosophies that explain why (and how) mindfulness practices lead to well-being and flourishing.
7How the Practices Elevate Our Consciousness chapter abstract
Chapter 7 provides a schema for understanding the practices of connectedness: a classification of types along with principal groupings and affects. What all the practices have in common is that they are part of an upward spiral that leads to a feeling of being more connected to self, others, and nature; they raise our awareness of being one with others and the world; and they engage the whole person in an evolutionary journey toward greater harmony and life satisfaction. Readers learn several critical distinctions and a classification system to help them understand how the practices work: at what level, with what skills, resulting in what effects, and using what techniques. For example, they learn the difference between explicit and tacit knowledge and the role that each type plays in complex systems.
8Selecting the Practices That Are Right for You chapter abstract
Chapter 8 offers a selection of practices at the individual, organizational, and systems levels. Readers are introduced to meditation, art and aesthetics, nature immersion, and journaling, among other practices. In each case, practical steps are given for the reader to begin, along with examples of their benefits in a context of business leadership. Introducing such practices in the workplace enables a direct experience of the physical-biological and consciousness phenomena described by quantum science. The implications of seeing the world in these terms are shown to be critical to business purpose. It is only through such a consciousness of connectedness that we act with love and compassion. Only then will we reflexively make business decisions aimed at flourishing for all life and future generations.
