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Provoke
How Leaders Shape the Future by Overcoming Fatal Human Flaws
The world is becoming harder and harder to predict; uncertainty abounds across issues related to business, government and society. While uncertainty has always been with us, it has snapped into focus with the pandemic and the impact of technological advances. Human beings are naturally wired to take a “wait and see” approach to managing uncertainty but it is the exact opposite of this instinct which is required to thrive in an uncertain future. The best leaders don’t wait for the future to arrive, they provoke it.
Provoke makes multiple bestseller lists
Congratulations to Steven Goldbach and Geoff Tuff on the success of their new national bestselling book, “Provoke: How Leaders Shape the Future by Overcoming Fatal Human Flaws”, published on September 15, 2021, and made multiple bestseller lists including The Wall Street Journal (for weeks September 18, 2021; September 25, 2021; and October 2, 2021) as well as USA TODAY’s Best-Selling Books and Publisher’s Weekly (ranked #20) for Hardcover Nonfiction, and Soundview (ranked top 30 business books of the year).
Geoff Tuff and Steven Goldbach named to the Thinkers50 Leadership Award Shortlist for 2021
We are pleased to announce that Thinkers50 has named Geoff Tuff and Steven Goldbach for the Thinkers50 Leadership Award Shortlist for 2021. The Thinkers50 Leadership Award acknowledges thinkers who shed powerful and original new light onto this perennial and yet classic subject.
About the bestselling book
The best leaders have conviction to act–even in the face of uncertainty–in order to “provoke” the future they desire. They are able to identify important inflection points earlier than others and then use actions to shape trends to their advantage rather wait for the change to arrive.
From the national bestselling authors who brought you Detonate: Why- and how- corporations must blow up best practices (and bring a beginner’s mind) to survive authors Geoff Tuff and Steven Goldbach explain why we act the way we do when faced with uncertainty and provide tools to do things differently.
Rooted at the intersection between business and behavioral economics, Provoke is applicable to decisions in business, but also across many different aspects of the human experience, teaching people how to provoke as a mechanism to create a better future.
Order Provoke TODAY
In Part 1 the book explores Predictable Patterns via Chapters:
1. Patterns from the Past
2. On the Importance of “If” vs. “When”
3. Personal Patterns
4. Expanding Peripheral Vision
You’ll learn:
- Why leaders – in the face of new data – tend to miss, deny, overanalyze and/or respond meekly to trends
- How to recognize the nuances in uncertainty, especially the difference between uncertainty as it relates to whether something is going to happen versus when it is going to happen
- How humanity’s ‘fatal flaws,’ rooted in behavioral economics, lead to biases and hinder action
- The foundational importance of productive interactions and diversity as tools to overcome fatal flaws
In Part 2, the book explores the Principles of Provocation via Chapters:
5. Birth of a Provocation
6. Envision – Seeing the Future
7. Position for the Change
8. Drive and Adapt
9. Activating the Ecosystem
You’ll learn:
- Five actions which can be configured to move beyond fatal flaws via a ‘path of provocation’
- The use of scenario planning as a mechanism to envision alternative versions of how the future might unfold
- Framing and executing a recurring loop of tests as a mechanic for better recognizing the shift from “If” to “When”
- Direct actions to take to either drive the outcomes desired or to adapt a business model to face a likely future
- How to signal to and assemble ecosystem partners to achieve desired outcomes you’re your influence over eventual outcomes is indirect
In Part 3, the book explores Profiles of Provocateurs
The three people spotlighted have provoked important change that has made the world a better place in ways they themselves never would have imagined. In reading the stories of Deborah Bial, Ryan Gravel and Valerie Irick Rainford, you’ll take away inspiration and lessons from their stories.
Provoke closes with some of the authors’ “minimally viable thoughts,” intended to catalyze an ongoing exploration of some of the key issues introduced in the book.
DO SOMETHING–Order your copy today.
Provoke is now available! Order your copy today
Praise for Provoke
“PROVOKE shows leaders how they must be purposeful in shaping the future—intentionally engaging with emerging trends not only to benefit their own organization, but also to make the world a better place. The stories of purposeful provocateurs like Valerie Rainford, Debbie Bial and Ryan Gravel will inspire you to create a future that works for all of us.”
– Thasunda Brown Duckett, President and CEO of TIAA
“Too often we think more data and analysis will make our next move clear. Tuff and Goldbach explain how to lead when new trends emerge … and ‘ifs’ become ‘whens.’ Provoke should be required reading for all leaders facing uncertainty.”
– John Stratton, Executive Chairman Frontier Communications, Board member at General Dynamics Corp. and Abbott Laboratories
“In PROVOKE, the authors have given aspiring leaders an invaluable guide to achieving real change in this complex, data-driven world. The provocateurs they profile prove how much can be accomplished, across a wide range of endeavors.”
– Michael Ainslie, author of A Nose for Trouble, Chair Emeritus of Posse Foundation and former CEO of Sotheby’s
“PROVOKE offers prescient advice, case studies and models to help leaders looking to disrupt longstanding biases that get in the way of important organizational transformation. The authors makes it clear that diversity cannot be an afterthought; it’s a fundamental imperative for every organization. Read this book to find out how typical instincts hold us back and how to address them head on.”
– Tarang Amin, Chairman and CEO of e.l.f. Beauty Inc.
“In business and in life, the difference between success and failure can hinge on recognizing and overcoming the ‘blind’ spots that shape our behavior. Goldbach and Tuff remind us that a bias to action—a willingness to DO SOMETHING to initiate the change we’d like to see—is the most important move we can make.”
– Monique Nelson, CEO of UniWorld
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Get in touch
Geoff Tuff
Sustainability and Climate Leader for Energy, Resources & Industrials | U.S. Hydrogen Practice Leader
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