Business leaders are in charge. They are in charge of people, of budgets, of production lines. Most leaders also believe that they are in charge of their greatest resource - their own brain. But how true is that? The more we understand about how the brain works, the clearer it becomes that often our brain kicks in before we do. For example: The more expert we become, the less we 'think'; Our brain can con us into being sure that we are right - even when we are wrong; Without consulting us, our brain decides who to trust. The good news is that leaders can use what researchers have learned about the brain to manage their own brains more effectively. That's the first Brain Advantage. Just as important, leaders can use that knowledge to manage other people more effectively. That's the second Brain Advantage. This book does for business leaders what few have time to do for themselves. It combines the latest brain research with insights from psychological studies of how people think. It uses powerful stories to convey that information, and presents it in short, readable chapters. This book shows leaders how to become even more effective decision-makers, communicators, and change-agents.
Madeleine L. Van Hecke, PhD (Elmhurst, IL), is a licensed clinical psychologist; a former Professor of Psychology at North Central College in Naperville, Illinois; and a lecturer and workshop leader for Open Arms Seminars. She is the author of Blind Spots: Why Smart People Do Dumb Things. Lisa P. Callahan (Bartlett, IL) is the global lead for learning and knowledge management for the outsourcing practice at Accenture. Accenture is a global management consulting, technology services, and outsourcing company. Brad Kolar (Naperville, IL) is the president of Kolar Associates, a management and leadership consulting company. He was formerly the chief learning officer at the University of Chicago Medical Center. Ken A. Paller, PhD (Evanston, IL), works as a cognitive neuroscientist at Northwestern University. He is also a Fellow of the Cognitive Neurology and Alzheimer's Disease Center, a Professor of Psychology, and Director of the Cognitive Neuroscience Program at the university.
""A well-researched book that outlines the issues and surprises about the brain that leaders could do well to understand." --David Rock, author of Your Brain at Work, founding president of the NeuroLeadership Institute "A very ambitious book, highly readable and entertaining, showing how the latest findings in neuropsychology are relevant to effective management." --Gary Klein, Ph.D., Applied Research Associates, author of Sources of Power: How People Make Decisions
