Creating Leaders, a New Model: An Evening with Werner Erhard and Michael Jensen (PDF File of Powerpoint Slides)

Abstract

This presentation is based on our and our co-instructors' (Steve Zaffron, Kari Granger, and Jeri Echeverria) work over the last eleven years developing our course entitled "Being A Leader and the Effective Exercise of Leadership". This presentation was given at the University of California, Berkeley Zellerbach Hall on 13 May 2015. Over 1600 people attended the sold-out event. We also gave the presentation to sold-out audiences at the University of Chicago Mandel Hall (3 May 2015 - over 800 participants), and at New York University Skirball Center (5 November 2013 - over 800 participants). The course is designed to leave participants actually being leaders and exercising leadership effectively, and to contribute to creating a new science of leadership. The course is founded on what we term an ontological / phenomenological model of human nature. What we presented on these three occasions was designed to leave the participants with a sense of the unique design of the course, and what makes it possible to deliver on the outrageous promise of this one semester course: "You will leave this course being a leader and exercising leadership effectively as your natural self-expression." While we obviously could not in one evening deliver the values of the course itself, we were committed to delivering useful "take-aways" for the participants. The ontological / phenomenological approach is uniquely effective in providing actionable access to being a leader and to exercising leadership effectively as one's natural self-expression. An epistemological mastery of a subject leaves you knowing. An ontological mastery of a subject leaves you being and acting naturally. This course leaves participants being a leader and exercising leadership effectively as their natural self-expression. We also focus on those ontological factors that constrain and shape one's freedom to be, and one's perceptions, emotions, creative imagination, thinking, planning, and actions when being a leader and exercising leadership. When one is not in the grip of what we term an "ontological constraint", one's way of being and acting results naturally in one's personal best in any leadership situation. Our chapter in the Harvard "Handbook for Teaching Leadership" describing and explaining the course can be downloaded at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1681682. The five pre-course readings can be downloaded at the following URLs: Readings 1 and 2 can be downloaded at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2416455 . Reading 3: "Integrity: Without It Nothing Works" (an interview that serves as an introductory summary of our new model of integrity) can be downloaded at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1511274 . Reading 4: "Integrity: A Positive Model that Incorporates the Normative Phenomena of Morality, Ethics and Legality -- Abridged" can be downloaded at http://ssrn.com/abstract=1542759 . Reading 5: "Introductory Reading For Being a Leader and the Effective Exercise of Leadership: An Ontological/Phenomenological Model" can be downloaded at http://ssrn.com/abstract=1585976. The complete over 1,000 page "Slide-Deck Textbook" used in the Dubai (UAE) course during Jan. 6-9 and 11-13, 2015 can be downloaded at: http://ssrn.com/abstract=1263835. Landmark contributed the net proceeds from the "Creating Leaders" events in New York, Chicago and Berkeley to the non-profit Erhard-Jensen Ontological / Phenomenological Initiative for the development of a new science of leadership. Mr. Erhard and Professor Jensen's time for these three events, as well as their time for research, development and teaching of their course described above is on a pro bono basis.