"It is now your turn to take on the task of leadership to build a new world, a new civilization, through the development of human character, and the evolution of the human soul.  Whatever it is that you do in life, ultimately this is the only game worth playing.  To play a game lesser than that is to fail the dignity of your soul."  ―Yasuhiko Genku Kimaru

METHODOLOGY


Our on-line courses, in-person workshops, and residential retreats are intensive vertical leadership training experiences.


By leadership we do not mean people who are good at being bossy.  Rather we mean people like Jane Goodall and Greta Thunberg.  People whose most powerful acts of leadership was their courage to stand up for something that they believed in - before anyone else was there to stand with them - and when it was not at all certain that anyone else ever would.


With the term vertical we refer to to the growing body of theory and practice around stages of adult cognitive, emotional and social development.  

It is obvious that children mature psychologically as they grow up physically.  What is less immediately self-evident is that us adult humans have the potential to continue to develop psychologically in significant ways well after our physical growth stops, potentially right up to the moment of our death.  Robert Kegan, Susanne Cook-Greuter and Theo Dawson (all associated with Harvard) are examples of prominent researchers currently working on expanding our understanding of the potential that adults have to grow into ever more nuanced, mature, and wise ways of relating with self, other, and world.

The term vertical is usually used in the field of adult psychological development to refer to growing up.  We, however, have found that it makes more sense to expand our thinking about vertical growth to see it as simultaneous growth up and down.  The way that trees grow.  As they grow higher, they simultaneously reach deeper.  It is obvious that it would be foolish if trees regularly added height without simultaneously deepening and broadening their roots.  In our experience, it is the same for humans.  For this reason we focus on vertical growth down even more than vertical growth up.  

Our approach to downward vertical growth is through:

  1. embodiment - more vividly living in and AS one's body and heart
  2. what has been referred to in psychology as shadow work
  3. cultivating capacity to work with emotions and the energy within and behind them

More generally, our approach is to partner with people who desire a nourishing atmosphere of both support and challenge for psychological growth in the direction of greater awareness, new inner skills, more aligned outer behaviors, and ultimately a new pattern of results in one's life.


When working with organizations, we work on the individual, relational, team and organizational levels to solve problems and increase health and capacity for innovation and adaptation.  Towards these ends, in addition to working with the consciousness and inner & outer skills of key individuals, we also pay attention to group consciousness, team values and norms, and organizational culture, structure and processes. 



Advocates for the importance of vertical leadership development include Forbes, Harvard Business Review, and The Center for Creative Leadership.