2. Welcome

3. MIND
What’s thoughts are on your mind?
HEART BODY
What emotions are you feeling? How are you feeling physically?
What are you physically sensing?
INTUITION/SPIRIT
What are you knowing in your deepest Self?

4. Key Questions

5. Key Questions
Why are we not seeing the deep transformational change that
the sustainability challenge requires?
What is the role of the Self in leading change?
Where do our actions come from? What is the source?
How do we let go of re-enacting from the past and instead
lead from the future that want to emerge?

6. Agenda

7. Agenda
What is Theory U?
Why is it needed?
A journey down the left side of the U
Theory U on Monday Morning: Practitioner Voices
Theory U and the FSSD
Q &A

8. What is Theory U?
...Many things

9. What is Theory U?
...Many things
A social technology for facilitating profound change in
group work (a process template like the ABCD)
A leadership philosophy based on connecting to the
source of our authentic self and that which wants to
emerge through us (Personal and Collective)
A set of 24 principles and practices to help practitioners
New social field theory: blind spot of our time
individual, group, organisational, societal

10. What is Theory U?
...Many things
A social technology for facilitating profound change in
group work (a process template like the ABCD)
A leadership philosophy based on connecting to the
source of our authentic self and that which wants to
emerge through us (Personal and Collective)
A set of 24 principles and practices to help practitioners
New social field theory: blind spot of our time
individual, group, organisational, societal

11. What is Theory U?
...Many things
A social technology for facilitating profound change in
group work (a process template like the ABCD)
A leadership philosophy based on connecting to the
source of our authentic self and that which wants to
emerge through us (Personal and Collective)
A set of 24 principles and practices to help practitioners
New social field theory: blind spot of our time
individual, group, organisational, societal
But why do we need this?

12. Hello u

13. Hello u
Challenge Solution

14. Hello u
Challenge Solution

15. Hello u
Challenge Solution
that nobody wants!!!

16. Hello u
Challenge Solution
that nobody wants!!!
Downloading
Reenacting habitual patterns
of thought, conversation
and action.
Learning and Leading
from the past.

17. Hello u
Challenge Solution
that nobody wants!!!
Superficial Change
We call these attempts
“restructuring”
“redesigning”
“re-engineering”
and more often than not
they serve only to deepen
our frustration and
cynicism.

18. Hello u

19. Hello u
Perception Action

20. Hello u
Perception When the ...so too Action
quality of does the
attention ensuing
moves change
deeper... process

21. Hello u
Perception When the ...so too Action
quality of does the
attention ensuing
moves change
deeper... process
I attend ...therefore
[this way]... it emerges
[that way]

22. Hello u
Perception When the ...so too Action
quality of does the
Slow attention ensuing
down moves change
deeper... process
Seeing I attend ...therefore
with fresh eyes
[this way]... it emerges
[that way]
Sensing
listen with your
heart and mind
Accelerate
wide open
Stop

23. Why Theory U?
...A powerful leadership tool

24. Why Theory U?
...A powerful leadership tool
“Theory U helps you develop a heightened state of
attention (presencing) that allows individuals and groups
to shift the inner place from which they function.
When that shift happens, people begin to operate from a
future space of possibility that they feel wants to emerge.
Being able to facilitate that shift is the essence of
leadership today.”

26. Inquiry
a journey down the left side of the U

28. Journaling Exercise
Part 1

30. Journaling Exercise
Part 1
INSERT INSTRUCTIONS

31. “What I am suggesting is to develop a new type of social
technology that is based on three instruments that each of us
already has — an open mind, an open heart, and an open will
— and to cultivate these capacities not only on an individual
level but also on a collective level.”
OPEN
MIND
OPEN
HEART
OPEN
WILL

32. OPEN
MIND
The first instrument, the open mind, is based on our ability
to access our intellectual, or IQ, type of intelligence. This
allows us to see with fresh eyes, to deal with the objective
figures and facts around us.

33. OPEN
MIND
The first enemy blocks the gate to the open mind... the
Voice of Judgment (VOJ). Unless we succeed in shutting
down our Voice of Judgment, we will be unable to make
progress in accessing our real creativity and presence.

34. OPEN
MIND

35. OPEN
MIND
OPEN
HEART
OPEN
WILL

36. Attend with
your mind wide
OPEN
open MIND
Suspend Judgement
OPEN
HEART
OPEN
WILL

37. OPEN
HEART
The second capacity, the open heart, relates to our ability to
access our emotional intelligence, or EQ; that is, our capacity to
empathise with others, to tune in to different contexts, and to
put ourselves into someone else’s shoes. Use the heart as as
sensory organ.

38. OPEN
HEART
The second enemy blocks the gate to the open heart. Let us
call this the Voice of Cynicism (VOC) - that is, all types of
emotional acts of distancing.What is at stake when we begin
to access the open heart? We must first put ourselves into a
position of vulnerability, which distancing usually prevents.

39. OPEN
HEART

40. Attend with
your mind wide
OPEN
open MIND
Suspend Judgement
OPEN
HEART
OPEN
WILL

41. Attend with
your mind wide
OPEN
open MIND
Suspend Judgement
Connect OPEN
with your heart HEART
Reverse cynicism/
disconnection
OPEN
WILL

42. OPEN
WILL
The third capacity is to let-go of our old self, old identities and
intentions; access our emerging authentic purpose and self; and
tune into the future that is seeking to emerge through us. It
deals with the fundamental happening of the letting go and
letting come.

43. OPEN
WILL
The third enemy blocks the gate to the open will. This is the
Voice of Fear (VOF). It seeks to prevent us from letting
go of what we have and who we are. It can show up as fear
of losing economic security. Or fear of being ostracised. Or
fear of being ridiculed. And fear of death. And yet meeting
and dealing with that voice of fear is the very essence of
leadership: to facilitate the letting go of the old “self ” and
letting come the new “Self.” Then we can step into another
world that only begins to take shape once we overcome the
fear of stepping into the unknown.

44. OPEN
WILL

45. Attend with
your mind wide
OPEN
open MIND
Suspend Judgement
Connect OPEN
with your heart HEART
Reverse cynicism/
disconnection
OPEN
WILL

46. Attend with
your mind wide
OPEN
open MIND
Suspend Judgement
Connect OPEN
with your heart HEART
Reverse cynicism/
disconnection
Let go OPEN
of your old self WILL
Overcome fear

47. Attend with
your mind wide
OPEN
open MIND
Suspend Judgement
Connect OPEN
with your heart HEART
Reverse cynicism/
disconnection
Let go OPEN
of your old self WILL
Overcome fear

48. Attend with
your mind wide
OPEN
open MIND
Suspend Judgement
Connect OPEN
with your heart HEART
Reverse cynicism/
disconnection
Let go OPEN
of your old self WILL
Overcome fear
Connect to the Source of
Inspiration, and Will
go to the place of silence and allow the
inner knowing to emerge

49. Attend with
your mind wide
OPEN
open MIND
Suspend Judgement
Connect OPEN
with your heart HEART
Reverse cynicism/
disconnection
Let go OPEN Let come
the future that
of your old self WILL wants to emerge
Overcome fear
Connect to the Source of
Inspiration, and Will
go to the place of silence and allow the
inner knowing to emerge

50. Attend with
your mind wide
OPEN
open MIND
Suspend Judgement
Connect OPEN Crystallise
with your heart HEART vision and intension
Reverse cynicism/
disconnection
Let go OPEN Let come
the future that
of your old self WILL wants to emerge
Overcome fear
Connect to the Source of
Inspiration, and Will
go to the place of silence and allow the
inner knowing to emerge

51. Attend with
your mind wide
OPEN Prototype
explore the
open MIND future by doing
Suspend Judgement
Connect OPEN Crystallise
with your heart HEART vision and intension
Reverse cynicism/
disconnection
Let go OPEN Let come
the future that
of your old self WILL wants to emerge
Overcome fear
Connect to the Source of
Inspiration, and Will
go to the place of silence and allow the
inner knowing to emerge

52. Performing
embody into everyday
practices &
infrastructure
Attend with
your mind wide
OPEN Prototype
explore the
open MIND future by doing
Suspend Judgement
Connect OPEN Crystallise
with your heart HEART vision and intension
Reverse cynicism/
disconnection
Let go OPEN Let come
the future that
of your old self WILL wants to emerge
Overcome fear
Connect to the Source of
Inspiration, and Will
go to the place of silence and allow the
inner knowing to emerge

54. Monday Morning
Practitioner Stories

55. Stanley Nyoni
The Natural Step, Switzerland

56. Stanley Nyoni
The Natural Step, Switzerland
“The results that we get from our actions are dependent on
the quality of the relationships we have as a team. Relationships
depend on the source of our inspiration. Theory U allows us to
connect with that source.”
“I use Theory U to assess the current relationship reality of a
group. Where are they in the U? Are the relationships
superficial or deeper?”
“It will feel like you’re losing control, you’ll feel vulnerable, let
that happen.”

57. Stanley Nyoni
The Natural Step, Switzerland

58. Stanley Nyoni
The Natural Step, Switzerland
For sustainability practitioner Theory U can be useful as a method of guiding
people, organizations and communities through transition period of
uncertainty and instability towards emerging sustainable future.
Framework for strategic sustainable development provides solid guideline in
terms of technical conditions that should be met in order for develop and
implement sustainable vision, while Theory U applies more to the process of
how a completely new vision could be co-created by a group of committed
individuals.
In other words these two concepts could very well complement each
other: FSSD could be used to provide solid guidelines for organizational
visioning and sustainable development, while Theory U could be a powerful
tool for bringing people together in a process of creating this vision and
leading their organizations towards a new sustainable future.

59. Hein Dijksterhuis
Consultant to Triodos Bank, Netherlands

60. Hein Dijksterhuis
Consultant to Triodos Bank, Netherlands
“The value of the U is not so much about all the steps,
but that you really relate to each other at a deeper level.”
“Connect at a different level, listen generatively, trust each
other, then, out of nowhere it almost seems, the solution
will come.”
“...then all of a sudden, new insights come, not
individually, but they really come from different people
together – flashes of collective insight. It’s incredible,
inspiring...”

61. Nils Lindh
Navpartners, Sweden

62. Nils Lindh
Navpartners, Sweden
“Using Theory U has been a culture change within
Navpartners, it’s provided a new language and model.
People now ask “Where in the U are we?”
“New concepts emerge naturally from involving people in
a new way.”
“The result is a much stronger team. And we’ve changed
the way we view our programs. For example, we’ve
changed the focus of our entrepreneur program from
training to mentorship. And the focus of our organization
to emphasize learning not projects.”

63. Practioner Summary?
xxxxxx

64. Practioner Summary?
xxxxxx
lorem

65. In Summary
...A powerful leadership tool
OPEN OPEN OPEN
MIND HEART WILL

66. In Summary
...A powerful leadership tool
1. A new Social Technology based on tuning three instruments
OPEN OPEN OPEN
MIND HEART WILL
2. The most important leadership tool is Your Self
3. The Leader’s interior work deals with meeting and mastering
three enemies
Voices of Judgement, Cynicism & Fear

67. In Summary
...A powerful leadership tool
1. A new Social Technology based on tuning three instruments
OPEN OPEN OPEN
MIND HEART WILL
2. The most important leadership tool is Your Self
3. The Leader’s interior work deals with meeting and mastering
three enemies
Voices of Judgement, Cynicism & Fear

68. In Summary
...A powerful leadership tool
1. A new Social Technology based on tuning three instruments
OPEN OPEN OPEN
MIND HEART WILL
2. The most important leadership tool is Your Self
3. The Leader’s interior work deals with meeting and mastering
three enemies
Voices of Judgement, Cynicism & Fear

69. Four Minute Practice

70. Four Minute Practice
Spend four minutes each evening reviewing when during the
day you engaged in Listening 3 (open mind and heart) and
Listening 4 (open mind, heart, and will).
If you cannot identify a single instance of deep listening, take
note of that too.
If you do this exercise for a month, your effectiveness as a
listener will rise dramatically — without a single dollar spent
on further training or coaching.
All it takes is the discipline to focus on that four-minute review
process every single day.

72. Questions?