Performance Consulting, 3rd Edition

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Performance Consulting: The Mental Model and Logic

He who loves practice without theory is like the sailor who boards a ship without a rudder and compass and never knows where he may cast.

—Leonardo da Vinci (1452–1519)

Unlocking individual change starts and ends with the mental maps people carry in their heads—how they see the organization and their jobs. Just as actual maps guide the steps people take on a hike through the Himalayas, mental maps direct people’s behavior in daily organizational life. And if leaders cannot change individuals’ mental maps, they will not change the destinations people pursue or the paths they take to get there.

—J. Stewart Black and Hal B. Gregersen (2003, p. 2)

Interesting, isn’t it, that da Vinci lived centuries ...