Despite the increasing need for refined, multifaceted thinking, most organizations are still getting by on the what to think approach of reciting facts, abiding by the status quo and following protocol. This way of thinking may have been ingrained since childhood but we have to rethink traditional thinking itself.

THE THINKING EFFECT: RETHINKING THINKING TO CREATE GREAT LEADERS AND THE NEW VALUE WORKER, by leadership go-to Michael Vaughan, addresses the fundamental need in effective learning – teaching how to think, rather than what to think. It is the type of thinking that helps an individual understand cause and effect, short- and long-term delay effects, unintended consequences and interdependencies of systems in which we work and live.

“This book is a culmination of 10 years of research,” says Vaughan. “The Thinking Effect goes beyond traditional approaches to training and development, which frankly doesn’t’ work, disrupts conventional thinking, and challenges the status quo. It provides a true guide and methodology that helps organizations and its leaders change behavior. This change in thinking and behavior results in creating great leaders and Value Workers both within oneself and Organization.”

Vaughan has spent his career teaching smart thinking to Fortune 500 companies and government agencies around the globe. By adopting this new thinking, leaders will learn how to develop “neural leadership” – understanding and engaging with the psychology of their team – while employees at all levels will learn how to:

  • Develop patterns of thought that differentiate top performers from those who merely do their jobs
  • Increase productivity, improve problem solving and influence profitability
  • Develop a framework that can help you systemically address any type of decision or problem
  • Become Value Workers who generate value for growth and a sustainable future

The Thinking Effect moves beyond the concept of how to think to its development and delivery. The book explains how to evolve and improve thinking, how to create learning solutions, individual practices and real-world applications and how to resist complacency and sustain the thinking effect. The result is an engaged, valuable workforce that rethinks established practices and thinking itself.

Michael Vaughan was a rising star in artificial intelligence, specifically artificial neural networks, and held leadership positions with national training companies before becoming President and Managing Director of The Regis Company, whose leadership programs are designed to fundamentally change the way leaders think. Vaughan is a leading authority on serious games and business simulations and holds degrees in cognitive science and computer science from Colorado State University.

The Regis Company is a leadership consulting firm dedicated to developing great thinkers and leaders through the use of immersive business simulations. Regis assists clients by helping them recognize the complex and underlying interrelationships of organizations as systems. This new way of thinking comes from applying system dynamics, in conjunction with critical and creative thinking. The advanced approach adeptly addresses client organizations’ most difficult problems, while advancing leadership decision-making skills.