Adaptive Leadership and Spirituality The Inherent Spirituality of Being an Adaptive Leader

Department

Leadership, Management & Business

Document Type

Book Chapter

Publication Date

2025

Abstract

The adaptive leadership framework is centered on adaptive challenges—complex challenges that do not lend themselves to expert solutions. Surprisingly, adaptive leadership encompasses a strong spiritual element; however, these spiritual aspects have often been overlooked in the existing scholarship. This chapter highlights the spiritual elements of adaptive leadership. Additionally, the chapter discusses the relationship between compassion, surrender, and mindfulness on the one hand, and adaptive leadership. The chapter exposes how these concepts can interact with and improve adaptive leadership. The chapter also discusses how these concepts can devolve into spiritual bypassing, idiot compassion, and resignation. The chapter concludes by arguing for the role of critical consciousness, embodied, and playful spirituality in the service of adaptive work.

Comments

Published as a chapter of: Raei, M., Guenther, S. K., & Berkley, L. A. (2025). Leadership at the spiritual edge : emerging and non-Western concepts of leadership and spirituality. Routledge.

DOI

https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003396741

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