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Appreciative
Intelligence
Seeing the Mighty Oak
in the Acorn
By Tojo Thatchenkery and Carol Metzker

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Appreciative
Intelligence
Seeing the Mighty Oak
in the Acorn
By Tojo Thatchenkery and Carol Metzker
Published by Berrett-Koehler, 2006
ISBN 1576753530

© 2006 execuBooks inc.

Buy the Full Book!

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Contents
Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
Reframing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
Appreciating the Positive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Seeing How the Future Unfolds . . . . . . . . . . 13
The Four Qualities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Related Reading . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

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Appreciative Intelligence / By Tojo Thatchenkery et al.

Introduction
Appreciative Intelligence is the ability to per-
ceive the positive inherent generative potential
within the present. Put in a simple way, Appre-
ciative Intelligence is the ability to see the
mighty oak in the acorn.

C h a r l e s P e l l e r i n , t h e f o r m e r d i re c t o r o f
NASA’s astrophysics division, displayed Appre-
ciative Intelligence when a flawed mirror sent
blurred images from the Hubble Space Tele-
scope. Instead of viewing that as a failed mis-
sion, he reframed the situation as a project that
wasn’t yet completed. He found a solution and
gained the funding to implement it.

In 1979, Rotarians, led by their president,

Clem Renouf, decided to devote themselves to
eradicating polio in the world. Instead of viewing
it as a medical problem, they reframed it as an
organizational challenge. They focused on Rotar-
ians’ organizational skills, leadership, talents and
resources as the key to a solution. They saw a

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Appreciative Intelligence / By Tojo Thatchenkery et al.

positive solution — a world without polio — and

envisioned a string of managerial decisions and
organizational operations to achieve it.

Appreciative Intelligence is the ability that al-

lows people like those to take new or challeng-
ing circumstances and turn them into golden
opportunities and enriching experiences.

Appreciative Intelligence has three components:

• Reframing.
• Appreciating the positive.
• Seeing how the future unfolds from the
present.

Reframing
The first component is the ability to perceive —
to see and interpret, to frame or reframe. Fram-
ing is the psychological process whereby a per-
son intentionally views or puts into a certain
perspective any object, person, context or sce-
nario. One of the most common examples of

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Appreciative Intelligence / By Tojo Thatchenkery et al.

framing is that of calling a Appreciative

glass half-empty or half-
full. Regardless of how the Intelligence
glass is described, the allows people
amount of water is the
same — only the perspec- to take new or
tive is different. challenging
In any act of perception circumstances
or reframing, a person is and turn them
faced with a series of
choices. He or she choos- into golden
es to pay attention to one opportunities
stimulus and, at least for
the time being, to ignore the remaining stimuli.
The decision is a judgment call, value-based in
the sense that what gets focused on must have
more value than what doesn’t.

Using Appreciative Intelligence, the person

consciously or unconsciously reframes what’s in
the present, thereby shifting to a new view of re-
ality that leads to a new outcome, just as the
Rotarians reframed polio eradication as an orga-

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Appreciative Intelligence / By Tojo Thatchenkery et al.

nizational, not medical, challenge. An editor with

high Appreciative Intelligence can see the po-
tential of a good book under a new line of litera-
ture in a few, short unpolished chapters of a
manuscript.

By framing reality in a new and positive way,

people open their minds to seeing new connec-
tions between ideas, people or situations. When
they suddenly see con-
nections that previously Research shows
e l u d e d t h e m , t h e y ’ re that people can
said to have a flash of
insight, according to re- deliberately
searcher John Kounios prepare their
of Drexel University.
brains to come
Insight helps leaders up with creative
find successful solutions solutions
to challenges and diffi-
cult situations. It helps them address problems,
discover hidden talent and invent new products.
Many people interviewed for the study into de-
veloping the concept of Appreciative Intelli-

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Appreciative Intelligence / By Tojo Thatchenkery et al.

gence said that solutions came to them through

insight, or described moments like Archimedes’
“Eureka,” when he stepped into the bath and re-
alized in a flash of inspiration how to determine
the density and composition of a crown.

Charles Pellerin, who found the solution to

the Hubble’s flawed mirrors, said, “Get clear
about the outcome and the path will show up.”
Solutions were already there, but the insight al-
lowed him to see them. “Focus your mind and
the answer will appear,” he added.

How do you find the insight? Some people

talk of letting their subconscious do the work.
Research shows that people can (and do) delib-
erately prepare their brains to come up with cre-
ative answers or solutions. This suggests that
while some people, perhaps those with high Ap-
preciative Intelligence, have a predisposition to
prepare to find an answer through insight, oth-
ers can find techniques that may help them do
so. Research also shows that positive emotional
states and the ability to make intuitive judg-

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Appreciative Intelligence / By Tojo Thatchenkery et al.

ments are linked. A positive perspective makes

a difference in flexible problem-solving.

It must be stressed, however, that Apprecia-

tive Intelligence isn’t about seeing the world
through rose-colored glasses. People with Ap-
preciative Intelligence reframe a situation to see
what’s positive, but they don’t deny that nega-
tive aspects or destructive possibilities exist.

They don’t bubble over with happiness all the

time, but have a normal range of emotions. Their
dreams and expectations are very high, but not
ungrounded. They don’t try to create solutions
through “pie in the sky” ideas. They see the oak,
not a tropical mango, in the acorn.

Appreciating the Positive

The second component of Appreciative Intelli-
gence is appreciating the positive. Through re-
framing, leaders and entrepreneurs see and se-
lect aspects of the present that are useful,
valuable or desirable. They focus on positive as-

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Appreciative Intelligence / By Tojo Thatchenkery et al.

pects of a current situa- Appreciative

tion that can generate a
successful future.
Intelligence isn’t
about seeing
A culture of apprecia- the world
tively framing others’
ideas into possibilities through rose-
leads to more original and colored glasses
more rapidly generated
concepts and discoveries than does one of
pointing out gaps or deficiencies. Research sug-
gests the possibility of an appreciative system in
which people with higher levels of Appreciative
Intelligence are able to frame everyday events
into great possibilities. Such individuals, over
time, become more mindful in their behavioral
patterns and begin to see more and more op-
portunities and generative possibilities in every-
day encounters.

People with Appreciative Intelligence don’t

limit their ability to see what’s positive to re-
framing situations or products. For many, Ap-
preciative Intelligence is exhibited in a capacity

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Appreciative Intelligence / By Tojo Thatchenkery et al.

to see other people and their talents in a unique

way. Their ability to perceive, make connections
and have insights about people around them re-
sults in revealing hidden talents or exposing the
best in others. Ultimately, leaders with Apprecia-
tive Intelligence are able to bring out the best in
people because that’s
Leaders with what they see.
Appreciative Appreciating the
Intelligence are positive — focusing
on the aspect of the
able to bring out oak that’s healthy and
the best in people t h r i v i n g , n o t w h a t ’s
withering or unable to
because that’s grow — is a vital com-
what they see ponent of Apprecia-
tive Intelligence. It
clarifies that Appreciative Intelligence doesn’t
mean reframing to see what’s negative or to
move backward through destruction. When we
see what’s valuable, constructive or wonderful
in the present, we open the door wide for a
positive future.

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Appreciative Intelligence / By Tojo Thatchenkery et al.

Seeing How the Future Unfolds

People with high Appreciative Intelligence see
how the future unfolds from the present. Many
people have the ability to reframe and the ca-
pacity to appreciate the positive. Yet if they
don’t see the concrete ways that the possibili-
ties of the present moment could be chan-
neled, they haven’t developed their Apprecia-
tive Intelligence.

Coca-Cola’s Asa Candler saw the potential

for a top-selling soft drink in a failing headache
remedy. He reframed the product as a beverage
instead of a health product, focused on proving
its great taste to people, and set in motion what
became a multibillion-dollar business.

The story is told of how cosmetic company

founder Estee Lauder saw a shoeless woman
entering an upscale store as a possible cus-
tomer, and ended up selling two of each cos-
metic product to her and more to her relatives
the next day. Lauder saw beyond the woman’s

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Appreciative Intelligence / By Tojo Thatchenkery et al.

outward appearance and reframed her as a po-

tential customer, rather than a poor visitor to
the store. This created a vastly different sales
transaction than would have occurred if Lauder
had listened to the employee who suggested
ignoring her.

At W.L. Gore & Associates, founder Bill Gore

sparked the idea for Glide Floss, shred-resistant
dental floss, when he attached a ribbon of Gore-
Tex fabric to his toothbrush and began to floss
his teeth. Dave Myers, one of the company’s
employees, had a flash of insight that led to
Elixir guitar strings after coating his mountain
bike’s gear cables with a thin layer of slick plas-
tic material. By reframing the uses of its plastic
materials, seeing the positive value in its prod-
ucts and people, and connecting technology
and materials possible in the present with the vi-
sion of better products for the future, the com-
pany has enjoyed a long tradition of bringing
original products to the market.

People with Appreciative Intelligence under-

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Appreciative Intelligence / By Tojo Thatchenkery et al.

stand the environment around them and respond

to it. But they also believe that the environment
isn’t just something “out there” — it’s also creat-
ed by their imagination and actions. People with
Appreciative Intelligence believe they have a
great deal of control in de-
People with termining what environ-
Appreciative ment they’re in or will deal
with — a conviction that
Intelligence action matters.
believe they
They understand con-
have a great nections between them-
deal of control selves and the world
around them. They see the
circular process of their actions affecting people
and situations around them and, in turn, their
surroundings driving their actions as well.

Imagination is an important ingredient in see-

ing how the future unfolds. Innovation can result
from applying the imagination of a child to the
knowledge and awareness of an adult. One indi-
vidual interviewed in the Appreciative Intelli-

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Appreciative Intelligence / By Tojo Thatchenkery et al.

g e n c e re s e a rc h d e s c r i b e d t h e p ro c e s s a s
“zooming around mentally,” or seeing something
new in one place and pretending that the trend
or product was fully adopted in another place.

By weaving together knowledge about the

environment and imagination, people with Ap-
preciative Intelligence see a different future than
others do. By actively experimenting and inter-
acting with the environment they create new
possibilities. They connect capabilities of today
and the dreams of tomorrow by seeing the steps
that make the former become the latter.

The Four Qualities

The ability to reframe, appreciate the positive
and see how the future unfolds from the present
leads those with Appreciative Intelligence to dis-
play four qualities:

• Persistence. Because they can see their

end goal is possible, they’re willing to persist.
Persistence is influenced by the self-esteem of

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Appreciative Intelligence / By Tojo Thatchenkery et al.

individuals. Overall, people with high self-es-

teem have a greater tendency to persist in the
face of failure and obstacles. They’re also more
likely to see the presence of alternatives, even
when faced with failure. So while people with
high Appreciative Intelligence persist longer
than those with low Appreciative Intelligence,
they don’t persist indefinitely. They know when
to quit and look for alternatives.

• Conviction that one’s actions matter. Be-

cause they can see the end goal, they also be-
lieve their actions and abilities will take them to
a successful conclusion. This quality is known
as self-efficacy. People with strong self-efficacy
take on more challenging tasks, increase their
efforts if they think they might fail, and recover
quickly after unexpected failure. Furthermore, if
individuals with strong conviction in their abili-
ties fail, they assume they failed because they
didn’t try hard enough or didn’t have the rele-
vant knowledge. So in further attempts, they try
harder after acquiring the knowledge they be-
lieve is necessary for success.

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Appreciative Intelligence / By Tojo Thatchenkery et al.

• Tolerance for uncertainty. Because people

with Appreciative Intelligence can envision the
way a positive future could unfold from the pres-
ent, they can deal with the uncertainty that often
accompanies a new venture, product develop-
ment or crisis. The study of Appreciative Intelli-
gence in leaders, inventors and innovators re-
vealed evidence of high tolerance for
uncertainty, ambiguity and cognitive dissonance
— the psychological term that refers to the dis-
comfort people feel when new ideas or experi-
ences seem to contradict what they already
know or believe. While for many people the feel-
ing of being “up in the air” is so difficult that
they’d rather deal with a negative conclusion
than not know whether the ending will be posi-
tive or negative, the leaders studied appeared to
suspend those feelings of discomfort.

• Irrepressible resilience. People with Appre-

ciative Intelligence exhibit irrepressible re-
silience — the ability to bounce back from a dif-
ficult situation — as a result of reframing, seeing
what was positive in the situation, and under-

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Appreciative Intelligence / By Tojo Thatchenkery et al.

standing that a better future could come about

despite a crisis or setback. They perceive that a
positive consequence could be built even from
the most drastic or devastating circumstances.
Irrepressible resilience is more than persistence:
it’s the quality some leaders have to bounce
back higher from challenges than the place
where they began.

Conclusion
The most effective and successful people exhib-
it the ability to reframe, appreciate the positive
and see how the future unfolds from the pres-
ent. They have Appreciative Intelligence, the
ability to see the mighty oak in the acorn. e

ABOUT THE AUTHORS: Tojo Thatchenkery is a pro-

fessor of organizational learning at George
Mason University. Carol Metzker has a master’s
degree in organizational learning from George
Mason University and more than 15 years’ expe-
rience in communications and corporate envi-
ronments.

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Appreciative Intelligence / By Tojo Thatchenkery et al.

Related Reading
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may be summarized in our execuBook library (E).

Primal Leadership: Realizing the Power of Emo-

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School Publishing, 2002, ISBN 157851486X.
A B C E

Executive Intelligence: What All Great Leaders

Have, by Justin Menkes, HarperCollins, 2005,
ISBN 0060781874. A B C E

The Thin Book of Naming Elephants: How to

Surface Undiscussables for Greater Organiza-
tional Success, by Sue Annis Hammond and An-
drea B. Mayfield, Thin Book Publishing, 2004,
ISBN 0966537351. A B C

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Appreciative Intelligence / By Tojo Thatchenkery et al.

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