Approaching 80, I look back and see what a rich and blessed life I’ve had. I’ve been able to give my curiosity free rein and to be with extraordinary teachers and companions. I’ve been able to explore a wide range of disciplines, lived in several different cultures, and raised a large family.
I’ve learned from an incredible diversity of people, from Indigenous peoples to the Dalai Lama, from small town ministers to senior government ministers, from leading scientists to National Park rangers, from engaged activists to solitary monastics. This access to so many sources of experience and wisdom, held in the container of friendship, continues to deepen my resolve to bring whatever I’m learning into my books and teachings.
I had an excellent liberal arts education at the University of Rochester and University College London. I served in the Peace Corps in Korea, 1966–1968, learning to thrive in a post-war, traditional culture where everything was different, teaching junior and senior high school English (minimum class size was 65). My M.A. is from New York University in Media Ecology with Neil Postman. My doctorate is from Harvard’s program in Administration, Planning, and Social Policy, focused on organizational behavior and change.
I have been a consultant and speaker since 1973, working with all types of organizations and peoples, on all continents (except Antarctica). Working in so many different places, it’s been easy to recognize patterns of behavior common across cultural and institutional differences, and to also note behaviors and worldviews specific to different cultures. It also has kept me alert to changing trends in leadership.
I was full-time faculty in two graduate management programs, Cambridge College, Cambridge, Massachusetts, and The Marriott School of Management, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah. I’ve been a formal adviser for leadership programs in England, Croatia, Denmark, Australia, the United States and, in Berkana, with leadership initiatives in India, Senegal, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Mexico, Brazil, Greece, Canada, and Europe. I was a formal adviser to the Director of the National Park System for ten years, a highlight in my career.
I am co-founder and president of The Berkana Institute, a global nonprofit founded in 1991. I am very proud of our decades of experimentation and support of life-affirming leaders everywhere. Explore our rich and varied history at www.berkana.org
My most creative work is The Warrior’s Songline, A Journey Guided by Voice and Sound (2020). This is a collaboration with Jerry Granelli. Jerry and I began training Warriors for the Human Spirit in 2015. He was a famous jazz drummer and composer as well as superb teacher of warriorship--he died in 2021, and the Songline is our legacy work. This is a new form melding voice and sound to create an evocative and transcendent experience introducing listeners to the Warrior’s Path. https://margaretwheatley.com/the-warriors-songline/
I’ve published twelve books and written dozens of articles (free on my website). My writings have been an invitation to explore new ways of leading based on wisdom drawn from new science, history, archeology, cosmology, and many spiritual traditions. I’ve sought to apply this rich and crucial wisdom to the challenges of leadership and how people can live well together as community, no matter what’s happening in external circumstances.
I was raised in New York City area and then lived in the Boston area. Since 1989, I’ve lived happily in Utah. I have two adult sons and five stepchildren, all seven from the same father. I have dozens of grandchildren and greatgrandchildren, most of whom live in Utah. I am held by the guardian mountains of Utah and frequently seek ground in red rock canyons just a few hours away. My peaceful mountain home supports me to do my work and to take frequent brief spiritual retreats. My spiritual teachers’ guidance keeps deepening my spiritual practice, and I delight in the close proximity of beloved family.
To keep current with my work, https://margaretwheatley.com/library/current-thinking/
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