FAQ's Q. You guys have the same last name. Are you really brothers? A. Yes--really! Tim's older (by about 18 months). Q. So who is this Lao Tzu guy? A. A very wise person who lived in China about 2500 years ago. A very cool guy. Light-years ahead of his time. |  |
Q. Can you come and speak to our group?
A. We'd be glad to! Please visit our "Appearances" page for more details! You can download Tim's Speaker Sheet here.
Q. Why did you write this book?
A. Tim: I wrote this book because our world is at a tipping point. We are a global community and we need to decide ... together ... whether our children's children will survive or whether we will leave them a legacy of violence and a shattered ecosystem. Today's leaders will play an important role in this outcome, so when I saw the opportunity to combine Lao Tzu's brilliant leadership insights with Patrick's powerful photographs, I jumped at the chance.
Pat: It was pretty organic. I was showing Tim my pictures one day and we got to talking. Well, one thing lead to another ...
Q. There are many versions of the Tao Te Ching out there. Is this one special?
A. Tim: Absolutely! Our use of urban photography and an integral interpretation has never been done before. Patrick's fascinating photographs teach us that we do not need to escape to the forests and mountains to discover the Eternal, or what Chinese philosophy refers to as the Tao. Viewing Patrick's images, we learn that Tao is right here, right now, amidst the concrete and traffic lights, the cubicles and paperwork that comprise life in the great cities throughout the world.
Pat: This is a one-of-a-kind book. Rather than reprinting Lao Tzu's words verbatim, the exciting thing we've done is to create a modern interpretation of the Tao Te Ching. We have respectfully updated Master Lao’s words in order to apply the spirit of his words to the global realities that face us here in the 21st century.
Q. What is "integral leadership", anyway?
A. Integral Leadership is a process of creating even greater levels of success by leveraging every legitimate aspect of leading people. Integral Leadership is based on the works of Ken Wilber, Malcolm Gladwell and others. Tim has been studying integral leadership for over 15 years.
Q. That's a pretty broad topic! Does Tim specialize in any particular area of Integral Leadership?
Q. How did two brothers write one book together?
A. Tim: Very carefully! Patrick and I have been talking about leadership for years now, so this book was a natural extension of that on-going conversation. Plus, since Patrick did the photos and I did the words, I think we had a pretty cool division of labor going.
Pat: It was fun! We're both cyber-geeks, so we were emailing back and forth and sending links to one another. I think writing this book together gave us both an even better understanding of leadership.
Q. What's the importance of you sharing this experience with the world?
A. Tim: As I mentioned, for the first time in history, the world we live in is truly a global community. I think it's important for us to seek the wisdom in yesterday's tradition to help us move forward into tomorrow.
Pat: That poetic words and powerful images can change the world.
Q. Why was Richard Strozzi-Heckler selected to write the foreword?
A. A internationally known expert on leadership, Richard Strozzi-Heckler holds a 6th degree black belt in Aikido, is the author of five books and is a well-known expert on Somatics (the unity of language, action and meaning) for business leaders and executive managers. More information ...
Q. What is Aikido?
A. Aikido is a revolutionary non-violent martial art that has a great deal to teach leaders. Tim Warneka holds black belt ranking in Aikido, and incorporates Aikido principles into every aspect of his work and writing. More information ...
Q. Who should read your book?
A. Tim: Everyone, because everyone leads at some point in their lives. This book will also appeal to people interested in Asian philosophy, urban photgraphy, the martial arts and Ken Wilber's integral philosophy.
Pat: Leaders of all shapes, colors and sizes can learn something in this book.
Q. The pictures in The Way of Leading People look kind of grey ... was that intentional?
A. Absolutely! We designed the book to intentionally demonstrate the fact that successful leadership is more about understanding "shades of gray" as opposed to mistakenly seeing leadership issues in black and white. By printing The Way of Leading People in tones of gray, the reader is reminded of this fact with every glance.
Q. Are you two available for media interviews?
A. You bet! We are always happy to share our expertise with the media! You can talk to either one of us ... or get two experts for the price of one! More information ...
Have a question for the brothers Warneka? Send it to us, and we may add it to our FAQ's. |
A. While Tim is constantly exploring the "Big Picture" of Integral Leadership, his specific area of expertise is somatic intelligence, or an understanding of how the wisdom of the body can create leadership success.