In 1997, Paul Stoltz unleashed a revolution with his groundbreaking book Adversity Quotient: Turning Obstacles into Opportunities, introducing the concept of the Adversity Quotient into public consciousness. Now, in Adversity Quotient @ Work, the eagerly anticipated follow-up to his bestseller, Stoltz applies the principles of his brilliant theory to the uniquely challenging environment of the workplace.

Adversity Quotient, or AQ, is a measure of one’s ability to handle adversity. People who can’t handle adversity become easily overwhelmed and emotional, then pull back and stop trying; those who handle adversity well become the leaders of today and tomorrow. Stoltz shows you not only how to measure your own AQ but how to improve it, and how to put these ideas to work for you and your organization. Based on the time-tested principles established by his first book, Adversity Quotient@ Work clearly demonstrates how workers and managers can use the concept of AQ to their own advantage and to the benefit of their clients, customers, and organizations. Designed for managers, supervisors, and employees, from the smallest technology start-up to the largest Fortune 500 multinational, Adversity Quotient @ Work gives readers simple, powerful ways to supercharge their lives and organizations immediately.

Adversity Quotient @ Work teaches readers how to hire and retain highly motivated and talented workers, develop employees to their full potential, and create a leadership culture that encourages all to put forth their best efforts and maximize their performance capabilities. Based on real research performed with thousands of managers and members of the workforce on the front lines of hundreds of businesses, it will quickly become any corporation’s indispensable handbook for success.


TABLE OF CONTENTS

Acknowledgements
Expanding Your Capacity: The Human Operating System
The AQ Discovery
Redefining Human Capacity
The Toll on the Soul
Quitters, Campers, and Climbers
The Trail and Tribulations of Adversity
The Tools of AQ Work
Adversity Quotient Work and Beyond The Science of AQ
Harnessing Adversity: The Hidden Element of Success
The AQ Advantage
AQ as a Workplace Measure
AQ and Income
AQ and Sales
AQ and Performance
AQ and Hiring
Measurable and Behavioral Change
The Games Patterns Play
Hardwiring Your Brain---The Origins of AQ
The Chemistry of Performance
The Flow Experience
The Brain’s Adversity Bias
The Myth of the Human Machine
The Myth of Self-Determination
The Reptilian Brain in a Suit
Improving AQ and the Myth of the Dying Brain
The Nocebo Effect---The Low-AQ Virus
Pointing the Bone
The Response Is Everything (I Ching)
Origins of CORE
Putting It All Together
Measuring Your AQ
Assessing Your AQ
The Adversity Response Profile (ARP) QuickTake
Scoring the ARP QuickTake
Interpreting Your Results
High Versus Low AQs
The AQ Continuum
The High-AQ Bankruptcy
Trudging Through the Low-AQ Divorce
Success at What Price?
Next Steps in the AQ Ascent
The CORE of the Climber
Your Inner CORE
C=Control
Two Components of Response Control
O=Ownership
R=Reach
E=Endurance
The CORE of AQ Work
Choosing Your CORE
Swim with the Salmon
AQs and Leaders
Graph Your CORE
Developing Response-Able Climbers
Why Traditional Training Often Fails
Software Versus Operating System
Running Competing Programs
Most Capital Is Only Human
Upgrading AQ for the New Economy
Three Levels of Climbing School
The Origins of Climbing School
Climbing School---Level One: CORE Awareness
Six Ways to Hone Your AQ Radar
Climbing School---Level Two: The LEAD Sequence
L=Listen to Your CORE Response
E=Establish Accountability
A=Analyze the Evidence
D=Do Something!
The Action Funnel
Coaching and Mentoring Climbers
Can Anyone Be a Coach?
Using AQ to Mentor, Coach, and Lead
Bridging the Gap in Potential
Begin with the Mountain
If It’s Not Significant, Why Climb It?
Level One Response Ability---Building a CORE Awareness
Level Two Response Ability---LEADing Others
L=Listen to the Response
E=Establish Accountability
A=Analyze the Evidence
D=Do Something!
Clearing the Trail
The Action Funnel
Assessing Your Success---When to Measure AQ
The Validity of Repeated Measures
Extended Coaching
Defining and Finding Climbers
Limitations of Old Methods in the New Economy
The Best People for the New Economy
Wanted: Response-Able Person to Handle Adversity
Getting to the Learning Zone
Thick Versus Porous Skin
Skiing Atop the Avalanche
Six Fatal Flaws in Finding Climbers
Fatal Flaw 1: Compromising Your Criteria Before You Begin
Fatal Flaw 2: Confusing Attitude with Altitude
Fatal Flaw 3: Using the Road Most Traveled
Fatal Flaw 4: Searching for a Sherpa over the Internet
Fatal Flaw 5: Cutting Short the Climb
Fatal Flaw 6: Putting Pedigree over Performance
AQ-Based Hiring Strategies Begin with Significance
Look for Purpose-Passionate People
Look for the Fully Engaged
Look for Who Comes to You
Follow the Sherpas
Hiring Climbers
Two Types of Hiring Errors
L4---Type One Screening Errors
Type Two Hiring Errors---The Ones Who Got Away
Why Screen Anyone?
Seven Screen Savers
Screen Saver 1: Go Beyond Gut
Screen Saver 2: Be Consistently
Consistent
Screen Saver 3: Win the Data Game
Screen Saver 4: Fog-Proof the Process
Screen Saver 5: Use Mountain Guides