The Ten Permissions: A Framework for Adaptive Leadership with Jillian Reilly

What would happen if you gave yourself permission to adapt, create, and lead differently in our disruptive world? Jillian Reilly discovered the answer while tackling the world's largest HIV/AIDS epidemic in Zimbabwe. Amid this immense social challenge, she recognized that while she could provide tools and resources, the one thing she couldn't give people was permission, the internal authorization to change their lives. This profound insight launched her twenty-year exploration into how self-permission shapes our capacity for meaningful transformation.In this thought-provoking conversation, Jillian introduces us to her forthcoming book, "The Ten Permissions," presenting a framework that challenges conventional approaches to change. She reveals why the permission "to think small and forget about the future" might be exactly what change-makers need, embracing direction over destination in a world where long-term visibility has become nearly impossible. Similarly, her permission to "make believe" invites us to reclaim our creative capacities, acknowledging that in an AI-dominated future, our uniquely human ability to create will become our most valuable asset.Jillian articulates how organizational systems often preserve the status quo rather than enabling adaptation. The solution? Engineering for responsiveness through continuous small experiments instead of waiting for major failures to trigger change. Perhaps most challenging for established leaders is her call to become "more explorer and less executive" – comfortable saying "I don't know" while developing stronger pattern recognition and question-asking capabilities.As we navigate unprecedented disruption in our social systems, Rilley suggests the most radical permission might be to "be willful" – reconnecting with our desires and intentions after generations of suppressing them for security. This reconnection, she believes, could lead not just to better adaptation but to more fulfilling participation in a rapidly transforming world.Pre-order "The Ten Permissions" (releasing September 16th) and discover how giving yourself permission might be the key to thriving in uncertainty. What permission will you give yourself today?Send us Fan Mail