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Jitske Kramer - Tricky Times
Navigating the Messy Middle of Change
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We are in a period of transition. As with any major change, we have to let go of what is familiar without knowing exactly what the future holds. This is a confusing betwixt-and-between time, when things are neither what they were, nor what they will become. Anthropologists call such between-times liminality.
Fascinated by the myriad changes impacting our world and universally fierce emotions they are arousing, best-selling Dutch author and anthropologist Jitske Kramer set out to unravel the patterns of this liminal time. In clear language she describes the opportunities, the dangers and the lures during major changes. When wild stories confound, tricksters continually toy with truth and power relations shift.
We are lost in a trickster culture. We hail the best spinners of truth as heroes and now have Jack Sparrows as CEOs and Pinocchios as political leaders.
Tricky Times is an unsettling book that will have you seeing society, and yourself, with fresh eyes. A book of insightful interpretations and personal views. Sharing lessons Jitske learned on her travels in diverse cultures. Offering a vision on the kind of leadership needed in liminal times. And an urgent book, because we can and must do better. We have work to do.
Navigating through uncertain times is a tricky business. It takes fearlessness and faith.
Taking the knowledge and tools of anthropology, this book delves into the patterns and dynamics of major change. Anthropology has the ability to illuminate and lay bare things we knew but could not yet put into words. In Tricky Times; Navigating the Messy Middle of Change, Jitske Kramer unravels the complexities of cultural change. Focusing particularly on what happens in the uncomfortable, turbulent, precarious and messy middle—when we know we cannot go back to how things were, but also can’t yet clearly picture what’s to come.
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Published in April 2024 | Paperback | With illustrations | 416 pages | ca. 90,000 words
Over 10,000 copies sold 
English sample translation available
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Jitske Kramer is an anthropologist, international speaker, best-selling author and founder of Human Dimensions. Her previous titles, which include The Corporate Tribe, Building Tribes, Deep Democracy, Jam Cultures and Work Has Left the Building, have sold more than 150,000 copies and have been translated into English, German, Vietnamese and Russian.
“Jitske Kramer doesn’t simply describe the modern experience of burgeoning cultural change that is infected by tricksters and false prophets, she also offers sound advice for handling it all. In these times of relentless uncertainty, one thing is certain: we need this book.”
Robert Cialdini, Author of Influence and Pre-Suasion
“Jitske Kramer offers a completely original, challenging, and practically useful take on change. Tricky Times has the power to transform you and your organization. Approach with excitement!”
Stuart Crainer and Des Dearlove, founders Thinkers50, “The Oscars of Management Thinking” (Financial Times)
“In a world where the ability to adapt is paramount, Kramer's insights provide a valuable compass for anyone seeking to lead through the complexities of transformation.”
Erin Meyer, New York Times bestselling author of No Rules Rules and The Culture Map
“Jitske Kramer combines deep, penetrating analysis with a style of writing that is widely accessible. Tricky Times offers a thought-provoking diagnosis of our current condition but also indicates ways out of it. It deserves a wide readership.”
Bjørn Thomassen, Professor in Global Political Sociology at Roskilde University
“Jitske Kramer is the most important thinker you never heard of yet. Tricky Times will be her breakthrough.”
Joris Luyendijk, journalist and author of Swimming With Sharks
“If you want to understand these tricky times, you need to read Jitske Kramer!”
Thijs Launspach, author of Crazy Busy
“If you read but one book this year, let it be Tricky Times by Jitske Kramer. Rich, enlightening, confrontational, entertaining, multidimensional, sharp, insightful, and wise. Big changes are going to come, be prepared.”
Ronald Giphart, author
“It is everything you wish for in a non-fiction book. Well-written, with new insights and concepts. Jitske Kramer shows that there are hopeful answers for chaos and crisis.”
Daan Roovers, philosopher and former Philosopher Laureate for the Netherlands
“A striking and extremely relevant book about these times, a liminal period towards a new way of living.”
Herman Wijffels, former chairman of the Dutch Social-Economical Board, and professor Sustainability and Societal Change
Chapter 1. Lost but not forsaken
1.1 Culture: order in the chaos
1.2 Economic growth as global core value
1.3 Any such thing as painless change?
Chapter 2. Liminality: a boundless in-betweenness
2.1 Opportunities, dangers and lures of liminality
2.2 Three stages of major change
2.3 Liminoid: hooked on the thrill
2.4 Lines of change
Chapter 3. The trickster: toying with boundaries
3.1 Trickster: a mythological archetype
3.2 The trickster threat: trickster charlatans and villains
3.3 Seven top trickster tactics
3.4 Lost in a trickster culture
Chapter 4. Shaping our narrative
4.1 We are our story
4.2 Wild stories: the lure of conspiracy theories
4.3 Old and new narratives: what should we give up and where will that leave us?
4.4 Narrative of change: the story of the in-between
Chapter 5. Chaos in power
5.1 Ranking: power relations among people
5.2 Fighting for truth and boundaries
5.3 Fear of freedom: the freedom paradox
5.4 A new normal as a common cause
Chapter 6. Navigating liminal times with courage and creation power
6.1 Changing with courage and creating space for magic
6.2 Rituals and campfires for grounding and new insights
6.3 Liminal leadership: conceive, connect, cultivate
6.4 Kasàlà: a ritual to reconnect
Chapter 7. Lost and found: finding our way out of the maze
7.1 Acknowledge that you are lost
7.2 Keep calm and don’t point fingers
7.3 Build a fire and be frank
7.4 Find your location and map the terrain
7.5 Choose your compass, not your route
7.6 Travel up, down and make it fun
7.7 Beware of sacred cows, trickster tactics and wild stories
7.8 Celebrate your homecoming (and look ahead to the next journey)