Manage with intuition: the RESTE approach for enlightening, inspiring, and transforming organizations
The RESTE approach stands for Ralentir (slow down), Écouter (listen), Supporter (support), Transmettre (transmit), and Évoluer (evolve). This framework encourages managers to balance rationality with intuition—essential skills in environments where human complexity is central to strategy. Developed in Manager Differently, RESTE invites managers to harness their intuitive and emotional intelligence, enabling them to make grounded yet agile decisions that foster engagement and growth.
The unique role of intuition in leadership
In a business world often dominated by metrics and rigid processes, intuition becomes an invaluable compass for leaders. It allows them to perceive subtle team dynamics, anticipate unspoken needs, and identify potential issues before they surface. RESTE sees intuition not as a mysterious force but as a skill cultivated through mindfulness, reflection, and open-minded listening. When combined with strategic thinking, intuition equips leaders to navigate uncertainty with confidence, particularly in complex environments where data alone cannot capture the full scope of human and organizational challenges.
Inspired by neuroscience and psychology, the RESTE approach reminds us that the human brain naturally simplifies complexity, helping managers to stay adaptable while remaining anchored in core values. RESTE offers three distinct focuses—individual, team, and organization—to help managers fully embody their roles as guides and leaders, fostering resilience, cooperation, and innovation within their teams.
1. Individual Focus: where does change truly begin?
In a world where change often comes externally, RESTE encourages leaders to look inward, reconnecting with what gives them purpose. This personal commitment to self-awareness becomes a powerful catalyst, inspiring and energizing teams. Each person in an organization is like a cell within a living organism. Leaders who cultivate both rational and intuitive awareness foster a climate of trust and resilience, creating a ripple effect across the organization. Intuitive leaders, with their heightened sense of timing, know when to act and when to observe, nurturing the best in others and drawing out unique contributions.
The Resonance Effect
Leaders who genuinely embody their beliefs generate resonance throughout the organization. This authenticity, rooted in intuition, invites others to align with shared goals, creating an atmosphere of trust and openness. RESTE equips leaders to foster emotional and intuitive awareness, which strengthens a team’s collective commitment. Leaders who embrace intuition are more likely to inspire creativity, agility, and meaningful engagement within their teams.
2. Team Focus: how to create a collective work that transcends us?
The team focus of RESTE offers a renewed vision of collaboration. Inspired by the concept of the body schema—where the brain unifies and simplifies sensory inputs to coordinate the body—the intuitive manager creates a symbiotic team dynamic. As a composer, choreographer, or energizer, the manager guides the team, where each talent is recognized and amplified, moving from individualism to a collaborative spirit that transcends personal objectives.
- How can an intuitive leader inspire each member to aim beyond themselves?
- How does integrating emotional intelligence and group dynamics foster a climate of engagement and resilience?
In teams led by intuitive managers, the integration of emotional intelligence and collective dynamics creates a supportive atmosphere where individuals feel motivated to give their best, leading to heightened resilience and collaboration.
3. Organizational Focus: how to dare a new collective vision?
The organizational focus of RESTE envisions the collective as a driver of transformation. Moving beyond the paralysis of excessive caution, the dynamic organization embraces exploration, driven by the values of Courage, Intuition, Challenge, and Common Sense (CIDS). Manager Differently proposes a leadership model where managers, reconciling the anima and animus (intuition and action), instill a spirit of boldness and shared responsibility.
- How can an organization balance anticipation and adaptability to stay relevant in a changing market?
- Why might excessive caution limit innovation, and how can CIDS values guide a culture of adaptability?
- How does integrating anima and animus at the organizational level foster a resilient culture?
In this environment, the intuitive manager acts as a unifying force, bringing anima (intuition and emotion) into the organizational culture. Active listening and flexibility are encouraged, allowing team members to explore, innovate, and take initiative. A climate of trust and mutual respect flourishes, where diversity of thought and measured risk-taking become strengths. This forward-looking, value-driven approach helps the organization anticipate challenges and remain anchored to its core values.