Goddess Luminary Leadership Wheel: A Post-Patriarchal Paradigm

I spent the fifteen years of my career in management and would have found this book valuable for myself and those I worked with. Using luminary instead of leader shifts the dynamic from traditional models into one of exploration. Sedgmore actively seeks contributions and new thinking, emboldening readers to conceive of new roles for themselves and others.

Sedgmore's Luminary Wheel aims to support our unique path of growth rather than setting out a specific checklist or set of competencies, radically different from other leadership models. It incorporates a wide range of teaching and learning methods, allowing for the accommodation of preferred learning styles and encourages participants to explore different modes of learning. Divided into eight dimensions, each supports growth and prepares participants for the next phase in the cycle. I particularly appreciated how the author directly discusses the issues of intersectionality, appropriation, and other political aspects as necessary parts of working with others in groups.

The book is far from perfect. For one thing, it's oddly organized, feeling much more like you are reading a transcript of a workshop. There is a modest amount of repetition, not just to make a point but as a literally repeat of things said previously. The Wheel itself is complicated and not easily understood, making it best learned directly for many.

Flaws aside, I think this model is groundbreaking and vital as we confront the deep-seated and violent problems inherent in systems based on patriarchy and capitalism.

~review by Lisa McSherry

Author: Lynne Sedgmore
Changemakers Books, 2021
pp. 280, $20.95