Chess Not Checkers

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As Blake drove the two hours from his home to the park, he thought about the big idea from the last meeting: chess, not checkers, is the key to leading a high performance organization. He knew there was much to do, but he had no idea where to start. He was hopeful Jack’s four “moves” would make his path forward much clearer.

As he arrived at the park, the scene was almost identical—only the player across the table was different. When Blake made his presence known, Jack made one move and said, “Checkmate.” Again, the opponent looked stunned, and the small crowd began to applaud.

“Thanks for coming. I’ll be back next week,” Jack said with a huge smile, shaking hands with a few members of the crowd as they departed.

As the last person ...