First-Time Leader: Foundational Tools for Inspiring and Enabling Your New Team

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

Gillian sat at her desk. She had just become responsible for a small team of six—all of whom had been there a lot longer than she had and were a generation ahead of her. She knew what she wanted to accomplish; she just didn’t know how to get there.

She picked up George’s The New Leader’s 100-Day Action Plan to find some guidance. Although very insightful, she found a lot of it was over her head, as she was not leading an organization but a small team. So she called him.

“George, just read your The New Leader’s 100-Day Action Plan book. Really great stuff, but do you have anything for first-time leaders?”

“Thanks. Not at the moment. Why do you ask?”

“Well, I know a lot of people who are first-time leaders—they are either in a high-growth organization and are quickly building a team underneath them, are start-up owners that are expanding, or are in corporate and are being promoted without the right, or any, leadership training. Even in my own experience, I could really use a book to help me be not just a manager but a leader.”

“I think you’re right. Do you want to fill that gap together?”

“Yes.”

And we were off to the races.

This book has many other roots. It is a direct descendant of The New Leader’s 100-Day Action Plan, written with Jayme Check and Jorge Pedraza. Large portions were taken from other things George has written. We’ve referenced the specific articles “adapted” from Forbes.com, but not the pieces from The New Leader’s 100-Day Action Plan or from the ...