The Blueprint

Your Foundation Is Everything

“There is nothing permanent except change.”

—Heraclitus, Greek philosopher

To get the most out of this book, it helps to understand the root of the problem leaders face today.

The world is changing rapidly. You’re looking for practical answers because the modern workplace reflects these changes in ways that can be overwhelming. The digital age has ushered in an era of unprecedented complexity and dysfunction. Hierarchies that used to dictate the processes for managing problems are crumbling. Technology has accelerated the pace of business; people are inundated with a perpetual onslaught of communication and messaging from text, email, push notifications, and more, so much that they feel like they’re gasping for air. Adding to this, there are six disparate generations of men and women from every part of the world, often with different communication styles and value systems, working together elbow to elbow.

There used to (sort of) be a way to manage the daily onslaught: you could ask your boss what to do. But as hierarchical structures are collapsing, and leaders are themselves struggling under a deluge of competing priorities, often your boss wants you to figure it out on your own. Today more than ever, your leadership is up to you.

What I’ve observed in my years of research and leadership practice, and in my ongoing work training and mentoring leaders, is that most people can’t find the time to “shoot the lights out” because they can barely ...