Mavericks: How Bold Leadership Changes the World

About the Book

How many of our business leaders truly embody the change needed in the world of work and beyond? Not nearly enough. This book shows you how to reclaim your power to make a difference, by unleashing your inner maverick.

Organizations are where the world's most innovative and impactful talents lie; we have the ingenuity, the technology and the resources to change the world for the better. Discover how to awaken the maverick mindset in you; one that will question, debate and enhance. Mavericks are the key to answering some of the world' most pressing challenges; they don't settle for anything less, and neither should you. Mavericks shows you how being a maverick isn't about shooting from the hip and rocking the boat for the sake of it, it's about demanding better of yourself and your organization for the wider good.

In Mavericks, business consultants, London Business School faculty members and authors David Lewis and Jules Goddard guide you through the five characteristics that you can develop to become a maverick leader. From passionate belief, an undeterred attitude, being resourceful, being directional and finally experimenting, these characteristics are the blueprint for you to grow into an iconic and positive change maker. The focus is not on what becoming a leader can do for you, but on what you can do to make the world a better place.

Table of Contents:

• • Chapter - 00: Introduction;
  • Chapter - 01: Belief: We should do better;
  • Chapter - 02: What makes a Maverick leader?;
  • Chapter - 03: Resourcefulness: Connecting people, ideas and assets;
  • Chapter - 04: Nonconformity: The instinct to question;
  • Chapter - 05: Experimental: Learning through trial and error;
  • Chapter - 06: Undeterred: Resisting opposition;
  • Chapter - 07: Maverick styles of leadership;
  • Chapter - 08: Maverick forms of organization;
  • Chapter - 09: Maverick states of society;
  • Chapter - 10: Becoming a Maverick leader;
  • Chapter - 11: References;

About the Author :

David Lewis is a guest lecturer at London Business School and Hult International Business School. A global business consultant, cited on the Thinkers50 Radar of top global management thinkers, he is based in London, UK.
Dr Jules Goddard is a Fellow of London Business School. He has written extensively on strategy and leadership and his corporate clients include Orange, Tata, Danone, Toshiba, and Rolls-Royce. He is based in London, UK.
Tamryn Batcheller-Adams is a psychologist and leadership development consultant who has worked with leaders in over 20 countries. She is based in Cape Town, South Africa.

Review :
"Mavericks drive progress and the world needs many more - this book shows why." "I love everything about this book. The world needs more Mavericks!" "Release your inner Maverick - this ground-breaking book gives everyone a manual for how to make a difference at work and in society." "Mavericks is a very different take on the type of leadership we need if we are going to tackle the monumental challenges we face. It is one I recognize and heartily endorse. The book is a refreshing, exhilarating read whether you want to use it for personal inspiration or to assess the world in which you operate on a day-to-day basis. It is also practical and gives you the tools to nurture your own inner Maverick, or those of the people around you." "Reading this delightful and incisive book, I recalled a line Henry David Thoreau wrote in Walden: "If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away." All of us are capable of being Mavericks - those who see a gap between what is and what could be. The five characteristics of Mavericks herein are profound, a guiding light you can refer to over and over to avoid fatalism. By fusing all five of these traits, you will transform into an effective rebel with a cause, contributing to a flourishing life for all." "Mavericks is an optimistic book about how we can do better. When something is wrong and we don't stand up for improvement, we fail ourselves and everyone. This book shows how Maverick leaders who are "normal" people (like us) use their belief, determination and courage to ameliorate the world; it also discusses creating an environment for such change. Much needed right now; no other book challenges us like this, for the good of all." "This book is truly liberating! Armed with a Maverick mindset, ordinary people can become inspirational leaders. Packed full of practical examples, this is a ground-breaking toolkit that awakens the characteristics within, so you can become an inspirational and Maverick leader. Mavericks gives you the inspiration to say "I can" and the confidence to say "I will". Bravo!" "I was declared a Maverick in the mid-nineties in the brand new (read charmless, uncomfortable and desperately boring) boardroom of a multinational corporation. That day, my boss used this term to qualify my contribution to the collective efforts of our European board. Twenty-five years of Maverick-ability later, I know that this is not a title of glory, nor an actual job title but a desperate attempt by many executives to escape the status quo and corporate nonsense. A Maverick attitude is a little thing that makes a big difference. Society and organizations are suffering from a huge appetite for conformity and a subsequent lack of "fantaisie". Make your voice heard and join the Mavericks club, it's never too late." "With Mavericks, Lewis, Goddard, and Batcheller-Adams have identified the essence of entrepreneurship. They demonstrate that innovation and creativity can occur anywhere so long as one person remains, as they put it, "undeterred in the face of ridicule, resistance and outright hostility". The book itself creates a movement, just like the Maverick leaders identified therein. I hope to join this movement and change our world for the better."