About the Book
The hardest part of a manager's job isn't staying organized, meeting deliverable dates, or staying on budget. It's dealing with people who are too comfortable doing things the way they've always been done and too afraid to do things differently-workers who are, as author Bill Treasurer puts it, too "comfeartable." Such workers fail to exert themselves any more than they have to, equating "just enough" with good enough. By avoiding even mild challenges, these workers thwart forward progress and make their businesses dangerously safe.
To combat this affliction, Treasurer proposes a bold antidote- courage. In Courage Goes to Work, he lays out a comprehensive, step-by-step process that treats courage as a skill that can be developed and strengthened. He Treasurer shows how managers can build workplace courage by modeling courageous behavior themselves, creating an environment where people feel safe taking chances and helping workers deal with fear.
To make the concept of courage more concrete, Treasurer identifies what he calls the Three Buckets of Courage- Try Courage, having the guts to take initiative; Trust Courage, being willing to follow the lead of others; and Tell Courage, being honest and assertive with coworkers and bosses. He illustrates each with a variety of vivid real-world examples and offers proven practices for helping your workers keep each bucket full.
Aristotle said that courage is the first virtue because it makes all other virtues possible. It's as true in business as it is in life. With more courage, workers gain the necessary confidence to take on harder projects, embrace company changes with more enthusiasm, and extend themselves in ways that will benefit their careers and their company. Courage Goes to Work is the first book to take a systematic approach to developing a vital but overlooked component of business success.
Table of Contents:
Section I: Courage First
Introduction – Too Much Comfort, Too Much Fear
Chapter 1 – Look Before You LeapSection II: Setting a Foundation for Courage
Chapter 2 – Jumping First
Chapter 3 – Create Safety Nets
Chapter 4 – Harness Fear
Chapter 5 – Modulate Comfort
Section III: Three Buckets of Courage
Chapter 6 – TRY Courage
Chapter 7 – TRUST Courage
Chapter 8 – TELL Courage
Section IV: Committing to Giant Leaps
Chapter 9 – The Courageous Choice
Chapter 10 – Courageous Living
About the Author :
Bill Treasurer is founder and chief encouragement officer at Giant Leap Consulting (www.giantleapconsulting.com), a courage-building company that helps people and organizations be more courageous. Among his clients are Accenture, CNN, EarthLink, SPANX, the Centers for Disease Control, the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. He is the author of Right Risk and the chief editor of Positively M.A.D. Prior to founding Giant Leap, Treasurer was the captain of the U.S. High Diving Team and performed over 1,500 dives from heights that scaled to over 100 feet (sometimes on fire!).
Review :
“Courage Goes to Work helps solve the most perplexing management dilemma of all: how to inspire employees who are too comfortable and too afraid (or, as Bill says, comfeartable). Don’t just read it . . . absorb it!
--Lilicia P. Bailey, Chief People Officer, Manheim
“This book is truly awesome! Bill Treasurer has stolen courage from the gods and brought it to the workplace, where it is desperately needed. Everyone in a leadership role should put this book on their must-read list. After reading it, you may find the courage to buy a copy for your boss!”
--Chip Bell, author of Customer Loyalty Guaranteed
“There are few business books that can truly be called transformative, and Courage Goes to Work is one of them. It offers tangible ideas for helping workers have more initiative, confidence, and backbone. If your employees could use more of those things, then this book is for you.”
--David Baruch, CIO, Hewitt Associates
“Courage Goes to Work is an excellent, well-written, and relevant book that captures the nuances of courage that will enable readers build courage—for themselves and for others. This is truly a thoughtful composition of the lessons learned on a figurative and literal high dive.”
--Chuck McManus, Vice President (Fund of Hedge Funds Data Management), Morgan Stanley
“Courage is the first and most important component of success in business. Without it, there is nothing more than mediocrity and boredom. Bill Treasurer captures this awareness in his book and instructs us in making sure we’re not overlooking that important aspect of fulfillment and success in our working life. Have the courage to leap, he says, even from dizzying heights. The water will embrace you and reward you. He knows—he’s been there.”
--David Ryback, coauthor of Psychology of Champions
“Bill Treasurer is like a modern-day Wizard of Oz who helps to make us more courageous, not just at work, but in life. Instead of giving us medals to remind us not to be afraid, he offers buckets of specific tools that show us how to tap into our inner courage whenever and wherever we need it. This will be one of the most dog-eared books on my shelf. And it will hold a place of honor right next to his other gem, Right Risk.”
--Marilynn T. Mobley, Senior Vice President and Strategic Counsel, Edelman & Associates
“You will not find a more clear voice on courage than Bill Treasurer’s. Like Bill, I have worked for over a decade exploring courage in the high-risk realm of leader- follower relations with senior political figures and management teams. I do a good job of this at a foundational level. Bill’s work is the graduate program. Let him guide you to the heights where your life and work become extraordinary—because you understand your fear and that of others and bring out the courage in each.”
--Ira Chaleff, author of The Courageous Follower
“Having spent over two decades in HR, I have seen a good number of books come and go. Only a handful really make you think, and Courage Goes to Work is one of them. It introduces an important new management practice: courage building. This powerful yet often-ignored concept can change the way people and organizations succeed. Put this book at the top of your management reading list—you’ll be glad you did.”
--Keith Hicks, Vice President of Human Resources, Radiant Systems
“Even for people who are full of courage, instilling courage in others can be a daunting task. As someone who knows a thing or two about courage, I found this book is an invaluable tool every manager can and should use. The only thing worse than the quagmire of an office locked in comfort or fear is a manager too afraid to do something about it!”
--Dustin Webster, seven-time world cliff-diving champion and Executive Director, W.E. Rock Events, Inc.
“Bill Treasurer brings a true blend of wisdom, compassion, and personal experience to the understanding of courage and brings a practical approach to giving people the courage to stretch themselves and achieve great results. Courage Goes to Work raises people’s standards so they can stop coasting along in the safety of ‘good enough.’”
--Conor Neill, CEO, Taxijet Spain, and Professor of Managerial Communications, IESE Business School, Barcelona
“Whether you’re facing a hundred-foot diving board or your board of directors, Bill’s advice is practical, fun, and immediately applicable. His insightful and refreshing way of dealing with mental obstacles shows how fear, in both yourself and those around you, is nothing to be scared of.”
--Justin Roux, Senior Vice President, Luvata Group
“Courage is good for any industry. But when you work in the wicked world of drug law enforcement the stakes are even higher. In my field an absence of courage in an agent at any level, from those working the street to senior executives, can cost lives. It is great news that it turns out that courage can be taught—thanks to Bill Treasurer.”
--June W. Rodgers, retired special agent in charge, New England Field Division, Drug Enforcement Administration
“Courage Goes to Work offers refreshing ideas about the most essential of all human qualities: courage. This is one of the rare business books that are relevant both personally and professionally. Read this book and go on the most important adventure of all—putting courage to work at your office, in your home, and in your life.”
--Bill Murray, Director, Outward Bound Professional, North Carolina Outward Bound
“Courage Goes to Work is a must-read for anyone who needs to show up with strength at work every single day. This is an inspiring book about how we can all be a little more brave, authentic, and effective in our professional and personal lives. I was personally inspired by the message and will be recommending this book to everyone I know.”
--Brendon Burchard, author of Life’s Golden Ticket
“Whenever I’m feeling a bit chicken, I need only pick up Bill’s new book, Courage Goes to Work, and my own courage starts to rally. By the time I’m finished reading, I’m feeling like an eagle—ready to fly high and take on any challenge!”
--BJ Gallagher, coauthor of A Peacock in the Land of Penguins
“Bill Treasurer is a peaceful warrior whose mission is to inspire others to take courageous action despite their fears. As a former combat fighter pilot, I am intimately familiar with what courage can do for the success of individuals and teams who work in high-pressure environments. Bill’s book is a compelling read and is packed full of thought-provoking, real-world anecdotes and simple yet powerful action steps to build courage at work. It’s one of a kind.”
--Waldo Waldman, decorated fighter pilot and professional speaker
“What I love about Courage Goes to Work is its pragmatism. Courage is often seen as something inborn that only people like skydivers or serial entrepreneurs have. Bill Treasurer shows us that courage is a learned behavior that managers can teach through daily practice.”
--Jonathon Flaum, Director, WriteMind Institute for Corporate Contemplation; author of How the Paper Fish Learned to Swim and How the Red Wolf Found Its Howl; and coauthor of The 100-Mile Walk
“Finally, a practical and inspiring book about the virtue that is perhaps most needed yet most lacking in the world today: courage. If you ever wish that you could overcome your apprehensions and fears so that you could more fully reach your potential and dreams, a good place to start is to read this book.”
--Charles C. Manz, author of The Power of Failure and The Leadership Wisdom of Jesus, and coauthor of The Virtuous Organization and Nice Guys Can Get the Corner Office
“In Courage Goes to Work Bill Treasurer takes a mysterious and complex subject that touches everyone and breaks it into bite-size, manageable chunks. Looking at the small pieces enables you to take care of the critical task we all face—moving toward what we have feared and avoided in the past. Buy this book today and take action tomorrow!”
--Stewart Levine, Resolutionary, author of Getting to Resolution and The Book of Agreement, and coauthor of Collaboration 2.0
“How do you motivate people who are too comfortable or too afraid? This is a common question from managers and supervisors. In Courage Goes to Work Bill Treasurer provides practical answers to this question. He points out that to instill courage is to encourage and wants you, as a manager, to become a chief encourager. Drawing on his experience as a seasoned business consultant and stunt diver, he will show you how. This book should be on every manager’s bookshelf.”
--Cindy Ventrice, author of Make Their Day!
“To live and work in a world of accelerated change requires individual courage. Bill Treasurer captures the essence of courage in his newest book, Courage Goes to Work. He takes an attribute that others might think is ethereal and makes it concrete. He illustrates how anyone can access their courage and how others can create an environment where courageous behavior can flourish. With an abundance of courage, individual and organizational greatness can be achieved!”
--Leslie Yerkes, President, Catalyst Consulting Group, Inc., and author of Fun Works
“Courage Goes to Work is an insightful call to summoning courage in self and courage in others. This is a very insightful guide, blending Treasurer’s expertise in areas of risk and courage and harnessing their impact for increased results, performance, and effectiveness.”
--Harry E. Chambers, author of My Way or the Highway
“Bill Treasurer has a deep understanding of courage, and after reading CourageGoes to Work, so will you.”
--Noah Blumenthal, President, Leading Principles, Inc., and author of You’re Addicted to You
“Most of us take our minds to work but leave courage at the door. In this compelling book, Bill Treasurer provides three nourishing lunch buckets to take to work everyday, try courage, trust courage, and tell courage. In doing so, you’ll have all you need to be a better person and a better leader.”
--Dick Axelrod, author of Terms of Engagement
“If ever there were a book that business and nonprofit executives need to read, this is it. Courage is every bit as important to an organization as leadership, innovation, and focus are, and this little gem is chock-full of powerful ideas that could transform your people and your workplace. Prepare to be en-couraged in unexpected ways!”
--Sam Pettway, Founding Director, BoardWalk Consulting
