A Wall Street Journal Bestseller
"For nearly thirty years, my life's work has been to help people like
you find ways to bring the often warring aspects of life into greater
harmony." -- Stew Friedman, from Leading the Life You Want
You're busy trying to lead a "full" life. But does it really feel
full--or are you stretched too thin? Enter Stew Friedman, Wharton
professor, adviser to leaders across the globe, and passionate advocate
of replacing the misguided metaphor of "work/life balance" with
something more realistic and sustainable. If you're seeking "balance"
you'll never achieve it, argues Friedman. The idea that "work" competes
with "life" ignores the more nuanced reality of our humanity--the
interaction of four domains: work, home, community, and the private
self. The goal is to create harmony among them instead of thinking only
in terms of trade-offs. It can be done.
Building on his national bestseller, Total Leadership, and on decades
of research, teaching, and practice as both consultant and senior
executive, Friedman identifies the critical skills for integrating work
and the rest of life. He illustrates them through compelling original
stories of these remarkable people:
- former Bain & Company CEO and Bridgespan co-founder Tom Tierney
- Facebook COO and bestselling author Sheryl Sandberg
- nonprofit leader and US Navy SEAL Eric Greitens
- US First Lady Michelle Obama
- soccer champion-turned-broadcaster Julie Foudy
- renowned artist Bruce Springsteen
Each of these admirable (though surely imperfect) people exemplifies a
set of skills--for being real, being whole, and being innovative--that
produce a sense of purpose, coherence, and optimism.
Based on interviews and research, their stories paint a vivid picture of
how six very different leaders use these skills to act with
authenticity, integrity, and creativity--and they prove that significant
public success is accomplished not at the expense of the rest of life,
but as the result of meaningful engagement in all its parts. With
dozens of practical exercises for strengthening these skills, curated
from the latest research in organizational psychology and related
fields, this book will inspire you, inform you, and instruct you on how
to take realistic steps now toward leading the life you truly want.
