The Blueprint: 6 Practical Steps to Lift Your Leadership to New Heights - Hardcover

Conant, Douglas R.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1119560020 ISBN 13: 9781119560029

Publisher: Wiley, 2020

Synopsis

A Wall Street Journal and Publishers Weekly Bestseller

Lift your leadership to new heights

Doug Conant, Founder of ConantLeadership, former CEO of Campbell Soup Company, and former President of Nabisco Foods, shares transformational insights in his new book, The Blueprint. Conant is the only former Fortune 500 CEO who is a New York Times bestselling author, a top 50 Leadership Innovator, a Top 100 Leadership Speaker, and a Top 100 Most Influential Author in the World. 

Get Unstuck

In 1984, Doug Conant was fired without warning and with barely an explanation. He felt hopeless and stuck but, surprisingly, this defeating turn of events turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to him. Doug began to consider what might be holding him back from realizing his potential, fulfilling his dreams, and making a bigger impact on the world around him.

Embarking on a journey of self-reflection and discovery, he forged a path to revolutionize his leadership and transform his career trajectory. Ultimately, Doug was able to condense his remarkable leadership story into six practical steps. It wasn't until Doug worked through these six steps that he was able to lift his leadership to heights that ultimately brought him career success, joy, and fulfillment.

1. Reach High - Envision
2. Dig Deep - Reflect
3. Lay the Groundwork - Study
4. Design - Plan
5. Build - Practice
6. Reinforce - Improve 

In The Blueprint, part leadership manifesto, part practical manual, Doug teaches leaders how to work through the same six steps that he used to transform his journey. The six steps are manageable and incremental, designed to fit practically within the pace of busy modern life. Knowing how daunting the prospect of change can be, Doug arms readers with exercises and practices to realistically bring their foundation to life in every situation. Now, today’s leaders who feel stuck and overwhelmed finally have a blueprint for lifting their leadership to make meaningful change in their organizations and in the world.

About this title

About the Author

DOUGLAS CONANT is the founder of ConantLeadership, former CEO of Campbell Soup Company, and former president of Nabisco Foods, and shares transformational insights in his new book, The Blueprint. Conant is the only former Fortune 500 CEO who is a New York Times bestselling author, a top 50 Leadership Innovator, a Top 100 Leadership Speaker, and a Top 100 Most Influential Author in the World.

Learn more at conantleadership.com.

From the Back Cover

Discover the six practical steps all leaders can take to revolutionize their careers and their companies.b>

"Conant has so much to teach, and aspiring leaders at all levels would do well to learn from him."
Jim Collins, bestselling author of Good to Great

"Doug Conant is a special breed: a hard-edged corporate CEO with an introspective nature who attributes his success to reflection, study, and thoughtful inner work rather than birthright or bombast. In The Blueprint, he offers a powerful and approachable process for more fully connecting with the unique gifts that will allow your special leadership voice to come alive."
Susan Cain, bestselling author of Quiet: The Power of Introverts in A World That Can't Stop Talking

"Today's busy leaders often question how they can lift their leadership profile while staying true to themselves. The Blueprint is the answer."
Indra Nooyi, former chairman & CEO, PepsiCo.

"The Blueprint is a rare offering with perfect timing. . . Read this book now and better yet, buy a copy for everyone on your team."
Amy Edmondson, Novartis Professor of Leadership and Management, Harvard Business School

"The Blueprint provides a simple but powerful opportunity to leverage the experience and wisdom of Doug Conant to refresh your thinking and approach. It can help you maximize your impact."
Doug McMillon, president and CEO, Walmart

"Doug Conant and Amy Federman's brilliant book will change your life and your leadership if you incorporate its ideas using their in-depth, six-step approach."
Bill George, senior fellow, Harvard Business School, former chair & CEO, Medtronic, author of Discover Your True North

"Doug Conant hasn't just been a highly successful leader he's an unusually thoughtful one. In this hands-on book, he shares a model that you can apply right away to elevate your impact."
Adam Grant, New York Times bestselling author of Originals and Give and Take, and host of the TED podcast WorkLife

"A must-read for anyone in an existing or new leadership role at any level."
Sara Mathew, retired chair & CEO, Dun and Bradstreet

From the Inside Flap

Becoming an effective leader who lifts your organization to new heights may seem challenging, but it doesn't need to be complicated. Strong leadership is rooted in basic principles. Although the specific nature of the organizations you may work for throughout your career will vary on a case-by-case basis, the essential steps you must take to lead with skill will remain constant.

The Blueprint explains what those steps are. More importantly, it demonstrates how we can take them in our own careers and lives.

Author Douglas Conant is particularly well-qualified to teach these lessons. He's served in leadership roles at such major companies as the Nabisco Foods Company, Campbell Soup Company, and Avon Products. As founder of ConantLeadership, he helps other experts share their own leadership insights. However, Conant wasn't always this successful. In 1984, before achieving such heights, he lost his job without warning and almost no explanation.

However, Conant did not allow this experience to discourage him for very long. Instead, he turned it into an opportunity. He used this period in his life to seriously examine what factors had prevented him from achieving his dreams and fully realizing his personal vision for himself. By studying the craft of leadership and reflecting on his own achievements, Conant revolutionized his approach to leading organizations. The result was a dramatic shift in his career that propelled him to greater success, joy, and overall fulfillment than he had ever experienced before.

With The Blueprint, Conant has condensed his lifetime of leadership experience and study into six content-rich steps anyone can immediately apply to transform their leadership journey.

1. Reach High – Envision

2. Dig Deep – Reflect

3. Lay the Groundwork – Study

4. Design – Plan

5. Build – Practice

6. Reinforce – Improve

Along with serving as a leadership manifesto, The Blueprint is also a practical manual. Conant provides exercises and practices readers can use to leverage these six essential steps in virtually any situation. This process enables every leader to build their own personal leadership foundation; this is what empowers them to make a powerful immediate impact―and to create lasting positive change―in organizations and the world.

Conant's story serves as a reminder that all leaders face challenges at times. It also reminds us that it's possible to overcome those challenges and dramatically change our careers and our lives.

Edition details

• Publisher: Wiley
• Publication date: 2020
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1119560020
• ISBN 13: 9781119560029
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 368