Meet Doug Conant an American businessman who served as President and CEO of the Campbell Soup Company from 2001 until July 31, 2011.
Doug 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.
Like many people, Doug Conant had a work identity and a personal identity, and they were at odds. This became painfully evident when he was fired in 1984 without warning and with barely an explanation. When he was prompted by his outplacement counselor to write down his entire life story, Doug discovered that he was not being his true self while at work.
This siloed view of himself was holding him back from realizing his potential, fulfilling his dreams, and making a bigger impact on the world around him. The epiphany led Doug to embark on a journey of discovery—taking incremental steps to revolutionize his leadership style and transform his career trajectory. Now, to help others achieve their full leadership potential, Doug has written The Blueprint: 6 Practical Steps to Lift Your Leadership to New Heights [Wiley, March 2020]. The six practical steps Doug shares in his highly anticipated new book are the same that allowed him to lift his own leadership to new heights and ultimately brought him career success, joy, and fulfilment.
“Today’s leaders have unprecedented time pressures. They struggle to carve out space in their calendar for the kind of self-exploration needed to become the best leaders they can be,” says Doug. “The pace of life has accelerated rapidly at work and at home; technology has ushered in a tacit expectation that we be on and reachable 100% of the time. The amount of texts and emails we receive has tripled in recent years. Expectations are higher. Everyone wants more, better, faster. That’s why it’s now my mission to share The Blueprint with you. After decades of thought, study, and experience at every level of the corporate ladder—from the bottom to the top—I have crafted a simple approach that fits into anyone’s busy schedule and helps them become more authentic and effective.”
Watch the trailer for the book here
Part leadership manifesto and part practical manual, The Blueprint teaches leaders how to work through the same six steps Doug used on his transformative journey:
Reach High –
EnvisionDig Deep –
ReflectLay the Groundwork –
StudyDesign –
PlanBuild –
PracticeReinforce –
Improve
These six steps are carefully designed to be actionable and manageable, seamlessly fitting within the hectic modern lives of all leaders—seasoned and aspiring, from the front lines to the c-suite. Knowing first-hand how daunting the prospect of change can be, Doug arms readers with exercises and practices for building a leadership foundation that empowers them to be the best leader possible in any situation. Now, today’s leaders who feel stuck and overwhelmed finally have an approachable roadmap for unlocking their own true and unique leadership voice to make meaningful change in their organizations and the world.
The Blueprint fast-tracks the reflection required to identify the qualities that make you unique – and shows you how to use them to become a better leader. In addition to providing readers with prompts and exercises for working through the crucial six-step process, The Blueprint offers:
Guidance for building a uniquely customized leadership foundation. Exercises that allow individuals to merge their “work self” and “real self” into one cohesive and authentic identity.
Inspiration for getting through life’s greatest challenges and growing stronger in the face of adversityTen timeless tenets of “leadership that works,” and instruction for using them in daily lifeA system that does not strive for perfection but offers real change achieved in incremental stepsAn action plan for aligning your new, improved leadership approach with the expectations of your organization.
“Many of the problems leaders face today arise from a belief that their work life and their real life are two separate identities,” says Doug. “When leaders feel stuck in their career, they often struggle because they have a singular view of themselves. But what I’ve discovered is that the key to unlocking better leadership is found through a clear-eyed exploration of you – the real, full you.”