Story:
Leadership as a Hero's Journey

A chair can be categorized into different and distinct parts: legs, seat, back, and arms. It is, however, recognizably a chair when all these parts cling seamlessly together. Similarly, this book is arranged in four parts, each addressing one of the four virtues of heroic leaders. While each virtue is complete unto itself, the heroic mindset emerges at the intersection of these four interdependent virtues.

Part I is about Focus. Specifically, it answers the question, “What am I creating?” We are always creating something, either intentionally or unintentionally. Your leadership responsibility is to be intentional, purposeful about what you, your team, and your organization are focused on creating. Your thoughts and beliefs and, by extension, the beliefs and thoughts of your team and organization, are reflected in your creation and behavior. This power of focus is what draws you and your organization toward results. It is this power to intend, to deliberately reach for desired outcomes, that pulls you away from the known and familiar into the journey of the unfamiliar and unknown; the journey of discovery, innovation, creation, and results. In this part, we will gain understanding of and learn to apply the wisdom that a thought is a thing, you are what you think, and you become what you think about most.

Part II addresses Courage, and in this part we will learn to answer the question, “What am I avoiding?” The journey is initiated by reaching for a goal, by purposefully setting out to create something new and challenging. Intending, stretching out, forms a gap between what you have and what you want. That gap is filled with potential as well as uncertainty; uncertainty invites anxiety and fear. As a leader you are bound to feel excitement in the presence of uncertainty. You recognize in uncertainty the potential for innovation and creation. You will also know fear. In Part II, we will learn why fear is the gatekeeper of power, and how to retake our power from the clutches of fear. 

Part III explores the development of Grit. Grit answers the question, “What am I sustaining?” Grit, more than any other factor, is the most reliable predictor of achievement. Very few leaders are overnight successes. Your willing dedication and consistency of application are predictive of achievement, and focus takes passion and perseverance to sustain the practices and disciplines that turn potential into reality. Grit is that virtue that empowers you to overcome the incessant addiction to comfort that will pull you and your team right back into inertia. In this part we’ll discover how to persevere when your inspiration and motivation have waned.

The final section, Part IV is Faith. Here we will tackle the final challenge of awakening the heroic spirit, “What am I yielding?” The label hero cannot be self-imposed. The hero title is bestowed upon those who have made great contribution at some personal cost. Paramount among the requirements of heroes is sacrifice. To sacrifice is to give up something of value in order to gain something of greater value, or to avoid calamity or evil. Effective leaders sacrifice daily. They give up time with family, personal time, recognition, and freedom from responsibility and scrutiny. Yet, the least celebrated and most demanding leadership sacrifice is giving up comfort. In this part, we will explore how to sacrifice without feeling weak, and how to apply mindfulness meditation to embolden our heroic spirit of leadership.