The Leader Who Had No Title: A Modern Fable on Real Success in Business and in Read Online Free PDF Page B

point I want to share with you: I’ve not only become successful. I now feel significant . That my life matters. That the world will somehow be a little better because I’ve been here. And what could possibly be more perfect than that?
    The Monday morning meeting with Tommy got me to this place. And at that fateful time, I did promise Tommy that I would share the secrets that I’d learn with everyone that I’d meet. And so it’s now my privilege to share each one of them with you. Please fasten your seat belt. Because we’re going for quite a ride.

CHAPTER 3
The Sad Costs of Mediocrity and the Spectacular Rewards of Leadership Mastery
    Only the mediocre die always at their best. Real leaders are always improving—and raising their bar on how superbly they can perform and how quickly they can move.
    — JEAN GIRAUDOUX
    T HE MORNING AFTER WE’D MET at the bookstore, Tommy told me that all he needed was a single day to expose me to everything I needed to know. “Give me one good day, Blake,” he requested sincerely. “You’ll meet the four teachers who shared the four lessons that lie at the heart of the LWT philosophy with me. They’ll tell you exactly how to create all the success you’ve ever wanted by explaining what leadership is truly all about. I don’t mean to sound like a broken record, but leadership isn’t just for CEOs, military generals, and people who govern nations. Leadership is for everyone. And in this period of dazzling change in business and society, it really is the single most important discipline required to win.”
    “And the only thing I really need to become a leader is to be a breathing human being, right?”
    “Yes. If you can breathe, you can lead,” he affirmed in a positivetone that left me feeling even better about myself and the future before me.
    So here I was, a few days later, leaving New York City early on a Saturday morning with nothing but a fresh cup of coffee and unchained enthusiasm keeping me awake as I drove to the remote place where Tommy had asked me to meet him. He’d insisted that I show up at 5:00 a.m. sharp, muttering something about it being “the greatest time of the day.” And so, not to disappoint my new mentor, I grudgingly obliged.
    Rock music blared through my car as I drove past the skyscrapers and through the empty streets of the city, out of Manhattan and along the highway that would lead me to my destination. My excitement kept building. I had no idea how this day would unfold. But I’ve since come to learn that embracing uncertainty is a precious gift. Most of us get so scared the moment we face the unknown. We shouldn’t, though. It’s really nothing more than the beginning of an adventure. And our growth coming to get us.
    “Stop at Rosemead Cemetery,” Tommy’s written directions had instructed. “You’ll see my car parked off to the side. I’ll leave my blinkers flashing to help you spot our meeting place more easily.”
    At about ten minutes to five, I veered off the main road and onto the gravel-covered laneway that the map said would take me to where I needed to be. Tall pines reached for the skies. A light fog rose from the ground. To my left was the open clearing promised in the directions. I wasn’t quite sure why we were meeting at a cemetery, but I guessed there was someplace nearby that Tommy wanted to show me. The graveyard was probably a convenient—and unforgettable—place to connect as we started our day together.
    As I drove a little closer to where I was to park, I saw a sight that was incredible. There, off to the side of the makeshift road was Tommy’s car. Blinkers were on, like he said they would be.No one was inside. But the make and model of his vehicle is what had filled me with shock and awe. It was a shiny new black Porsche 911S! And the personalized license plate stated simply LDRSRUS. I shook my head. I smiled. This guy really was something else. This strange bookseller who rejected the notion of fat