PRAISE FOR The Leader Who Had No Title “Read this book and make the leap to extraordinary performance, innovation, and influence at work and in life.” —Keith Ferrazzi, bestselling author of Never Eat Alone “The Leader Who Had No Title is a game-changing book; read it and get ready for an amazing new life!” —Marci Shimoff, bestselling author of Happy for No Reason “This is a very important book. It will show any human being how to show leadership in all they do and maximize their potential.” —George A. Cohon, founder of McDonald’s of Canada and McDonald’s of Russia Thank you for purchasing this Free Press eBook. Join our mailing list and get updates on new releases, deals, bonus content and other great books from Free Press and Simon & Schuster. CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP or visit us online to sign up at eBookNews.SimonandSchuster.com Contents A Personal Note from Robin Sharma Leadership and Success Are Your Birthright CHAPTER 1 My Meeting with a Leadership Mentor CHAPTER 2 The Sad Costs of Mediocrity and the Spectacular Rewards of CHAPTER 3 Leadership Mastery The First Leadership Conversation: You Need No Title to Be a CHAPTER 4 Leader The Second Leadership Conversation: Turbulent Times Build CHAPTER 5 Great Leaders The Third Leadership Conversation: The Deeper Your CHAPTER 6 Relationships, the Stronger Your Leadership The Fourth Leadership Conversation: To Be a Great Leader, CHAPTER 7 First Become a Great Person Conclusion CHAPTER 8 Resources to Help You Lead Without a Title We Need Your Help Build a Lead Without a Title Organization I dedicate this book to you, the reader. Your willingness to awaken your inner leader inspires me. Your commitment to work at your absolute best moves me. And your readiness to leave everyone you meet better than you found them encourages me to give even more of my life to helping people Lead Without a Title. In a gentle way, you can shake the world. —MAHATMA GANDHI A Personal Note from Robin Sharma The book you are now holding in your hands is the result of nearly fifteen years of my work as a leadership advisor to many of the Fortune 500, including Microsoft, GE, Nike, FedEx, and IBM, along with organizations such as Yale University, the American Red Cross, and the Young Presidents Organization. By applying the leadership system I teach you in this book, you will experience explosive results in your work and help your organization rise to a whole new level of innovation, performance, and customer loyalty. You will also see profound improvements in your personal life and the way you show up in the world. Please note: the leadership method I’m about to share is delivered to you as a story. The hero, Blake Davis; his unforgettable mentor, Tommy Flinn; and the four extraordinary teachers who transform the way he works and lives are all fictional characters—products of my overly active imagination. But trust that the leadership system itself, as well as the principles, tools, and tactics that it’s built upon, are very real and have helped hundreds of thousands of people in many of the most successful organizations in the world win in business and lead the field. Victims recite problems. Leaders present solutions. My sincere hope is that The Leader Who Had No Title offers you and the organization you work for a game-changing solution to quickly and elegantly reach your absolute best in these turbulent and highly uncertain times. —Robin Sharma P.S. To sustain and deepen your leadership transformation as you read The Leader Who Had No Title, visit robinsharma.com, where you will find a complete set of support resources, including podcasts, newsletters, blogs, online leadership assessments, and tools to build an exceptional team. CHAPTER 1 Leadership and Success Are Your Birthright Nobody succeeds beyond his or her wildest expectations unless he or she begins with some wild expectations. —RALPH CHARELL The sight of an achievement is the greatest gift a human being could offer others. —AYN RAND E Sadly, most of us die amid mediocrity. I ACH OF US IS BORN INTO GENIUS. hope it doesn’t upset you that I reveal this closely held belief so early in our brief time together. But I need to be honest. I also should share that I’m just an ordinary guy who happened to get lucky enough to learn a series of extraordinary secrets that helped me become super-successful in business and deeply fulfilled in life. The good news is that I’m here to offer you everything that I discovered on a pretty stunning adventure. So you too can work at wow. And live full-out. Starting today. The powerful lessons I’ll reveal will be given gently, carefully, and with sincere encouragement. Our ride together will be full of fun, inspiration, and entertainment. The principles and tools you’ll discover will automatically cause your career to fly, your happiness to soar, and your absolute best to fully express itself. But above all else, I promise you, I will be honest. I owe you that respect. My name is Blake Davis, and though I was born in Milwaukee, I’ve lived here in New York City for nearly all of my life. And I still love this place. The restaurants. The pace. The people. And those hot dogs on the street— incredible. Yes, I do adore food—one of life’s best pleasures, if you ask me,