Ryan Berman - Return on Courage : A Business Playbook for Courageous Change

The difference between mediocrity and greatness or failure and success is one simple ingredient: courage . Finding the courage to be different, taking risks, or challenging the status quo are typically our biggest obstacles at work and in life. Thankfully, Ryan provides a playbook to find our inner courage and realize our true potential.

ERIC RYAN, cofounder, method

Return on Courage is a timely, relevant book that provides the instruction manual for business survival in these turbulent, courage-deficient times.

JAY BAER, New York Times best-selling author,

Hug Your Haters and Youtility

Return on Courage is not only the rally cry that businesses need to stay relevant in todays rapidly changing environment, but it also provides a road map that leads to action.

NICOLE AYERS, head of innovation team,

Nestl and General Mills, cereal

Companies are often so busy protecting what they believe they own that they fail to adapt to changing consumers. Return On Courage is the playbook to help brands pivot and stay relevant.

DUSTIN BOMAR, Google, Head of Industry, Travel

This publication is designed to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter covered. It is sold with the understanding that the publisher and author are not engaged in rendering legal, accounting, or other professional services. If legal advice or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional should be sought.

Published by Greenleaf Book Group Press

Austin, Texas

www.gbgpress.com

Copyright 2019 Ryan Berman

All rights reserved.

Thank you for purchasing an authorized edition of this book and for complying with copyright law. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without written permission from the copyright holder.

Distributed by Greenleaf Book Group

For ordering information or special discounts for bulk purchases, please contact

Greenleaf Book Group at PO Box 91869, Austin, TX 78709, 512.891.6100.

Design and composition by Greenleaf Book Group and Kim Lance

Cover design by Greenleaf Book Group and Kim Lance

Cover image: Lion: Thinkstock / iStock Collection / AOosthuizen

Publishers Cataloging-in-Publication data is available.

Print ISBN: 978-1-62634-615-4

eBook ISBN: 978-1-62634-616-1

Part of the Tree Neutral program, which offsets the number of trees consumed in the production and printing of this book by taking proactive steps, such as planting trees in direct proportion to the number of trees used: www.treeneutral.com

Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper

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First Edition

Inside you breathes an ambitious, inquisitive being yearning to push yourself, your work and your business ahead. Youre committed with conviction on elevating your professional trajectory onward, forward, and upward. Youre intrigued by the idea of inspiring employees or coworkers to be daring and to think bigger. One thing you know for certain is that the company you work for or your personal brand could benefit from an injection of courage. That is why this book chose you as much as you decided on it. Lets begin .

No matter what you are afraid of ...

COURAGE SETS YOU FREE.

Courage unshackles you from the pack;

it separates you from stuck, risk-averse companies.

Courage is never prejudiced;

Its willingly open for any opportunistic

gender, race, or ethnicity.

Courage is a team sport.

Theres an our in courage for a reason.

Courage can be learned.

So long as you are open to the training.

Courage has a role in your daily life.

It is for you and can be your ultimate X-factor.

Above all, courage gets it done.

It stretches budgets further.

And propels you forward, faster.

WHAT MAKES ME qualified to craft a book about courage?

Thats a fair question. Its not like I have a lick of military experience. Ive never been to Mars or saved someones life from a burning building. I dont have a PhD, an MBA, or an Ivy League education. Instead, Ive been behind the scenes in the field of marketing and messaging for the duration of my career. As a professional story maker, I do know that it takes a bit of bravery to step into the unknown, and when I began this journey, I was delving into unfamiliar territory.

And why would I give up three years of my life to rigorously study courage, or the lack of it, in the business world? Coming out the other side, after conducting a gauntlet of invigorating interviews and digesting vast amounts of research, I now have my answer: This is a story that needs to be told now .

Theres a noticeable deficiency of courage in the business world. It is absent from business models, boardrooms, company cultures, and mission statements. Courage has, in fact, gone out of style and out of practiceand many businesses are far worse for it.

When I began this 1,000-day deep dive into the subject, I had many questions and a few hunches about the word courage . When you start looking under rocks, youre often afraid of what truths you may find. The good news was that, like most courageous endeavors, I was not alone on this book-writing expedition. When I didnt know something, I went in search of people who did.

I interviewed many bold business leaders for this book, and when approached about the subject of courage, they generously responded, providing me with access to their companys inner workings. From there, I scoured dozens of relevant books, conducted hours of interviews with some of the bravest people on earth, and pledged to learn as much as I could from the resources available to me.

This journey led me to an astronaut; a Navy SEAL; a Cambridge University PhD; a handful of CEOs, company presidents, vice presidents, and chief marketing officers; a MasterChef winner; a CNN anchor; an ER doctor; a controversial flight attendant; a few clinical psychologists; a bank teller robbed at gunpoint; and a professional tornado chaser.

What did I learn? You dont have to be an astronaut, a CEO, or a Navy SEAL to have, harbor, or trigger courage.

If youve picked up this book, youve opted in to a community of aspirational, courageous mavericks interested in helping companies survive a tumultuous business landscape. You probably scoff at the idea that anything close to the status quo is satisfactory on your watch. You may have a strong desire to explore the business path less traveled and evolve your company, no matter its size, into perpetual relevancy. Most of all, you understand that companies so focused on being risk-averse are most likely courage-averse.