Praise for Ignited
"Managers of the world, rejoice. There is finally a book for you. Vince's book contains some of the best advice you'll ever get on getting the best out of people and enduring the constant stress that comes with managing human beings. Simple, easy to use, and inspiring. If you manage people, buy one. If you manage managers, buy a box. In a world of leadership books that may or may not apply to your situationthis book will hit you in the bull's-eye."
Tim Sanders, author of Love Is the Killer App:How To Win Business and Influence Friends and former Chief Solutions Officer at Yahoo!
" Ignited is a groundbreaking leadership book that if followed will unleash any organizations most underutilized resourceMiddle Managers. Too long neglected and too often abused, Vince Thompson lays out how to maximize these managers' untapped potential, and it is HUGE! If you need results and need an energized management team, Ignited is the only book you need to read."
Chester Elton, co-author of the New York Times best-selling Invisible Employee
"Leading from the middle has always been a tough job. In today's rapidly changing environment, it's even harder. With Ignited , Thompson takes managers right to the heart of their roles and shows them how they are uniquely positioned to energize their companies. Ignited promises more power, more purpose, and more success and really delivers."
Linda A. Livingstone, Ph.D., Dean, The Graziadio School of Business and Management, Pepperdine University
"What will make your career hotor notis whether you can inspire a burning desire for change and growth in the people around you. Vince Thompson shows how to do this to get the success you deserve."
Keith Ferrazzi, best-selling author of Never Eat Alone, CEO of Ferrazzi Greenlight
"Thompson's the real deal and his book on management stands out like none other. I'm recommending it to my team and encourage you to take his purpose-filled advice and truly be Ignited!"
Alan Cohen, CMO TV Guide
"Anyone trying to navigate the treacherous shoals of today's middle management dilemma without this book does so at his or her own peril. Vince Thompson spells out in delicious detail how to stand apart from the crowd and actually get things done"
Granville Toogood, executive coach and author of The Articulate ExecutiveLearn to Look, Act and Sound like a Leader
" Ignited is just superb. Rich with terrific insights into the managers' dilemmas, this book delivers on the promise for managers to become "Ignited", energized and passionate in their work. One of the experiences and recommendations so resonated with the current situation my friend is in that I pointed it out to him and now he's reading the book as well! I'm certain I'll be recommending this book for years to come."
Jan Sola, Ph.D., Associate Director, Executive Development Center, Leavey School of Business, Santa Clara University
"If you want to get to the top, you've got to make meaningful contributions. With Ignited , Thompson provides a framework for purposeful and powerful action."
Jeffrey Fox, best selling author of How to Become CEO and How to Get to the Top: Business Lessons Learned at the Dinner Table
"Thanks to Vince Thompson, we're reminded that we, managers in the middle, are not alone! With entertaining anecdotes, real life examples, and solid research, you'll find Ignited really connects. You'll laugh, you'll cry, and if you follow the advice you'll find yourself managing your career rather than being managed by it. This wonderful book is a must read for anyone in management."
Lisa Tichadou, Sales Training Manager, Employee Development, Los Angeles Times
Ignited
In an increasingly competitive world, it is quality of thinking that gives an edgean idea that opens new doors, a technique that solves a problem, or an insight that simply helps make sense of it all.
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Ignited
Managers! Light Up Your Company and Career for More Power, More Purpose, and More Success
Vince Thompson
An Imprint of Pearson Education
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| 2007 by Vince Thompson Published by Pearson Education, Inc. Publishing as FT Press Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 |
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Printed in the United States of America
First Printing March, 2007
ISBN 0-13-149248-9
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Thompson, Vincent S., 1963
Ignited : managers, light up your company and career for more power, more
purpose, and more success / Vincent S. Thompson.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-13-149248-9 (hardback : alk. paper) 1. Industrial management. I. Title.
HD31.T523 2007
658.4'09--dc22 2006019566
Dedication
To Jackie, the love ofmy life, who makes it all seem possible.
Contents
Acknowledgments
At the height of the social change defining the Sixties, someone asked the Grateful Dead's Jerry Garcia a simple question: Why? Jerry responded by saying, "Somebody had to do something, and it's just incredibly pathetic that it had to be us."
I can't repeat Jerry's line without laughing. Any of us who have felt the call of duty can certainly relate. As a manager, I spent far too many hours hoping a great and powerful force would hit the Restart button and create a world for managers where things made sense and business could be and mean all that we wanted it to. With that day not appearing to have been scheduled in my Outlook calendar, it was time to try and do what I could.
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