George Kohlrieser - Care to Dare: Unleashing Astonishing Potential Through Secure Base Leadership

Care to Dare sends a vital and urgent message to every leader: empathy and attunement are not a waste of time in todays business climate, but essentials for success. George Kohlrieser makes the business case for kindness as the platform that allows leaders to challenge their followers. And he does so with authority, depth, and verve. Every leader who wants results needs to read this book.

Daniel Goleman, bestselling author, Emotional Intelligence

I wondered if George Kohlrieser could create a worthy sequel to his masterful Hostage at the Table . Well, he, Susan and Duncan have, and then some! Genius in its simplicity, this book shows us that the Secure Base Leader provides a combination of safety and risk that creates the only possible means to success at innovation. Innovate or die is the seminal characteristic of todays environment; Care to Dare is the key.

Tom Peters, co-author, In Search of Excellence

If you read only one book on leadership, it should be Care to Dare by George Kohlrieser, Susan Goldsworthy and Duncan Coombe. Filled with actionable advice, the book shows leaders how to discover their secure bases in order to sustain their effectiveness and energize their teammates to do so as well.

Bill George, Harvard Business School, author, True North and former chief executive officer, Medtronic

This book will not only help you learn it will help you act! A book for leaders across all cultures, its message is clear Care enough to Dare and you will transform teams, organizations and business culture.

Marshall Goldsmith, author, MOJO and What Got You Here Wont Get You There and Americas preeminent executive coach ( Fast Company magazine).

Care to Dare ties together the essential and very human elements of leadership into a program you can make work. Read this powerful and very readable book. It will help you see your strengths and weaknesses as a leader and will help you grow as a person.

John A. Davis, Faculty Chair, Families in Business Program, Harvard Business School

Kohlrieser, Goldsworthy and Coombes captivating book makes a compelling case for the need to have, and to be, a Secure Base. Their clear prose and relevant examples bring the concept to life, empowering all of us to become better leaders.

Nick Shreiber, former President and CEO, The Tetra Pak Group

I have found Secure Base Leadership to be a powerful concept that has practical applications for any business. When leaders Care to Dare, they can build higher levels of engagement and deliver more creativity and innovation for their organization.

Sren K. Vilby, President & CEO, Nielsen & Nielsen Holdings, Denmark

Secure Base Leadership works at both a personal and professional level. George, Susan and Duncan have identified nine characteristics that can make a real difference to the performance and impact of any leader.

Andrew Milton, COO, Constance Hotels

This is an exceptional book with a message that is critical to the challenge of developing better leaders. In short, being personal and connecting on a human level is the key to what really matters in life and business. George has done a great job of explaining how and why this matters so much if you want to lead others effectively.

David Rock, cofounder of The NeuroLeadership Institute, and author, Your Brain at Work

A WARREN BENNIS BOOK

This collection of books is devoted exclusively to new and exemplary contributions to management thought and practice. The books in this series are addressed to thoughtful leaders, executives, and managers of all organizations who are struggling with and committed to responsible change. My hope and goal is to spark new intellectual capital by sharing ideas positioned at an angle to conventional thoughtin short, to publish books that disturb the present in the service of a better future.

BOOKS IN THE WARREN BENNIS SIGNATURE SERIES

This edition first published 2012

2012 John Wiley & Sons

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Kohlrieser, George, 1944, Coombe, Duncan, 1972, Goldsworthy, Susan, 1960

Care to dare : unleashing astonishing potential through secure base leadership / by George Kohlrieser, Susan Goldsworthy, Duncan Coombe.

p. cm.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN 978-1-119-96157-4

1. Leadership. 2. Attachment behavior. I. Goldsworthy, Susan. II. Coombe, Duncan. III. Title.

HD57.7.K645 2012

303.3'4dc23

2012012433

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 978-1-119-96157-4 (hbk) ISBN 978-1-118-36127-6 (ebk)

ISBN 978-1-118-36126-9 (ebk) ISBN 978-1-118-36128-3 (ebk)

To the young people in my lifePaul, Andrew, Ben and Lilywho keep me inspired and represent the Secure Base Leaders of the future. Our world needs you.