Phil јohnson (Dr.) - Lead Like a Heretic : How to Challenge the Status Quo - and Thrive

Lead Like A Heretic

Copyright (c) 2017 by Dr. Phil Johnson

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, except as may be expressly permitted in writing from the publisher or the author.

Promontory Press

www.promontorypress.com

ISBN:

978-1-987857-63-4 (paperback)

978-1-987857-93-1 (hardcover)

Typeset by Edge of Water Designs, edgeofwater.com

Cover design by Amy Cole of JPL Design Solutions

Printed in Canada

987654321

To

My Mother

Mary Ann Sawyer Johnson

December 5, 1908 - June 19, 1955

who instilled in me the heart, mind and soul
of a gracious, bold and compassionate heretic.
The future, she daily reminded me,
is as bright as the promises of God.

Blessing and love,
Philip Ernest

PRAISE FOR DR. PHIL JOHNSON

Phil Johnson walks his talk, and has spent his lifes journey smiling and serving more than any other human being I have come across, with humor, humility, generosity, personal sacrifice and a great measure of surprise and constructive disruption. (He once, literally, gave me the shirt off his back because I liked it!) For all the decades I have known him, his passion for servant leadership is unmistakable and unequaled. If you are looking to find inspiration in a message about what leadership could and should be, this is a must read!

~ Edie Weiner, President & CEO, The Future Hunters

I couldnt put Phil Johnsons book down. It is a full education on the problems of the world and the roles that caring people can play to improve the lives of other members of the human family. Phil is passionate and inspiring about helping others and shows you how to do it. As an author of Up and Out of Poverty, I couldnt help but think that Phil Johnson is the Good Samaritan role model for the spirit and passion needed to lift countless millions out of poverty.

~ Philip Kotler, Professor of International Marketing, Northwestern University

Dr. Phil Johnsons tested seven-step guide to becoming a Compassionate Conspirator enables readers to transform the human family by the power of compassion.

~ Bob Danzig, former President, Hearst Newspapers

That our world is seriously sick is a foregone conclusion. With timely insight, modeling, reflection and direction, Dr. Johnson points us to three things on the pathway toward healing - hope, health and harmony. Soulwise is a masterpiece - a must read for all who seek to make our world a better place.

~ Dr. Peter Okaalet, Africa Director, Medical Assistance Programs International

Dr. Phil Johnson is an intellectual who truly speaks from the heart. If you want to change the world and dont know where to start, this book will show you how.

Barbara Pietrangelo, Executive Board Member, Million Dollar Round Table

Phil Johnson wants to change the world, promoting hope to counteract the cynicism of our time. He believes spiritual renewal is essential for a harmonious world.

~ Tony Campolo, Professor of Sociology, Eastern University

This warm, compassionate, compelling book is a paean to hope - to its power to both inspire and save. Phil Johnson shows by his own extraordinary life what people, individually and collectively, can do to make a better world.

~ Arnold Brown, Futurist, coauthor of FutureThink

Soulwise is packed with hope and possibilities for those who desire to make a difference. It offers leaders around the world a road map to significance and life-changing results.

~ Ron Tschetter, former Director, United States Peace Corps

Soulwise is a rich compendium of actions needed to alleviate the worlds woes, written by a wise and loving man whose life has been devoted to helping others. This book will awaken you to the possibilities of human potential.

~ William E. Halal, Professor of Management, George Washington University

Phil Johnson writes for the sake of action and change. Readers cannot just read, but must face up to doing, living and growing. Phil forces this confrontation: the world is not getting on so well, and you and I can do something about that.

Mark Fackler, Professor of Communication, Calvin College

Part One
The Heretic: A Profile

Part Two
Lead Like A Heretic: Engage

Part Three
Lead Like A Heretic: Energize

Part Four
Lead Like A Heretic: Empower

D r. Phil Johnson has written a book for our time.

With our world changing lightning fast because of technology, we need leaders today to rethink routine, push the envelope, question the status quo and help set our minds and hearts on fire with motivation.

So read Lead Like A Heretic. Like oxygen to a flame, it can become a beacon to help light your way. It engages, encourages and gives us hope for a better tomorrow by showing us how many courageous souls have challenged - and improved - the world around them.

And thus, they can help challenge us. They are, in Dr. Johnsons words, heretics.

They are the heroes, models and mentors that I tell our students at High Point University to emulate. I want our students to study, read and walk hand-in-hand with such people so they can realize their full potential, become who they want to be and make our world a better place.

I believe there is no more beautiful reason to live than that - to use our talents to improve our community, our home, and plant seeds of greatness in the lives of those around us. Dr. Johnson believes that, too.

I know him from our speaking world. For Valentines Day, I once sent him a 10-pound chocolate bar to show my gratitude for his friendship, and from Lead Like A Heretic, I understand he shared a half-pound of that bar with twenty of his friends. I understand they loved it.

But 10 pounds of chocolate was my way of showing appreciation. At High Point University, in the life-skills seminars I teach to seniors and first-year students, I tell them you need to leave what I call a trail of tangibles to show those around you that you appreciate them for who they are.

Plus, we all love chocolate, dont we? But we also love a good story. Thats what youll find in the pages of the book you now hold in your hands.

Dr. Johnson brings together popular culture and solid leadership theory to illustrate the importance of this African proverb: For tomorrow belongs to the people who prepare for it today.

His book couldnt come at a better time.

We have leaders today who can answer questions, but dont know how to ask them. They can fulfill goals, but they dont know how to set them. They know how to get things done, but they dont know whether its worth doing in the first place.

Meanwhile, our schools and universities nationwide dont teach what Dr. Johnson calls the entrepreneurial spirit. They dont inspire students to be job creators and calculated risk-takers open to asking and answering the question, What if?

We do that at High Point University. We prepare our students for a world where change is constant, and once they graduate, theyre ready to take on a world as its going to be.