Bill Treasurer - A Leadership Kick in the Ass: How to Learn from Rough Landings, Blunders, and Missteps

More Praise for A Leadership Kick in the Ass

Bill Treasurer offers tips from the trenches on how leaders can recover from failure, rejection, and embarrassmentand he manages to make it sound like fun. If youve ever been accused of taking yourself too seriously, this book may be an antidote.

Adam Grant, Wharton Professor and New York Times bestselling author of Originals and Give and Take

This books title may have grabbed your attention, but its core topicthe human egois dear to my heart. Using candor and humor in equal measure, Bill Treasurer gets real about the leadership advantages of what Ill just call effective redirection. Ha! This book is not just a fun readits a wake-up call for leaders at every level.

Ken Blanchard, coauthor of The New One Minute Manager and Collaboration Begins with You

Failure may not be fun, but as Treasurer has proven in his rich, in-the-trenches experience in business, you can learn more from one failure than from untold wins. A Leadership Kick in the Ass is exactly what you need to pick yourself up, find out what went wrong, and move on, smarter and stronger than ever!

Marshall Goldsmith, Thinkers50 #1 Leadership Thinker in the World

A Leadership Kick in the Ass is, at its core, about two essential human virtuescourage and humilityand a reminder that these two qualities are inextricably linked. Bill Treasurer shows us that it takes a lot of courage to open yourself up to honest feedback from others and how that openness enables you to become more grounded, more aware, more confident, and more caring. At times Bill is highly irreverent and cheeky, but hes always deeply caring and respectful of the difficult challenges leaders face. And Bill does not simply render critiques; every step of the way he offers insightful and practical advice on how you can lead with your best self. Through stories from his personal and coaching experiences, Bill reveals the transformative power of the courage to be human. This is one of the most unique and valuable books you will read all year, and I highly recommend it.

Jim Kouzes, coauthor of the bestselling and award-winning The Leadership Challenge and Deans Executive Fellow of Leadership, Leavey School of Business, Santa Clara University

Bill artfully describes the harsh, if somewhat humbling, reality that leaders do learn some of the most valuable lessons through messups! The approach Bill uses in taking the reader through poignant examples while offering guidance to seize learning opportunities as they occur is but one of the elements that combine to make this a great read!

Mark Brashear, CEO, John Varvatos

Bill Treasurers over two decades of experience working with leaders comes shining through in this must-read book for all leaders. Bills no-nonsense approach to calling it as it is, and getting us as leaders to truly look at ourselves with all our pimples and warts, is a refreshing and necessary, albeit sometimes hard, dose of reality we must be willing to face if we truly want to be the best leaders we can. Bills insights, examples, and action plans throughout the book will help all leaders who have the courage to choose to be better!

Jeff Hayes, President and CEO, CPP, Inc.

Bill has taken one heck of a touchy topic and motivates us to read about our foibles and imperfections. Then he has the audacity to challenge us to be better leaders! With just the right amount of advice added to powerful stories, Bill encourages us to be the best leaders we were meant to be.

Elaine Biech, author of Training and Development for Dummies

Bill really delivers with this booka strong message, great storytelling, and lessons that make us take that hard look in the mirror leading to a more authentic self. Finding and leading from this position will undoubtedly bear fruit for readers of this book.

Chris Maslin, Director, Biltmore Center for Professional Development

Leaders make mistakes. Learning from those mistakes and growing takes courage and humility. For over a decade Bill Treasurer has helped shape our future leaders with his candid, courageous style of training. A Leadership Kick in the Ass lights the path to confident, courageous, and inner-centered leadership. I highly recommend this book.

Matthew Walsh, Cochairman, The Walsh Group

Bill Treasurer reminds us that every leader is flawed. Every leader can improve, learn new lessons, and make different choices. He doesnt let his readers get stale as leaders. His style is warm yet confrontative. A winning combination for real growth.

Beverly Kaye, founder and Chair, Career Systems International, and coauthor of Love Em or Lose Em and Help Them Grow or Watch Them Go

Bill Treasurer provides proven tools and processes for managers at every phase of their career to grow and thrive in the midst of their biggest disappointments. A must-read if youre serious about improving your leadership.

Karin Hurt, coauthor of Winning Well

The greatest lessons in life dont come from success. They come from our missteps, setbacks, and screw-ups. This book will help you turn them into invaluable lessons that youll one day look back on with gratitude for all they taught you. An invaluable resource for any person who wants to be a truly extraordinary leader.

Margie Warrell, bestselling author of Stop Playing Safe

This is a practical book; if you are a leader who hasnt made some big mistakes, you likely arent leading. This book will help you understand the cause of some mistakes and more importantly help you learn from them. This is a thought-provoking book too; it helps unravel the balance between confidence and humilityan important balance to consider. Its time to start reading.

Kevin Eikenberry, bestselling author of Remarkable Leadership

Bill Treasurer offers a valuable guide to leadership through a series of humorous and honest examples, proving that failures are sometimes the most instrumental lessons on the road to success. Whether youre just getting started in your career or are an established executive, A Leadership Kick in the Ass is a pivotal read for anyone who aims to excel as a leader.

Pierre Naud, CEO, nCino

Bills book helps you reframe lifes defeats in a way that builds your compassion, your humility, and most importantly, your capacity to get the best out of those that you lead.

Conor Neill, Professor, IESE Business School, and Past Area Director, Entrepreneurs Organization

As in Courage Goes to Work, once again Bill Treasurer demystifies a nebulous concept into practical terms. In his newest book, he brings this same level of clarity to confidence and humility, a dynamic tension that effective leaders face. He offers practical insights from real leaders mistakes, straightforward guidance, and thoughtful reflection. A humorous read on a serious topic that can provide readers with a jolt out of cruise control.

Julia Urbanchuk, Senior Director, Global Talent & Organization Development, eBay

A Leadership Kick in the Ass

Other Works by Bill Treasurer

Leaders Open Doors (ATSD, 2014)

Courage Goes to Work

Courageous Leadership:

A Program for Using Courage to Transform the

Workplace (Pfeiffer, 2011)

Positively M.A.D. (Making a Difference)

Right Risk