Jodi Kantor of the New York Times once told me, “The first place I go in a book is to the Acknowledgments section.”
Me too—so here goes.
To Clayton Christensen—thank you for the opportunity and privilege of working with and learning from you for nearly a decade—you inspired me to write this book. You inspire me to be a better person.
Thank you to Erika Heilman and Melinda Merino for championing this new edition. After a long journey that began with an article in Harvard Business Review (thanks to Sarah Green Carmichael and Alison Beard), these ideas have come home; this book is right where it should be. A big shout-out to Scott Berinato, Anne Starr, Stephani Finks, Julie Devoll, Felicia Sinusas, and Sally Ashworth––it is a pleasure and delight to work with you.
A huge debt of gratitude to my business partner, Amy Humble, for bringing this edition to life. You have a brilliant strategic mind––and you always see the glass as half full—that is a gift. Thank you to editors Amy Jameson and Heather Hunt––you are indispensable, alternatively editors, therapists, and cheerleaders. To Sarah Green Carmichael, my former editor at Harvard Business Review, I am continually in awe of your deft editorial touch. Thank you to David Wan and Eric Hellweg for taking a chance on an unproven writer.
To Juan C. Méndez, how I loved collaborating with you. Thank you for helping me apply the S-curve to personal disruption. Stephanie Plamondon Bair, I am so appreciative that you were willing to share your expertise in neuroscience.
To Macy Robison: for you, everything is “figure-outable” when it comes to marketing and branding, whether it’s producing the Disrupt Yourself podcast, launching a book, showing up on social media, or developing our website. Your talents appear neverending. Thank you to Brandon Jameson; I love the graphics that grace these pages. You always bring my ideas to life, better than I could have imagined.
A big thank you to the WLJ Advisors A-Team––Whitney Amaro, Jennifer Brotherson, Emilie Davis, Brigham Doxey, Sarah Duran, Christine Goodwin, Whitney Jobe, Miranda Johnson, Mark Matheson, Richard Miller, Libby Newman, Brian Rhea, Kristen Robbins, Melissa Rutty, Heather Schafer, Corey Smith, Tim Weeks, and Nancy Wilson.
Huge appreciation to Brandon Rodman and the Weave team, and to Scott Pulsipher and the team at Western Governors University for your commitment to surfing the S-Curve of Learning. It’s an honor and delight to partner with you.
Thank you to mentors Marshall Goldsmith, Alan Mulally, Scott Osman, Tom Peters, Bob Proctor, Garry Ridge, and Jesse Lyn Stoner––the lives you have changed number in the millions, including mine.
Thank you again to all of you involved in the first edition: Jill Friedlander, Erika Heilman, Shevaun Betzler, Alicia Simons, Sue Ramin, and the entire Bibliomotion team for your professionalism: you were what every publisher should be. Appreciation to Josh Getzler for your great advice, and to Amy Gray for your kind, caring, and calm chearleading as I got started speaking. Thank you to Becky Robinson for being so excited about evangelizing Disrupt Yourself—I loved working with you.
To those who were willing to endorse this book, I am deeply indebted, and to the many readers of Build an A-Team; Dare, Dream, Do; and our weekly newsletter––you made this book possible.
Finally, to my husband, Roger; my children, David and Miranda; my many dear friends (you know who you are!); and to God, thank you for gently encouraging me to always, always, always show up.