“Thompson rolls up his sleeves and provides managers a vision and road map to inspire organizational change and personal success.”
–Chris Gorog, Chairman & CEO Napster
THE BUSINESS BOOK FOR THE REST OF US
Ah, the life of a manager. You’re squeezed between the needs of your corporation, your team, your customers, and your colleagues. Whatever your day-to-day realities, you can achieve far greater power, purpose, and success–Ignited will show you how.
“With a real-world view of what it's like to lead in limited space, Thompson shows middle managers how to access their true power and purpose to achieve the work life they've always dreamed of. This book really delivers on its promise to Ignite the magnificence of all.”
–Ken Blanchard, coauthor of The One Minute Manager ® and Leading at a Higher Level
“Brilliant; this is the best management book of the year. Jammed with vital takeaway value for managers, it should also be required reading and a sobering look-in-the-mirror for every business owner and CEO. This breakthrough work absolutely sparkles!”
–Jason Jennings, bestselling author of It’s Not the Big That Eat the Small–It’s the Fast That Eat the Slow, Less Is More, and Think Big–ACT Small
“Ignited speaks to managers in a way that I’ve seen no other business book do before. With sharp insights and an authentic understanding of our roles, Thompson demonstrates how managers can create the future. With Ignited you’ll get the big ideas that spark as well as the fuel to get you there.”
–Brad Simmons, Senior Director Partnership Marketing, Experian
“Like a demolition expert, Thompson craftfully implodes America's old school management chain and shines the light on the hero in American business: the Manager. I was amazed at the immediacy in which you can apply the information in Ignited! Read this book and re-light the fire in your career, your company, and with everyone you come into contact with.”
–W. Grant Eppler, Divisional Sales Manager–West, Heinz―Portion Pac
“If you want to change the world, you've gotta take a stand. With Ignited Vince Thompson does just that, showing managers how, in this time of reinvention and chaos, they can rise above the constraints to put the heart and soul back into business. This book and its lessons have the power to change your life and propel your career. Read it, Live it, and Be Ignited!”
–Erin Brockovich, Advocate, Author, and Speaker
More Power, More Purpose, and More Success for Managers
Have you ever been maligned, misunderstood, downsized, reengineered, reorganized, or even misled? Even in the best organizations, you face brutal competition, non-stop pressure, and relentless change.
Ignited reveals the gathering forces that will offer you unprecedented opportunities to reshape your career and organization. It outlines clear, realistic steps for leveraging your networks and resources to transform your vision into reality, and accomplish powerful goals only you can achieve. This is not another diatribe on leadership or grand strategic vision written by those already at the top: the Jack Welches or Rudy Giulianis who can simply dictate their visions to the organization. Ignited is for those leading from the middle: managers who need real tools to make a real difference. If you’re ready to take back your business, your career, and your life, Ignited is for you.
More Power
- Learn how to lead in a limited space
- Power up your network, expand your influence
- Overcome the traps of time, powerlessness, and negative emotions
- Drive meaningful strategic change across your company and industry
More Purpose
- Harness the power of seven key ignition points for achieving your highest purpose
- Accomplish the powerful goals you’re uniquely positioned to achieve
- Master the new roles of linkmaker, process master, pilot, healer, bard, scout, and translator
- Connect your personal passions with your company’s goals
More Success
- Master a system for selling your vision, and succeeding with the projects you’re most passionate about
- Live your best life, not just your company’s
INTRODUCTION: LIVING IN QUAKE COUNTRY 1
BASE CAMP: THE IGNITED QUIZ 13
Part I GET MORE POWER
1 ACTION WITH TRACTION 19
2 THE MANAGER’S UNIVERSE 39
3 LEADERSHIP IN LIMITED SPACE 57
4 MANAGING YOUR EMOTIONS 79
5 THE DEADLY LACK OF EMPOWERMENT TRAP 97
Part II GET MORE PURPOSE
6 IGNITION POINT 1: THE PROCESS 117
7 IGNITION POINT 2: THE PEOPLE 137
8 IGNITION POINT 3: THE MESSAGE 153
9 IGNITION POINT 4: THE LANDSCAPE 167
10 IGNITION POINT 5: THE STRATEGY 187
11 IGNITON POINT 6: THE STORY 207
12 IGNITION POINT 7: THE SPIRIT 227
Part III GET MORE SUCCESS
13 SELLING FROM THE FULCRUM 247
14 YOUR OWN SENSE OF BALANCE 271
INDEX 281
VINCE THOMPSON, principal at Middleshift Consulting, works with Internet companies to design world-class online marketing solutions and build sales organizations empowering those in the middle. His clients include Napster, StarStyle.com, and Break.com.
Thompson has spent 15 years as a middle manager leading teams in challenging industries and hotbeds for learning: first in restaurants, then in television, and now in the Internet business. He spent seven years as Regional Vice President of Sales for America Online. There, he designed AOL’s sales training organization, managed teams in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Dulles, VA; and served as Regional Vice President of AOL’s Southwestern Region, where his teams led AOL's West Coast Entertainment and Auto relationships.
He is a featured online expert in the Quantum Sales Training Series, has spoken widely on online advertising, and has contributed to the Iowa Press textbook Media Selling.
Thompson holds an undergraduate degree in Communications from the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School of Communications, and an MBA from Pepperdine University. He lives in Los Angeles, California with his wife and two daughters.
To learn more about Vince Thompson and the community of Ignited managers, visit www.BeIgnited.com.
