ABOUT THE BOOK
It’s time for change – we all agree.
We’re often faced with making difficult decisions in life and business – having to choose the right path for greater impact, influence and positive transformation.
Purpose is the answer.
The topic of purpose in our exponential and digital world is in high demand today. We strongly believe it’s very personal and unique. Purpose is both, a personal North Star and compass as well as an essential guide for businesses driving for success for all stakeholders.
To become the kind of leaders we so urgently need, we first must look within ourselves – explore, heal and transform ourselves – to then change the outside world for the greater good.
22 authentic and bold stories are here to inspire you to look deeper and find your path to living a life with purpose. These 22 authors, connected by the Oxford Leadership network, have made this purposeful journey themselves and have carried that experience into their work with thousands of leaders around the globe.
Oxford Leadership is a global cooperative leadership consultancy that has been committed to transforming leaders of Fortune 500 companies for good for over 20 years.
We now invite you to join us on the same tangible and exciting journey.
To live a more purposeful life is the key to thriving personally. It furthermore has the power to transform leadership and business into a force for the greater good and for a healthier planet.
How Decisions in Life are Shaping
Leadership Journeys with
PURPOSE
22 Authentic and Bold Stories to inspire you to
lead a life and business on purpose.
… and many more!
The Spark
There’s a saying that 7 people around the world have the same brilliant idea at the same time. Only those who are crazy enough and brave enough to act on this spark while including others in the process are innovative enough to bring their ideas to reality. This was certainly the case in the creation of this book.
I was inspired to bring people around the world together to share their deep authentic stories about how purpose became their driver in life and business.
My vision was to create a book that empowers, encourages and invites leaders – and by leaders I mean everyone, not just by position but by mindset – to look beyond the obvious, to drive change for the greater good and, last but not least, live an authentic and self-actualized life.
There was no question about who I wanted to do this with: my colleagues and friends of the Oxford Leadership community. I’m grateful beyond words that many of them said yes to my crazy idea and started creating with me.
The book you are holding in your hands is not meant to be a lecturing book nor a sales pitch. Rather, it‘s a collection of authentic, bold and often vulnerable personal stories – all with an individual perspective and experience.
Herein you’ll find 22 stories – some you may relate to more than others. Perhaps some of the stories will inspire you to reflect in ways that are surprising. Our intention was to move you through the sharing of our individual personal stories – regardless of the direction in which it takes you.
“The book you are holding in your hands is not meant to be a lecturing book nor a sales pitch. Rather, it’s a collection of authentic, bold and often vulnerable personal stories – all with an individual perspective and experience.”
The book might help you find answers to questions you may have such as
• What impact can a purpose have on me and society?
• Why do purpose-driven companies perform better?
• Where does purpose come from?
• How does purpose influence my life?
• How do I even find my purpose?
• Why do we as leaders need to reflect on purpose anyway?
You might feel inspired and uplifted. You may even find answers to questions you never considered before.
What unites us within the Oxford Leadership
community is that we don’t think of ourselves as working for a ‚company‘ just to earn a paycheck – rather, a purpose to be aligned with. We all share a common purpose at Oxford Leadership to ‚Transform Leaders for Good‘. And even though we are all independent, this is what brought us together through the years for clients all over the world.
Throughout our personal development and growth journeys, we’ve all experienced the power to start within. Self-mastery of emotions, thoughts, vision, values, barriers, and purpose is the key to greater impact. This is what the world needs – leaders who become conscious and alive to powerfully use their influence to make an impact for the greater good – for the people they lead and the society they touch.
Staying true to your purpose and bringing a
vision into the world isn‘t always easy. Sometimes you need to lean in even further, face the shadows, describe an outcome you don‘t even know yet, or convince people beyond people beyond some present context.
My vision became our vision and thus came alive. I am deeply grateful for every contribution … for every one of the dearest authors, muses, vision givers and storytellers who said yes and went the extra mile to put their purpose into writing.
Ecosystems such as the one from Oxford Leadership are more likely to survive the future – because they share, contribute, support, expand, adapt and cherish their relationships. They fly freely – connected by a deeper purpose. Isn’t this the superpower of the 21st century?
I believe in the collective – with each individual making the whole complete. The world will be healthier with individuals and companies who are driven by a purpose higher than themselves. Leaders are not those who are defined by their titles but rather by a mindset that will challenge the status quo to create new solutions. I believe business is the driving force for creating a society where everyone can thrive. Purpose is giving us an innate superpower to go this extra mile, not for personal benefit but for the greater good.
May you gain great insights inspired by our stories and the love between the lines.
In gratitude,
Eve Simon
Curator of the PURPOSE book
"This book is full of honest, heart-revealing, and powerful stories about people who have found gifts to share out of their own personal challenges and grief. I am so grateful that I listened in to their voices. As a writer, I will reflect on their wisdom and courage for a long time to come."
„PURPOSE is a refreshing book containing resonating stories – illuminating thought-provoking and heartfelt transformative experiences around reaching that place where one can align core beliefs with the workplace for a better fit and emotional happiness. Moreover, it reminds us as leaders to be conscious of those around us to ensure they’re able to be in that place as well.“
„Talking about purpose is easy. Sure, we all want it – but how do we actually find ours? Be inspired by the 22 deeply personal stories of how finding a purpose transformed the authors’ lives. Find yourself in their stories. Read this gem of a book, and you will instantly look at your own purpose through a fresh lens. Powerful!“
„We climb highest when we have let go of what we do not need. From these authors’ examples, we learn how to discard our misconceptions, travel light and reach our goal."
"Higher, faster, further, better! More and more we are driven by such demands. By third parties to us, but also by ourselves. But what really matters? What really drives us to more value? No matter whether it's corporate value or personal, individual value. This book about purpose with 22 real-life stories curated by Eve is more than a valuable guideline for personal reflection. Especially for us as managers who have to deal with the ever faster turning world. Purpose matters! It is the way to more success and quality of life. For each individual and for each of our stakeholders."
"Where is the energy coming from to do the extraordinary? To lead your team to reach the targets and go further when things get challenging? I‘ve learned what a powerful enabler purpose is. This book allows you to see the multitude of solutions, showcased by various viewpoints and experiences."
"This book underlines the urgency to put purpose in leadership at the forefront again, I was particularly touched by the personal stories. Authors show how purpose can be hidden and rediscovered. To embrace help and support from others because we don't always have to invent the wheels ourselves."
THE AUTHORS
Abby Barton
ICF PCC Executive Coach and
Leadership Consultant
Agneta Dieden
Authentic Leadership
Leadership Development
Executive Coaching
Andrew Cohn
President Lighthouse Consulting
Counselor and consultant to
leaders and business
organizations
Ann-Sofie Ellefors
Ellefors Leadership, Executive Coach and Business teacher
Graham Bird
Leadership Consultant
Jean-Christophe Normand
Professor in Management & Leadership for Church functions, Founder of RH-INC
Karin Verhaest
Executive Coach, Leadership Consultant
Lasse Wrennmark
Founding Trustee Oxford Leadership
Purpose-Driven Leadership
Simone Alz
Coaching & Management Consulting Psychologist, CPCC
Shuntian Yao
Co-Founder & Chief Trainer at Beijing Soulight Cultural Communication Ltd. Co.
Xavier Bertrand
Founder Nayanam SAS
Core Group Partner
Artur Chernikau
Leadership Coach (PCC)
at TeamLead
Dr. Erika Kleestorfer
Entrepreneur, Leadership Expert/Coach
Fredrik Lyhagen
Leadership Consultant
Facilitator and Executive Coach
Hans Veenman
Facilitator and Coach
Kristina Zumpolle Flodin
Founder of Zumflow
Leadership Development
Michele Scott
Client Services Director at Oxford Leadership
Mikaela Nyström
Managing Director and Owner of 4L.com
Dr. Marion Bourgeois
Excellence Coach &
Top-Speaker
Conclusion by Cyril Legrand
Founding Trustee &
Chief Executive Officer at Oxford Leadership
Eve Simon
Expert in Leadership Transformation
Igniter for Innovation and Inclusion
Curator of this book.
Monika Jankowska
Leadership Coach at Lead InNow
Carl Lindeborg
Founder of Leader Evolve
Catalyst for Future Proof Leadership
Download a
Sneak Peak:
Register for free to download the preview sample (PDF) complete with cover artwork, table contents and several sample pages.
A Higher Cause
Our mission is to make the world a better place by inspiring leaders to transform themselves and their entities into a force for good.
For that, this book was not intended to be a profit source for us, but to share our stories, our path and beliefs to inspire you.
Therefore, the profit of this book will go to a non-profit which plants trees for an environmental impact such as reforesting the Amazon.
We believe in the urgency of major forest restoration effort. Trees provide so many benefits to our everyday lives. They filter clean air, provide fresh drinking water, help curb climate change, and create homes for thousands of species of plants and animals around the globe.
Planting trees will help save the Earth. We know we can do it by inspiring you. Enjoy the journey to finding your purpose.
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