About the Author

STEVE ARNESON has a passion for leadership and for helping leaders on their journey of exploration and discovery. He believes the best leaders are those that constantly strive to improve—they understand that leading others is a privilege and continuously learn, solicit feedback, and work on their game. This book is about that journey of leadership self-development.

Steve developed his interest in leadership at an early age, playing team sports. He noticed that certain coaches made a difference in his performance; he worked harder for coaches who took a personal interest in him and cared about his development as a player, and he never forgot what it felt like to work for a coach who put the team and his players ahead of his own goals.

As he moved into the workforce, Steve began to experience a different kind of leadership that comes with a relentless pursuit of business results. Steve started to collect examples of leadership that either enabled or derailed a winning team effort. After receiving his doctorate in organizational psychology, he spent the first nine years of his career as a consultant, helping leaders understand their strengths and weaknesses. Steve saw firsthand the power of leading from the heart and how a leader’s own passion for continuous improvement often made the difference in how others experienced their leadership.

In 1996, Steve moved to PepsiCo, which has a well-earned reputation for leadership development. Steve continued to work with leaders and soon discovered the power of leveraging a corporate culture that demanded leadership excellence. He also learned how important it is to have senior leaders who are willing to role model a development mindset. Continuing his career as the head of Leadership Development at America Online and later at Time Warner Cable, Steve began to formulate many of the self-development ideas contained in this book. Through challenging crucibles such as the AOL–Time Warner merger, he helped leaders realize their potential, encouraging managers at all levels to “raise their game” in order to provide their teams with even more effective leadership.

As the head of Executive Talent Management at Capital One, Steve and his team built a number of award-winning leadership programs and were twice named to Fortune magazine’s “Top 20 Companies for Leaders” list. Steve and his team leveraged a strong culture of learning and development to found Capital One University, which routinely finished in the top twenty-five of Training magazine’s annual rankings. Throughout his tenure at Capital One, Steve coached and mentored senior leaders, using many of the development techniques outlined in the book.

Steve founded Arneson Leadership Consulting in 2007 and currently works with large and mid-sized companies around the world as an executive coach and as a designer and facilitator of leadership development programs and talent management strategies. Steve brings a practical approach to his work and believes that values-driven leadership is the key ingredient for a successful organization.

Steve speaks regularly on the subjects of leadership and talent management and writes a national leadership column at www.examiner.com. Steve was named one of America’s “Top 100 Thought Leaders on Leadership” and one of the country’s “Top 25 Leadership Coaches” in 2008–2009 by Leadership Excellence magazine. Steve lives with his family in Northern Virginia. You can visit his Web sites at www.arnesonleadership.com or bootstrapleadership.net.