The Journey of the Accidental Leader By Steve Gladis, PhD You re looking around for a leader someone else to take charge when the responsibility to take action falls upon you. Here s a fictional story that will ensure you re up to the challenge of unexpectedly becoming a leader. This business parable describes an untimely death and the journey of the leader suddenly put in charge of a company. The story demonstrates some of the leadership lessons the author learned while with an organization that has trained some of the nation s most successful leaders the United States Marine Corps. In 10 chapters, Dr. Gladis elaborates on the meaning of these important lessons: ?¡¤ No one knows what they re doing until the try. ?¡¤ You get what you give. ?¡¤ Build trust by character, competence, caring, commitment and consistency. ?¡¤ Change isn t easy. But if you do it right, everyone wins. ?¡¤ You have to have a vision to make it comes true. ?¡¤ To create a positive culture, show people by your actions what you believe in don t just tell them. ?¡¤ Leadership is all about courage. ?¡¤ The long march begins with the first bold step. ?¡¤ Change will happen embrace it by sticking to your principles. ?¡¤ Leaders have a passion for people. Inspirational and motivational, this engaging story is full of insight and perspectives that will pave the way for both current and future accidental leaders.