Introduction chapter 1

Max Baumann has made it: he's the branch manager of a construction company. But although he has finally reached this important milestone, he's not as happy as he expected.

As a branch manager, he now has his own area of responsibility - with 35 employees, an assistant, and his own profit center. No one interferes with his decisions anymore. However, he soon realizes that he's now working 55 hours a week. The work never seems to end. New problems constantly land on his desk. It's not that he doesn't know how to solve them, but it's simply too much.

Max Baumann starts having conflicts with his wife: he only sees his children on weekends. He often comes home late - sometimes even after dinner. His family life is strained. When one of his key employees becomes a father and applies for parental leave, Max doesn't know how to compensate for the absence. He realizes he'll probably need to start coming into the office even earlier...

His wife gives him an ultimatum to change something, so Max decides to seek the help of a coach.

In their first session, the coach asks him to write down everything he does each day. The subsequent analysis reveals that Max Baumann feels responsible for everything, which results in no one else in his branch feeling the need to take responsibility.

"But I keep telling them how to do things - three, even four times! No one here thinks for themselves. No one makes independent decisions! I have to control everything!"

By the end of this first coaching session, Max Baumann realizes that doing more of the same won't bring change. He has been acting as an expert, constantly telling his employees how things should be done. What he hasn't been doing, however, is providing leadership.

Max Baumann recognizes that he's only managing - keeping the business running at his own expense and at the cost of his employees' motivation. That's why he decides to learn how to lead. He wants to change his leadership behavior so that his employees start thinking for themselves, contribute actively, and even make independent decisions.

This vision motivates him to take the next step: to present himself to his employees as a leader instead of an expert. This idea inspires him. And this feeling is so uplifting that it sparks new ideas and the motivation to implement them. From now on, he wants to be an inspiring leader!