Why I’m Writing a New Book without Optimism but with Hope

Have you heard the inane platitude that hope is not a strategy? You might even have heard it from leaders where you work.

Fair enough. But without hope, even the most brilliant strategy is doomed to failure. For leaders in turbulent times, building hope should be strategy #1.

Hope is not the same as optimism. Optimism requires evidence. Hope requires faith.

The less reason there is for optimism, the more urgent is the need for hope.

The darker the present reality, the more important it is for leaders to kindle the glimmer of hope for a brighter future.

I’ve just started working on a new book about one of the most polarizing issues dividing our nation today.

 I’m not writing it because I’m optimistic it will change anyone’s minds. I doubt it will.

I’m writing it because I’m hopeful it will open people’s eyes.

I’m writing it to counter pessimism, including my own, that anything can be done to bridge a cavernous divide that has become the source of so much hatred and acrimony

I’m writing this book to sustain my own hope, and in hopes of sparking hope in others.

I’m writing it because there is no such thing as false hope.