Introducing the topic of intentional leadership -- A narrative review of the leadership literature -- Pope Francis: the courage to interrupt -- Staying awake: the courage to live a wakeful life -- Barack Obama: hope and the promise of a new day -- The courage to act out of imagination -- Deutero-learning model for real change -- Looking back, staying present, moving ahead.

This book provides a framework for guiding leaders to shift from linear, cause-effect thinking to an ecology of moral, intentional leadership, paying attention to how their actions are connected to others. Readers are encouraged to act in a determined, deliberate way to lead their employees, teams, and organizations to success.

The book is divided into three parts, opening with a narrative review of leadership literature, then discussing the activities of 11 leaders―including Pope Francis, Barack Obama, and Lee Kuan Yew―and developing a learning framework for real change. The author provides an enlightened, democratic model of leadership, helping readers to understand and utilize the core competencies of intentional leaders: interruption, presence, imagination, and action. A user-friendly structure, examples from diverse leaders, and end-of-chapter summaries encourage students to engage and experiment with traditional research and alternative theories.