Leadership in Unexpected Places: The Extraordinary Power of Ordinary People

What if the best leadership lessons don’t come from CEOs, politicians, all-star athletes, or celebrities—but from people you’ve never heard of?

Leadership in Unexpected Places goes beyond the usual big names you see online—the ones everyone posts about—and instead shares stories you likely haven’t heard but won’t soon forget. Each one offers inspiration, along with practical lessons you can apply to develop your own leadership style.

You’ll read about:
- The man who volunteered to be imprisoned in a notorious Nazi concentration camp, Auschwitz, and led a secret resistance by using fake carpentry skills and even lice to torment his captors.
- The hidden biases that cause us to follow the wrong leaders—and how to find better ones.
- How a small-town firefighter knew exactly when to call “Mayday” to save a trapped colleague inside a burning house.
- An inner-city chess team and their determined coaches who defied expectations and won a national championship.
- The psychology behind why authenticity and reliability—not fame or charisma—are the real foundations of leadership.
- A young woman who learned to swim with a rope tied around her waist and went on to shatter expectations (and maybe invented the bikini and a new type of swim goggles along the way).

If you’ve ever wondered what kind of leader you want to be—or doubted you’re “ready” to lead—these stories will show you that real leadership starts with character, not a title.

When it’s time to lead, don’t look up. Look around. You’ll find leadership in unexpected places—and extraordinary power in ordinary people.