Message from Sam, 11/27/2024

Of course, the world has changed dramatically since the 1st edition of Work was published in 2008. In this updated-for-2025 edition, I’ve made the book easier to read and understand, added new insights, and addressed the economic/social earthquakes of the last five years.

Yet, the “systems mindset” remains the focus. I want you to “get it.”

Bricks and mortar, virtual, retail, construction, service and/or product producer; owner-operated—large or small staff—it doesn’t matter. Whatever your business type (presuming the product or service is useful in the marketplace), dysfunction has its roots in this foundational weakness: a fire-killing, non-systematic approach by the leader. The systems mindset is utterly logical and believable, a deeper vision of how a business—and a life—mechanically unfolds.

(If you don’t operate a business, consider my other book, The Systems Mindset, which takes precisely the same approach but is aimed at those who don’t operate a business).

Yes, for any endeavor’s success, including a life well-lived, leadership IS everything.

The systems mindset epiphany will occur for you in a single identifiable moment, never to fade. Suddenly, with this dramatically more accurate “one layer deeper” view, underlying system processes are starkly revealed, and subsequent real-life mechanical actions will be obvious. It’s not about learning something new. It’s about acquiring a more precise view of how the sights, sounds, and events of your business and your life operate. Part One of the book will guide you to this exciting epiphany.

From that point forward, life’s mechanics will make sense. You’ll never go back.

Watch the animation below.

I did not write Work the System as a marketing device intended as a lead-in to coaching, consulting, or an online training program. The book alone is all you need.

I have many followers on my email mailing list (you can join here on this page), and I post on YouTube and Instagram under my name.
-Sam Carpenter