An Amazon bestseller in Strategic Management Create the Future is the essential leadership handbook for high-performance companies. Leaders create the future by the decisions they make—by the choices they make. Impactful leaders believe they can create the future, and they change uncertainty into hope and possibility. Create the Future outlines the process and the tools successful leaders use when they must make an important decision—when they must get it right. Not every company can hire McKinsey or Deloitte. Create the Future (CTF), gives you the tools you and your leadership team will use for making critical decisions without a hefty price tag. Rick Williams has been a management consultant, company founder, and CEO. He has worked with large international companies, nonprofits, early-stage growth companies, and large government agencies. Drawing on his broad expertise and first-hand observations of top executives in action, Create the Future is the essential guidebook for leaders when they must make difficult decisions that will determine their organization’s future. This book defines the five steps to creating the future: Define the challenge - Imagine success - Create options - Evaluate barriers - Choose the future Each chapter includes a structured process of leadership team whiteboard exercises bringing forward the best available information and the full spectrum of views and insights. Create the Future is a practical handbook for leaders who believe you create the future by the choices you make and who want a step-by-step process for defining the path to success that best matches your goals, risk tolerance, and values. “An inspiring and practical handbook for leaders—from start-ups to mature firms—who must choose the path forward for their company.” —Demos Parneros, former president, Staples North America, and former CEO, Barnes & Noble “In today’s rapidly changing business environment, leaders need to be laser-focused on identifying the right problem and coming up with innovative solutions. Read this book and learn how to imagine your company’s future and create the path to success. Along the way, learn how to imagine your future as an authentic and innovative leader—it’s a win-win.” —Bill Burnett, coauthor of Designing Your Life and Designing Your New Work Life and executive director of the Life Design Lab at Stanford University “Rick Williams brilliantly delivers a leadership compass for high-performing companies. With his wealth of experience, veteran consultant Williams provides a clear playbook that’s indispensable for leaders seeking a practical approach to shaping their organization’s destiny. Packed with structured team exercises, this book empowers leaders to make choices that resonate with their goals and values. Like an in-house management consultant, Create the Future is your invaluable resource for decision-making in turbulent times.” —Hubert Joly, former CEO, Best Buy; senior lecturer, Harvard Business School; and author of The Heart of Business “Rick Williams has produced a valuable book that can help leaders make better decisions when thinking strategically about the future of their organizations. Create the Future is a book to be read and applied.” —Lt. Gen. H.R. McMaster, former White House national security advisor and author of the New York Times bestseller Battlegrounds “Rick Williams’ Create the Future is like having your own personal coach to help guide your decisions and create a better future, both professionally and personally. This book gives you the framework to think bolder and act accordingly, so you can manifest your future as you desire. Highly recommended to all leaders of high-performance teams and those who believe that within themselves there is a brighter future ahead.” —David Kahan, president and CEO, Birkenstock Americas “Even the brightest and most experienced leaders among us can fall into the trap of working hard toward ‘something,’ but not knowing exactly what that something is. Create the Future shows us the importance and power of clear purposes and clear thinking. This book helps us grapple with the question of where our company should go, from someone who has already been there.” —Doug Stone and Sheila Heen, coauthors of the bestseller Difficult Conversations and faculty in negotiation at Harvard Law School “At last, a management book geared for the realities people in business face today. Rick Williams has produced a tremendously wise and practical guide, aptly titled Creating the Future , for navigating the uncertainty that lies ahead in every industry. His methodology, developed from decades of rarified experience in business, can help anyone who wants to learn how to make and implement better decisions.” —Amy C. Edmondson, Novartis Professor of Leadership, Harvard Business School; author of Right Kind of Wrong “Finally—a book that boils down the decision-making tools of the top corporate consultants i