Turn the Gem - Paperback

by John Emery (Author)

Something is off, and you can't ignore it anymore. You're busier than ever, but it feels like you're running on a sheet of ice. All busyness, zero traction. The story you've been telling-about your company, about yourself-has stopped being true.

Turn the Gem is here to help you write the next one.

With confessional storytelling, grounded research, and a healthy dose of irreverence, disenchanted pastor turned brand strategist John Emery walks leaders through the messy middle of inflection points-those crossroads where you can't afford to get this moment wrong. A fresh logo won't save you. Neither will a new tagline. (Trust him, he's tried.) What will save you is the harder, braver, more embarrassingly simple work of figuring out who the hell you actually are now.

Drawing from polyvagal theory, behavioral science, ancient rabbinical wisdom, and twenty years behind closed doors with some of the most influential leaders on earth, Emery introduces Soul & Systems: a framework for holding deep conviction and operational discipline at the same time-pushing both pedals, full strength, full speed.

Inside you'll find:

• Why inflection points feel so damn hard (and why that's the point)
• How to regulate your nervous system before you make the big decision
• Diagnostics for your organization's purpose, personality, and practices
• Case studies from Anthropic, Patagonia, and Liquid Death
• Emery's own story of alcoholism, collapse, and reinvention
• A map for moving through the woods when the path has disappeared

Whether you're scaling, pivoting, recovering, or just lying awake at 3am sensing that what got you here won't get you there, Turn the Gem is a leadership book for anyone brave enough to pick the thing up, turn it over, and look again.

(What's the best that could happen?)