THE HOT SAUCE PRINCIPLE
How to live and lead in a world where everything is urgent all of the time. GET YOUR COPYGET A PERSONALIZED COPY
Time is our most precious resource and today we live in a world where everything is urgent all the time.
In “The Hot Sauce Principle,”
we compare urgency to hot sauce.
Why? In the world of cooking, great chefs use hot sauce to enhance the underlying flavors in their dishes with the goal to bring to the subtleties of the spice in their foods to the forefront. But imagine eating a meal that has been overly doused in hot sauce. The result would be an entrée that left your mouth afire and you gasping and gulping for relief.
This is what it feels like to have uncontrolled urgency in our lives. Emails, texts, social media, and meetings demand our constant attention at work. At home, our free time is threatened by extracurriculars, sports, outings, even volunteer work. What to turn our attention to first? When everything is covered in hot sauce we lose the ability to distinguish differences between what is being “served” our way. Everything feels like it is urgent—from what we hear from our bosses, our direct reports, our clients, even our loved ones at home. Standing on the brink of burnout from urgency overload, our body revolts and we beg for relief—only to see another hot sauce drenched meal headed our way.
“The Hot Sauce Principle came to me at a time when I needed it most. I was drowning in ‘hot sauce.’ The Hot Sauce Principle literally transformed my own effectiveness and that of my team.”
Cameron Richardson
VP Retail, Genuine Parts Company
This book is designed to help you become a master of urgency.
If you’re a leader
Learn how to properly use urgency to motivate, rather than burn out your team. Discover how to effectively put hot sauce on the right things and not everything that leaves your kitchen.
If you’re the recipient of others’ urgency
How you can properly respond so as to not be infected by urgency overload? Understand what you must do in order to protect yourself and maintain balance in an out-of-kilter urgent world.
If you feel overwhelmed by urgency in your personal life
Discover when you should use urgency at home and when you should not. Learn how to ascertain the appropriate amount of hot sauce to use with your spouse, your kids, even your volunteer positions.
To be successful in combatting the origins of urgency, we must start with trust. Learn the tenants of The Trust Formula. You’ll discover how to grow and strengthen trust within your team by consistently practicing authenticity and vulnerability.
Inside is a practical guide to communicating with your critical stakeholders, both professional and personal. How can you tell your boss “no” while still giving them what they need and want from you? How can you strengthen your personal relationships in the midst of the urgency chaos? Brandon sets out the framework to follow and guides you through the difficult conversations.
Angela Raub
CEO & President, Leadercast
About the Author
Brandon Smith is a leading expert in leadership communication and curer of workplace dysfunction. Known as “The Workplace Therapist” and host of The Workplace Therapist podcast, Brandon is a sought-after executive coach, TEDx speaker, and award-winning instructor. He is the founder of The Worksmiths LLC, an executive coaching and leadership development firm whose clients include numerous Fortune 500 companies. Brandon has personally coached more than 1,000 leaders and executives across the globe representing both for profit and not-for-profit organizations.
In addition, Brandon is a highly requested keynote presenter and leadership educator. Brandon has delivered keynote presentations and leadership development sessions to over 100,000 participants over the last decade. As an adjunct faculty member at multiple prestigious business schools, he has won over a dozen teaching awards for his work in the classroom. Brandon has been interviewed by NPR, Fox News, the Wall Street Journal, NBC, New York Post, Fast Company, CNN, and many other media outlets for his expertise in leadership and workplace dynamics.
Brandon received an undergraduate degree from Vanderbilt University with a concentration in communications and team dynamics. His graduate work includes an MS in counseling from Georgia State University as well as an MBA from Emory University’s Goizueta Business School.
He resides in Atlanta with his wife, their three children, and two loveable pups.
P.K. Ken Keen, LTG, Retired, U.S. Army
Assoc. Dean for Leadership Development, Goizueta Business School, Emory University.