Solving complex problems requires creativity, which requires the psychological trust of contributors to know their team has their back to take a risk that could deliver the results necessary for everyone.

Coonradt and his team of management consultants teach leaders how to effectively integrate these principles into their enterprises, which have included Fortune 500 companies and corporations such as Wendy's, Sherwin Williams, Boeing, Coors Brewing Company, Coca-Cola, Quaker Oats, Ralph's, and Sysco.But accurate feedback related to your own past performance usually gives you enough positive reinforcement to make you want to keep playing, to keep improving, to beat your own past performance standards. They must capture employees’ attention and provide the suspension of disbelief that the organization is the best place to spend a sizeable portion of their adult life, thus empowering the team to work cohesively on collective goals while attempting to hit goals, fulfill objectives and make a healthy profit.

Better people leaders overcome the lazy manager mentality (“I shouldn’t have to hold these people’s hands”) and embrace an active manager mentality (“I am ultimately responsible for the performance of this team”).You still get the exercise, you still swing the club—you can even throw one if you want to—and you don ’t ever have to go look for a lost ball. Yet our lives seem to be littered with initiatives that encourage us to go against our nature—our human nature. In the businesses I used to run, I learned to several 'games' to increase the fun and productivity of my teams. The testing, modifying, and continuing evolution of this book has been and is being done by all the members of the Game of Work.