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"For any would-be activists who hear the voice: 'not me' or 'not now,' Merchant makes the strong case for 'yes you' and 'yes now' - and even shows you how to jump in." - Van Jones, host of CNN's The Messy Truth, author of Rebuild the Dream and The Green Collar EconomyAn innovation expert illuminates why your power to make a difference is no longer bound by your statusIf you're like most people, you wish you had the ability to make a difference, but you don't have the credentials, or a seat at the table, can't get past the gatekeepers, and aren't high enough in any hierarchy to get your ideas heard.In The Power of Onlyness, Nilofer Merchant, one of the world's top-ranked business thinkers, reveals that, in fact, we have now reached an unprecedented moment of opportunity for your ideas to "make a dent" on the world. Now that the Internet has liberated ideas to spread through networks instead of hierarchies, power is no longer determined by your status, but by "onlyness" - that spot in the world only you stand in, a function of your distinct history and experiences, visions and hopes. If you build upon your signature ingredient of purpose and connect with those who are equally passionate, you have a lever by which to move the world. This new ability is already within your grasp, but to command it, you need to know how to meaningfully mobilize others around your ideas. Through inspirational and instructive stories, Merchant reveals proven strategies to unleash the centrifugal force of a new idea, no matter how weird or wild it may seem. Imagine how much better the world could be if every idea could have its shot, not just the ones that come from expected people and places. Which long-intractable problems would we solve, what new levels of creativity would be unlocked, and who might innovate a breakthrough that could benefit ourselves, our communities, and especially our economy. This limitless potential of onlyness has already been recognized by Thinkers 50, the Oscars of management, which cited it one of the five ideas that will shape business for next twenty years.Why do some individuals make scalable impact with their ideas, regardless of their power or status? The Power of Onlyness unravels this mystery for the first time so that anyone can make a dent. Even you.



About the Author

Nilofer Merchant

18 billion dollars. Nilofer Merchant has launched more than 100 products that netted this astounding amount. It's this kind of collaborative leadership and business models - the type that results in innovation, and growth - that she now shares.

She has gone from being an administrative assistant, to division leader, to CEO of Rubicon, to board member of a NASDAQ-traded company along her 25-year career, gathering monikers such as the "Jane Bond of Innovation" along the way for her ability to guide organizations through seemingly impossible odds.

Today, Merchant speaks and runs workshops on what creates new "advantage" in these Social times. And of course, she continues to write on these shifts.

Her career has included blue-chip Fortune 500 companies like Apple and Autodesk, as well as startups in the early days of the Web (Golive\bought by Adobe) . Logitech, Symantec, HP, Yahoo, VMWare, and many others have turned to her guidance on new product strategies, entering new markets, defending against competitors, and ways to optimize revenues. And, Merchant is one of the few people who can say they've fought a competitive battle against Microsoft and won, on behalf of Symantec's Anti-Virus $2.1B business.

She is author of 2 books on the power of collaboration and community. Fast Company recognized her most recent book, 11 Rules for Creating Value in the Social Era - a Harvard Press book, as a "Best Business Book of 2012". Her earlier book, The New How, on collaboration has been widely recognized as one of the best. It shows teams how to close the proverbial "Air Sandwich" gap between strategy and execution.

You've probably seen her byline, and ideas in publications like the Harvard Business Review, Wired, and Oprah. A TED speaker, she shares the stage with luminaries regularly, including Margaret Atwood, Malcolm Gladwell, and Bono (yes, THAT Bono) . Merchant lives in Silicon Valley, where she grew up.

She is toiling away on her next body of ideas and welcomes you to join in. You can participate at the 'Yes & Know' blog found via nilofermerchant.com



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