Becoming a Changemaker

In Becoming a Changemaker, Alex Budak provides a fresh, inspiring and research-backed guide to developing the mindsets and leadership skills needed to navigate, shape, and lead change and to make a positive impact in our lives, career, and communities.

Through a diverse series of case studies, and brand new insights from his original research on the traits the most successful changemakers have in common, Alex provides an actionable, inclusive guide for people of all backgrounds, levels, ages, and industries to get unstuck and to start leading change from wherever they are.

The book is based on Budak's wildly-popular class of the same name at UC Berkeley's Haas School of Business that changemakers like Olympic athlete Alicia Wilson describe as "life changing." Accessible and energizing concepts like Microleadership show how each of us can lead from where we are, and principles like "Confidence without Attitude," "Question the Status Quo," and "Beyond Yourself'' provide a framework for stepping into our own unique changemaker potential.

“"Taking Alex Budak's course at UC Berkeley taught me how to lead inclusively, how to inspire others, and how to turn my ideas into reality. But most importantly it was the spark that turned me into a changemaker. It gave me the mindset, tools, and foundation I needed to lead positive change, and I can't wait for readers of this book to experience the same transformative power of Becoming a Changemaker that I experienced in the classroom."-- Ibrahim Bald”

"Alex Budak provides a fresh look at leadership today, showing how each of us can lead positive change, whether we are working from the top of an organizations or on the front-lines."--Ben Rattray, Founder, Change.org
"Taking Alex Budak's course at UC Berkeley taught me how to lead inclusively, how to inspire others, and how to turn my ideas into reality. But most importantly it was the spark that turned me into a changemaker. It gave me the mindset, tools, and foundation I needed to lead positive change, and I can't wait for readers of this book to experience the same transformative power of Becoming a Changemaker that I experienced in the classroom."--Ibrahim Baldé, Founder, Blackbook University; Alumnus, UC Berkeley
"Professor Budak's Becoming a Changemaker course was life changing. It helped me find my voice and transformed who I am as a person and a leader. I'm so glad that this book now makes the magic of his course available to everyone!"--Alicia Wilson, Olympic Athlete, Team Great Britain; Alumna, UC Berkeley
"Alex Budak provides an invaluable blueprint for changemakers of all types --in business, education, non profits, or government-- with practical and actionable advice on how to drive leadership in any organization or community. The world needs more transformational leaders, and there's no one better than Alex to teach us how to become one."--Aaron Levie, CEO & Co-Founder, Box
"Could you be an influential changemaker? Alex Budak believes that all of us have the potential. This warm and inspiring book, filled with examples and practical tools, will be a catalyst for a new generation of leaders committed to changing the world for the better."
--Dan Heath, co-author of Switch, Upstream, and Made to Stick, and a Senior Fellow at Duke's Center for the Advancement of Social Entrepreneurship
"In Becoming a Changemaker, Alex Budak issues a compelling challenge--be the leaders we wish we had and enact the change we want to see. Drawing on behavioral science and rich examples, he offers the tools you need to step up, play bigger and increase your impact. Truly the world is ready for this book!"--Liz Wiseman, New York Times bestselling author of Multipliers and Impact Players
"This is a guide I wish I had when I was just starting out as a changemaker! I've led teams of people ranging from 20 to 20,000, and have seen first hand that Alex Budak's inclusive approach to changemaking is exactly what our companies, communities and world need right now. No matter what kind of change you hope to lead, this will be a book you turn to again and again to help you realize your changemaker goals."--Sara El-Amine, Head of Public Engagement, Public Policy at Lyft

Alex Budak is a social entrepreneur and faculty member at UC Berkeley s Haas School of Business, where he created and teaches the transformative course, Becoming a Changemaker. Regularly one of Haas s highest rated offerings, it is the first university course in the US created specifically for changemakers to learn mindsets and leadership skills for positive change across sectors and disciplines. A Silicon Valley native, Budak helped Change.org raise $30 million from impact investors, and co-founded and now advises the social enterprise StartSomeGood.com, which has helped over 1,000 changemakers in 50 countries raise over $10 million. He has written about leadership for Fast Company and the Guardian, lectured on social entrepreneurship in venues ranging from the White House to the World Bank, from Cambodia to Ukraine to the Arctic Circle, and his work as a changemaker and educator has been featured in publications including Forbes and the Washington Post. Budak lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with his wife Rebecca.

In Becoming a Changemaker, Alex Budak provides a fresh, inspiring and research-backed guide to developing the mindsets and leadership skills needed to navigate, shape, and lead change and to make a positive impact in our lives, career, and communities. Through a diverse series of case studies, and brand new insights from his original research on the traits the most successful changemakers have in common, Alex provides an actionable, inclusive guide for people of all backgrounds, levels, ages, and industries to get unstuck and to start leading change from wherever they are.The book is based on Budak's wildly-popular class of the same name at UC Berkeley's Haas School of Business that changemakers like Olympic athlete Alicia Wilson describe as "life changing." Accessible and energizing concepts like Microleadership show how each of us can lead from where we are, and principles like "Confidence without Attitude," "Question the Status Quo," and "Beyond Yourself'' provide a framework for stepping into our own unique changemaker potential.

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