A Wall Street Journal Best Seller
A Top Ten Leadership Pick — The Washington Post
“Next level Marie Kondo-ing” — Well+Good
“A smart yet accessible book that will appeal to readers interested in simplifying their careers and lives.” —Library Journal
“I always appreciate a book that challenges me, forces me to think, and creates constructive discomfort. And I especially value such a book when its key conclusions have a base of research. Dr. Sonenshein has accomplished all this with Stretch, and I am thankful for the chance to grow from reading his work.” —Jim Collins, author of Good to Great and Built to Last
“Scott Sonenshein’s surprising and entertaining book inspires and instructs us to make the most out of what we already have. The result is more — more creativity, more engagement, and more satisfaction.” —Daniel H. Pink, author of Drive and When
Read more praise for Stretch by clicking here.
About STRETCH
A Rice University social scientist teaches you to rethink what you need to succeed, and do more with what you already have, in this counterintuitive, evidence-based guide to changing the way you work and live.
Click here to read Frequently Asked Questions about Stretch.
Buy STRETCH
Hosting a book club? Download the Stretch Discussion Guide and Dodecahedron Game.
Learn to STRETCH from
- America’s most frugal CEO whose company’s stock performance was 2nd among 84,000 other companies.
- A doctor who performed a lifesaving surgery during a commercial flight.
- An entrepreneur who built a successful business repackaging trash into gourmet delights.
- An unemployed psychologist who helped solve one of the world’s hardest computational math challenges.
- One of the most recognized brands whose signature tagline was inspired by a lifelong criminal.
About STRETCH, The longer version
We often think the key to success and satisfaction is to get more: more money, time and possessions; bigger budgets, job titles and teams; and additional resources for our professional and personal goals. It turns out we’re wrong.
Using captivating stories to illustrate research in psychology and management, Rice University professor Scott Sonenshein examines why some people and organizations succeed with so little while others fail with so much.
People and organizations approach resources in two different ways: “chasing” and “stretching.” When chasing, we exhaust ourselves in the pursuit of more. When stretching, we embrace the resources we already have. This frees us to find creative and productive ways to solve problems, innovate, and engage our work and lives more fully.
STRETCH shows why everyone from executives to entrepreneurs, professionals to parents, and athletes to artists perform better with constraints; why seeking too many resources undermines our work and well-being; and why even those with a lot benefit from making the most out of a little.
Drawing from examples in business, education, sports, medicine, and history, Sonenshein teaches a powerful framework of resourcefulness that allows anybody to work and live better.
Click here to read Frequently Asked Questions about Stretch.