Curve Benders

A personal growth roadmap guiding you into the future of relationships in work, life, play, and giving

Curve Benders is a personal growth roadmap. It will guide you through the complicated intersection of work, life, play, and giving. Countless new forces will shape the future, so the strategic relationships we form in these areas of life are, of necessity, changing. This book will show you how to move into the future and dramatically alter your growth trajectory in both its direction and ultimate destination. David Nour, the author of Relationship Economics and a top thought leader on business relationships, has identified 15 forces that will heavily influence what we do and how and where we engage our current and prospective relationships to create value and make a difference in the lives of others.

This book aims to provide you with a step-by-step guide for personal, professional, and organizational growth. The author highlights how certain relationships enable a non-linear growth trajectory. These relationships, in addition to augmenting what we can accomplish, often shape who we become. These relationships are “curve benders,” and this book will show you who and where they are, how to find and engage them, and, equally valuable, how you can become a curve bender to impact the lives and livelihoods of others profoundly.

• Gain insight into the value of your current strategic relationships and how they help you achieve your work, life, and giving goals
• Reconceptualize relationships to identify the people with the power, not only to help you achieve but to change who you become
• Learn how to become a “curve bender” who makes an outsized impact in the lives of others
• Become better at finding and engaging people, navigating the 15 forces that are reshaping our world

This book is about strategic relationship planning, personal growth, and, ultimately, about you. Read Curve Benders to launch yourself into your best future.

Introduction: Don’t Doubt Waze! 1

Chapter 1 Work–Life Blending 13

Chapter 2 15 Forces Impacting Your Future 41

Chapter 3 Accelerated Relevancy 89

Chapter 4 Curve Benders as Risk Mitigators in Your Personal S-Curve 121

Chapter 5 Organization of the Future 149

Chapter 6 Curve Bending in the Lives of Others 187

Chapter 7 Your Curve Benders Roadmap 213

Final Thoughts 249

Notes 253

Acknowledgments 267

About the Author 271

Other Books by the Author 273

Index 277

DAVID NOUR is internationally recognized as the leading expert on applications of strategic relationships in profitable growth, sustained innovation, and lasting change. Nour serves as a trusted advisor to global leaders/boards and educates and coaches corporate leaders. An adjunct professor at the Goizueta Business School at Emory University, Nour was named to the Global Gurus Top 30 Leadership Professionals and the Thinkers50 Radar 2021 lists. NourGroup.com

LIN WILSON is an illustrator that specializes in creating visual clarity out of chaos. His illustrations have been published in Fortune, The New York Times, and Harvard Magazine.

Curve Benders points to 15 forces that will dramatically impact the future of how we’ll work, live, play, and give. From relationship strategy to grit, visualization, technology, economy, geopolitics, and black swan events, these forces will create headwind, tailwind, or turbulence in our personal and professional paths forward. COVID-19, as an example of a black swan event, proved that global disruption forever changed many of our assumptions.

To remain relevant, every professional will have to learn and grow. For most, this growth journey is a linear curve. With an incredibly dynamic market ahead, linear growth will no longer suffice. You’ll have to learn more, faster, and immediately apply that learning to tackle critical challenges and opportunities ahead.

That’s where your most valuable asset comes into play. Beyond your educational foundation and professional pedigree, certain strategic relationships will have a profound impact on your journey from now to next. These relationships are “curve benders.” Other relationships can take you in a completely wrong direction. These relationships are “fender benders.” Your goal is to surround yourself with as many potential curve benders as possible while avoiding fender benders at all costs.

In this insightful yet practical book, discover your personal market value, explore growth grids, exploit your personal s-curves in search of refraction points, and create a road map to your curve benders. Packed with pragmatic advice, tools, and links to resources, Curve Benders is your guide in the journey from now to next.

PRAISE FOR CURVE BENDERS

“Curve Benders is sure to become a staple in our lexicon, like Game Changer, Originals, Loonshots, and Blue Ocean Strategy.”
– JUDE BUCKLEY, EVP MOBILE, SAMSUNG ELECTRONICS AMERICA

“Nour has taken his decades of passion, knowledge, and experience in strategic relationships and has captured them in this exceptional and profoundly impactful book on the future of work and non-linear growth. Curve Benders is a must-read.”
– UMANG VOHRA, MD AND GLOBAL CEO, CIPLA

“Curve Benders is Nour’s COVID moment—that for all of us to remain relevant, we must invest in our biggest asset: our strategic relationships, to learn and grow faster than we’ve ever done so in the past.”
– MARSHALL GOLDSMITH, #1 GLOBAL EXECUTIVE COACH, THINKERS50 HALL OF FAME

15 FORCES WILL DRAMATICALLY IMPACT YOUR FUTURE. HOW WILL YOU REMAIN RELEVANT?

CURVE BENDERS are your most valuable relationships in the future of how you’ll work, live, play, and give. They’re more than just great bosses or mentors. They see the best version of you, push and prod you to exceed even your utmost expectations, and profoundly change your future’s direction and destination. They are the individuals you will look back on in your journey and will be immensely grateful for not just what they helped you achieve, but also the person, manager, and leader they’ve helped you become. They shape your beliefs and values and bolster others’ success. So, who are they, where are they, and how can you find them? More importantly, how do you become a curve bender in the lives of others? Read this book to learn more.

15 FORCES
WILL DRAMATICALLY IMPACT YOUR FUTURE.
HOW WILL REMAIN RELLEVANT?