| Contents Notes |
The seven deadly traps on the journey to success: A fresh look at how big things get done in a democracy -- The Tolstoy trap: You'll see it when you believe it : how to find, test, and nurture good ideas -- The design-free design trap: Blueprint Bootcamp : how the design phase can wreak havoc during implementation -- The Stargate trap: The space between possibility and reality : the distortion effect at the moment of democratic commitment -- The overconfidence trap: Fear, risk, and the best-laid plans : how embracing the risk of failure maximizes the likelihood of success -- The Sisyphus trap: The rock, the hill, and you : how the interplay between systems and people generates results -- The complacency trap: Changing times : how the way things are keeps us from seeing what could be -- The Silo trap: The walls between us : working better together by seeing the big picture -- Creating a better future: The execution mindset -- A politician and a bureaucrat show us how we can rekindle the spirit of democracy. Six American flags stand on the moon -- irrefutable proof of government's ability to overcome difficult challenges. Yet evidence of failure surrounds us, from the devastation of Hurricane Katrina to the 2008-09 economic meltdown to the chronic dysfunction of our urban schools. William D. Eggers and John O'Leary argue that playing the blame game is an exercise in futility. Instead, they go beyond partisan squabbles to take a look at the process by which government tackles its biggest challenges. Based on a review of over seventy-five government undertakings in the United States and abroad, Eggers and O'Leary pinpoint what it takes to successfully bring a public-sector initiative from great idea to desired results. They distill this "Journey to Success" into a practical set of steps that every public initiative must go through to deliver on its promise. |
