‘The Giving Game,’ a guide for leadership

In a rapidly changing business market James Turk’s new book, “The Giving Game,” is a guide for team members transitioning to mangers. As an executive coach and CEO of The Turk Group — a boutique learning and consulting company — Turk has honed his leadership skill set through years of working in Human Resources at Random House, P&O Nedlloyd and Goldman Sachs, not to mention a stint in the acting world. Ultimately, Turk found his niche was in training and development. Now he services notable clients such as Buzzfeed, Spotify, NYSE, and many more.

At a pivotal moment in Turk’s career, he faced two choices: to push through fear, or to sit in the comfort of stagnancy. In the early stages of Turk’s career his supervisor, the head of HR, needed someone to represent the HR department at a sales conference in Chicago. His supervisor sensed Turk’s hesitancy and laid out a high-level plan, conducting practice sessions to ensure success. Despite being scared, Turk presented.

Through perseverance, Turk learned how to trust someone else with his professional development and “how to work through fear and just show up, in spite of it,” he said.

Through this experience, Turk benefited from the results of the “Giving Game.” Turks supervisor saw an opportunity that would aid in his growth, and in response he dedicated time and resources with a mutually beneficial result.

In this book, Turk provides a guide on how new managers can embody this giving mindset. The beginning of a management position is often the most difficult, so Turk outlines the first stage with the “F45 Playbook.” It is critical to gain clarity of manager responsibilities, complete self-assessments, identify key stakeholders, and meet with team members one on one.

With this foundation, managers can begin to lead with intention, empathy, and to cultivate value.

Data shows that employees’ job satisfaction and engagement are linked to their relationship with their direct supervisor. With this comes the power of influence, especially over the workplace climate. Some critical questions managers need to ask themselves include: do people feel heard, seen, and appreciated? Are expectations clear? Do I know my employees’ individual working/learning styles? Is feedback provided and is it effective? Do people feel safe and accepted to be themselves?

In his book, Turk provides helpful resources to answer these questions, such as the Daniel Goleman emotional intelligence (EQ) model and many more that can be found in the Resources section of the book.

The aim of this book is to be immediately useful, and that it is.

When asked how his book can guide young professionals to be leaders in such uncertain and divided times, Turk responded with:

“In uncertain times, people need steady, honest leadership. The book helps young professionals lead with confidence, even without all the answers. It focuses on building trust, supporting your team, and creating a healthy culture. A giving mindset helps leaders move beyond self-preservation and think about how to lift others up — which is

exactly what teams need right now.”

“The Giving Game” is available for purchase on Amazon or at The Dutchess Trading Company in Millerton.

Olivia Geiger is an MFA student at Western Connecticut State Universiry and a lifelong resident of Lakeville.