When I started writing Leadership from below somewhere back in 2004, it was loosely based on some findings from my PhD (2002) about the importance of presence and place in innovation and knowledge work. That was serious enough stuff, right? Yes, and I read statistics that said about ¾ person ever reads a PhD thesis. At this point, those of you in the know or who just apply lessons from Math 101 realize this means not even your adviser reads the whole thing. Having ¾ reader is pretty depressing if you have a message, but it is fine to get a degree. Clearly, if I was interested in readers I needed to change strategy. Less obligatory references, perhaps, and more free flow of ideas. No unnecessary jargon. Just the facts. Just the ideas. Just experience. Or whatever. I decided I was. Interested in readers, that is. So, I pondered on Leadership from below during slow breaststrokes in a Belgian pool (the Aspria in Rue de l’Industrie to be exact) in 2006 and 2007 and even got myself a copy editor in Amanda Fazzone (I still have her email – and she really is good – whatever you think of my book) who masterfully commented the draft. I finished my book on 16 February 2008 on a day I was not gainfully employed with anybody who could interfere, and self published it on the new, trendy, and yet somewhat unknown Lulu. I had just discovered online self-publishing. It was exciting and in the vein of the Internet – free, fun, and fantastic.