Permission
To Screw Up

How I Learned to Lead By Doing (Almost) Everything Wrong

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Praise for the Book

  • “As a fellow entrepreneur and CEO, I say hallelujah to one of us finally admitting out loud that despite the success, most of us get it wrong more than we get it right.

    Kristen tells the truth in such an entertaining and informative way, that anyone contemplating starting a business or leading a team will no doubt be inspired after reading this book.”

    — RAEGAN MOYA-JONES
    cofounder and CEO of Aden + Anais

  • "A brave and generous book.

    A brave and generous book, the ideal antidote to the perfection and invulnerability we pretend are essential to succeed.”

    — SETH GODIN
    author of Linchpin and Tribes

  • “If you’re looking for the sunshine and rainbows version of success, this isn’t the story for you.

    If you’re looking for the down-to-earth, nitty-gritty, honest journey of a leader, proceed to chapter 1.”

    — SUSAN CAIN
    author of Quiet

  • "Permission to Screw Up pulls back the curtains and reveals what it’s really like to be a leader—a must-read for anyone who wants to start a company.

    Kristen isn’t afraid to own up to the mistakes she’s made along the way, and encourages us to do the same.”

    — KIP TINDELL
    cofounder and chairman of The Container Store

  • "Boooom!

    Kristen Hadeed is a bona fide millennial badass. Her story is an inspiring read for anyone who’s got the guts and tenacity to be a high impact leader. This book is a master class on how to create a brilliant culture that drives big results.”

    — SARAH ROBB O’HAGAN
    CEO of Flywheel Sports and author of Extreme You

  • “Permission to Screw Up is incredibly inspiring.

    Thank you, Kristen, for having the courage to admit that you aren’t perfect and for reminding us that no one is. We can still get it wrong—a lot—and be considered a success. No matter where you are in life, I promise you will get something out of this book.”

    — ANNE V
    supermodel

The inspiring, unlikely, laugh-out-loud story of how one woman learned to lead, and how she ultimately succeeded—not despite her mistakes, but because of them.

Along the way, Kristen got it wrong almost as often as she got it right. Giving out hugs instead of feed­back, fixing errors instead of enforcing accountability, and hosting parties instead of cultivating meaning­ful relationships were just a few of her many mistakes. But Kristen’s willingness to admit and learn from those mistakes helped her give her people the chance to learn from their own screwups too.

Permission To Screw Up dismisses the idea that leaders and orga­nizations should try to be perfect. It encourages people of all ages to go for it and learn to lead by acting, rather than waiting or thinking. Through a brutally honest and often hilarious account of her own strug­gles, Kristen encourages us to embrace our failures and proves that we’ll be better leaders when we do.

This is the story of how Kristen Hadeed built Student Maid, a cleaning company where people are happy, loyal, productive, and empowered, even while they’re mopping floors and scrubbing toilets. It’s the story of how she went from being an almost comically inept leader to a sought-after CEO who teaches others how to lead.

Hadeed unintentionally launched Student Maid while attending college. Since then, Student Maid has employed hundreds of students and is widely recognized for its industry-leading retention rate and its culture of trust and accountability. But Kristen and her company were no overnight sensa­tion. In fact, they were almost nothing at all.

BOOK RESOURCES

DOWNLOAD A FREE CHAPTER

Want to let go of perfection and reframe your relationship with failure? Download the first chapter of Permission To Screw Up and see what all the hype is about!

FREE DISCUSSION GUIDE

Enhance your reading with a mix of questions and prompts to help you self-reflect. Do this with your team, book club, or even on your own to give yourself the permission to screw up!

BOOK CHATS WITH KRISTEN

Want to bring the book to life for your team? Kristen is available for book signings, fireside chats, keynote discussions, and workshops. Get in touch to learn more.

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