The Discipline of Hope

why leadership needs more than optimism

Available at the end of November 2026

Book Summary

In modern management, ‘hope is not a method’ has become a professional reflex, a way of choosing structure over sentiment and plans over belief. The Discipline of Hope argues that the phrase has become sticky in leadership language. It works by pitting two things against each other—hope on one side and planning and action on the other—and inviting leaders to choose the sensible option. In doing so, leadership has lost one of its core practices, and the cost is evident in workplaces everywhere: disengagement, burnout, cynicism and fear.

David Schmidtchen defines hope as a commitment to working towards a future worth having when the outcome is unknown. Hope is not optimism. Optimism forecasts that things will turn out well and asks nothing of anyone. In contrast, hope asks a great deal.

Drawing on philosophy, psychology, political history, the sociology of charisma, and literature, the book traces how hope was displaced from leadership, how charismatic leaders counterfeit it, and why artificial intelligence makes it more necessary. Written for leaders at every level, it closes with the questions every leader should be able to answer about the future they ask others to build.