Hunter McMahon's 'The 5-Year-Old CEO' Explores Childlike Curiosity as Key to Leadership in AI Era
TL;DR
Hunter McMahon's book The 5-Year-Old CEO gives leaders an edge by using childlike curiosity to build innovative, resilient teams that outperform in competitive business environments.
The 5-Year-Old CEO outlines seven leadership principles through storytelling and research, teaching systematic approaches to questioning, listening, and collaborative problem-solving.
This book helps leaders cultivate empathy and compassion, creating more humane workplaces where teams thrive together in our increasingly automated world.
Hunter McMahon explores how adopting a five-year-old's perspective through fictional character Eric can unexpectedly transform leadership approaches with fresh creativity.
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Author Hunter McMahon, a seasoned executive in legal technology and professional services, has released "The 5-Year-Old CEO," a book exploring how childlike curiosity can unlock innovation and resilience in today's world. McMahon, who delivered the TEDx Talk 'Caffeinated with Curiosity,' draws from his experience leading expert teams through high-stakes matters to argue that leadership often means questioning the status quo. Inspired by the quote 'Be curious, not judgmental,' he emphasizes that maintaining a learning mindset is key to growth regardless of seniority level.
The book invites leaders to rediscover the childlike curiosity, empathy, and imagination that time tends to erode but have become indispensable in navigating an AI-driven world. Through the lens of Eric, a fictional five-year-old navigating everyday kindergarten moments, "The 5-Year-Old CEO" delivers seven powerful leadership principles grounded in storytelling, research, and real-world examples. McMahon argues that curiosity drives high performance in any environment, but especially in business where traditional approaches may no longer suffice.
Readers will learn practical skills including how to ask better questions, listen with purpose, challenge assumptions, lead collaboratively, resolve conflict, embrace change, and mentor others. The book serves as a resource for both senior executives and rising managers seeking to lead with more humanity in an increasingly automated world. McMahon emphasizes that leadership is not a title bestowed but an action taken, and that asking authentic questions and responding with compassion will help build teams that thrive together.
The book has already received glowing reviews from readers across the United States and is published by Lucid Books, an independent hybrid publisher in the Houston area that offers the connections and expertise of a traditional publisher with the author involvement of a self-publisher. McMahon's approach suggests that in an era of rapid technological advancement, the most valuable leadership qualities may be those we naturally possess as children but often lose as adults.
Curated from 24-7 Press Release
