Fair or Foul - by Stefan Stern (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Fair or Foul considers different aspects of ambition and its place in our lives. It asks: what does success mean? When is enough enough? And is Lady Macbeth right to suggest that only those with the 'illness' of ambition achieve the highest goals?

Stefan Stern draws on the major themes of Macbeth and discusses how they can be applied to ambition in modern life. From the success of the first US woman vice president, Kamala Harris, the obstacles she faced and the possibilities that still lie ahead, to Boris Johnson's young aspirations to be 'world king' and the pathological intensity of his ambition, Stern considers the careers and personal lives of politicians, sports stars and business people, to name a few, to illuminate this strange and powerful driver. Expect to discover how ambition and success work together, how attitudes have shifted over time, and how gender roles have an impact on our goals.

Incisive, contemporary and accessible, this book is for anyone who is looking for a change of direction or emphasis on how to move forward. It will also provide consolation, amusement and plenty of insightful meditations on the complex nature of ambition.

Review Quotes

"A probing yet compassionate meditation on ambition and its discontents, revealing with wit and energy the perpetual battle in the human heart between greatness and goodness. Fair or Foul offers a vivid tour through business, politics and culture that will help you find the elusive terrain where ambition spurs achievement yet retains its humanity." -- Daniel H. Pink, #1 New York Times bestselling author of Drive, When and The Power of Regret

"Stern wonderfully marries his decades of study with the human anthropology of Shakespeare to give readers a uniquely literate take on what drives CEOs and politicians. Read this book if you have any inkling to understand how ambition works -- or even if you don't have it yourself to know better how to navigate round it. You won't be disappointed." -- Ravi Mattu, managing editor of Dealbook at the New York Times

"Is this a bestseller which I see before me? It deserves to be. Fascinating exploration of the beast of ambition and whether we can tame it or be devoured by it." -- Richard Herring, comedian, writer and podcaster

"We need people of ambition to save the world. And yet we also detest these self-serving maniacs. So how can we get on in life without feeling like we've got blood on our hands? A brilliantly readable and inspiring study of our love-hate relationship with ambition." -- Viv Groskop, author of How to Own the Room

"Stefan is one of the best management writers out there, but this wise, compelling book is about a lot more than business. Wide-ranging in its references to everything from sport to literature, and dare I say it, ambitious in its ultimate aim, it encourages readers to ask profound questions about meaning and purpose." -- Sathnam Sanghera, author of Empireland

"This is a welcome blast of clear thinking about ambition and how we choose to lead our lives. Sometimes we kid ourselves that we can do really big, difficult jobs and still "have it all", and we can't. Read it and work out what would be the best (and healthiest) option for you." -- Alastair Campbell, co-host of The Rest is Politics

"This is a book which is rich, witty and deeply thoughtful (not unlike a Shakespeare play). Stefan Stern has created a timely book about the meaning of life and work out of a timeless work of art. It's brilliant." -- Julia Hobsbawm, Bloomberg commentator and author of The Nowhere Office

"What does success mean in the era of Elon Musk? How should we think about work when so many white-collar employees are at home? Those important questions are tackled in this warm, humorous book. Long-time fans of Stefan Stern's writing know him for making wise mischief at the expense of business gurus and seven-figure CEOs. Now he shows why our highest ambitions should be not for ourselves but each other. Hear hear." -- Aditya Chakrabortty, Senior Economics Commentator, Guardian

"Stefan Stern is a wise, witty and gently erudite guide to an issue that determines so much of what we value and how we live our lives. Fair or Foul is genuinely thought-provoking and surprisingly inspiring." -- Christina Patterson, author of Outside the Sky is Blue: A family memoir

"You won't read a more entertaining, lively and thoughtful book in the field of business and leadership than Fair or Foul: The Lady Macbeth Guide to Ambition. Ambition, as a construct, has been absent from the business literature, but this book, combining behavioural insights through the lens of Macbeth, is so novel, very well written and an absolute pleasure to read. This is a MUST-read for anybody interested in an important aspect of human behaviour, AMBITION!" -- Professor Sir Cary Cooper, ALLIANCE Manchester Business School and Chair of the National Forum for Health & Wellbeing at Work

"This elegant book takes you by the hand and helps you explore this contested terrain of ambition, with many wise friends, instructive examples, and literary resources to guide you on the way. It is a joy to read, and very wise." -- Eve Poole, author of Robot Souls

"I have seen ambition close up and it is not always a pretty sight. Stefan Stern lifts the lid on the dark side, but also finds time to consider the good that ambition can do. This book may not get you to No.10 but it could help you lead a happier and more fulfilling life." -- Ayesha Hazarika, broadcaster and journalist

"One of the most thoughtful and witty writers on the ethics of business - I love how Stefan Stern has found positive lessons in one of the most maligned characters in Shakespeare." -- Samira Ahmed, presenter of BBC Radio 4's Front Row

"Ambition cuts both ways, it fuels dreams and fatal errors too. Yet oddly, we don't talk about it. Stefan Stern's vital, brilliant new book brings ambition back into the conversation. A must read for anyone asking themselves what they really want and what they are willing to do to get it." -- Herminia Ibarra, professor of organisational behaviour at London Business School and author of Act like a leader, think like a leader

"Ambition, as Lady Macbeth knows, can be an illness. But it can be a great energy source too. The most interesting ambition is the most personal - like Tim Minchin's aim to be "unpigeonholeable". So the important question is: what are you ambitious for?" -- Margaret Heffernan, keynote speaker and author of Wilful Blindness

"Deliciously thoughtful - a beguiling and scholarly guilty pleasure. Stefan's jaunty writing style enables him to smuggle in some very subtle ideas, which are challenging both personally and politically. A book to read quickly, and then re-read slowly." -- Laura Empson, professor in the management of professional service firms, Bayes Business School (formerly Cass), University of London

"Funny, clever, wise - and damned useful." -- Lucy Kellaway, former Financial Times columnist and founder of the Now Teach charity

"This is the book Stefan was born to write: a parle of a lifetime's passion for "the play" with decades observing the vicissitudes of ambition. The result is magnificent. Across the terrain of illness, success, enough - Stefan observes, pokes, explains. A must read for anyone with ambitious aspirations: or those who observe from afar. And I guess that's everyone." -- Lynda Gratton, professor of management practice, London Business School and co-author of The 100 Year Life

"Stefan Stern is the Pep Guardiola of ambition, writing a blinder to explain exactly what drives us. He too is a winner." -- Kevin Maguire, associate editor of the Daily Mirror, a New Statesman columnist and a regular guest on Good Morning Britain

"By exploring ambition through one of our best-known plays, Stefan Stern invites us to view both anew. But he does more than that. With erudition (Aristotle, Freud and many others join Shakespeare on these pages), with wit (this book is sometimes laugh-out-loud funny) and with the wisdom gained from decades of observing those who get to the top (or don't), he helps us examine not just what work means to us, but life too." -- Michael Skapinker, former Financial Times columnist and author of Inside the Leaders' Club: How top companies deal with pressing business issues

"A wonderfully readable meditation on one of the most potent and treacherous drivers of human behaviour . . . This isn't primarily a business book. But if every would-be billionaire or thrusting CEO were to read it (let's hope), the world might be a less fractured, more hospitable place." -- Simon Caulkin, former management columnist for the Observer

About the Author

Stefan Stern is a journalist and author based in South London. He writes for the Financial Times, the Guardian, Prospect and other titles.

His first two books were Myths of Management: What people get wrong about being the boss (Kogan Page, 2017, with Cary Cooper), and How to be a better leader (Bluebird, Pan Macmillan 2019). He is a Visiting Professor at Bayes Business School, City, University of London, and a Fellow of the RSA.