Stretch: Unlock the Power of Less -and Achieve More Than You Ever Imagined

A groundbreaking approach to succeeding in business and life, using the science of resourcefulness.

We often think the key to success and satisfaction is to get more: more money, time, and possessions; bigger budgets, job titles, and teams; and additional resources for our professional and personal goals. It turns out we’re wrong.

Using captivating stories to illustrate research in psychology and management, Rice University professor Scott Sonenshein examines why some people and organizations succeed with so little, while others fail with so much.

People and organizations approach resources in two different ways: “chasing” and “stretching.” When chasing, we exhaust ourselves in the pursuit of more. When stretching, we embrace the resources we already have. This frees us to find creative and productive ways to solve problems, innovate, and engage our work and lives more fully.

Stretch shows why everyone—from executives to entrepreneurs, professionals to parents, athletes to artists—performs better with constraints; why seeking too many resources undermines our work and well-being; and why even those with a lot benefit from making the most out of a little.

Drawing from examples in business, education, sports, medicine, and history, Scott Sonenshein advocates a powerful framework of resourcefulness that allows anybody to work and live better.

This essential guide to doing more with less delivers field-tested strategies for:

• Succeeding with Constraints: Learn why limitations are a secret weapon for creativity and how to perform better with the resources you already possess, not the ones you wish you had.
• The Chasing vs. Stretching Mindset: Break free from the exhausting pursuit of ‘more’ and adopt a resourceful approach that embraces what's already in hand to solve problems and innovate.
• Psychological Ownership: Discover why acting like an owner—even when you're not—unleashes new possibilities and transforms how you approach your work and life.
• Real-World Case Studies: Draw inspiration from captivating stories of success and failure in business, sports, and history that prove the power of a resourceful framework.