Tough Enough is Out Today. Get Your Copy Now


Tough Enough is Out Today. Get Your Copy Now

2 years of work. Thank you for getting it here.

Matt Hunter • September 29, 2026


Hey!

Tough Enough is out today.

​You can pick it up here.

If you pre-ordered, it's on its way, and you did something concretely useful for a book you hadn't read yet. Thank you. I don't take that lightly.

A word on what this book is and isn't.

It isn't a case for being harder on people. Plenty of books already make that argument and the results are visible across the industry… high performance bought with damage that shows up in years two and three.

It isn't a case for being softer, either. There's been enough of that, and I've watched good companies lose their edge while everyone stayed comfortable.

It's a case that the trade-off is false. That you can demand excellence and treat people well in the same conversation, not alternating between them, but at the same time. Every leader I most admire does this, and almost none of them can explain how. That's what John and I spent two years trying to write down.

Two ways to help today, if you're inclined:

  1. Post about it. A line about why it matters to you does more than anything we can say about ourselves. To make it effortless, here’s a quick link to images and copy.
  2. If you read it and it's useful, leave a review. Reviews are what keep a book alive after launch week ends.

Thank you for reading these emails, and for putting up with me talking about a book. Normal newsletter service resumes shortly…

Matt

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