Lead Dad: A Guide for Families to be More Connected and Less Stressed

For fathers who refuse to choose between career ambition and family engagement, Lead Dad offers a practical blueprint for succeeding at both.

Lead Dad is a timely, conversation-shifting exploration of modern fatherhood, work, marriage, and caregiving in the post-pandemic world. Drawing on his own journey from New York Times columnist to founder of The Company of Dads, Paul Sullivan combines deeply personal storytelling, cultural analysis, research, and practical advice.

Organized around relatable stories and actionable lessons, Lead Dad tackles everything from redefining masculinity and sharing the mental load to navigating hybrid work, supporting a spouse’s career, and communicating more effectively at work and in life. The rise of what Sullivan dubs the “Lead Dad” is a fundamental cultural shift—one that benefits fathers, mothers, children, workplaces, and communities alike.

Blending the accessibility of relationship-driven prescriptive nonfiction with the authority of workplace and cultural reporting, Lead Dad positions itself at the intersection of parenting, business, masculinity, and modern family life—offering readers a hopeful, practical roadmap for healthier relationships in a rapidly changing world.