About the Founder
Darrius T. Smith
Founder & CEO, ST4Y READY Consulting & Services LLC
Darrius is a retired United States Air Force Chief Master Sergeant with more than 28 years of leadership experience. He brings the perspective of leading high-stakes teams to business owners, corporate leaders, HR executives and workforce development sponsors.
With a Master's Degree in Information Technology, Darrius pairs an understanding of systems with a people-first approach to leadership. His work centers on developing confident managers, improving communication and accountability, and helping organizations build cultures where people can perform and grow.
As the author of Lead With Purpose: Authentic Leadership Starts with YOU and its companion workbook, he connects personal leadership to practical action. Through coaching, facilitated workshops and keynote engagements, he brings those principles into conversations about team performance and organizational change.
Qualifications
- Retired United States Air Force Chief Master Sergeant
- More than 28 years of leadership experience
- Master's Degree in Information Technology
- Maxwell Leadership Certified
- DISC Certified Behavioral Consultant
- Published Author
Our mission
ST4Y READY is a workforce education and leadership-development company that helps organizations build leaders, strengthen workplace capability, and turn employee potential into measurable performance.
People. Purpose. Passion.
Trust. Authenticity. Culture. Transformation.
Leadership philosophy
Authentic leadership starts with the person leading. Developing others means modeling the standard, communicating clearly and reinforcing accountability with practical support. ST4Y READY connects people development to organizational performance, so learning becomes action and culture transformation becomes a sustained practice.
- Trust
- Build confidence through clear expectations, consistent actions and accountability.
- Authenticity
- Lead with self-awareness and align your actions with your values.
- Culture
- Shape the everyday behaviors that determine how people work together.
- Transformation
- Turn leadership development into practical improvements that can be measured and reinforced.
Speaking & facilitated experiences
Darrius’s existing engagement portfolio includes leadership keynotes, corporate training workshops, executive roundtable facilitation and one-to-one coaching conversations. His enterprise book programs include virtual cohort Q&A sessions and customized on-site keynote or workshop engagements, tailored through a pre-event discovery conversation.
Explore Speaking & Workshops
Put the same playbook in every leader's hands.
Lead With Purpose is the field manual behind ST4Y READY. Written by retired USAF Chief Master Sergeant Darrius T. Smith after 28 years leading high-stakes teams, it turns technically strong managers into trusted, accountable leaders — and it works best when a whole cohort reads it together.
- →Frameworks to align personal purpose with organizational strategy
- →Tools to develop the middle-manager bench most companies neglect
- →Real stories from military and corporate turnarounds
Buy Lead With Purpose — and the companion workbook — from the bookstore.
Individual copies of the book (hardcover and paperback), signed editions, and the Lead With Purpose companion workbook are available directly through the ST4Y READY Consulting bookstore.
- Lead With Purpose — hardcover & paperback
- Lead With Purpose Companion Workbook — Authentic Leadership Starts with YOU
Scan to purchase
Authentic Leadership Starts with YOU — now in writing.
The book gives you the standard. The workbook makes you walk it. Work through guided exercises and reflection prompts that turn every Lead With Purpose chapter into action you can name, measure, and repeat — on your own, or better, with your cohort.
- Guided exercises that turn each chapter into action
- Reflection prompts built to revisit as you grow
- Designed to pair with the book and your cohort conversations
$12.99 + $2.99 flat shipping · US & Canada
Bulk Enterprise Packages
Every package ships direct to your office and pairs the book with live development for your leaders. Volume pricing is quoted on inquiry.
Team Alignment Pack
10–49 Copies · 15% off
Ideal for: Department heads looking to align their direct reports.
- Softcover books shipped direct to your office
- 15% volume discount
- PDF discussion guide template for your next team retreat
Leadership Cohort Bundle
50–99 Copies · 25% off
Ideal for: VPs of HR / L&D running quarterly leadership cohorts.
- Softcover books at a 25% volume discount
- Complimentary 30-minute virtual Q&A with Chief Master Sergeant Darrius Smith for your cohort
- Discussion guide + facilitator prompts
Enterprise Keynote Experience
100+ Copies · 35% off
Ideal for: Annual corporate retreats or company-wide kickoffs.
- Books at a 35% volume discount
- Live, customized keynote address or interactive workshop delivered on-site
- Pre-event discovery call to tailor content to your leadership priorities
Inquire for Corporate Book Packs & Keynote Engagements
Tell us the size of your cohort and we'll return a quote, shipping timeline, and available keynote dates.
Just want a single copy for yourself? Order Lead With Purpose from Amazon or Barnes & Noble →
Retail orders are fulfilled by the retailer. Bulk orders of 10+ copies are handled directly by ST4Y READY.
Or book a discovery call →
The playbook your leaders need before the next quarter.
Drawing on 28 years of leading high-stakes teams, Darrius shows executives and emerging leaders how to lead authentically, build trust fast, and turn purpose into performance.
- →Frameworks to align personal purpose with organizational strategy
- →Tools to develop the middle-manager bench most companies neglect
- →Real stories from military and corporate turnarounds
Team packs from 10 copies · Cohort bundles · On-site keynotes