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Executive Summary

John C. Maxwell waited till he was sixty years old to write Leadership Gold.  He explains that he didn’t want to write the book at an earlier age because he did not feel like he had acquired enough experience and information to adequately meet his own leadership standards.  The book is his legacy to leadership, and Maxwell wanted to develop a tool that would be able to guide and shape people’s potential to lead.  He did not just want to help mentor people in becoming a good boss at work, but he wanted to develop people to be leaders in life.  Whether you are in the business world or part of an organization within your community, Leadership Gold appeals to anyone who reads it.   Maxwell’s insight to leadership is aimed at getting the best results from people by creating meaningful and powerful relationships through a more developed leader.

Maxwell does not jump into leadership with just theories and procedures.  Instead, he slowly introduces the leadership role with relatable topics.  His beginning chapter, “If It’s Lonely at the Top, You’re Not Doing Something Right”, was a great introduction because of its smooth, yet powerful, meaning.  This chapter may first appear as a simple lesson however, Maxwell uses it as the foundation of the entire book.  The subtle message of “working with others” goes further than just conformity within a team, but the importance of earning the trust and respect of people through actions.  He continues a teambuilding focus throughout the book and explains the different ways that leadership is really a role of people development.  He is able to mentor leadership techniques to the reader such as listening skills and proactive planning that builds a better leader, as well as, develops better relationships.

As Maxwell continually uses relationships as his foundation, he slowly moves his agenda to different areas of leadership development. He doesn’t approach this with easy black and white topics, but really pushes the mental growth of his audience.  He touches on issues that can stifle a leader’s growth as well as developmental solutions that can lead to success.   One of the biggest leadership challenges that Maxwell focuses on is self control.  Also, referred to as self discipline or self realization, he uses this topic more than once in Leadership Gold because of how difficult, and important, it can be to grasp and maintain.  Maxwell stresses to the reader that self control is being aware of what areas of strengths and weaknesses are possessed by the team and by the leader. He does not just try to help the reader identify these areas, but advices how to manage the pros and cons that can affect a team’s motivation for success.

It is evident that Maxwell wants the reader to discover the similarities between Leadership Gold and their own environment.  He did not just want to write a textbook of how to lead, but rather create an individual guide that can mentor anyone.  His instruction is thorough, however not to dictate action, but to make aware of different opportunities.  He gives years of experience through his own stories to help give insight to the reader of consequences from leadership error.  This helps Leadership Gold to be a book of reference and reflection throughout leadership development.  Maxwell understands that leadership is not a job that can be performed just once, but is an ongoing process through many years.  References to Maxwell’s own leadership development help him conclude his book in a way that makes the reader want to start it all over again.  He asks for the legacy most desired once we have finished our journey through life.  Maxwell suggests leading others farther beyond our own accomplishments, and their success will leave a positive legacy of our contribution for generations.

The Ten Things Managers Need to Know fromLeadership Gold

1.            Do not isolate yourself from the people you are leading.  Creating relationships with others brings more opportunities than leading alone.

2.            One of the hardest people to lead will always be yourself.  Trying to hold others accountable, without being accountable for yourself, will only diminish your leadership capabilities.

3.            The best way to take criticism as a leader is to know yourself.  The more comfortable a leader is with themselves, the more solid their leadership will become.

4.            The best leaders will always be the ones that listen to their employees. Listening will not only get your employees attention, it will give you a better view of how your business runs operationally.

5.            A leader can improve their performance through an honest evaluation from others.  Having a reliable source critique a leader’s strengths and weaknesses is a better tool than if a leader relies on their own self assessment.   Once a leader discovers their strengths, they should put more focus into them to become more successful.

6.            Leaders must be able to define reality.  Passion and optimism can motivate success, however if not accompanied by reality, can result in failure.

7.            A leader must find the right people who work best for the organization.  A leader cannot make the organization work best for all people.

8.            Leaders should always continue to ask questions.  Asking questions will make a leader better informed, more consistent, and prevent mistakes.

9.            Keep learning as a leader.  A better developed, educated, and informed leader will also have a team that is developed, educated, and informed.

10.            As a leader, how do you want others to remember your contributions?  A leader should always think about the impression they are leaving with others, because it will be the legacy after the leader is gone.

Full Summary of Leadership Gold

“If It’s Lonely at the Top, You’re Not Doing Something Right”

John C. Maxwell begins his book with using the words of his father, “Keep a distance”.   Maxwell uses his father’s advice to show how leadership can be confusing, because being a leader requires relationships with other people. Maxwell explains that keeping people at a distance can create isolation.  If a leader separates themselves to much from others, the leader not only hurts the development of the organization, but will hurt the development of individuals.  Although leadership can cause pain professionally and personally, to become an “effective” leader, close relationships must be made.

“The Toughest Person to Lead Is Always Yourself”

Leading yourself will always be more of a challenge then leading others.  Maxwell explains it best when he says, “human nature seems to endow us with the ability to size up everybody in the world except ourselves.”  This concept explains how easy it is to hold others accountable for their actions, while not holding ourselves with the same accountability.  A better leader can be developed through self realization. Maxwell advises leaders to learn followership, develop self-discipline, practice patience, and to seek accountability from someone else.  These tools will help a leader direct themselves, thus making the ability of leading others much easier.

“Defining Moments Define Your Leadership”

Leaders are going to have major opportunities during their role.  Some of these opportunities will set a leader apart from everyone else.  It will define who the leader really is, and how others see the leader’s ability to lead.  These opportunities, or “defining moments”, do not have the ability to be planned, because leaders cannot foresee a defining moment days in advance.  Successful defining moments can be accomplished if a leader reflects on previous experiences and the actions that were taken, as well as the actions that could have been taken.  Another way to take advantage of a defining moment is to make choices before a decision is required. Leaders can analyze major parts of their lives such as faith, values, and relationships.  By doing this, a leader will have a firm grasp on where they stand on important issues.   This can give a leader the ability to make the right decision in a quick amount of time when a defining moment arises.

“When You Get kicked In the Rear, You Know You’re Out In Front”

No matter the certainty a leader has about their decisions, criticism can arise.   The best way to combat critics is to know yourself.   If a leader has a realistic view of their self, then they will be strong enough to handle any criticism. If a leader accepts their real strengths and weaknesses, they do not have to worry about criticism.  Either the leader will notice the problem first, or be comfortable enough to address the situation.  This will help the leader work towards gaining support for their actions, rather than defending their motives. Sometimes, a leader should listen to criticism if the critic has credibility.  Maxwell says, “When someone’s criticism about me is accurate, then I have a responsibility to do something about it.  That is part of being a good leader.”

 “Never Work a Day In Your Life”

There is a line that can separate work from play.  Maxwell feels working now, to get where you want to be later will unlikely lead to success.  If the line that separates work from play is clearly defined, there is little passion to succeed.  However, if the line is invisible, than passion can push a person past their potential by surpassing talent, opportunity, and knowledge.  Maxwell states, “In all my years of observing people, I have yet to meet an individual who reached his potential but didn’t possess passion.”

 “The Best Leaders Are Listeners”

Some leaders consider themselves to be good listeners, however not all leaders are really hearing what their people want them to hear.  By listening, leaders get to know a person before leading them.  This can keep problems from escalating and help establish trust with others.  A leader’s ability to listen can also improve an organization’s performance.  If a leader is listening to all levels of a team, then the leader is sure to know how every part of the organization is operating.

“Get In the Zone and Stay There”

The best way a leader can get in the zone of success is to find their strengths.  Compliments are clear signals of possible strength zones.  Working these strength zones will heighten the traits and make a leader more effective in leading their team.  Not only must a leader examine their own strengths, but they must examine the strengths of their peers.  A leader must find the strengths of each person, and explain how those strengths help complete the operation of the team.  On the other hand, trying to develop areas of weakness can be a setback.  Maxwell feels that areas of weakness can never be developed into strengths, but only mediocre abilities.

 “A Leader’s First Responsibility Is to Define Reality”

Missed opportunities and unnoticeable threats are some risks that are unavoidable if a leader is unable to see realistically.  Optimism can get in a leaders way of success by blinding their ability to see failure. For a leader to be able to define reality, they will need to be able to admit their weakness.  If their vision is optimistically cloudy, then a leader must embrace the realism of other people.  Honest advice and opinions can help shape a leader’s vision to be successful.  Even allowing a set of fresh eyes to observe an organization can create beneficial ideas.  Maxwell says, “Reality is the foundation for positive change.  If you don’t face reality, then you will not be able to make necessary changes.”

“To See How the Leader Is Doing, Look At the People”

A good way to judge a leader’s ability to achieve success is to measure their team.  If a leader is going in the right direction, they will be more likely to gain the team’s trust.  This trust follows a leader and influences others to join.  If the leader has a following, then changes need to happen within the team.  A leader should create an environment that attracts buy-in and promotes continual growth. The environment should increase in quality and improvement. The level at which a team works is a true representation of how a leader is doing within their role. If the people are growing, than the organization will grow as well.  This combination of personal and organizational growth will overpower any competitor that has a team built only on the talent of employees.

 “Don’t Send Your Ducks to Eagle School”

 Maxwell’s phrase, “the mysteries of the mind” reflects on why people, compared to others, perform differently in organizations.  Implementing people, in specific roles, that are unwilling to learn or unable to perform is a costly error.  Not only is time wasted, but a leader will eventually frustrate others who have obtained the ability.  A leader must find the right people who work best for the organization, not make the organization work best for all people.

 “Keep Your Mind On the Main Thing”

Maxwell’s quotes Pareto’s Principle when he says, “The best 20 percent of my activities were sixteen times more productive than the remaining 80 percent”.  This was how Maxwell determined he was trying to do too much at once and putting his focus on the wrong things.  A leader does not need to know everything, but does need to know the most important things.  To be informed on important details, a leader should have others represent them. If a leader is able to be represented, more availability is gained to focus on major issues. Trying to be everywhere and do everything for everybody is impossible.  A leader needs to focus on what provides the greatest results with the fewest complications.  This will bring about more opportunities and important objectives.  If a leader cannot learn to create and balance themselves in order to achieve the main thing, somebody else will.

 “You’re Biggest Mistake Is Not Asking What Mistake You’re Making”

A leader needs to be able to admit their mistakes and weaknesses.  Mistakes are unavoidable and sometimes unnoticeable.  Leaders should ask for opinions from their teams.  This will not only help inspire the team to respect the leader, but also help produce more successful answers.  More problems than initially considered can be created if a leader is stubborn about their own mistakes.  If a leader accepts their mistakes, they can learn and progress forward.  However a leader’s refusal to recognize their mistakes will eventually result into the mistake being repeated.

“Don’t Manager Your Time – Manage your Life”

Time management is impossible to do.  Maxwell says it best, “Time cannot be managed.  It cannot be controlled in any way.  It marches on no matter what you do, the way the meter in a taxi keeps running.”  Good leaders must be in control of their time, because every minute counts.  They cannot afford to let others dictate the use of their time as well as let themselves get preoccupied with unimportant things.  In order to be more efficient with time, leaders should accept coaching and training from others who have experience.

“Keep Learning to Keep Leading”

Leaders cannot put a limit on the information they need to be successful.  A successful leader will continue to grow and learn, no matter how high they climb.  Learning new information is not only beneficial for the leader but also for the team.  An organization is only as smart as the leader.  If a leader continues to grow, they will also continue to invest into the organization.  This continual investment is only accomplished through continual learning.  If a leader stops learning, chances are the people around the leader will stop as well.   However, with continual learning, a leader can create an environment for success.  This environment is an eagerness of both the leader and the team to achieve great opportunities.

“Leaders Distinguish Themselves During Tough Times”

Tough times require tough decisions, but these decisions can separate good leaders from everyone else.  A leader must be able to make a decision that no one else would be willing to make.  Progress within an organization are decisions to step forward, these steps are risky and require someone who is strong and willing.  Sometimes these decisions will not be obvious to a leader because it is not a clear black and white choice.  Difficult choices will ultimately be made, but a leader must be confident and able to see a decision to its end. Difficult choices come with greater responsibility, and the more responsibilities a leader has, the more choices they must make.  A responsible leader must determine the best decisions for an organization and be confident in their choice.

“People Quit People, Not Companies”

If a person decides to leave an organization, a leader must be aware if the person is quitting the organization, or quitting them.  People will quit leaders because they feel devalued.  A leader must motivate, not manipulate people, to accomplish the job. Consistency of a leader’s actions and words are important for building trust.  People will quit leaders because they feel that a leader is untrustworthy to lead the organization.  Maxwell says, “People follow leaders stronger than themselves.  People whose leadership ability is a 7 (on a scale of 10) won’t follow a leader who is a 4.”   People quit leaders because of a leader’s insecurities.  People want to work for a leader who will encourage and motivate them.  If a leader is insecure about their own abilities, the people around them will never be pushed to achieve their potential.

“Experience Is Not the Best Teacher”

Experiences will come every day, and there is usually more to each experience than previously noticed.  Leaders must learn from each experience, whether they are good or bad.  Bad experiences can be just as awakening as good experiences.  However, bad experiences must be learned from or a leader will be sure to repeat it.

“The Secret to a Good Meeting Is the Meeting Before the Meeting”

The purpose of a meeting is to inspire productivity, unity, and motivation as a group. However, meetings can be unproductive if the agenda is unclear or if other people bring in their own agenda.  To gain more support, eliminate surprises, and become more productive, a leader must gain the trust and commitment of the key leaders and influential people.  Prior to a meeting, a leader can sit down with either a small group, or individual, to gain support for the main meeting.  Whether the pre-meeting is about implementation of a project or organizational change, a leader must merit the reactions before the main meeting.  If the pre-meeting is successful, then a leader should continue with the main meeting.  However, if there is conflict or skepticism, post pone the main meeting until everyone is on board.

“Be a Connector, Not Just a Climber”

Maxwell describes climbers as individuals who competitively race for the top of an organization.  These people gain the positional title, but fail to win everyone’s respect as the leader.   Connectors, on the other hand, take time to gain relationships with the people around them.  Connectors can gain the friendship of the team, but without any desire to climb, may not obtain any authority.  A good leader must strive to obtain a balance between climbing to the top and connecting with people.

“Influence Should Be Loaned But Never Given”

Leaders that possess great influence have a responsibility to motivate and inspire the people around them. Most importantly, influential leaders should help mold and develop potential leaders.  Young leaders begin with little influence and rely on a more experienced leader for guidance.  If correctly developed, a young leader will soon be able to create credibility and gain a reputation as an experienced leader.  However, if a young leader takes an experienced leader’s influence for granted or fails to establish their own leadership influence, the experienced leader should consider another individual.

“The Choices You Make, Make You”

Leadership positions come with an understood notion that there will be a time to make critical decisions.  Some decisions will not be easy to make.  To prevent wasted time and regretful feelings, a leader must not focus on decisions that were made in the past. The past can never be changed, however if a leader focuses on the present, they can control the future.  Future decisions offer leaders opportunities to make better choices if their personal standards stay above what others have set.

“For Everything You Gain, You Give Up Something”

The higher a leader’s developmental expectations, the riskier it is to achieve.  As a leader progresses, they move up numerous levels.  For every level that is accomplished, a leader finds that they have made some kind of sacrifice.  The higher a leader wishes to succeed, the more sacrifice will be needed.  The length of the journey and the amount of sacrifice needed will pose as questions that a leader must answer if they want progress.

“Those Who Start the Journey with You, Seldom Finish with You”

Leading an organization can feel like traveling on a journey.  During different parts of that journey, some people will leave and new people will join on the destination.  This is similar to leadership in the sense that not everyone will keep moving alongside a leader as they are in pursuit of success.  Whether it is a key member or a seasonal player, people will come and go.  Leaders, even though it may be emotionally difficult, need to understand this reality to continue to move forward.  Sometimes a leader needs to recognize that some individuals do not need to be on the journey.  If a leader is waiting for people, or forcing them, on the journey it can disrupt the flow of progression and sometimes steer a leader off course.

“Few Leaders Are Successful Unless a Lot of People Want Them to Be”

Leaders are not born naturally.  People will not step into a leadership position without the help of others.  Support and mentorship given from others helps develop leaders on their path to leadership.  Mentors can come as authors of a book, a previous boss, or a family member.  While supporters, come as people of encouragement and assistance. These people help develop the principles, ideas, and values of that a leader possesses their entire career.

“You Only Get Answers to the Questions You Ask”

Many Problems that leaders experience is their inability to ask questions.  A lot of the time a leader is embarrassed or afraid to ask questions because of the damage it may inflict on their pride.  Maxwell describes this by quoting a Chinese proverb, “He who asks is a fool for five minutes, but he who does not ask is a fool forever.”  Asking questions helps a leader, but asking the right questions to the right people improves a leader.

“People Will Summarize Your Life in One Sentence”

Maxwell concludes his book with the story of his life changing heart attack.  After his recovery, he was stricken with questions of life fulfillment and the legacy that he was leaving to others.  Maxwell’s moment of clarity and life legacy came to him when he discovered what he wanted to be remembered by, “I want to add value to leaders who will multiply value to others.”  He uses his discovery to question other leaders’ life legacies and if they are living each day in abidance of that legacy with appreciation.

The Video Lounge

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0A9AtToUsg

John Maxwell describes Leadership Gold and how it is more of a mentoring book rather than a book of guidelines and techniques.  He explains how he wanted to write about his life in leadership to help readers become better leaders, using his experiences as a reference.

Personal Insights

Why I think:

The author is one of the most brilliant people around …. because:

I value John C. Maxwell’s book Leadership Gold because I see similar opportunities in my line of work as those described in the book.  He is defiantly a brilliant person who has the education, experience, and understanding of how to lead people successfully within an organization.  However, there are some things that I noticed about Leadership Gold that shape my opinion to be slightly critical of his work.  With all of the great insights and experience he offers, I feel as though he sometimes only focused his book on people with a similar personalities as himself.  I find that I tend to be a bit more analytical and logical, where as his book was focused on leadership traits of a supportive and influential role.   I want to read more from John Maxwell to learn about different leadership styles and opportunities that I may never have considered.  Nevertheless, I would really like to hear his thoughts and suggestions on being a successful leader from someone who has similar personality characteristics as I do.

If I were the author of the book, I would have done these three things differently:

1.            I would have tried to focus more attention on the realities of leadership.  Maxwell briefly touches on realty but I felt like more information was needed.

2.            I would have tried to explain leadership objectives from the perspectives of different personality traits.  Not all leaders think and act exactly alike, and I feel that extending the context to touch different styles of leadership would have benefited more readers.

3.            I would have tried to explain the abilities and adjustments needed to lead alongside another leader.  I would have included a co-leadership chapter that examines the difficulties and successes of a partner leadership team.

Reading this book made me think differently about the topic in these ways:

1.            Leadership Gold made me think differently about what kind of legacy I am leaving.  For periods of time that I am involved with a group of people, what positive attributes am I leaving with them after I move on.

2.            Leadership Gold made me think differently about becoming a mentor to others that work around me.  I have considered my leadership journey to be an investment only into my own potential growth and progress.  I now consider trying to develop others to be leaders, even more capable than my own potential.

3.            Leadership Gold made me think differently about which moments I encounter daily are my “defining moments”.  I find myself questioning each opportunity I encounter and contemplate the different outcomes based upon my actions.

I’ll apply what I’ve learned in this book in my career by:

1.            I’ll apply what I’ve learned in this book in my career by pushing myself to be a better listener to others around me.  I have already started practicing this technique and have received beneficial outcomes.

2.            I’ll apply what I’ve learned in this book in my career by not sending my ducks to eagle school.  As a manager, I have experienced lost time and much frustration trying to train and influence those that are not meant for the job.

3.            I’ll apply what I’ve learned in this book in my career by asking what mistakes I am making.  I feel if I admit my failure and ask for help, I will be more likely to achieve the overall goal.

Here is a sampling of what others have said about the book and its author:

E. Ramirez from Amazon.com really hits the nail on the head about Leadership Gold by describing John C. Maxwell’s writing as, “simplistic, practical, and solid principles”.   Ramirez does, however, compare Leadership Gold with other of Maxwell’s books.  His reason for the comparison is because of the similarities between Leadership Gold and other books from John Maxwell.  Ramirez describes Leadership Gold as a “compilation” book that repeats the lessons from previous Maxwell books.

StanR from Barnesandnoble.com praises Leadership Gold.  He says, “Those of us who are familiar with John’s past works know very well that he assembles material into a work that’s captivating, compelling, and just plain GREAT!”  Stan’s excitement about Leadership Gold comes from his experience using Maxwell’s information during his own presentations.  Stan describes Leadership Gold as a “winner” and already can’t wait for another book from Maxwell.

Wanda from Christianbook.com values Maxwell use of “different perspectives” that is used in Leadership Gold.  She enjoys the fact that Maxwell is well informed on how leadership is realistically.  Wanda says, “It allows one to see how selfish it can be to think that leadership is “lording” over others, as true leadership is helping others reach their goals as you reach yours.”  She highly suggests for leaders to own a copy of Leadership Gold by saying, “a must have for your personal library”.

Executive Summary

The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership:

            Model the Way. Leaders model the way for their constituents.  To successfully illustrate the performance expected of others, a leader must first have guiding principles to follow.   A leader must clarify values.    This means opening up about values from within as well as values of the organization.  Knowing what you, as a leader will help you align your values with the company.  It will be easier for you to communicate those values with your constituents because when you speak you are also representing your company.  A person must “walk the talk” this is setting the example by going first.  Going first is exhibiting importance of things through taking actions.  It’s about “the power of spending time with someone, of working side by side with colleagues, of telling stories that make values come alive, of being highly visible during times of uncertainty, and of asking question to get people to think about values and priorities.”

            Inspire a Shared Vision. Leaders inspire a shared vision.  Leaders have to see beyond today and look ahead for future possibilities.  Theyenvision the future. But visions alone do not create successes.  Someone without followers is not a leader.  A leader must inspire a movement concurrent with the vision.   Leaders must gain commitment to an inspired vision not compliance.  They have to enlist others.  To do this, leaders must gain certain knowledge about their constituents such as people’s dreams, hopes, aspirations, visions, and values.  “Leadership is a dialogue, not a monologue.” People must trust that their leaders do have their interests at heart.  This vision should be shared with everyone and by everyone.  It should be talked about in detail.  Share the “whys”.  People need to know why they should follow you and your vision.

            Challenge the Process.  No process is set in stone.  Each process can enhance with a new perspective.  All leaders shouldchallenge the process. Look for ways to innovate, grow, and improve.  Listening to people in and around the organization will more than likely give opportunities for innovation.  Most leaders are not the “inventors as much as they are the early patrons and adopters of innovation”.  With innovation comes change involving experiments and taking risks.  Paying attention to the abilities of constituents to manage change is important to create a safe environment for taking those risks.  “Try, fail, learn. Try, fail, learn.  Try, fail, learn. Leaders learn from their mistakes and encourage others to do the same.

            Enable Others to Act.  To get amazing results, leaders must make it possible for people to take action.  Leaders foster collaboration. This means connecting all the players together on a project or team.  These players include peers, managers, customers, suppliers, citizens and all those you have a stake in the company.  Leaders know to produce these results people must feel empowerment and ownership. Leaders empower others by giving them responsibility to deliver.  Exemplary leaders strengthen others.  They build and teach capabilities to help make each person successful in their endeavors.  “Constituents neither perform at their best nor stick around for very long if their leader makes them feel weak, dependent, or alienated.”   A leader who builds confidence in people helps generate achievement beyond what people think is possible.

            Encourage Heart.  Being a sincere and caring leader boosts people’s spirit and brings them forward.  Recognizing contributions is a way leaders show they are grateful for their constituents’ assistance.  It’s a leader’s job to create a culture of celebrating values and victories.  This is not about ceremonies for show. It’s about linking rewards with performance.  These celebrations should be done for the benefit of others and the company.  Celebrations should showcase people for the efforts made that reflect the company’s values and core principles.

Leadership is a Relationship

            Leadership can be found in any one person.  It is not a magical gift.  It can be learned.  “Leadership is a relationship between those who aspire and those who choose to follow… A leader-constituent relationship that’s characterized by fear and distrust will never, ever produce anything of lasting value. A relationship characterized by mutual respect and confidence will overcome the greatest adversities and leave a legacy.”

The Ten Things Managers Need to Know fromThe Leadership Challenge

1.            Each leader should first know the values and principles important to him or her. Then he or she can relate those to the values and principles of the corporation and its employees.

2.            “Put your money where your mouth is”, “practice what you preach”, and “walk the talk”.  A leader must follow-through and lead by example.

3.            Take off the blinders and look for the future possibilities.  Start with your past to see where you and your team are going in the future.

4.            Shared visions of the future will gain commitment instead of compliance among team members.

5.            Leaders should take change head-on.  Change should be an adventure to broaden the company and create new ideas that motivate team members.

6.            Create a trusting environment that allows team members to be creative and take chances. Build from any mistakes; use these as successful steps in the right direction.

7.            Create interdependence among team members and use the “Golden Rule”. Help each team member to realize everyone is needed for the big picture.

8.            The strength of a leader is born in team members when leaders release control to them.

9.            Believe in your team members abilities and communicate that through recognition and feedback.

10.            Use celebrations, meetings, ceremonies, training sessions, etc.,  as opportunities to reiterate core values.

Full Summary of The Leadership Challenge

The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership

            Dick Netell, America’s Consumer Call Center in Concord, California is an example of the Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership in action.  He has the vision and the intuitive nature to use resources to turn a company around.  The authors, James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner, of The Leadership Challenge Fourth Edition highlight Dick’s process in renewing an existing company’s fundamentals of vision, mission and future ideals.  Dick says, “Everybody wants to win. Everybody wants to be successful. Everybody comes to work to make a difference.”  With this insight Dick is able to conclude the underlying reason the call center was not fulfilling its potential.  The management had not tapped into the resources most important to a company—it’s team members.  Dick’s team was not focused on the possibilities.  Observing and listening, Dick was able to gain consensus from team members about the call center’s future.   Dick opened communication lines.  He solicited feedback about issues and performance of management.  He empowered his team to give thoughts and ideas for new opportunities to expand and create a better call center.  He fostered the atmosphere of winning.  Dick ensured the team members were kept up-to-date with news on accomplishments by having monthly status meetings where he gives a “you said, we did” report.  Dick’s motto Pride stands for Personal Responsibility In Delivering Excellence.   Dick still believes that “every day is opening day.”  He said, “It doesn’t matter what you did yesterday.  Each and every decision and action is a moment of truth.  You say something and what do people see?  The two have to be aligned.  It’s all about the video matching the audio.”  Dick is an awesome example of an extraordinary leader.  He carries out the Five Practices Kouzes and Posner present to leaders:

Model the Way

Inspire a Shared Vision

Challenge the Process

Enable Others to Act

Encourage the Heart

Another exemplary leader is the founder and Leader of Vision & Values of the SG Group in London, England, Claire Owen.  She believes when a leader takes an extra step to have a servant mentality the success of the team is far greater.  By creating an environment where leaders serve, it then translates to constituents to serving others and customers.  This example ties in to leading by example.  An environment where being at work is like “going to a coffee morning”, generates an atmosphere of trust and respect where new ideas occur and unordinary risks are taken.  However, Claire ensures constituents still uphold the values and expectations of the company to grow with vision. Claire’s leadership philosophy is a true statement of what makes companies succeed. “We are human beings,” she said. “We don’t have employees. We don’t have staff. We have people, and people have emotions, and people have needs.  If you are happy you do a better job. If you are excited about the business, and if you are excited about where it is going and what is happening in it, then there is a buzz, a physical buzz. It’s my job to create that kind of place.”

Credibility

            A leader must be honest, forward-looking, inspiring, and competent for others to willing want to be a follower.  “Credibility is the foundation of leadership.”  Constituents want to work for an honest leader.  When a constituent needs support it is important to trust the leader will step up and be the support needed.  Knowledge and abilities to lead are important for constituents to buy-in to the leaders visions.  A leader must show the capability to learn from others even from constituents.  Most important a leader must:  DWYSWD: Do What You Say You Will Do.

Clarify Values

            Before a leader can lead constituents in a company there must be expectations and values to follow.  But even before that, leaders must understand their own personal value.  Without your own guiding principles the path can potentially become foggy.  A leader must search out his important values.  Once he has established the values, it is more likely to be the guiding factor in business decision making.  These values also allow leaders to have more control over their lives. With recognizable values at the forefront of a leader’s mind, they are able to align their values with the values of the company. It is important for a leader to establish his values because eventually the act that the values are not his own will be revealed.  Constituents want to follow a genuine leader with values and beliefs of their own.  Leaders should promote values that represent the group for unity.  When these values are shared among the individual, the group, and the corporation synergy is exuded.  “Shared values do make a significant positive difference in work attitudes and performance:

They foster strong feelings of personal effectiveness.

They promote high levels of company loyalty.

They facilitate consensus about key organizational goals and stakeholders.

They encourage ethical behavior.

They promote strong norms about working hard and caring.

They reduce levels of job stress and tension.

They foster pride in the company.

They facilitate understanding about job expectations.

They foster teamwork and spirit de corps.”

When values align creativity flows. Presenting values in a company is important to ensure team members find correlations between individual values and the values of the corporation. A leader should be able to speak with constituents and business partners about these values at any time.  Without understanding the values individually and corporately a leader cannot fulfill spoken promises.

Set the Example

            “Leading by example is how leaders make visions and values tangible. It’s how they provide the evidence that they’re personally committed. Setting the example is about execution.”  Leaders who teach by doing are exemplary.  A leader cannot expect performance from constituents that they are unwilling to perform themselves.  The actions leaders take prove the values they share with constituents.  If a leader values ethics, then the leader should uphold the ethics code.  Constituents will follow the behavior demonstrated by a leader with shared values.   A leader should spend time on the most important values by using every opportunity to reinforce the importance of the values.  “Sometimes leadership is just showing up.” Language used by leaders should convey the culture desired within the organization.  Also, raising questions like, “What have you done in the past week to improve so that you’re better this week than last?” will allow constituents to think about values is a way leaders give life to those values.  Feedback is another important tool to support values in performance. When Troy Hansen was vice president of AgDirect and Leasing, Farm Credit Services (FCS) of America, a leading financial services provider in Omaha, Nebraska, he proved the importance of feedback.  Troy’s team had a negative outlook on performance reviews so he took a chance and allowed his team to evaluate his performance first. “The feedback I received was kind of hard to hear,” Troy admitted.  He then added, “And that was really one of the benefits to the group. To take that personal risk; to model for the group that it’s okay to place yourself at personal risk and take that honest feedback. What I hoped the team members would come away with was a sense that it’s okay to be in that environment, that feedback is necessary for growth, and then to see how you accept that feedback and then what you do with it.” Sometimes vulnerability is a requirement for a leader.  For leaders to “set the example” telling stories is an excellent way to exalt another’s contribution to the common goal.  Telling stories gives constituents a memorable impression of behavior essential to the organization.  Stories can depict individuals who achieved a goal and staying true to values.  By telling stories about constituents, their peers are more likely to be motivated.  Telling stories and giving feedback “reinforce behavior you want repeated”.

Envision the Future

            Leaders are generally in a job “to do something”.  The reasons why leaders are contingent on doing something is the real need to know answers.  A leader’s individual aspirations are what fuel his future.  It is a common problem to only see situations that are happening in the now.  A leader must not allow any hindrances blocking his view.  A leader must maintain the sight of the long-term goal, the future.  “A leader should be thinking a few ‘moves’ ahead of the team and picturing the possibilities.”

Enlist Others

            For Keith Sonberg, director of site operations for Roche in Palo Alto, California, “it’s passion plus pride [that] equals performance.”  He says, “The leader’s job is to create an environment where people are passionate about what they’re doing and take pride in what they’re doing.  The end result will always be performance.” Sonberg is right.  In order to enlist others, there must be a setting to perpetuate passionate performance.   It’s more than just having an open environment.  Leaders must “appeal to common ideals”.  Knowing what is significant to constituents can propel organizations to the forefront in the marketplace.  Exemplary leaders…liberate the vision that’s already in their constituents.  They awaken dreams, breathe life into them, and arouse the belief that we can achieve something grand.”  It is a major responsibility for a leader to search out what makes constituents tick.  They want to feel a part of something bigger than their cubicle or city.  Constituents want to know their effort extends beyond the front yard.  Dr. Martin Luther King’s speech “I Have a Dream” was a major influencing endeavor to enlist others for a common vision.  His words by using imagery and conviction gave life to his dream.    When leading others in a common goal, a leader must use passion.  Passion evokes desire in constituents to reach for a brighter future.  Creating a mental image of what can be in the minds of others is important to perpetuate a company.  Leaders must generate positive communication with constituents and among constituents.  This also means expressing positivity through emotions of energy.  Being expressive to enlist other can have a memorable effect.

Search for Opportunities

            Progression is change.  Leaders should seek ways to “make things better, to grow, innovate, and improve.”  A first step to change is to take it head on.  Step up to the challenge and initiate the next step to develop. People more actively reach goals if they take initiative.  A leader must help others to be initiators.  This means training and preparation for constituents.  Leaders must invest their time with constituents to allow them to be confident to take on challenges.  Challenge is for the benefit of leaders and constituents.  It gives meaning and purpose to those who accept it.  Leaders encourage constituents to surpass their own expectations of capabilities. A leader must “exercise outsight”.  “When you take your eyes off the external realities, turning inward to admire the possibilities within your own organization, you may be swept away by the swirling waters of change.”  Leaders should keep an open view of the events taking place around the perimeters of their organization.

Experiment and Take Risks

            Risks can be scary, but the pay-offs can be monumental.  Leaders need to be the first to plunge into the unknown.  By experimenting, leaders can achieve new results.  Constituents and leaders alike must be able to learn from experiences.  A leader must help people feel they are in a safe environment.  No one wants to be in trouble trying something new and failing.  In this environment more creative thoughts and experiments will occur.  Leaders must be effective listeners in order to learn from constituents and the company about new process.

Foster Collaboration

            Leaders who encourage team members to work interdependently foster collaboration.  A project should be accomplished when all participants have their part completed.  This means a leader must push for others to help out and cross boundaries to ensure a team view.  Collaboration will be greater than short-term benefits of working alone.  Competition and isolation can occur if team members are not concerned about the process as a whole. Leaders should exude trust to build the trust on their team.  Trust can take collaboration to a higher level.

Strengthen Others

            “Leaders move from being in control to giving over control to others, becoming their coaches and teachers.”  The strength of others comes from within.  When constituents are given more responsibility their own abilities are reinforced. Giving constituents to make the choices and decisions about projects enables the success of those projects.  Constituents will feel the accountability for the project because the result will be based on the decision he made.  This is ownership.  Ownership helps constituents feel commitment and pride in their work which strengthens the entire process. While giving responsibility to constituents, leaders should incorporate coaching to follow-up about progress, tips for improvement, and encourage the future ventures of constituents.

Recognize Contributions

            Leader’s most important role to constituents is guidance.  Recognition guides people to continue with the same behavior.  A leader should make use of the two words “thank you” and show appreciation for constituents.  In order to make the most of this recognition, a leader must understand what is encouraging to constituents.  Each person may value recognition differently.  A leader should take the time to get to know more about his constituents.

Celebrate the Values and Victories

            With values being clarified, now a leader can make the most of those values in action.  Celebration of shared values is a victory.  When constituents, companies, and leaders share values it should be celebrated.  Leaders must “be personally involved” to show their support for constituents.  This could simply be by having fun together or being out with constituents in the workplace.  Sometimes leaders can have big productions to celebrate wins in the company.  A leader should always use these opportunities to reaffirm the values being celebrated.

Leadership is Everyone’s Business

            “Leadership is about relationships, about credibility, and about what you do.”  A leader should recognize that to direct reports, you are the most important leader.  Leaders are to help problem solve, address concerns, and care about the values being executed.  The relationships created through direct reports and leaders are imperative for success.  Leadership can be learned.  To become a better leader, you must be the positive force in the world and apply the skills and abilities of leadership to your position. “The best-kept secret of successful leaders is love:  staying in love with leading, with the people who do the work, with what their organizations produce, and with those who honor the organization by using its products and services.

“Leadership is not an affair of the head.  Leadership is an affair of the heart.”

Personal Insights

Why I think:

With business conditions today, what the author wrote is true – because:

The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership are essential to stoke the fire in leaders.  These practices involve self-improvement and self-motivating thoughts that will make any leader ready make his mark.  Most institutions are more centered on people.  This book helps leaders see the techniques to inspire, encourage, and respect team members in meaningful ways.  The authors of this book research for years leaders of different styles.  The topics in this book are relevant to any workplace where there are people.

If I were the author of the book, I would have done these three things differently:

1.            The first chapter of the book hits all the high points and basically summarizes the need to know items right away. I would have put the first chapter last as a review of keys points.

2.            I would have given more step-by-step examples of what to say or do to exhibit The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership.

3.            I would have spent more time in Chapter Two: Credibility is the Foundation of Leadership.  I think more detail in this chapter would genuinely inspire leaders to exemplify the characteristics of a leader practicing the Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership.

Reading this book made me think differently about the topic in these ways:

1.            I realized the actions of leaders today really have an effect on their constituents.  It can either motivate them to exceed expectations or cause disharmony among the company.

2.            I have a better understanding of how important it is for a leader’s actions to line up with his words.

3.            I did not realize trust fostered collaboration and risk taking.  It is important to gain trust for great things to happen in an organization.

I’ll apply what I’ve learned in this book in my career by:

1.            Using celebrations and recognition events to reiterate values and principles held by myself, the company, and constituents.

2.            I will have high expectations for my constituents to achieve high performance.  Because by believing in their abilities it instills confidence.

3.            Remembering to “stay in love with leading, with the people who do the work, with what the organizations produce, and with those who honor the organization by using its products and services” will keep my leadership challenge alive.

Here is a sampling of what others have said about the book and its author:

The consensus for The Leadership Challenge is that the research done by Kouzes and Posner is remarkable.  It is a motivational, inspiring book.  Those who reviewed the book referenced to the many stories depicting today’s leaders.  Some said if you have read previous editions of the book, then the fourth edition was not necessary because the authors present the same principles with new stories.  Overall, the reviews I found were in support of the leadership studies conducted by Kouzes and Posner.

Introduction

             Exploring people’s behavior when they try to work together to accomplish a goal gives excellent insight into the role of a leader.  How well a leader understands himself and those he wishes to lead can differentiate an effective leader from an impotent one.  Leadership skills are especially valuable to those in charge large groups of people, especially in business.  A theory, Situational Leadership Theory, was developed specifically to define and illustrate this practice.  The theory examines the role of the follower and his capability and willingness to accomplish a task.

The Idea in a Nutshell

Situational leadership is a theory that looks at a group of people at different degrees of maturity and how each degree should be approached and handled from a position of leadership.  It illustrates how involved the leader will have to be depending on the follower’s stage of ability and willingness. The theory was developed by Paul Hersey and Ken Blanchard during the mid 1970’s.   They recognized that there was a connection in task behavior and relationship behavior, then determined that there were four distinct leadership styles.  The styles include: Telling, Selling, Participating, and Delegating. When determining which leadership style to apply, you will have to look at the distinct level of maturity that will be appropriate for a specific follower.  When examining a well rounded manager, consideration of the manager’s ability to analyze the situation and apply various leadership styles to shifting environmental position will determine the specific leadership style being applied.

The Top Ten Things You Need to Know About Situational Leadership Theory

1.            Situational Leadership Theory brings attention to the role of the follower.   A leader’s success is dependent on the willingness of the follower to affirm or abandon the leader.  A leader is only as effective as the followers behind him, thus making a focus on the follower a true mark of a good leader.

2.            The second dimension of the Situational Leadership Theory is the ability and willingness of the followers to perform a task.   Exploring and defining the follower’s maturity is paramount in the decision of how to lead the followers toward a particular goal.

3.            The Telling style is a high task-low relationship in which the leader explains the roles and assignments for each follower.  There is a one way communication between leader and follower whereas the leader informs the follower of what task needs to be performed.

4.            The Selling style is a high task-high relationship that deals with the leader still explaining the roles and assignments but asking for the follower’s insight.  This uses a two-way communication, giving reinforcement so the follower will adopt the leader’s idea.

5.            The Participating style is a low task-high relationship, in which the decision making process is shared.  The leader takes part in the decision, but leaves it to the followers to make the choice on how the task will be performed.

6.            In the Delegating style, the leader has a low task-low relationship with the follower.  The follower makes the decisions and chooses the way in which he or she believes will create the best results.  The leader is involved with the decisions, but mainly oversees the process.

7.            The first Maturity level is a person that is unable and unwilling, meaning the individual might not have the skills to perform the task or the courage to take charge of the project.  To get the response that the leader wants the Telling style would work best in this situation.

8.            In the second Maturity level, the person is unable but willing.  The person is not skilled to take on the task, but has a good work ethic and will attempt to take on the work anyway.  A  Selling style would be appropriate when attempting to convince the follower to gain the skill needed to complete the task.

9.            Maturity level three will consist of people that are able but unwilling to do the task by themselves.  The person has the experience and skills to complete the task, but lacks the confidence.  The Participating style should be applied here by the leader.  The leader needs to help motivate the follower to complete the task.

10.            The most advanced Maturity level is a person who is able and willing.  The person is experienced and highly skilled. The individual will be confident in completing the task.  This type of person adapts to change.  The Delegating style is used when the leader only needs to oversee the situation.

The Video Lounge

This video is of Dr. Paul Hersey speaking of how and why he came up with his theory.  He focuses on how relevant this theory is in today’s marketplace with leaders being found at a variety of levels.

This clip is of Aubrey Warren discussing his use of Situational Leadership Theory in his leadership program.  He draws attention to the benefits of this leadership style.

My Take

The Situational Leadership Theory is very easy to apply to all types of leadership challenges.  The theory is adaptable and simple to use.  This theory’s greatest strength being available to anyone with basic training and can be used immediately.  The basic skill is identifying and diagnosing a follower’s capabilities, then applying the appropriate level of leader involvement.  The obvious benefit is the flexibility to change as the staff changes.  The theory is highly practical, and can be used at high level leadership, lower level leadership, and even parental leadership.  The theory’s flexibility makes it even more relevant today due to the absolute certainty of change.