Customer Reviews

The Book of Leadership Wisdom (Wiley Audio)

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This should be on every leader's or "wanna-be" leader's desk. Written by some of our past century's most effective leaders and edited to provide "side-bars" for the most important points in each of their articles, this book provides a much-needed tool. I have used it to draw on for speeches, research papers, and debate points. I first checked it out from the library to see if the content was worth buying - and I immediately ordered it! This definitely provides food for thought and inspiration. It includes not only the actual articles written by the leaders, but also a one-page profile/background on each.

Peter Krass has edited the Wisdom Series series which includes this volume. Each anthologizes brief essays by different "icons of business." A brief bio of each author precedes her or his essay. In the Introduction, Krass asserts that "Among these various characters, in fact, the general consensus is that leaders are made, not born. The mythology of some mystical ability that surrounds these leaders is just that -- myth. As to the question: What makes a leader? The answer is here" in the 51 essays which he organizes within the following framework:

Part I: The Necessary Qualities

Part II: Dealing with Adversity

Part III: Visions of Progress

Part IV: Evolving Perspectives on Labor

Part V: Company Culture

Part VI: Habits and Idosyncracies

Part VII: Motivators and Mentors

Part VIII: Leading Revolution

[NOTE: Gary Hamel has written a truly brilliant book entitled Leading the Revolution. Compare and contrast his ideas with those expressed by Bossidy, Galvin, Vernon, Watson, Jr., Eisner, Wachner, Marriott, Jr., and Henry Ford in Part VIII.]

Of the 51 essays, the ones I found most valuable include all of those in Part VIII; also, others earlier in the volume such as "The Real Essence of Business" (Roberto C. Goizueta), "Roving Leadership" (Max DePree), "A View from Olympus" (Bill Gates), "American and Japanese Styles" (Akio Morita), "In the Public Eye" (Susan L. Kurtzig), and "Are You a Job-Holder or a Results-Getter?" (T. Coleman du Pont. A wide range of individuals discuss an even wider range of business issues. My suggestion is to select a topic or two of greatest interest and dive in. Because business circumstances can so often change so rapidly and (sometimes) unexpectedly, what you learn from what you read today may well help you to prepare more effectively for an uncertain future in which a new peril or opportunity emerges. Moreover, my guess is that there will be several other essays in this book to help you then, also.

I have also reviewed most of the other volumes in this series and recommend each of them highly.

What does it take to be a successful business leader? This book, edited by Peter Krauss, is filled with classic writings by legendary business leaders. Also in this book, the reader will find, behind the inspirational phrases and classic pieces of advice, the stories and examples that will inspire, and turn advice into action. This book is not so much focused on telling one must be done, but focuses on showing what has and can be done.
For example, in the late 1800's, National Cash Register's John H. Patterson was in trouble. He was trying to sell a product that everyone resented: the cash register. Why pay for a machine that double-checks the clerk's competency and honesty? Nobody wanted these "thief-catchers" in their stores. No way.
Today, no store is without a cash register. This is a tribute to Patterson's great leadership skills. Patterson was a genius at convincing others to accept his new ideas and motivate a sales force to sell those ideas.
Another example is offered from ITT's Harold Geneen. Geneen argues that if a leader has to pull rank, the leader is not a leader. He believed that one must be able to inspire hard work and creativity without resorting to commands.
J. Paul Getty points out those true leaders know how to battle an inevitable crisis. He adds that leaders love to be challenged.
From Levi Strauss's Robert Haas, the reader learns that great leaders must have a deep set of core values and principles. These leaders must not only have them but effectively communicate these beliefs and principles. Best leaders can find ethical solutions to deep conflicts because of a strong belief and principle structure. Learn how Haas had to deal with child labor at a time when child labor was critical debate.
This book is full of examples on each page. The reader will see some of the challenges that have faced some of the best known firms, and the great leaders that navigated those treacherous waters, and survived to write about it.

It's probably not a good idea to try to lead by adopting the style of Abraham Lincoln, Winston Churchill, Nelson Mandela, or any other leader. Find your own leadership style, and then decide which lessons from other business leaders would fit well with your own style.

One great book that allows you to learn from other business leaders is The Book of Leadership Wisdom, which offers more than 50 passages written by leaders ranging from Thomas Edison to Ross Perot. Below are six examples of their wisdom:

* "The person who heads a company should realize that his people are really not working for him; they are working with him for themselves. They have their own dreams, their own needs for self-fulfillment. He has to help fill their needs as much as they do his. He has to prove to them that he is working as hard as they are, that he is competent in his own role as chief executive... that he is willing to share the risks as well as the rewards of their enterprise." - Harold S. Geneen

* "People today work very hard, and we should not approach productivity only from the standpoint of working harder. There is another, more rewarding and exciting solution. The experience, perspective and basic operating intelligence possessed by our people represent a large asset that is still vastly underutilized... Our managers should manage people; let people manage their assignments." - Rene C. McPherson

* "Teamwork cannot be sustained in an environment that shouts down naysayers. If your vision cannot survive attack, it may not be worth defending. There can be no assistance from colleagues whose best judgment is suspended in deference to your vision." - Charles B. Wang

* "The chief problem of `big business' today is to shape its policies so that each worker, whether in office or factory, will feel he is a vital part of his company, with a personal responsibility for its success, and a desire to share in that success." - William Cooper Procter

* "Many [rising young executives] will fail to reach their goals. They will fail not for lack of competence, but because they have a `people-blindness' that, time after time, traps them into making a technically good decision that just won't work in practice." - Ralph Lazarus

* "Business is only a form of teaching. You teach people to desire your product; that is selling. You teach workmen how to make the right product; that is manufacturing. You teach others to cooperate with you; that is organization. To succeed in business, it is necessary to make the other man see things as you see them." - John H. Patterson

These are just some examples of the wisdom that you will find in this book. Wishing you success in your own leadership development!