Cigars, Whiskey & Winning: Leadership Lessons from Ulysses S. Grant [Hardcover]

Al Kaltman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1, 1998

Drawing on Grant's writings and life experiences during his meteoric rise from tannery clerk to commanding general of over one million men, "Cigars, Whiskey & Winning" presents 250 concise, practical lessons for getting superior performance from the troops, whether military or corporate. An inspiring management treatise torn from the pages of Civil War history, this unique book goes beyond mere 'how-to's' to reveal the character traits, core beliefs, and fundamental values that turn a manager into a leader, whether on the battlefield or in the boardroom. "Cigars, Whiskey & Winning" is a savvy blend of biography, history, and leadership wisdom that will appeal to aspiring business leaders and Civil War buffs alike.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

"Ulysses S. Grant was a perceptive and surprisingly modern manager," writes Al Kaltman. "A pragmatist who learned from his own and others' successes and failures, he brought new dimensions to strategic planning. He was adept at seizing and exploiting opportunities as they presented themselves, and he boldly shattered paradigms long before the term paradigm had made its way into the management jargon."

Kaltman uses Grant's military career, beginning with his enrollment at West Point through his early successes in the Civil War to his eventual command of the entire Union Army, to illustrate 250 basic principles of business success, from "Bureaucrats do the dumbest things" to "You can't stop the clock." In an afterword, Kaltman considers how President Grant failed to live up to the principles of teamwork and planning that led General Grant to victory, with a resultant career as chief executive whose legacy has been less than stellar.

From Library Journal

Kaltman uses Civil War general and U.S. president Ulysses S. Grant to represent a model of 250 management "lessons." There are no complex management theories here; Grant, a poor man who failed at several businesses, initially looks like anything but a model of good management. But with the start of the Civil War, he rejoined the army and slowly rose through the ranks to be commanding general of the Union forces by war's end. Kaltman, the senior executive vice president of MBNA Insurance Services, arranges the lessons chronologically, so the reader follows Grant through his life. Grant's lapses of judgment?i.e., Shiloh and Cold Harbor?are shown in a positive light. His scandal-plagued presidential years still contained a series of accomplishments, and he remained an honest and forthright man, even if his appointees were not. This book makes interesting reading and will certainly appeal to Civil War specialists and scholars. Recommended for both public and academic libraries.?Mark E. Ellis, Albany State Univ. Lib., GA
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Prentice Hall Press; illustrated edition edition (October 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 073520022X
• ISBN-13: 978-0735200227
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (38 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #439,169 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #28 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > People, A-Z > ( G ) > Grant, Ulysses S.

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good solutions for everyday problems, November 28, 1999

By 

Jim Sullivan (Savannah, GA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cigars, Whiskey & Winning: Leadership Lessons from Ulysses S. Grant (Hardcover)

This book is an excellent summation of the lessons learned by Ulysses S. Grant in an easy-to-read format. The book is well-paced and divided, following Grant's victories and defeats in military, civilian and personal battles from his childhood through the Civil War, his presidency, and Kaltman even manages to draw cogent and sobering lessons from his death. For each chapter the author gives a short story and draws a lesson from it. Each lesson is less than two pages, giving the reader an ability to read for a few minutes at a time during a busy day without losing his or her place or train of thought. Because of the length Kaltman does not run his point into the ground like many management books. His simple explanations stand alone. Kaltman's innovative format is now being emualted by many management authors.

Don't be fooled by the easy read--this book contains serious lessons that I will ponder again and again and wish I had learned earlier in life. The oft-maligned Grant is a worthy hero, and Kaltman has extracted invaluable morals from his experiences. If the author's bias that Grant deserves a better place in history than he currently enjoys shows through in some places, it is a sentiment I share. And so will you after you read his book. I recommend this book as a gift for anyone struggling to learn the skills to survive and thrive in the battlefield of business.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars First in War but Then...., June 11, 2001

By 

Robert Morris (Dallas, Texas) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Cigars, Whiskey and Winning: Leadership Lessons from General Ulysses S. Grant (Paperback)

Here is another of the "leadership lessons from" volumes which seem to be published in an ever-increasing number. I was curious to know what Kaltman had to say about one of our nation's most successful generals who is also generally viewed as one of our least successful Presidents. The bulk of the book focuses on Grant the general but Kaltman adds a brief section in which he attempts to place Grant the President within an appropriate historical context. The material is organized within 11 chapters, ranging from "Seize Opportunities: April 1822-August 1848" to "Always Do What's Right: February-December 1865." Kaltman then provides a Conclusion ("The Quintessential Grant") and an Addendum (The aforereferened "Grant's Mismanaged Presidency"). The net result is much more than a portrait of Grant. Indeed, Kaltman has carefully examined all manner of primary sources from which he has selected what he considers to be those "leadership lessons" which are most relevant to our own time. (I wish he had included a Bibliography.) At the heart of this book is an essential paradox: the same leadership principles and strategies which enabled Grant the general to achieve great success are precisely the same which (for various reasons which Kaltman suggests) Grant rejected or failed to use while serving for two terms as President. I am among those who consider Grant's Personal Memoirs a literary masterpiece as well as one of the most valuable historical accounts of the American Civil War. Therefore I was not in any way surprised by the eloquence of Grant's remarks which Kaltman generously and skillfully includes together with appropriate comments by others best-qualified to comment on Grant, both in terms of his military leadership and qualities of personal character.

With regard to the title of this book, Kaltman shares three quotations from those who had direct association with Grant. One observer noted that Grant "smokes almost constantly" and the most famous is of remarks by President Abraham Lincoln concerning Grant's fondness for whiskey ("...if it made fighting generals like Grant I should like to get some of it for distribution"). However, the remarks which I found most revealing were made by Robert E. Lee to a professor at Washington College where Lee served as president after the Civil War: "Sir, if you ever presume to speak disrespectfully of General Grant in my presence, either you or I will sever his connection with this university." I urge those who share my high regard for Kaltman's book to read or re-read Grant's Personal Memoirs.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Concise, Helpful and Interesting, February 22, 2000

By 

Chris Chong (Hibbing, MN) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Cigars, Whiskey & Winning: Leadership Lessons from Ulysses S. Grant (Hardcover)

I am regarded as good manager, have little time to read and no knowledge of the Civil War--when I received this book for Christmas I promptly put it on the shelf, and only began flipping through it two months later. Now I wish I had read it years ago. The lessons are concisely worded, and beautifully illustrated with examples from the life of a man who knew his fair share of hardships, successes and failures. It was refreshing to read a book on management written by a successful manager with useful advice for adults. Many of the management books that gather dust on my shelves are full of platitudes, cute little mice and invented quotes from fictional characters. Far more interesting to learn with the General who saved America than to speculate what a starship captain or a mouse might do at a board meeting. Grant could not rely on plot contrivances or cute beatitudes to save the Union; my respect for the author's skillful way of drawing lessons from each experience grew with each page.

As did my respect for the apparently much under-appreciated Ulysses S. Grant (whose name was not actually Ulysses and if you want to know more read the book). In fact, I was inspired enough to go looking for the memoirs of the man. It's a 22-volume set, which I look forward to reading when I retire. The advice in Kaltman's book, however, will undoubtedly help me to reach a much higher level before I do.