Customer Reviews

Leadership Is Common Sense

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I first saw Herman Cain as a keynote speaker at a project management professional seminar. His speach blew me away. Since then I've been a huge fan. I purchased this book and it, like his speech, as outstanding. A great read from and about a great man, with great advice about leadership.

I read this book after seeing the author talk about the book on several talk shows earlier this year. Mr. Cain is the epitome of the American rise to success story. His life story is one of hard work coupled with the burning desire to succeed. The obstacles he has faced will ring familiar to many. He has also included the "three plus three" leadership guide that drives his life and that has inspired me in my life. If you want more out of life, inspiration to move on and change, or if you want to improve your leadership skills read this book

A leader with Common Sense does not make any way near as many mistakes as others and I believe that this book by Herman Cain shows that he is one of those people with Common Sense. OEH

Read this book if you want insight into Herman Cain, unvarnished by present day presidential packaging.

This book, published in 1997, presents the Hermanator's (a nickname he seems to enjoy) leadership theory, and illustrates it with practice from his business career.

Cain's "Three Plus Three" model of leadership (fifteen years before the 9-9-9 tax plan) is about three critical qualities a leader must possess, and three critical things a leader must do.

There's nothing earth shaking here; but after all, it's common sense. According to Cain, leaders must have -

* The ability to recognize that people motivate themselves;

* The ability to take risks and make the tough decisions;

* The ability to block out the unnecessary and concentrate on the necessary.

Given these capabilities, what the leader must do is -

* Remove the barriers which prevent people from being self motivated;

* Lead, taking the actions required to achieve desired results;

* Inspire the passion within people to perform better than expected.

Cain comes across as hard working, straight forward, focused, and very goal oriented as he rises through the ranks of a number of corporations eventually becoming CEO of Godfather's Pizza. The reader also learns much of his values, as he speaks often of his faith, his family, and what he sees as important in life.

Here's a key paragraph that describes his political thinking circa 1997:

The federal budget deficit which threatens our economy is a problem of shared sacrifices, not a problem of raising more taxes. The problem with our current income tax law is that it had no focus in 1913 when it first became law and now it has evolved into a seven million word "mess"... throw it out and start over! The problem with our welfare system is that it pays people not to work...let's pay them to work and eventually many of them will work themselves off welfare. Youth violence and drug abuse is not a problem in the streets, it's a problem in the home...hold parents responsible. More focus on education is not the problem, the focus of education is the problem...teach everyone the basics first. Racial prejudice is not a problem of the "head" but a problem of the" heart"...open hearts will create open minds. We have not lost our moral values as a nation, we have simply forgotten the value of our morals.

At least he can't be accused of flip flopping...

In reading the reviews of this book, I see that some people are writing reviews without reading the book. In fact, the do not even know who wrote the book. They are just more interested in downgrading a person and their ideas.

Not only did our anonymous reviewer forget the 80's economic boom, he apparently forgot to read the book. Hint: Jack Kemp didn't write it...