Making a Difference: Stories of Vision and Courage from America's Leaders [Hardcover]

Chesley B. Sullenberger (Author)

Book Description

Release date: May 15, 2012

As a follow up to his phenomenal New York Times bestselling memoir, Highest Duty, Captain Chesley B. “Sully” Sullenberger explores exactly what it takes to lead and inspire. In Making a Difference, one of the most captivating American heroes of this century—the courageous pilot who brought the crippled US Airways Flight 1549 safely down in New York’s Hudson River—engages some of the most accomplished men and women in the fields of technology, medicine, education, sports, philanthropy, finance, law, and the military in inspiring conversations on true leadership. With powerful thoughts and invaluable guidance from such notables as former Labor Secretary Robert Reich, legendary baseball manager Tony LaRussa, NASA Flight Director Eugene Kranz, and Gov. Jennifer Granholm, Making a Difference is a potential life-changer that stands with Katie Couric’s The Best Advice I Ever Got, Lee Iaococca’s Where Have All the Leaders Gone, Michael J. Fox’s A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Future, and other classic volumes that celebrate human achievement and triumph over adversity.

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

One of the most captivating heroes of the last decade and the author of the New York Times bestseller Highest Duty explores the nature of leadership with some of America's best and brightest

At a time of political polarization and economic turmoil, we yearn for superior leadership. Few have demonstrated this trait better than Captain "Sully" Sullenberger, a man who embodies the core values that are at the heart of America: responsibility, optimism, integrity, loyalty, and compassion. In this follow-up to his bestselling memoir, Sullenberger engages nearly a dozen distinguished Americans to explore the nature of leadership, what it means, what it takes, and how it can be fostered and developed in all of our lives.

They are asked the important questions: Where do the best leaders come from? And how do the most successful and creative truly lead, motivate, and inspire? Sullenberger talks to men and women from diverse fields, including space exploration, business, government, education, sports, finance, medicine, and the military, all of whom embody, in the truest sense, moral courage and leadership by personal example. Among those included are: Tony La Russa, the legendary baseball manager; Gene Kranz, the NASA flight director during the historic Gemini and Apollo programs; Michelle Rhee, founder of the New Teacher Project; former governor of Michigan Jennifer Granholm; Jim Sinegal, co-founder and CEO of Costco; Lieutenant Colonel Tammy Duckworth, former assistant secretary with the Department of Veterans Affairs; Bill Bratton, former NYPD commissioner and LAPD chief; and former Labor secretary Robert Reich.

About the Author

Captain Chesley B. Sullenberger III is a retired airline pilot, speaker, and consultant who has become a source of inspiration for many after his successful emergency water landing of a disabled airliner on the Hudson River. He graduated from the U.S. Air Force Academy and holds two master's degrees and an honorary doctorate of letters from Purdue University. He has testified before Congress about aviation safety and the state of the airline piloting profession. He serves as the CBS News aviation and safety expert, is the founder of Safety Reliability Methods, Inc., a management, safety, and performance consulting company, and was named one of Time's 100 Most Influential People. He lives with his family in Danville, California.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow; First Edition edition (May 15, 2012)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0061924709
• ISBN-13: 978-0061924705
• Product Dimensions: 6 x 1.3 x 9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #392,616 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Captain Chesley B. Sullenberger III is an airline pilot and safety expert, and has served as an instructor and an Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) safety chairman and accident investigator. He was named the Outstanding Cadet in Airmanship in his graduating class at the United States Air Force Academy, and he holds two master's degrees. A native of Denison, Texas, he lives in Danville, California, with his wife and family.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars An Inspiring and Motivational Book May 23, 2012

By J.Ballantyne

Format:Hardcover

After reading Captain Sully Sullenberger's first book "Highest Duty", I knew that I would like his new book "Making a Difference". It didn't let me down. It was a fast read with touching, relevant and inspiring stories. It made me want to be a better professional and activist for the things I believe in. There is something in it for everyone. The book features chapters dedicated to leaders from all walks of life and in a vast array of fields such as health care, government, retail, space exploration, business, education, sports and finance. It showed me that leaders don't necessarily seek out leadership but come upon it by circumstances and situations that propelled them into that position. It also made me see that having a fancy title or big salary doesn't make a person a leader. It comes from "believing in a core set of values and then living by those values" and "caring about a cause greater than you." I enjoyed reading about the trials and triumphs that shaped each of the leaders featured in the book. I can understand why Capt. Sully chose them - each has a deep compassion for humanity. I have long admired Capt. Sully for his own bravery and incredible ability to manage a crisis and its aftermath. And in many ways, he embodies the qualities of a great leader as well. I highly recommend this book for a recent graduate or for Father's Day. I also think all professionals in management positions should read it. There are lessons for everyone to learn through these stories of "vision and courage".

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great read! May 24, 2012

By Christine B.

Format:Hardcover

What a great book! After watching Capt. Sullenberger talk with the ladies on The View, I ran out to grab my copy. The stories he shared are all fantastic examples of how compassion, motivation, and your core values can help shape you into a great leader. Very motivational!

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A great gift for Father's Day or a Graduate May 23, 2012

By Sunshine State Guru

Format:Hardcover

I was taken by Captain Sullenberger's first book Highest Duty and was very interested to hear his thoughts on leadership. This is a riveting book profiling some of our most inspiring contemporary leaders. A must read for the new Grad. Turning adversity into success, taking charge and responsibilty. Everyone can learn from these leaders. Even an old work horse like me. I am taking away a new perspective in how to properly lead in a brave new world. Buying this for my son and a few of his friends. I know they will benefit greatly from reading it.

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars LOVE SULLY! May 24, 2012

By Lynne Banez

Format:Hardcover

Who doesn't love Captain Sully Sullenberger??! His newest book "Making a Difference" is as compelling as his first book, "Highest Duty".
I received Capt. Sullenberger's book as a gift, and read it cover to cover in one weekend! I really enjoyed reading the stories of all the featured leaders, especially Tony LaRussa and Michelle Rhee. This is a MUST purchase for a upcoming graduation gift and PERFECT for Father's Day.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Should be required reading for business and government leaders December 29, 2012

By James H. Chesky

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

What made Sully famous was a lifetime of duty, training and work that became evident in a few moments over the Hudson river. His second book seeks out what is it the people can do or are doing that is "Making a Difference" He does a decent job of interviewing the kinds of people that are often ignored in mainstream media. A good read.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Well-written overview of leadership examples July 20, 2012

By George Fulmore

Format:Hardcover

A friend gave me a copy of this book. At first glance, I thought it would be a generic thing full of platitudes, but with little more than that to offer. I was wrong. This is a better book than that. It is well-written, and it is full of insights and depth. I highly recommend it.

We'll have to believe that Sullenberger really wrote the book, while assuming he had some help with editing and such. He tells us that his purpose was to give an overview of what makes for leadership, the essential nature of it, the core qualities and/or characteristics, and how each of us can learn to apply the information in the book to our own lives.

Eleven Americans are profiled. I recognized the names of half, and had a good familiarity with some: John C. Bogle, Admiral Thad Allen, Jennifer Granholm, Tony La Russa, Robert Reich and Michelle Rhee.

He starts by telling us about Admiral Thad Allen, who, of course, became famous for his handling of the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. The Allen story begins a theme where we are told that the execution of strong leadership comes after years of training, education and preparation. Few of us had heard of Admiral Allen before he was put in charge of the disaster; few of us would have ever heard of him if he had not. I'm sure that most of us appreciated his steady hand at the helm during the crisis. His was a good story with which to begin the book.

Next, he tells us about one of my personal favorites: John C. Bogle of Vanguard Investments. He is also known as "St. Jack" in investment circles. His college thesis led to the formation of the mutual fund industry, especially to the concept of computer-driven, low-cost, "indexed" mutual funds.... These, of course, are designed for everyday investors; they are designed to reduce risk via "baskets" of hundreds, if not thousands, of individual stocks. And these, of course, are the antithesis of "actively managed" mutual funds, which are packages of stocks that are "managed" by buying and selling with regularity the stock within a fund.

Bogel's suggestion is to bet on the full range of stocks, not on sub-sets. Of interest is that the book points out that Bogel has little use for the likes of Jack Welch, the former CEO of GE. Bogel also tells us that he is a "Teddy Roosevelt" Republican who voted for President Obama. He favors strong federal regulation of the stock market and would like the industry to be based more on stewardship than salesmanship. He is also critical of excessive CEO salaries and companies that stress short-term, rather than long-term profits.

William Bratton is next. He was a police chief in Philadelphia, then New York City. His story is followed by Lieutenant Colonel Tammy Duckworth, who was a military officer, Tony LaRussa, who was a winning major league baseball manager, Gene Kranz, known as a "retired NASA legend," Jim Sinegal, who built the Costco Corporation, and Sue Sheridan, who has advanced awareness of misdiagnosis in medicine, having had experiences with both a child and husband. But, there is no time here to do summaries of these stories. I'll tell you a bit, however, about the others:

Jennifer Granholm is the former governor of Michigan. Born is Vancouver, BC, of a Swedish father and "mercurial" Irish mother, Granholm moves to California, then to Harvard Law School, before being married. Her story involves the struggles in Michigan during the economic downturn and the realization that there was no replacing of most of the manufacturing jobs that left the state and/or the country. As governor of the state, she did what she could do, and learned in the process. One can learn from her leadership struggles during this difficult period of American history.

The last two subjects are my favorites. First is Robert Reich, who I know from reading some of his books, seeing him in person one time, and seeing him on cable TV shows, frequently. But here, I got a first-class overview of his views and history. I didn't know, for example, that he had run for Governor of Massachusetts in 2002, losing in the Democratic primary, in a race that would be won by Republican candidate Mitt Romney. Reich served as Secretary of Labor in the Clinton administration. He has grave concerns over the concentration of wealth in our country, as demonstrated by the dramatic increases in CEO compensation. Reich thinks much of the problem with modern business lies in its short-term approach. Everyone becomes, essentially, a "free agent." This mentality threatens our American value of being one nation and of all of us being in the same boat together. Reich argues that he should not be pigeon-holed as a "liberal." He opposes polarization in politics.

The final subject is Michelle Rhee, who became schools chancellor in Washington, D.C., in 2008. I've not read much about her, but I did see the movie, "Waiting for Superman." She, of course, is all about reforming public education. In this role, she has taken on the teachers' unions. She fired a ton of teachers in D.C., and she was able to get the unions to sign updated contracts that emphasized performance and results. She is one tough cookie. Her form of leadership is more abrupt than most. Says she, "I have very little tolerance for incompetence." For kids, she wants them to learn discipline, hard work, time management and structure. But she also knows the realities of American education: those from the "better" neighborhoods tend to have better educations and teachers, compared to the rest. She admits that she was not as good in the PR department while in her D.C. job as she could have been: "I assumed that everyone knew where I was trying to go."

So, that's my review. Again, I highly recommend the book, if you are looking for a good overview on the basics of leadership, with more than a bit of inspiration thrown in. Read more ›

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Capt. Sully's book is an uplifting book to read January 16, 2013

By John T. Guzy

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

The book arrived in a timely fashion and in good condition. I thought the book was interesting to read, and it made my want to be a better person and contribute more.

5.0 out of 5 stars Gift to board members May 26, 2013

By Judith

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

Thought the book was a good idea as a gift to my board members as I was going out of office as president.