The Secret: What Great Leaders Know--and Do [Audiobook, Unabridged] [Audio CD]

Ken Blanchard (Author), Mark Miller (Author), Rick Adamson (Reader)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 22, 2004

Debbie Brewster is an executive whose work group is failing. She begins meeting with a mentor her company president who helps her discover the secret of great leaders. In this accessible business fable, Debbie learns five ways in which great leaders can actually serve their followers and takes her team from worst to first.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Debbie, the heroine of this insipid business novella, is an archetypal customer relations executive who fails to wring improved performance from her micro-managed and dispirited subordinates. CEO Jeff takes her under his wing to impart the wisdom of "servant leadership" as exemplified by such figures as Jimmy Carter, Spartacus and, most of all, Jesus of Nazareth. Under his mentor, Debbie realizes that a leader’s role is to inspire and empower underlings both in the workplace and in their personal lives. She learns to delegate so that she can focus on "vision" and "values." She commits herself to a project of "Reinventing Continuously" and she comes to understand that, since people are essences, not constructs, it’s better to leverage employees’ strengths rather than trying to fix their shortcomings; hiring decisions are therefore all-important and should involve no less than four exhaustive interviews. Armed with these principles, Debbie makes a spectacular new hire, gets her team to come up with the slogan "From Worst to First" and enlists them in continuous improvement of the work process. Soon performance skyrockets (exactly how remains somewhat mysterious), garnering Debbie a standing ovation and promotion to head of Leadership Development. Blanchard, co-author of The One Minute Manager, and Miller, an executive at the Chick-fil-A fast food chain, construct a rickety fictional matrix to support their high-minded but rather familiar leadership nostrums. Written in stilted business-school lingo ("‘Hi Deb! Looks like you’re managing by walking around today!’"), the narrative and dialogue elements come off as awkward filler that only accentuates the staleness of the truisms on offer.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

KEN BLANCHARD is the author or coauthor of more than 30 books including the phenomenal best-seller The One Minute Manager (more than 10 million copies sold). His ideas and teachings have had a tremendous impact on the day-to-day management of countless people and companies.

MARK MILLER began his Chick-fil-A career working as an hourly team member and is currently vice president of training and development. He has served in numerous leadership capacities in restaurant operations, quality and customer satisfaction, and corporate communications.

RICK ADAMSON's voiceover credits include industrials and commercials for radio, television, and audiobook recordings, including The Secret and Younger Next Year.

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Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: HighBridge Company; Unabridged edition (November 22, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1565119444
• ISBN-13: 978-1565119444
• Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 4.9 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (39 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #232,028 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #78 in Books > Books on CD > Business > Management

More About the Author

Few people have influenced the day-to-day management of people and companies more than Ken Blanchard. A prominent, sought-after author, speaker, and business consultant, Dr. Blanchard is universally characterized by his friends, colleagues, and clients as one of the most insightful, powerful, and compassionate individuals in business today. Ken is one of the most influential leadership experts in the world and is respected for his years of groundbreaking work in the fields of leadership and management.

Dr. Ken Blanchard is the cofounder and Chief Spiritual Officer of The Ken Blanchard Companies, an international management training and consulting firm that he and his wife, Margie Blanchard, began in 1979 in San Diego, California. In addition to being a renowned speaker and consultant, Ken also spends time as a visiting lecturer at his alma mater, Cornell University, where he is a trustee emeritus of the Board of Trustees.

Ken has received many awards and honors for his contributions in the fields of management, leadership, and speaking. The National Speakers Association awarded him its highest honor, the "Council of Peers Award of Excellence." He was inducted into the HRD Hall of Fame by Training magazine and Lakewood Conferences, and he received the Golden Gavel Award from Toastmasters International. Ken also received The Thought Leadership Award for continued support of work-related learning and performance by ISA--The Association of Learning Providers. Ken has been inducted into Amazon's Hall of Fame as one of the top 25 best-selling authors of all time. The business school at Grand Canyon University bears his name. In addition, Ken teaches students in the Master of Science in Executive Leadership Program at the University of San Diego.

Born in New Jersey and raised in New York, Ken received a master's degree from Colgate University, and a bachelor's and PhD from Cornell University. An avid golfer, Ken belongs to the Loch Lomond Golf Club in Scotland.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Leadership Lessons, May 31, 2004

By 

Ilaxi S. Patel "Editor, kidsfreesouls.com & A... (India) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Secret: What Great Leaders Know and Do (Hardcover)

This is the story of Debbie, a struggling and a failing leader, who learns the lessons of management from her Boss. Miserable with her poor performance, the character of Ken's Book, joins the Mentor Program offered by her company and incidentally, Jeff, the president of the company happens to be the trainer. She thoroughly undergoes the training sessions where she realise her mistakes. She is taught to be a 'Serving Leader' rathar than a 'self-serving Leader'. She learns the secrets of success with the five steps :
* Seeing and shaping the future
* Engaging and developing others
* Continuously Reinvent
* Value results and relationships
* Embody the values
Debbie learns whatever is needed to be a good leader, analyze her progress with examples, excercises and tips. In process with Debbie's example, Ken Blanchard has made successful attempt to teach the Leadership Lessons to all successful as well as troubled and failed Leaders. The Book provides a guide to solve problems that seem complex and make it easier with the concepts clear - A choice to Serve. Not always I guess, because while Serving too without being self-served, the Leader becomes a struggler if the Company policies and the Boss Attitude and vision is not focused. Sometimes wavelengths do not meet. However, based on the author's experience and drawn from examples of best leaders, this book gives an insight to improve upon one's own abilities and in serving others, tackle the situations with ease without struggling lamely. Ken Blanchard's experience speaks in volumes. A good Pick.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A book of uncommon wisdom, June 8, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: The Secret: What Great Leaders Know and Do (Hardcover)

I must admit that I don't usually purchase or enjoy very many "leadership" books, but this one is truly different. This book is written in a quick-read style and is very easy to understand. The principles are easy to remember and hard to apply, but have had a transformational impact on my life. I believe readers will find that if they have the guts and discipline to consistently think about ways to apply these principles, they will see a major shift in how people respond to them in their family life, business life, or church life. I have already shared my copy of the book with others, and they have each pointed out specific aspects of the book that they say completely changed their way of looking at the world.

I think this book makes great gifts for people you work with or family members. Don't be surprised if some folks don't "get it"...it's the people that do "get it" that are going to find amazing ways to apply these principles and impact the lives of others!

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Some powerful leadership wisdom in a small package, March 10, 2005

By 

Michael Erisman (Seattle, WA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Secret: What Great Leaders Know and Do (Hardcover)

"The Secret" is a message about leadership woven into a story of a leader struggling with her team's performance. When she applies for the Company mentor program, she is paired with the Company President, who imparts some simple, but powerful wisdom about what great leaders do.

There are hundreds of good books on leadership, but some of the best are those which take advantage of application opportunity and relay the concepts within a storyline that demonstrates how they are applied. This book does a credible job of that, although the story is at times a bit contrived.

The essential message is the SERVE model of leadership. The model is simple, yet effective. Buy the book and find out what the "secret" of great leadership is. I recommend this book for anyone who leads people or coaches those who do.