Summoned to Lead [Hardcover]

Leonard Sweet (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2004

Leadership Re-Visioned Cast a vision, set a strategy, rally the troops, and take the hill---you don't need another book to rehash the well-worn principles of modern leadership. But if you're looking for something different, something that . . . approaches leadership as an art as well as a science inspires hope and expectation in those of us who aren't born leaders challenges those with leadership roles to explore new possibilities . . . then Leonard Sweet wants to help you discover a very different kind of leadership vision. It's one you hear if your ears are open, and it could summon you at any time. When you respond, the puzzle pieces of who you are will fit together into a leader others follow because you've answered a call, not trained for a position. 'The church has it all wrong. It is trying to train leaders. Instead, it ought to train everyone to listen and to develop their own soundtrack.' Leaders don't see a vision, says Sweet, they hear one. 'Sound becomes sight. Leaders hear life.' For a sonogram of 'acoustic leadership,' Sweet takes us inside the incredible account of Sir Ernest Shackleton, the celebrated polar explorer who led his entire crew of twenty-seven from disaster in the Antarctic to safety. Called 'the greatest leader that ever came on God's earth, bar none,' Shackleton objectifies the goals of Sweet's own exploration in search of wisdom for today and tomorrow's truly compelling, voice-activated leaders. Right now, you may be leading many people or just yourself. But who knows what tomorrow---or a minute from now---will call forth in you. Are your ears open?

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

Leadership Re-Visioned Cast a vision, set a strategy, rally the troops, and take the hill—you don’t need another book to rehash the well-worn principles of modern leadership. But if you’re looking for something different, something that . . .

approaches leadership as an art as well as a science inspires hope and expectation in those of us who aren’t born leaders challenges those with leadership roles to explore new possibilities . . . then Leonard Sweet wants to help you discover a very different kind of leadership vision. It’s one you hear if your ears are open, and it could summon you at any time. When you respond, the puzzle pieces of who you are will fit together into a leader others follow because you’ve answered a call, not trained for a position. "The church has it all wrong. It is trying to train leaders. Instead, it ought to train everyone to listen and to develop their own soundtrack." Leaders don’t see a vision, says Sweet, they hear one. "Sound becomes sight. Leaders hear life." For a sonogram of "acoustic leadership," Sweet takes us inside the incredible account of Sir Ernest Shackleton, the celebrated polar explorer who led his entire crew of twenty-seven from disaster in the Antarctic to safety. Called "the greatest leader that ever came on God’s earth, bar none," Shackleton objectifies the goals of Sweet’s own exploration in search of wisdom for today and tomorrow’s truly compelling, voice-activated leaders. Right now, you may be leading many people or just yourself. But who knows what tomorrow—or a minute from now—will call forth in you. Are your ears open?

About the Author

Leonard Sweet (PhD, University of Rochester) holds the E. Stanley Jones chair at Drew University. Founder and president of SpiritVenture Ministries, he also serves as a distinguished visiting professor at George Fox University, and is the chief writer for preachingplus.com. Sweet is a popular speaker and has written numerous books, including Jesus Drives Me Crazy, SoulTsunami, SoulSalsa, Carpe Manana, and (with Brian McLaren and Jerry Haselmeyer) A Is for Abductive: The Language of the Emerging Church.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: Zondervan (June 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0310232228
• ISBN-13: 978-0310232223
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #228,345 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Len Sweet was born of a mixed marriage: his mother was a fiery Pilgrim Holiness-ordained preacher from the mountains of West Virginia and his quiet father a Free Methodist lay leader from the Adirondack mountains of upstate New York. After a deconversion at 17, when Len set about less sowing wild oats than planting prairies, he became an atheist intellectual and scholar dedicated to exposing the nincompoopery and poppycockery, if not tomfoolery and skullduggery of all religions. After this seven-year period of liminality, Len came back to the faith of his ancestors, where he has been ever since, exploring the "insterstices" and "semiotics" of religion, culture and history. He uses two words to describe himself: semiotician and interstitial. In other words, he is obsessed with two questions: "Where have you been?" and "Where are you going?"

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars a great, anti-leadership book..., August 29, 2004

By 

Neville G. Kiser "NGK" (Pasadena, CA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Summoned to Lead (Hardcover)

Sweet's new, quick read based on Ernest Shackleton (arguably one of the greatest leaders of all time---who failed in his primary mission) is refreshing to say the least. 'Summoned to Lead,'--like many other Sweet books--is well-researched and compelling in its discoveries and challenges. It focuses on the apsects of leadership rarely talked about and is such a little inspiring gem, you'll be surprised at how after each chapter, you feel like you could tackle the world. That may be trite to say, but it's rarely felt as often as people would like to think or believe. While the only thing this book seems to be weak in is how it too often falls into the mythological or allegorical or ideological language...but most of the time, it's refreshing. A solid read, and recommended highly.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sweet Magnum Opus, February 27, 2008

By 

Samuel M. Stone "ninghaoma" (Paramus, NJ United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Summoned to Lead (Hardcover)

I underestimated this book. Bought it just to read "another" book on leadership, bought it because Sweet is one of my favorite professors and authors, bought it just to see what Sweet has to say about leadership without expecting to learn something new but to review the same old leadership wisdoms that I have learned from other gurus over the years articulated by Sweet in different words. What a surprise! Almost every part of this book is nothing but fresh air. It is not another leadership book. It is a leadership orchestra! It is even not for reading at all. It is for listening and enjoying the sound of leadership. It is beautiful, poetic, and musical.

It does need a readied heart to experience this book, so I am not so surprised that it is not so well received, but I will not be surprised that this book becomes a classic in the future on the subject of leadership vision architecture.

5.0 out of 5 stars Book on leadership, September 27, 2010

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Jesus M. Nazareth - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Summoned to Lead (Hardcover)

Another book that will enhance your leadership skill.
A must for every aspiring leaders!