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Ronald A. Heifetz

Marty Linsky

Leadership on the Line: Staying Alive through the Dangers of Leading Hardcover – April 18, 2002

by Martin Linsky (Author), Ronald A. Heifetz (Author)

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Leadership on the Line, With a New Preface: Staying Alive Through the Dangers of Change
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Named one of 100 Leadership & Success Books to Read in a Lifetime by Amazon Editors

To lead is to live dangerously. It's romantic and exciting to think of leadership as all inspiration, decisive action, and rich rewards, but leading requires taking risks that can jeopardize your career and your personal life. It requires putting yourself on the line, disturbing the status quo, and surfacing hidden conflict. And when people resist and push back, there's a strong temptation to play it safe. Those who choose to lead plunge in, take the risks, and sometimes get burned. But it doesn't have to be that way say renowned leadership authorities Ronald Heifetz and Marty Linsky. In Leadership on the Line, they show how it's possible to make a difference without getting "taken out" or pushed aside. They present everyday tools that give equal weight to the dangerous work of leading change and the critical importance of personal survival. Through vivid stories from all walks of life, the authors present straightforward strategies for navigating the perilous straits of leadership. Whether parent or politician, CEO or community activist, this practical book shows how you can exercise leadership and survive and thrive to enjoy the fruits of your labor.

Print length

252 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Harvard Business Review Press
Publication date

April 18, 2002
Dimensions

6.26 x 0.97 x 9.62 inches
ISBN-10

9781578514373
ISBN-13

978-1578514373
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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Climbing Mount Everest: dangerous. Hitchhiking in Colombia: very dangerous. Leading through change: perilous. Perilous but possible, say Heifetz and Linsky in their encouragingly practical guide to putting yourself on the line and negotiating the hazards of leadership. As the authors acknowledge, many leadership books are "all about inspiration, but downplay the perspiration." This one doesn't. Leadership is always a risky business, but those risks can be understood and reduced. Effective leadership comes from doing more than the technical work of routine management; it involves adaptive work on the part of the leader, and a willingness to confront and disturb people, promote their resourcefulness, and engage their ability to adjust to new realities. But adaptive change always encounters resistance. Heifetz and Linsky examine four forms of resistance--marginalization, diversion, attack, and seduction--before presenting a number of practical resistance-response skills to nurture and employ. Some are fairly obvious (like developing and maintaining perspective, and holding steady in the midst of change), and others more complex (like thinking politically when dealing with friends, foes, and fence sitters), but shimmering nuggets of insight and practical wisdom can be found in each. The dangers of leadership also spring from within, however, and the book's final section addresses ways to recognize and manage competing "hungers" and learn to distinguish one's roles from one's self. The authors' points are illustrated by the experiences of leaders from all walks of life, making this a useful and inspiring manual for anyone hoping to put themselves on the line and make a difference in the lives of others. --S. Ketchum

From Publishers Weekly

Recognizing that it can be both lonely and difficult at the top, the authors faculty members of Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government set out to lend emotional and practical support. Whether leaders represent a local planning board or a Fortune 500 company, they "live dangerously," say the authors, "because when leadership counts, when you lead people through difficult change, you challenge what people hold dear their daily habits, tools, loyalties, and ways of thinking with nothing more to offer perhaps than a possibility." To that end, Heifetz and Linsky offer useful strategies leaders can employ, such as building political constituencies, trying to orchestrate the inevitable conflict, and forcing those who cause problems to actually solve the problems. Indeed, the book does dwell on the negative aspects of leadership, serving more as a troubleshooting guide than a how-to leadership handbook. Some of the examples are informal (e.g., the 1994 Chicago Bulls), while others are more traditional (e.g., city planning and politics). Showing a sympathetic side, Heifetz and Linsky offer tactics to help leaders not to take conflict personally. Remember, they counsel, you are more than your job. This book will undoubtedly provide leaders and managers comfort on days when everything seems to be going wrong in their department or organization.
Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Review

“Widely acclaimed book” — The Huffington Post

From the Author

This book is about the personal challenges and dangers of exercising leadership. We wrote it after a half-century of teaching and consulting between us. We have worked in medicine, law, music, journalism and politics and we have been working together for some fifteen years. We have heard literally thousands of stories from people, some of them at the top of large organizations, some in the middle, some on the outside. Many of their stories come from professional experience, but many come from folks civic and personal lives, as well. What these stories have told us is that leadership is difficult and dangerous, but also that there are many powerful and practical ideas that can reduce the risks; moreover, exercising leadership is worth doing because it adds significance and meaning to your life. This book grew out of their stories.

We use these stories to illustrate both the mistakes you can easily make and the ways you can avoid making them. How do you put yourself out there without you becoming the issue? How do you stay in a leadership role, asking the difficult questions, pointing out the gap between espoused values and behavior, keeping uncomfortable subjects on the table or doing yourself in? How do you keep your own spirit alive when those threatened are attacking you and some of your allies are abandoning you?

Finally, this book is about why exercising leadership is so important, not only for the groups, organizations and communities you are trying to affect, but also for you, yourself, in the significance and meaning in your own life. Our deepest aspirations for Leadership on the Line are that it will provide both practical advice and inspiration, so that you will have better tools and means to lead, protect yourself, keep your spirit alive, and celebrate the fruits of your labor.

From the Back Cover

"This is not a conventional book about how to inspire and lead a large organization. It is a much more ambitious work that describes the personal challenges and tactical problems that arise in trying to exert a constructive influence in all kinds of organizational settings. In its wealth of examples, insights, and suggestions, every reader will find ideas of genuine value."

-Derek C. Bok, President Emeritus of Harvard University and author of The Trouble with Government

"With stories that are inspiring and sobering, Heifetz and Linsky show us the perils of leadership and offer us the keys to survival. This book will be indispensable to anyone trying to make big changes in how their company does business."

-Robert Iger, President and COO, Walt Disney Company

"This practical guide to the art of leadership contains wisdom for us all, combining vivid stories with intellectual rigor. The authors honor the notion that we each have unique gifts to offer, and through our offering we can both serve the common good and, in so doing, derive a sense of meaning and purpose in our lives."

- The Most Reverend Frank T. Griswold, Presiding Bishop and Primate, Episcopal Church in the United States

"Chock-full of political wisdom as well as wisdom for the soul. Anyone with passion to make a difference in public life ought to read this book before taking another step."

-Doris Kearns Goodwin, historian and author of No Ordinary Time: Franklin and Eleanor Roosevelt-The Home Front in World War II

"Leadership on the Line could also be called 'High Risk, High Payoff.' Having the courage to step forward with solutions regardless of an accepted pecking order is what real leadership is all about. Overcoming the perils of leading and the satisfaction that comes in doing so is the theme of this splendid work."

-Lieutenant General Bernard E. Trainor, USMC (Ret.) Senior Fellow for National Security, Council on Foreign Relations

"There are many books about leadership, but I know of none more realistic about the risks and rewards of challenging an organization than this one. It is 'tough love' applied to the real world."

-David S. Broder, The Washington Post

"This book goes well beyond making a significant contribution to the field of leadership. Heifetz and Linsky leverage their formidable professional and personal experiences to show all of us, at work and love and play, how to lead and live more fully."

-Warren Bennis, University of Southern California, coauthor of the forthcoming Geeks and Geezers: How Era, Values, and Defining Moments Shape Leaders

About the Author

Ronald A. Heifetz is a cofounder of the international leadership and consulting practice Cambridge Leadership Associates (CLA) and the founding director of the Center for Public Leadership at the Harvard Kennedy School. He is renowned worldwide for his innovative work on the practice and teaching of leadership. Marty Linsky is a cofounder of CLA and has taught at the Kennedy School for more than twenty-five years. Alexander Grashow is a Senior Advisor to CLA, having previously held the position of CEO.

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ 1578514371
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Harvard Business Review Press; 1st edition (April 18, 2002)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 252 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 9781578514373
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1578514373
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.24 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.26 x 0.97 x 9.62 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #263,950 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #2,488 in Entrepreneurship (Books)
- #3,949 in Leadership & Motivation

Customer Reviews:
269 ratings

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Ronald A. Heifetz

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Ron Heifetz is a cofounder and Principal of Cambridge Leadership Associates and the author of numerous books on adaptive leadership, with over fifty years of teaching and leadership consulting experience between them.

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Top reviews from the United States

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Firewalker

This book is still relevant today

Reviewed in the United States on August 5, 2017

Verified Purchase

While there certainly is no shortage on books about leadership, this title differs from most. It includes the typical emphasis on why change is necessary and how effective leadership helps to secure that change, it also touches upon the emotional aspect of leadership. This important facet is missing in many leadership books and I enjoyed reading about how leading during difficult times can be dangerous to your career and your health if you push too hard or fail to heed the warning signs. It may indeed be lonely at the top but this book reminds us that others in similar positions feel the same way. That is comforting and serves as a reminder that while leading is hard work and not for everyone, the satisfaction from doing it effectively is worth it.

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

A Must Read for Ministers

Reviewed in the United States on July 12, 2012

Verified Purchase

This is one of the best leadership books I have ever read. It is more than a business book, there is a spiritual component to it. The book talks about the difficulty of leadership, and mostly about staying alive in the process. In leadership, you are dangerous to people. The reason is that you are challenging the norm, which is unnerving for people. You are moving a group of people forward, and people feel a loss. But the key is moving people forward at a rate they can handle. As ministers, this is important lessons. A leader might too quickly move forward, not realizing the emotional attachment to the past. When you do this, there are going to be consequence, you can become attacked, marginalized, diverted, or seduced. There are natural tactics for those who are seeking to stop the progress. The book deals with some uncommon material, but not uncommon areas of concern for leadership. It talks about keeping security around you. This is a group of people who are trusted, and will tell you the truth, it means keeping your wife close, because a leader can be seduced with sex. This book comes to the heart of leadership, and the pleasure and pains of it better than almost all books on the topic. It talks about pre-meetings, not that this has happened in the church. It talks about stalk holders, are those with the most to lose with a change. Often a leader surrounds themselves with those who agree, but in reality, he needs to stay most connected to those who disagree. The people who are the quickest to stand with you, are often the ones with the lest to loose. Therefore those who oppose you, are the ones that will stand most with you in the long run. It talks about handling distress. Ok, this book talks about the heart of leadership, and there are so many topics that are addressed, it is just one of the best, and for preachers, it is a key book. Sometimes I am excited for a book, and there are times when this book should be in the classroom of every graduate school across the nation. It is that good and helpful.

8 people found this helpful

Helpful

prairiesongs

So Helpful

Reviewed in the United States on November 9, 2018

Verified Purchase

This is a great book for anyone who wants to bring about change in their organizations. This book was required in my graduate organizational leadership class. It discusses so many valuable things, including how to bring people together, how to see the situation from the balcony, the honest difficulties of situations that require leadership... This is not a wishy washy leadership book that tries to sell the myth that a problem can be solved by one "leader" with the "right" traits/characteristics.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Johanne Greenwood

Leadership skills for change agents, not line managers

Reviewed in the United States on May 6, 2017

Verified Purchase

A great book about being a change agent as opposed to a manager, with practical advice about what to expect from your supporters, enemies and allies, how to turn up the heat or reduce it, and nurture yourself so that you don’t become a hard and angry version of you.

Critics complain that the book is lodged in a hierarchical paradigm and irrelevant to a millennial outlook. I disagree. The book deals with cases where there are authority figures that need to be read, interpreted and influenced. Plenty of people are still working in environments where there are authority figures - even in startups, few remain fully flat and egalitarian as the evolve. More to the point, the book deals extensively with tactics that don't specifically apply to traditional hierarchies at all and are appropriate to peer-to-peer and community change creation.

2 people found this helpful

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Top reviews from other countries

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Karl of gx

An eye opening book.Essential reading for all leaders both present and future

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on September 1, 2014

Verified Purchase

For those of us who have been in management roles for some time the book point very clearly to the mistakes we have made and frankly puts much of the blame in our own hands (rightly so) . It also illustrates that we are all human and therefore liable to making mistakes, however the authors also show us that all is not lost so long as mistakes are acknowledged and learned from.
A real common sense read.
This book should be essential reading for aspiring managers,make your mistakes early on in your working life and concentrate on what really matters.
Read and enjoy....

AA

as described and great value.

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on January 3, 2016

Verified Purchase

as described and great value.

Dr. Zeyad T. Naji

Leadership on the Line

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on July 17, 2013

Verified Purchase

One of the best books I read after reading the Four Roles of Leadership book by Dr Stephen Covey. Very clearly written with very good cases and examples. Any leader responsible for delivering important and crucial results must read this book and make use of it.

Amazon Customer

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 28, 2017

Verified Purchase

Great service, great product

Cliente Amazon

Um tapa na cara em liderança

Reviewed in Brazil on April 14, 2015

Verified Purchase

Leadership on the Line é um livro revelador. Muitos livros sobre liderança tratam do lado positivo, com foco na oportunidade e aprendizado conjunto, onde líder e liderados se unem em prol de um objetivo. Não este livro. Este livro aborda o tema de um ponto de vista incomum, dos riscos e ameaças aos quais se sujeitam todos aqueles com pretensões de liderança. Com uma linguagem clara e fluída os autores narram situações reais e dividem suas experiências com coaching de líderes em situações onde usa liderança é ameaçada, questionada ou está em risco. Recomendo este livro como guia para conhecer o outro lado de liderar.

One person found this helpful

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