Issue No. 570 of Your Weekly Staff Meeting delivers a Leadership Lotto of six books to delegate for your team’s summer reading fun! And this reminder: click here to download free resources from the 20 management buckets (core competencies), click here for over 550 book reviews, and click here for my review of The One Year® Book of Hymns: 365 Devotions Based on Popular Hymns.
More Mistakes or
More Leadership Books?
Be honest now. How many leadership mistakes did you make yesterday? How many mistakes last week? Last month? Last quarter?
So…is it possible that if you read one more leadership book—you could potentially reduce your blunders, bobbles, bloopers, and bottlenecks?
This issue spotlights six leadership books (six!)—just in time for your summer reading. Think of this as winning the Leadership Lotto! Your investment in lifelong learning may not match the $1.08 billion payout to the Los Angeles lotto winner last week (it was not me), but reading, or listening to, the right leadership book, at the right time, can pay rich dividends. Here’s your summer reading (or listening) list. Dive into 1,563 pages (or 29 hours) of leadership lessons. Two ideas:
• Delegate your reading. Inspire your direct reports to each select a book to read and report on. (See The Book Bucket.)
• Read one book and host a “Bagels and Books” 20-minute break. Highlight your key insights in 10 minutes and allocate 10 minutes for Q&A.
#1. True North: Leading Authentically in Today's Workplace, Emerging Leader Edition, by Zach Clayton and Bill George (Aug. 30, 2022). Listen on Libro (9 hours, 1 minute). This book includes a foreword by David Gergen and endorsements by Alan Mulally and Tom Rath, author of StrengthsFinder 2.0. And thanks to the publisher for sending me a review copy.
What? You haven’t read the classic book on authentic leadership by Harvard’s Bill George (and former Chair and CEO of Medtronic)? Good news! This 2022 edition (post-COVID) includes insights from coauthor Zach Clayton, a 37-year-old Millennial and founder and CEO of Three Ships.
George and Clayton interviewed 50 leaders “with an emphasis on the new generation of leaders.” Counting previous True North editions, they interviewed 222 leaders! The stories are poignant, such as Hubert Joly’s wake-up call when his HR leader noted that Joly’s name was in every box on their organizational chart!
To find his authentic self, Joly “embarked on a 2-year spiritual journey with a monk as spiritual director, undertaking the spiritual exercises of Ignatius de Loyola, founder of the Jesuit order." 
Get this! In his first week as CEO of Best Buy in 2012, Hubert Joly “didn’t go to the corporate headquarters but instead worked in its St. Cloud, Minnesota, store.” Joly notes, “Wearing khaki pants and the iconic Best Buy blue shirt with a ‘CEO in Training’ tag, I spent my first days listening, asking questions, visiting every department, and observing sales associates interacting with customers.”
You’ll appreciate the QR Codes and stories spotlighting CEOs on their quest to find True North, such as the leader who, following a 10-day silent retreat, began a “wisdom tour”—meeting with 50 people “who could offer perspective on his next chapter.”
Warning. This is a dangerous book. The “I versus We Leaders” chart on page 168 is a gut check. Do you “ask for compliance with rules” or “seek alignment through values?” The “Intrinsic and Extrinsic Motivations” chart on page 123—gulp!
This Emerging Leader Edition of True North is not an analysis of the many crises that confront our world—“or the leaders who have caused them. Rather, this is a calling to you as emerging leaders of the next generations—Gen X, Millennials, and Gen Z—to step up and lead authentically by discovering your True North and following your North Star to make this world a better place.”
“Many leaders have learned the hard way that external recognition is a fickle lover.” And read another gut check on page 133 about “the mistake of taking high-salaried jobs to pay off loans or live the high life, even if [these emerging leaders] have no genuine interest in the work.” Plus, read how Bill George found his sweet spot at age 46.
This reminded me of Frederick Buechner’s insight: “The place God calls you to is the place where your deep gladness and the world’s deep hunger meet.”
At age 27, Zach Clayton participated in a three-day leadership workshop which included a 360-degree review “based on input from 10 of my colleagues. I opened the envelope excited to read about how much they admired my strengths but instead learned I ranked in the 19th percentile of leadership effectiveness.” Whew! Must-read!
Finally, because “self-awareness is the foundation of authenticity,” don’t skip Chapter 4, “Develop Self-Awareness,” and the interview question that revealed a lack of empathy—and nearly torpedoed Satya Nadella’s first position at Microsoft. (He’s now the CEO.) The question: “Imagine you see a baby lying on the street, and the baby is crying. What do you do?”
Later as CEO, Nadella observed that “Microsoft’s culture had become dogmatic because everyone had to prove they knew it all and were the smartest people in the room. Satya committed to change Microsoft’s culture from ‘know-it-alls’ to ‘learn-it-alls.’”
WATCH FOR MY SHORT REVIEWS OF THESE BOOKS at John Pearson’s Buckets Blog or at the Pails in Comparison Blog:
#2. Real-Time Leadership: Find Your Winning Moves When the Stakes Are High, by David Noble and Carol Kauffman (Feb. 21, 2023). Listen on Libro (9 hours, 49 minutes). With a foreword by Marshall Goldsmith, this book is so, so practical. Chapter 5, “Get Smart About People,” recommends you “Know Your Defaults to Get Beyond Them.” The authors describe four workplace one-on-one feedback scenarios using their “Four Stances.”
• Talking too much in meetings? Lean in.
• Try decreasing your word count. Lean back.
• Let others learn from their mistakes. Lean with.
• Reflect and then tell me what you think. Don’t lean.
#3. When Everyone Leads: How the Toughest Challenges Get Seen and Solved, by Ed O’Malley and Julia Fabris McBride (Jan. 31, 2023). The authors propose a 10-point manifesto on redefining leadership:
1) “Tough challenges are all around us."
2) "Most think leadership is a position. (It’s not.)"
3) "Leadership isn’t…authority, being the boss, vision, charisma, a servant’s heart, or an inspirational speech."
5) "Plenty of people in important positions never exercise leadership."
10) "And it’s not leadership if it’s not about our most important challenges.”
(Update! Read my review posted on Jan. 10, 2024.)
#4. At the Heart of Management: Process, Tools and the Ubiquitous Exponential Law (Kindle Edition), by Lino F. Ciceri (March 18, 2023). The author, a former research chemist and MBA professor from Italy, proposes a “scientific” approach to management. “The book breaks down the core concepts taught in an MBA, clarifying the language and introducing fresh ideas inspired by scientific analogies.” Really, really interesting!
(Update! Read my review posted on Sept. 13, 2023.)
#5. A Class With Drucker, by William A. Cohen (see below).
#6. 101 Leadership Insights: Practical Tools, Tips, and Techniques for New and Seasoned Leaders, by Bob Phillips and Del Walinga (see below).
YOUR WEEKLY STAFF MEETING QUESTIONS:
1) The authors of True North suggest, “Ask for informal feedback from someone at least once a day; this could be as simple as a 1-5 rating after each meeting.” (See Tool #4, “Five-Finger Feedback,” in ECFA Tools and Templates for Effective Board Governance: Time-Saving Solutions for Your Board, by Dan Busby and John Pearson. Ready to ask for feedback?
2) The authors define True North in five sentences (page 107) addressing values, leadership principles, moral courage, and ethical boundaries. How do you define True North and what guides your beliefs and actions? (For more insights, read Parker Palmer’s short book, Let Your Life Speak.)
Mastering 100 Must-Read Books - Part 6: The Mount Rushmore of Leadership Legends
Book #40b of 100: A Class With Drucker
For your team meeting this week, inspire a team member to lead your “10 Minutes for Lifelong Learning” session by spotlighting Book #40b in Mastering 100 Must-Read Books.
A Class With Drucker:
The Lost Lessons of the World’s Greatest Management Teacher
by William A. Cohen
Books #22 through #40 spotlight 19 books I named to “The Mount Rushmore of Leadership Legends” group—featuring Patrick Lencioni, Jim Collins, Ken Blanchard, and Peter Drucker (1909-2005). Part 6 features five books by/about Drucker, including this book that notes Drucker’s belief that “too few generals were killed” in World War I. (Read why!)
• Read my review.
• Order from Amazon: A Class With Drucker
• Listen on Libro (9 hours, 35 minutes)
• Visit the blog: Drucker Mondays
• Download the 100 Must-Read Books list (from John and Jason Pearson).
The author, “a struggling young ex-Air Force officer with no academic experience,” enrolled in Drucker’s PhD program in management at Claremont University in 1975. The book describes, in delicious detail, the author’s four years of evening classes with “Peter.” (Drucker disliked titles.)
Chapter Five should be required reading for your entire staff and board members—especially during your annual strategic planning update. The lesson: “If you keep doing what worked in the past you’re going to fail.” (Imagine Drucker's classroom color commentary on the Wall Street Journal's headline of Feb. 10, 2012, "Kodak Shutters Camera Business.") Note: William A. Cohen, Ph.D, Major General, USAF, Retired, has written numerous books on Drucker. (See Book #40 of 100 and more.)
Do you prefer your leadership lessons in short snippets? You’ll love 101 Leadership Insights: Practical Tools, Tips, and Techniques for New and Seasoned Leaders, by Bob Phillips and Del Walinga. Read my review here. For more book reviews, visit the Pails in Comparison Blog.
Working With Boards Podcast
John Pearson was interviewed recently by Dick Daniels on the “Right to the Point Podcast: Leadership Lessons in 10 Minutes or Less.” Hosted by Right Management Florida/Caribbean, these short-and-to-the-point podcasts cover a fascinating range of leadership and management topics. Click here for Episode 31 on “Working With Boards.” Click here for board governance books and resources.
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PEARPOD | TELLING YOUR STORY. The book, A Class With Drucker, is a must-read for your marketing and communications team. (It’s also a must-listen-to!) See Lesson 9, “The Objective of Marketing Is to Make Selling Unnecessary,” and Lesson 6, “Approach Problems With Your Ignorance Not Your Experience.” Need help? Contact Jason Pearson at Pearpod (Design, Digital, Marketing, Social).
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