The 9 Books Every Leader Should Read

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There are more than a million business books in print, and thousands more published every year. But what if, for some reason, you were only allowed to read nine books about managing people? (Why nine and not 10? I’ll explain at the end of the post.)

After giving it a lot of thought, here are the nine that I would recommend: 

The Effective Executive
Subtitle: The Definitive Guide to Getting the Right Things Done
Author: Peter F. Drucker

Why it’s a must read: This book is literally definitive in the sense that it definesmanagement at the executive level so clearly that most other serious management books takes this book’s concepts for granted. The Effective Executive also rejects the concept that an executive should encourage a personality cult among employees and the press. For Drucker, management means getting things done without grandstanding or being concerned about your public visibility.

Best quote: “Men of high effectiveness are conspicuous by their absence in executive jobs. High intelligence is common enough among executives. Imagination is far from rare. The level of knowledge tends to be high. But there seems to be little correlation between a man’s effectiveness and his intelligence, his imagination, or his knowledge. Brilliant men are often strikingly ineffectual; they fail to realize that the brilliant insight is not by itself achievement. They never have learned that insights become effectiveness only through hard systematic work. Conversely, in every organization there are some highly effective plodders. While others rush around in the frenzy and busyness which very bright people so often confuse with ‘creativity,’ the plodder puts one foot in front of the other and gets there first, like the tortoise in the old fable.” 

The One Minute Manager
Authors: Kenneth Blanchard and Spencer Johnson

Why it’s a must read: The One Minute Manager, along with The Greatest Salesman in the World, is the best of the “teach through parables” style of business book. The advice it offers is mostly common sense, but it’s laid out in such easily understood terms and actionable advice that it makes common sense into something that’s uncommonly valuable.

Best quote: “The managers who were interested in results often seemed to be labeled ‘autocratic,’ while the managers interested in people were often labeled ‘democratic.’ The young man thought each of these managers–the ‘tough’ autocrat and the ‘nice’ democrat–were only partially effective. ‘It’s like being half a manager,’ he thought. He returned home tired and discouraged. He might have given up his search long ago, but he had one great advantage. He knew exactly what he was looking for. ‘Effective managers,’ he thought, ‘manage themselves and the people they work with so that both the organization and the people profit from their presence.'” 

Dilbert and the Way of the Weasel
Subtitle: A Guide to Outwitting Your Boss, Your Coworkers, and the Other Pants-Wearing Ferrets in Your Life
Author: Scott Adams

Why it’s a must read: Adams’s earlier book, The Dilbert Principle, outlined the absurdity and inconsistency of the business world. This book goes deeper into management and decision making, explaining why everyone’s experience at work differs so greatly from the idealized picture that’s provided in books like The Effective Manager and The One Minute Manager. If you’ve got a sense of humor, this book will definitely make you laugh, but it will probably be the uncomfortable laugh resulting from seeing a bit too much of your own inner weasel.

Best quote: “There’s a gigantic gray area between good moral behavior and outright felonious activities. I call that the Weasel Zone* and it’s where most of life happens. (Note: *Sometimes known as Weaselville, Weaseltown, the Way of the Weasel, Weaselopolis, Weaselburg, and Redmond.)” 

The Age of Unreason
Author: Charles Handy

Why it’s a must read: Every book you’ve read about the digital age, disruptive innovation, massive change, etc., is based on this book. This was the first book to really nail the fact that what we now call the Mad Men era was disappearing and that we were about to slip into a crazy period where none of the old rules work and nothing makes much sense. It’s a quick read and some of his observations are dated, but it’s really amazing how much he got right and how much later business writers have stolen his ideas.

Best quote: “We are now entering an Age of Unreason, when the future, in so many areas, is there to be shaped by us and for us–a time when the only prediction that will hold true is that no predictions will hold true; a time, therefore, for bold imaginings in private life as well as public, for thinking the unlikely and doing the unreasonable.” 

The Art of War
Author: Sun Tzu

Why it’s a must read: This book is usually read as if it were a collection of fortune cookie proverbs. That misses the point, though, because this book is actually a philosophy of life that extends to every type of leadership. It’s one of those books that you can read 50 times and get something different with each successive reading. The edition that I’ve linked into the heading above is not just a beautiful work in the art of publishing but also contains the best commentary and notes, all of which can deepen your understanding.

Best quote: “Be extremely subtle, even to the point of formlessness. Be extremely mysterious, even to the point of soundlessness. Thereby you can be the director of the opponent’s fate.” 

Don’t Bring It to Work
Subtitle: Breaking the Family Patterns That Limit Success
Author: Sylvia Lafair

Why it’s a must read: If you’ve ever wondered why the people you work with behave in such strange ways, wonder no more. As this book clearly explains, whatever happened or is happening in their family is reflecting and repeating itself at work. What’s truly valuable about this book is that it identifies the personality types that cause problems and then explains exactly how to use and redirect the problematic behavior so that it serves the goals of the team.

Best quote: “Once you learn how people’s past family life and their work behaviors connect at a core level, you’ll know where performance problems originate and conflict starts. Then you’ll gain skills to do something about it. The reason most organizational programs abort is that they fail to deal with our life patterns, which are at the foundation of workplace anxiety, tension, and conflict.” 

The Prince
Author: Niccolo Machiavelli

Why it’s a must read: This is a book of bad advice. It was supposed to be “how-to” guide for leaders in Italy at a time when every city was fighting every other city and the entire region was full of mercenaries, inquisitors, and other unsavory types. Why do I include it? Simple. This book accurately predicts the decisions of a sociopath in a management role. As such, it’s perfect defense against predatory competitors and allows you to keep one step ahead.

Best quote: “And here comes in the question whether it is better to be loved rather than feared, or feared rather than loved. It might perhaps be answered that we should wish to be both; but since love and fear can hardly exist together, if we must choose between them, it is far safer to be feared than loved.” 

The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership
Subtitle: Follow Them and People Will Follow You
Author: John C. Maxwell

Why it’s a must read: Sometimes it seems like everyone in the management consulting business has a list of principles, habits, laws, rules, and so forth that explain everything you really need to know. What’s funny about all those books, though, is that they’re all valid! Leadership is such a complicated phenomenon that it’s possible to describe it in hundreds of different ways. That being said, this book (of all the other books of this type) is the easiest to read, with techniques that are easy to apply. (Note: In this category, I went back and forth between this book and The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. But 7 Habits gets a little preachy, so I finally settled on this book.)

Best quote: “Instinctively, successful people understand that focus is important to achievement. But leadership is very complex. During a break at a conference where I was teaching the 21 Laws, a young college student came up to me and said: ‘I know you are teaching 21 Laws of Leadership, but I want to get to the bottom line.’ With intensity, he raised his index finger and asked, ‘What is the one thing I need to know about leadership?’ Trying to match his intensity, I raised my index finger and answered, ‘The one thing you need to know about leadership is that there is more than one thing you need to know about leadership!'” 

How to Win Friends and Influence People
Author: Dale Carnegie

Why it’s a must read: The writing style is a bit corny and the anecdotes incredibly out-of-date, and yet it’s a well of wisdom that has yet to run dry. Everyone I’ve known who has read this book cover to cover (and made the effort to implement its lessons) has been successful, if not in business then in their personal life. This book has been a bestseller for decades and is likely to be a bestseller for decades to come. There’s so much in this book that for the quote, I just plucked out one that’s helped me in my interactions with colleagues and family members.

Best quote: “Criticism is futile because it puts a person on the defensive and usually makes him strive to justify himself. Criticism is dangerous, because it wounds a person’s precious pride, hurts his sense of importance, and arouses resentment.”

No One Is Born a Leader: Grow It Until You Own It

No one is born a leader. But everyone of us had to be a follower. As a child we were dependent on the adults who raised, taught, and coached us. AND we had to follow what they said.

So following comes naturally to us even as adults. But leading has to be learned.
Sure, there are some who are “natural born leaders.” Growing up they may have had great role models. They might have had insight and self-awareness that they were brighter, stronger, and wiser than their schoolmates so they headed in the direction of being a leader. They could have determined that they never wanted to end up like their father, mother, or both of them and set about learning how to function in the world in ways the parents never could. There are all sorts of scenarios that bring people into leadership. But no matter what it is, leadership has to be learned.

So the best way to think about developing and growing your own leadership skills, wisdom, and presence is to “Grow It Until You Own It.”

This is very different from “fake it til you make it” which suggests that you can’t actually do what you are setting about to do so you have to “fake it.” Rather than faking it, I’m recommending that you sincerely assess your strengths as a potential or actual leader and then focus on growing those strengths until you can own them in full self-acceptance and with external validation. You are a “learner” not a “fake.”

Management Examples:

*** Public Speaking Skills
You already know how to speak. And you’ve spoken in public since you had to give a book report in front of your 4th grade class. And of course you’ve had numerous other occasions where you had to speak in public. NOW as a manager who wants to grow your leadership skills, you can GROW your ability to Connect, Inspire, and Motivate your team by growing your speaking ability.

To Connect Better - Practice sincerely looking at various members of your team when you lead your daily stand-ups or whatever regular meetings you run. It’s called eye-contact, but you can look at someone and see right through them. I’m talking about increasingly connecting with people, sincerely wanting their attention and focus, and opening to GROW by giving yourself more and more to this powerful leadership experience.

To Provide Inspiration - In order to inspire your team, you have to sincerely feel inspired yourself. Is that what you bring to your work? Or are you going through the motions hoping no one notices? If it’s the latter, then you first have to GROW your dedication to becoming a more effective leader. It won’t happen over night, but you can grow it rather than cheat yourself from a larger workplace role. Once your are sincerely open to growing your leadership you can identify and then GROW your care for what you and your team are doing. Only then can you find the emotional juice needed to inspire your team. When they see that you truly care about what everyone is doing, and you care about them achieving a winning outcome, then you can continually grow your ability to inspire them to ever greater excellence and meeting deadlines.

To Motivate - Only when your team members know you truly care about them and their professional development can you motivate them to excel. As a manager you may think you need to keep your emotional distance, to be objective when relating to your reports and their reports. Nothing could be further from the truth from the perspective of the people who work for you. They don’t want to be intimidated by you. They don’t want to feel their career is in jeopardy. Instead they want to know that you are sincerely motivated to help them and in doing so you automatically GROW your ability to motivate your team.

So “Grow It Until You Own It” and can then stand firmly centered in your managerial skills!
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What has been your experience of growing your professional skills and identity?

Judith Sherven, PhD and her husband Jim Sniechowski, PhD http://JudithandJim.com have developed a penetrating perspective on people’s resistance to success, which they call The Fear of Being Fabuloustm. Recognizing the power of unconscious programming to always outweigh conscious desires, they assert that no one is ever failing—they are always succeeding. The question is, at what? To learn about how this played out in the life of Whitney Houston for example, and how it may be playing out in your own life, check out their 6th book: http://WhatReally KilledWhitneyHouston.com

Currently consultants on retainer to LinkedIn providing transformational executive coaching, leadership training and consulting as well as working with other corporate and private clients around the world, they continually prove that when unconscious beliefs are brought to the surface, the barriers to greater success and leadership presence begin to fade away. You can learn about their core program “Overcoming the Fear of Being Fabulous” by going to
http://OvercomingtheFearofBeingFabulous.com

Their 7th book, short and to the point, “25 Power Speaking Tips That Will Leave Your Audiences Wanting More,” is available in kindle at: http://tinyurl.com/25PWRSPKGTips
And if you are involved in marketing, you may be interested in their 5th book “Love Your Customers and They Will Love You Back” http://tinyurl.com/lovecustomersbk

Judith Sherven, PhD

Effective Succession Management

13 Habits of Exceptionally Likable People

Image credit: Christopher Martin | Flickr

 

Travis Bradberry

Co-author of Emotional Intelligence 2.0 and President at TalentSmart

Too many people succumb to the mistaken belief that being likable comes from natural, unteachable traits that belong only to a lucky few—the good looking, the fiercely social, and the incredibly talented. It’s easy to fall prey to this misconception. In reality, being likable is under your control, and it’s a matter of emotional intelligence (EQ).

In a study conducted at UCLA, subjects rated over 500 adjectives based on their perceived significance to likeability. The top-rated adjectives had nothing to do with being gregarious, intelligent, or attractive (innate characteristics). Instead, the top adjectives were sincerity, transparency, and capacity for understanding (another person).

These adjectives, and others like them, describe people who are skilled in the social side of emotional intelligence. TalentSmart research data from more than a million people shows that people who possess these skills aren’t just highly likable, they outperform those who don’t by a large margin.

We did some digging to uncover the key behaviors that emotionally intelligent people engage in that make them so likable. Here are 13 of the best: 

1. They Ask Questions
The biggest mistake people make when it comes to listening is they’re so focused on what they’re going to say next or how what the other person is saying is going to affect them that they fail to hear what’s being said. The words come through loud and clear, but the meaning is lost.

A simple way to avoid this is to ask a lot of questions. People like to know you’re listening, and something as simple as a clarification question shows that not only are you listening, you also care about what they’re saying. You’ll be surprised how much respect and appreciation you gain just by asking questions. 

2. They Put Away Their Phones
Nothing will turn someone off to you like a mid-conversation text message or even a quick glance at your phone. When you commit to a conversation, focus all of your energy on the conversation. You will find that conversations are more enjoyable and effective when you immerse yourself in them. 

3. They Are Genuine
Being genuine and honest is essential to being likable. No one likes a fake. People gravitate toward those who are genuine because they know they can trust them. It is difficult to like someone when you don’t know who they really are and how they really feel.

Likable people know who they are. They are confident enough to be comfortable in their own skin. By concentrating on what drives you and makes you happy as an individual, you become a much more interesting person than if you attempt to win people over by making choices that you think will make them like you. 

4. They Don’t Pass Judgment
If you want to be likable you must be open-minded. Being open-minded makes you approachable and interesting to others. No one wants to have a conversation with someone who has already formed an opinion and is not willing to listen.

Having an open mind is crucial in the workplace where approachability means access to new ideas and help. To eliminate preconceived notions and judgment, you need to see the world through other people’s eyes. This doesn’t require you believe what they believe or condone their behavior, it simply means you quit passing judgment long enough to truly understand what makes them tick. Only then can you let them be who they are. 

5. They Don’t Seek Attention
People are averse to those who are desperate for attention. You don’t need to develop a big, extroverted personality to be likable. Simply being friendly and considerate is all you need to win people over. When you speak in a friendly, confident, and concise manner, you will notice that people are much more attentive and persuadable than if you try to show them you’re important. People catch on to your attitude quickly and are more attracted to the right attitude than what—or how many people—you know.

When you’re being given attention, such as when you’re being recognized for an accomplishment, shift the focus to all the people who worked hard to help you get there. This may sound cliché, but if it’s genuine, the fact that you pay attention to others and appreciate their help will show that you’re appreciative and humble—two adjectives that are closely tied to likeability. 

6. They Are Consistent
Few things make you more unlikable than when you’re all over the place. When people approach you, they like to know whom they’re dealing with and what sort of response they can expect. To be consistent you must be reliable, and you must ensure that even when your mood goes up and down it doesn’t affect how you treat other people. 

7. They Use Positive Body Language
Becoming cognizant of your gestures, expressions, and tone of voice (and making certain they’re positive) will draw people to you like ants to a picnic. Using an enthusiastic tone, uncrossing your arms, maintaining eye contact, and leaning towards the person who’s speaking are all forms of positive body language that high-EQ people use to draw others in. Positive body language can make all the difference in a conversation.

It’s true that how you say something can be more important than what you say. 

8. They Leave a Strong First Impression
Research shows most people decide whether or not they like you within the first seven seconds of meeting you. They then spend the rest of the conversation internally justifying their initial reaction. This may sound terrifying, but by knowing this you can take advantage of it to make huge gains in your likeability. First impressions are tied intimately to positive body language. Strong posture, a firm handshake, smiling, and opening your shoulders to the person you are talking to will help ensure that your first impression is a good one. 

9. They Greet People by Name
Your name is an essential part of your identity, and it feels terrific when people use it. Likable people make certain they use others’ names every time they see them. You shouldn’t use someone’s name only when you greet him. Research shows that people feel validated when the person they’re speaking with refers to them by name during a conversation.

If you’re great with faces but have trouble with names, have some fun with it and make remembering people’s names a brain exercise. When you meet someone, don’t be afraid to ask her name a second time if you forget it right after you hear it. You’ll need to keep her name handy if you’re going to remember it the next time you see her. 

10. They Smile
People naturally (and unconsciously) mirror the body language of the person they’re talking to. If you want people to like you, smile at them during a conversation and they will unconsciously return the favor and feel good as a result. 

11. They Know When To Open Up
Be careful to avoid sharing personal problems and confessions too quickly, as this will get you labeled a complainer. Likable people let the other person guide when it’s the right time for them to open up. 

12. They Know Who To Touch (and They Touch Them)
When you touch someone during a conversation, you release oxytocin in their brain, a neurotransmitter that makes their brain associate you with trust and a slew of other positive feelings. A simple touch on the shoulder, a hug, or a friendly handshake is all it takes to release oxytocin. Of course, you have to touch the right person in the right way to release oxytocin, as unwanted or inappropriate touching has the opposite effect. Just remember, relationships are built not just from words, but also from general feelings about each other. Touching someone appropriately is a great way to show you care. 

13. They Balance Passion and Fun
People gravitate toward those who are passionate. That said, it’s easy for passionate people to come across as too serious or uninterested because they tend to get absorbed in their work. Likable people balance their passion with the ability to have fun. At work they are serious, yet friendly. They still get things done because they are socially effective in short amounts of time and they capitalize on valuable social moments. They minimize small talk and gossip and instead focus on having meaningful interactions with their coworkers. They remember what you said to them yesterday or last week, which shows that you’re just as important to them as their work. 

Bringing It All Together
Likable people are invaluable and unique. They network with ease, promote harmony in the workplace, bring out the best in everyone around them, and generally seem to have the most fun. Add these skills to your repertoire and watch your likeability soar!

9 Problems with 360 Multi-Rater Assessments

Jim Clemmer

Leadership/culture development speaker, workshop/retreat facilitator, team builder, executive coach, and author

Feedback is critical to leadership effectiveness and development. That’s why 360 Multi-Rater Assessments are used by over 90% of Fortune 500 companies. But many organizations are now experiencing these problems:

1. Focusing on a leader’s weaknesses and skill gaps — many participants find the 360 process negative and punishing. Some executives are now banning 360s from their organizations because of the pain and suffering they can cause. Pre and post-tests prove that “Building Leadership Strengths is 2 – 3 Times More Effective Than Fixing Weaknesses“.
2. Survey questions lack validity — Many competency models and 360 survey questions have little to no research on whether they are connected to performance outcomes. For example, charisma, time management, managerial courage, and executive presence are examples of dozens of competencies we’ve researched that don’t predict or correlate to levels of employee engagement, safety, turnover, patient satisfaction, or quality.
3. Rating scales create false positives — standard “Agree/Disagree” scales often create a tight banding of data that make it difficult to differentiate between competent, strength, or profound strength.
4. Providing normative averages — showing leaders 75th and 90th percentile norms and how building their strengths can significantly elevate their performance and encourages greater developmental effort.
5. Lack of personal connection to employee engagement — employee engagement surveys show generally how engaged or satisfied employees are with the organization. Leaders need to see specifically how their behaviors impact their direct reports.
6. Not all competencies are equal for every leader — traditional leadership or competency models use a one-size-fits-all approach (some try tailoring to multiple organizational levels). What’s missing is multi-rater feedback on which competencies matter most for that leader in that role.
7. Written comments reinforce fixing weaknesses — most participants skim the responses to the question asking for a list of strengths and dwell (even fixate) on the list of their weaknesses or improvement suggestions. All a leader really needs to know is whether a weakness is significant or a “fatal flaw” that needs immediate attention.
8. No insights on how to build strengths — traditional improvement plans flowing from 360s are focused on fixing weaknesses using a linear approach. What’s missing is a research-based map showing how extraordinary leaders build a competency or strength from good to great.
9. Too complex or too simple — some very lengthy 360 assessments can take 30 – 60 minutes or more to complete. Reports are overly complex and confusing to interpret. At the other extreme, too few competencies and survey questions restrict the range of personally relevant and validated strengths leaders can leverage.

About Jim Clemmer:

For over three decades, Jim Clemmer’s keynote presentations, workshops, management team retreats, seven bestselling books, articles, and blog have helped hundreds of thousands of people worldwide. The Clemmer Group is the Canadian strategic partner of Zenger Folkman, an award-winning firm best known for its unique evidence-driven, strengths-based system for developing extraordinary leaders and demonstrating the performance impact they have on organizations.

Are Your Employees Connected To A Common Good?

They should be. A new study reveals the value in unifying around goodness.

What do you think your employees really have in common?

If you're honest with yourself, the answer is likely that it’s not much beyond an interest in your company. That shouldn't come as a surprise since employees come from all walks of life. It's important to have diverse thinking and interests, but shared values and a common purpose are also a must to foster a cohesive community of people within the walls of an organization. Walk from the finance department to the marketing department, from sourcing to engineering and more, and you'll see the differences that exist. Even within a small company, departments can divide the whole if not anchored in the organization’s common purpose and operating values.

As a result of globalization, many companies have employees located in different cities, states, and even countries, allowing cultural differences to be magnified. Even as remote workspaces and mobile technologies allow for more physical separation, society as a whole is searching for ways to create unity around common and shared passions. A study released in 2013 shows that 37% of consumers and employees want to feel the unity that stems from local causes, 35% want to feel it nationally, and 28% globally. Humanity has a shared desire to unite our communities, our countries, and the people inside of companies.

Common good makes for good business.
Companies with a social conscience that act, innovate, and mobilize around social needs are no longer unique revolutionaries--they are part of the new normal. When executed well, the power of engaging employees in and around a common cause that's connected to the core business is a very powerful force for good for both the business and the world at large. We work alongside major corporations, social entrepreneurs, and nonprofits, and there is absolutely no shortage of inventive approaches to engaging in the common good. Ingenuity that connects the resources of a corporation to solutions that deliver an impact are plentiful, but at times we see corporations struggle around ways to clearly articulate a strategy that makes sense to stakeholders and key players.

Common good gives profits a greater purpose.
As part of our strategic work, I recently met the founders of Profits4Purpose, a technology business that helps companies create a united and simple giving platform. Their solution is built on the belief that there is power in connecting relationships and sharing experiences, and by empowering individuals through their platform, they help companies increase their social impact on the world. Profits4Purpose started their business to accelerate and simplify the process for businesses that want to engage their employees in social good.

Profits4Purpose uses a "match.com" model in which they connect employee interests with needs and opportunities in communities. They also empower employees to create personal-interest groups that others can join. The platform enables companies to create a customized workplace giving destination, providing employees with personalized giving schedules (and personalized trust funds). They also provide tools that match employee interests and skills with local nonprofits and streamline all grant, sponsorship, and donation requests. Users receive access to a dashboard with thousands of volunteer opportunities, the ability to create personal giving foundations, and activity walls displaying the impact being made in real time--all delivered with a simple approach to creating relational and innovative common wealth.

Recently, Staples partnered with Profits4Purpose to offer their employees a voice as to where corporate donations are shared. Through their platform, Staples employees see their impact on a local and global level. In a company that is 100,000 strong, the unified voice rings loudly. 

Mobilize your employees for the common good.
If you look at the world of business today, it seems that most organizations fall into one of the following groups: those that have seamlessly connected their business to a common good and a dedicated cause, such as Warby Parker, FEED, Toms Shoes, and Krochet Kids. And companies like Target, Whole Foods, and Southwest Airlines that have a foundation or a focus on social good that is directly linked back to the communities they serve. Then there are other companies that are actively giving back and helping to make a difference in the world--but are not inventive in how they connect their common good to their internal culture or consumer community.

Regardless of which group your company falls into, there's always an opportunity to connect and engage employees at a deeper level to ensure that the pursuit of the common good is driving common wealth. 

Connecting to the common good makes common sense.
It's clear that today’s emerging workforce wants to make more than a living, they want to make a difference--and this is especially true for employees between the ages of 20 and 35, who will contribute to the common good with or without the support of their employers. A technology platform like Profits4Purpose can help ensure that employees get the support they need from their employers to help make a positive impact on the world. 

Shawn Parr

Shawn Parr is the Guvner & CEO of Bulldog Drummond, an innovation and design consultancy headquartered in San Diego whose clients and partners have included Starbucks, Diageo, Jack in the Box, Taco Bell, Adidas, MTV, Nestle, Pinkberry, American Eagle Outfitters, Ideo, Sony, Virgin, Disney, Nike, Mattel, Heineken, Annie’s Homegrown, Kashi, The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research, CleanWell, The Honest Kitchen, and World Vision.

Never Give Up!