5 comments about The Serving Leader: Five Powerful Actions that Will Transform Your Team, Your Business, and Your Community.

1. This book is truly exceptional for anyone who wants to be able to truly understand the heart of servant leadership. If you are ever able to meet Dr. Stahl-Wert, you will understand that he does not just write about it and talk about it, he lives it in his own personal and professional life which makes the book even more real. Do not read this book unless you are ready and willing to commit to the call to servant leadership and what it can mean for you and your organization.



2. A very well written, thoughtful and practical book that courageously tackles the challenge that all successful leaders ask themselves at some point in their careers- "OK so I have made a big impact on the numbers- and achieved my goals- but why do I still not feel satisfied?" The authors correctly point out that it is all about what you give to others- and not just to impact top or bottom lines in business- but also to impact the communities around us. Those who have not really dug into what a Servant Leader is- and does- may well have their exising paradigms upended. Servant leadership is NOT about being spineless or too nice- it IS about setting a very high standard and holding people accountable- but also caring about and investing in them to help them to hit and surpass this high mark. Having been a keen student of leadership over the past 20 years, I have seen trends and fads come and go and many leaders rise and fall. What I like best about The Serving Leader is that its principles are timeless and fad-proof. One will never go wrong being the type of Servant Leader described in this book- and they may become the leader who has the type of impact that they never dreamed big enough to conceive. A great read!



3. Jennings and Stahl-Wert know what they're talking about. Unlike many "leadership experts," this book rings absolutely true. A very moving, honest, hopeful story that helped me a lot. Thank you for getting to the deeper heart of leadership.



4. These guys have done a great job with what I call semi-fiction. Following the journal of a consultant as he reconnects with his father and learns the lessons of being a serving leader. This book goes further than Collins' Level 5 leadership and takes you into 5 practical pathways for becoming a serving leader. Excellent read.



5. Ken Jennings and John Stahl-Wert utilize a short story format to teach the attributes of leadership. In a consultant's interviews with community leaders revitalizing the inner city, the attributes of true-to-life leadership are demonstrated by action in the narrative.
   
   They highlight the astonishing truth that the best leaders' focus upon building up the people around them, that no man is great on his own.
   
   This very readable leadership 'story' - thankfully light on matrices or charts -draws out more purposeful insights than most books on the topic.

2 comments about The Leader Within: Learning Enough About Yourself to Lead Others.

1. This book can be useful to any man or woman who already is, or wants to become, an effective, if not wise, leader of other people.
   
   The book is well named; it is about self-knowledge as a prerequisite to effective leadership of others. It is written to be used, more than read and returned to a shelf. My copy is well-marked with notes and highlighting. If you're looking for a cleverly written and poetically worded book, this is not it. This sits between a textbook and an everyday quick reference guide.
   
   While the authors are well-credentialed management scientists and consultants, they have not included a lot of data or pithy stories about the effective and ineffective leaders they have helped over the decades. There are plenty of charts and diagrams for the major subjects, however. Overall, they have written a useful overview of the emotional, psychological and behavioral inclinations and choices upon which we base our leadership decisions and actions - with tips on how to use the information.
   
   Too many managers, business owners, executives and team leads, among others, focus on how to get more out of people with little or no meaningful consideration about what they're putting into the environment. To deeply understand others, one must understand oneself. To understand human motivation, one must be in deep rapport with what motivates oneself. To really "get" what it means to effectively lead others toward important outcomes, a leader must go beyond merely remembering what it was like to follow (though for many that would be a terrific start) and truly empathize with one's followers. All of that is only possible when one is truly in touch with oneself.
   
   I think this book provides easy-to-grasp explanations of established assessment tools, such as the DISC model. It discusses the important differences between one's disposition, values, and persona. It describes and explores another model called TISC, which helps one understand the blend of self-focused and other-focused motivations. One's disposition and valuing point of view will substantially determine how one "shows up" as a leader. The book includes an overview of the Situational Leadership model, too.
   
   In short, you have to understand this stuff if you want to be more than a super-manager who drives people to make the numbers. If you want to be the kind of leader who affects people in powerfully positive ways, and is effective in the everyday world, spend some time with The Leader Within.
   
   I look at it this way; this isn't the only book on leadership to own. But, it will help if it's one of them.
   
   
   David Facer
   www.ActivatePotential.com



2. Ken Blanchard is the draw in this group-authored book, even if he doesn't get top billing. The author of The One-Minute Manager and his co-writers Drea Zigarmi, Michael O'Connor and Carl Edeburn explain how to understand and shape your personality to become the kind of leader or manager you want to be. Their book is not a tract on cognitive science but rather a business text with useful exercises and insights - in particular, the notion of personality as layered, complex and malleable rather than hard and unchanging. The authors' charts are a bit of a hodgepodge; they occasionally strain for an image and their presentation of ideas can be confusing. However, getAbstract recommends this book to Blanchard fans and others who are striving to enhance their charisma and brush up their leadership style.

5 comments about A 2nd Helping of Chicken Soup for the Soul: 101 More Stories to Open the Heart and Rekindle the Spirit.

1. Jack Canfields is a genius. I may not be the smartiest person in the world, but I know heart when I see it and this guy, he has it. I can only compare Canfields to Bil Keane as an inspiration in my life. Delightful. If I could only give it 11 stars...



2. I wrote a story for this book called, "A Strawberry Malt and Three Squeezes, Please!" to honor the memory of my mother who died of Alzheimer's Disease. I hope it touches your heart. She was a very special woman!



3. This book will make the most depressed people to walk the earth's spirit rise to hapiness. The stories in this book touched my heart and will yours. At first I thought it was just another popular book, but when I read these stories, I fell in love with this books. Each story and each section of the book has a signifigance.I say again, these stories touched my heart, and will yours.



4. I read this collection of life stories and events with an admitedly negative attitude toward it because of my dislike of the first book of this collection. Nevertheless, I thought that this volume was even worse than it's predicessor. I don't believe that this book has any literary value to it at all. It most certainly didn't make me feel better about my life. Personally I believe that these events are things that happen to everyone in their lifetime. Merely reading about them AGAIN had even less appeal to me than it did the first time.



5. I read this collection of life stories and events with an admitedly negative attitude toward it because of my dislike of the first book of this collection. Nevertheless, I thought that this volume was even worse than it's predicessor. I don't believe that this book has any literary value to it at all. It most certainly didn't make me feel better about my life. Personally I believe that these events are things that happen to everyone in their lifetime. Merely reading about them AGAIN had even less appeal to me than it did the first time.

3 comments about The 3 Keys to Empowerment: Release the Power Within People for Astonishing Results.

1. Ken Blanchard, John Carlos, and I wrote this book as a follow up to our best selling Empowerment Takes More Than A Minute. This book is designed to help any manager or team leader or company president who wants to release the power of people for astonishing results. We know that empowerment is often viewed as a buzzword, but we also know that it works for those who stick with it. We think this book can help team leaders and team members know what to do to keep moving forward. Let us know what you think and ask us any questions you have -- we will respond.



2. The 3 Keys to Empowerment revisits the three keys discussed in another Blanchard book, Empowerment Takes More Than a Minute. These three keys are: share information with everyone, create autonomy through boundaries and let teams become the hierarchy. They should be applied to each of the three stages of moving toward empowerment. Many of the actions suggested for the initial stage: "Starting and Orienting the Journey," are repeated in the discussions of the other stages, "Change and Discouragement" and "Adopting and Refining Empowerment." The authors say some areas need repeated focus so readers can implement change. Unfortunately, this is repetitive.

   The book's most useful feature is the Empowerment Action Plan, a clear, easy to follow list of specific actions leaders can take at each stage of the journey to empowerment. The 3 Keys is written for CEOs and senior executives.




3. After reading and being intrigued by the authors' previous book, "Empowerment Takes More Than a Minute," I was curious about this follow-up book. I was pleasantly surprised to find this book was written as a complementary "stand-alone" book with a much different style than its predecessor.

   Unlike Blanchard's usual simple, entertaining, and fun-to-read story-telling books, this book was a detailed, practical, common-sense guideline for individuals and organizations on their journeys from hierarchy to empowerment. Besides the credible factual and objective analysis of becoming empowered, this book confirmed for me what I always suspected about Blanchard's usual powerful parables: they are backed up by extensive research, knowledge, and experience.

   This book starts with a great, concise overview of "Empowerment Takes More Than a Minute," and then moves on to common, expected questions with practical, executable answers designed to assist people and organizations going through the journey from hierarchy to empowerment. The book concludes with an outstanding detailed empowerment action plan that captures the essence of how the 3 keys to empowerment (share information with everyone, create autonomy through boundaries, and let teams become the hierarchy) can and should be applied simultaneously through the 3 stages of change (starting and orienting the journey, change and discouragement, and adopting and refining empowerment).

   Designed as a guidebook, I can easily see the book being used by leaders at all levels who must deal with and implement empowering, or other major changes in their organizations. As is the case with all guidebooks, the information in this book requires the readers' judgment in applying it to the realities of their situations. If viewed as a guaranteed checklist for success by people and organizations that want a quick fix with little thought, this book will likely fall short of expectations. If viewed as a practical, common-sense packed reference, I believe this book will be an invaluable leadership tool for long-term effectiveness and efficiency.

5 comments about The Leader of the Future 2: Visions, Strategies, and Practices for the New Era (J-B Leader to Leader Institute/PF Drucker Foundation).

1. Once again, Marshall Goldsmith and Frances Hesselbein have provided readers with an essential guide to the biggest challenges and the best thinking of thought leaders and practitioners in the field of leadership. In a world in great need of leadership, this book provides an array of outstanding contributions from those who have shaped and inspired this field. This book provides a superb addition to the libraries of all those who care deeply about leadership -- and who among us does not (or should not)?
   
   Rachelle J. Canter, Ph.D.



2. In a 1964 obscenity court case, then U.S. Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart wrote that pornography was difficult to define, but noted, "I know it when I see it." The same might be said of leadership. Since 1990, the Leader to Leader Institute (formerly the Peter F. Drucker Foundation for Nonprofit Management) has dedicated itself to examining, defining and elevating the art of leadership through books, educational materials and its respected journal, Leader to Leader. This book is a sequel to the Institute's The Leader of the Future, an international bestseller published in 28 different languages. This follow-up volume features 27 essays on being a leader in today's complex, challenging world. We confidently recommend this leadership treatise, which presents the informed thoughts, insights and opinions of respected experts from academia, the media, business, the military, the nonprofit sector and numerous other venues. Thanks to such contributors as Stephen Covey, Howard Gardner, Rosabeth Moss Kanter, Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner, this collection of essays clearly addresses the challenges of modern leadership.



3. The Leader of the Future 2 is a labor of love and a gift to all those who enjoy the study of leadership. This is the first book published by the Leader to Leader Institute (formerly The Drucker Foundation) since the death of leadership patriarch Peter Drucker. All proceeds support the Peter F. Drucker Foundation for Nonprofit Management. This book follows the publication of the international bestseller, The Leader of the Future.
   
   This meditative work is the collection of 27 essay chapters that contemplate the kind of leadership needed for the future of the world. Each chapter is written by a respected leadership consultant or educator who provides their unique and challenging perspective on the kind of leader our world needs now and will need in an uncertain future. This collection of "thinkers" has varied experience in all sectors of modern society. As it states in the foreword of the book, "This book delivers a "battle cry" that will mobilize the leaders of the future to build viable, relevant organizations that will sustain us in the times ahead... Planning in the past was rigid, inflexible, and hierarchical, but planning for the future will require leaders to be fluid and flexible, and move easily across their organizations. The Leader of the Future 2 is indeed part of a blueprint for planning in a dynamic new world."
   
   The genesis of the book was the tragic events that occurred on 9/11. Since that event a lot has changed in the world, and will continue to change in our uncertain future. The Leader of the Future 2 divides its 27 chapter into 5 interesting parts. Each part focuses on a certain aspect of leading in the future like vision, diversity, complexity, change and character. This is a book for serious thinkers and at times is not easy to read. Some of the gifted contributors would be the first to admit that writing with clarity is not their greatest personal strength. But in all fairness, they are looking back on the past with eyes toward the future and this is always an ambiguous rehearsal. The Leader of the Future 2 is brain-candy for anyone who likes to step outside of everyday thinking and ponder the "what-if" of tomorrow!



4. 
   Frances Hesselbein is currently editor-in-chief of Leader to Leader quarterly. Previously, she served as CEO of the Girls Scouts of the USA and then as chairman and founding president of the Leader to Leader Institute, formerly the Peter F. Drucker Foundation for Nonprofit Management. Her published works include this book as well as its predecessor, The Leader of the Future, co-edited with Marshall Goldsmith and Richard Beckhard, and Be*Know*Do (an adaptation of the U.S. Army's leadership manual) to which she and General Eric K. Shinseki (USA Ret.) co-wrote the Introduction as well as Hesselbein on Leadership for which Jim Collins provided the Foreword.
   
   Twenty-seven individual essays comprise this volume. The material is organized within five Parts:
   
   A Vision of Leadership (Chapter 1)
   
   Editors' Comments: "[Our] book begins where it should, with Peter Drucker's vision of leadership...[His] thoughts on creating organizations that have a spirit of performance built upon the `theory of the business,' creating a positive social impact and demonstrating consistent effectiveness, challenge the reader to both embrace change and become a change leader."
   
   Leading in a Diverse World (Chapters 2-5)
   
   Excerpt: "Leaders of the future will be progressively more cosmopolitan, progressive, diverse, and values oriented. They increasingly will come from countries with enormous growth potential outside of North America and Europe, such as the BRIC nations (Brazil, Russia, India, and China), places where leaders must also address daunting obstacles such as poverty or environmental depredation, regardless of the sector or the focus of their enterprise." Rosabeth Moss Kanter, "How Cosmopolitan Leaders Inspire Confidence"
   
   Leading in a Time of Crisis and Complexity (Chapters 6-11)
   
   Excerpt: "Leadership becomes necessary to business and communities when people have tough challenges to tackle, when they have to change their ways in order to thrive or survive, when continuing to operate according to current structures, procedures, and processes no longer will suffice. We call these adaptive challenges. Beyond technical problems, for which authoritative and managerial expertise will suffice, adaptive challenges demand leadership that engages people in facing challenging realities and then changing those priorities, attitudes, and behaviors necessary to thrive in a changing world. Ronald A. Heifetz, "Anchoring Leadership in the Work of Adaptive Process"
   
   Leading Organizations of the Future (Chapters 12-19)
   
   Excerpt: "Leaders will need to go beyond looking at the work to be done and consider the human doing the work. They will need to understand the incredible pressures that have been brought about by globalization, technology, and competition. They will need to appreciate the hard work and sacrifice needed for professional success in a much tougher world. Leaders will need to realize that as work becomes even more important, and organizations become even more important, they will become even more important - in helping to shape the quality of life and the futures of the professionals they lead." Marshall Goldsmith, "Leading New Age Professionals"
   
   The Quality and Charter of the Leader of the Future (Chapters 20-27)
   Excerpt:
   
   "Leaders who think like anthropologists would realize several things. First, they would realize that they are leaders by virtue of their basic fit into the cultural milieu in which they grew up and in which they are now operating. It is all well and good to note that leaders "create" and "change" cultures, as I have argued in the past [i.e. in Organizational Culture and Leadership, 2004], but first they must realize that to change culture you must thoroughly understand the culture that created you and legitimized you...In other words, leaders must be culturally self-c0njscious and be aware of the cultural layers in their own personalities. Second, leaders who think like anthropologists would be conscious of the cultural variations among countries and companies, and among occupational subgroups within their companies." Edgar H. Schein, Leadership Competencies: A Provocative New Look"
   
   Note: Schein then explains in his essay that in addition to thinking like an anthropologist, effective leaders must also have the skills of a family therapist and cultivate and trust artistic instincts.
   
   In the city where I live, we have a number of outdoor markets at which slices of fresh fruit are offered as samples of the produce available. In that same spirit, I frequently include brief excerpts such as these from a book to help those who read my review to get at least a "taste" of the material in question. All of the material in this volume is of a very high quality. The value of each article, however, will be determined by the needs and interests of each reader.
   
   Those who share my high regard for this book are urged to check out Hesselbein's The Leader of the Future published earlier, co-edited with Marshall Goldsmith and Richard Beckhard and Be*Know*Do (an adaptation of the U.S. Army's leadership manual) to which she and General Eric K. Shinseki (USA Ret.) co-wrote the Introduction; also Hesselbein on Leadership for which Jim Collins provided the Foreword.



5. 1. The leader can create a new organization with new procedures, but the formation of culture requires collective learning and repeated experiences of success or failure.
   
   2. It is no accident when a "turn around manager" arrives, the top layers of management are usually replaced and massive reorganization occurs. These drastic measures destroy old culture and initiate a new culture building process by removing the people who carry and represent the old culture. The destruction of culture is extremely costly on human level. The new people have to start building process all over and it is not even clear whether this is possible.
   
   3. An organization built on individual incentives cannot become a set of teams simply because the CEO announces that teamwork is now necessary and launches a team-building program. However, if the CEO understands culture dynamics, he or she will begin to reward individuals for helping others and for contributing to other projects, thereby acknowledging the deep individualism of the organization but broadening the concept of individual competence to increasingly include "working with others".
   
   4. Leaders cannot arbitrarily change culture in the sense of eliminating dysfunctional elements. Leaders can evolve culture by building on its strength while letting its weaknesses atrophy over time. If an organization is successful over time and has evolved mental models based on these methods, they will not abandon the mental model. The leader jobs is too broaden the Mental models. Focus should include developing new standards of judgment and evaluation so that competitive behavior is viewed as more negative and cooperative behavior more positive.
   
   5. Management development is typically very function in young organizations. For example, the organization may promote the people most likely to be entrepreneur or who are technically the most competent, rather than seek out people who have managerial talent. Founder builders often glorify the technical functions such as research and development, manufacturing, and sales and demean managerial functions such as finance, planning, marketing, and human resources. Potential successors may be blocked from taking over and gaining learning experiences. Successful leaders at this stage grow with the organization and change their own outlook or recognize their own limitations and permit other forms of leadership to emerge.
   
   6. The leader builds culture in one of three ways: a) by hiring and keeping subordinates who think and feel the way they do; b) by indoctrinating and socialize subordinates to think and feel as they do; c) by establishing a role model that encourages subordinates to identify with them and thereby internalize their beliefs, values, and assumptions.
   
   Additional Thoughts about building culture: 1. Culture is not arbitrarily changed. Culture is evolved by building on strengths, broadening mental models of successful methods and processes 2. Get back to understanding what the product is about and focusing on customer oriented strategies. 3. Increasing vision and comprehension communication between top management and employees 4. Pushing data to unexpected places, encouraging participation and intrepretation of the data, and getting feedback that will cause temporary formation of teams and engineering of new processes 5. Creating new procedures that transform the organization 6. Creating and environment of learning 7. Getting people to thinking and value the same things the leader does.
   
   7. Healthy, open minded skeptics can become effective leaders and, eventually, champions at work. If they find new approaches to enhance results, they will commit time and energy to them.
   
   8. Local line leaders focus is at a business unit level. They may not think much at learning within the larger organization.
   
   9. Leaders can use free-market choice inside an organization to liberate the entrepreneurial spirit of their people. As organizations move toward indirect leadership, the key role of senior leaders is to increase their people choices in ways that still focus the organization on its mission. Organizations viewed as economies.
   
   10. In the future, most employees will work in intraprises that provide services to the core businesses. The core business will be run by small groups of line managers who will buy much of the value they add from internal intraprises.
   
   11. What is leadership? Leadership is the process of empowering subordinates to learn from their mistakes, make changes, adjust to new circumstances, and preserve. Leadership brings into play elements of planning, commitment to innovation and problem solving, and energy ensuring dynamics of the organization are fair. The group looks for leadership to unlock paralysis in the direction to move. Leadership establishs policies, identifies targets, set priorities, and allocate resources and money. Leadership job is to create a feeling of security for their employees and influence young talent to come and work for them. Leadership creates blue oceans by creating a utility proposition. Leadership is gained by competence not position. Leadership creates conditions of comfort for their employees. Leadership talks openly about a wide variety of issues, sponsors democratic forum where creative members are reward for initiative, ingenuity and bravery. Leadership leads by example. Leadership uses work exchanges to show how things are to be done, giving each job a sense of dignity and enhanced standing with the crew. Leadership values the individual. Leadership creates free market choice inside their organizations to liberate the entrepreneurial spirit of their people. Leadership gets difficult projects started and results in long-term impact.
   
   Leaders inspire confidence, fight fear, initiate positive and productive actions, define goals, and paint brighter tomorrows. The character of society's leadership may substantially determine how that society fares in an environment of change. Leadership values must be based on standards that benefit society.
   
   12. The ethnic, cultural, and gender characteristics of America's population and labor force is rapidly changing. The emigration of nonwhites from Asia and Southeast Asia, the Pacific Islands, Central and South America, the Caribbean, and West and East Africa, represent people in the America's melting pot rising relative to that of Americans of European descent and represent an estimated that one third of all new entrants to the labor force.
   
   13. Leaders must be willing to accept five fundamental challenges in the work force: a. They must be willing to be more sensitive and understanding with respect to ethnic, cultural, and gender differences. B. They must have a vision for the workplace that will result in significant broadening of the corporate culture and environment. C. They must craft and implement new and different employment and communication processes to enhance and promote perceptions of fairness and equity. D. They must bring a commitment to the effective utilization of a diverse work force. E. They must establish a place where people want to work and be productive and to develop new markets and maintain existing ones.
   
   14. Effective leaders do not earn their role by position or Herculean work efforts, instead, effective leaders nurture dignity in those around them; their area of expertise are listening, propagation of values, and assurance of dignity; they foster relationship as a source of their power.
   
   15. When people are experiencing fear, dread, foreboding, and exhaustion, people have an emotional need for a leader. A leader combats fears, instills confidence, and moves the group forward.
   
   16. Leaders lead because they create a passionate commitment in other people to pursue the leaders strategy and succeed.
   
   17. Leaders are the keepers and shapers of the company culture and constantly communicate these held values.

4 comments about Lead Like Jesus: Study Guide.

1. A wonderful book. Really appropriate for someone in the business world but certainly applicable to all who might desire to read it and of course Lead, like Jesus!



2. The principles in this book are timeless and rich. I have led 50 of our leaders through this study and the results have been life changing. The combination and depth of scripture tied to practical living offers immediate application in daily life. This book is a must-read for every individual that wants to make a difference in this world in all areas of leadership and influence.



3. This Tape is awsome. I saw it in a Christian book store, but got it at a much more reasonale price from here.



4. Practical and inspiring, this book brings Christ to the workplace with simplicity and clarity. Fabulous.

5 comments about The Mulligan: A Parable of Second Chances.

1. This book is a winner for people who like golf and misunderstand the relevance of a personal relationship with God and Christ! It makes great sense and is a perfect read. Thanks Wally and Ken!



2. This is a tremendous book for all who play the game of golf and struggle with the game of life. It is been a great conversation piece with all that struggle with improving their golf game. The correlation with the way that we view life is amazing. This is a book that everyone should read!



3. I only wish I had read this book 10 years ago when my son first started playing golf. As a Christian, this book would have given insights on how to teach about life as we played the game of golf. Now, this book can act as a great gift for someone who needs to learn more about the true meaning of life or for someone you would like to restore your relationship with. How can they refuse your request for a mulligan?
   Great read; Great message; Don't pick it up unless you allow time to read the entire book. You will not be able to put it down!



4. This concise book is a story that gives advice, spiritual in nature, that can be applied to golf, business and all other phases of life.



5. Several members of our golf league have begun a bible study based on The Mulligan and other written material written by Wally Armstrong. This is such a great read all about caring, friendship and of course golf.
   I loved it so much I bought another to give away!

5 comments about The Power of Ethical Management.

1. An easy read with great wisdom. Every individual should read this book, even the nominal employee as it has insight regarding moral decision-making in and out of the workplace.



2. This book will be used as a resource in our leadership library. Excellent, short, to the point leadership book.



3. This review covers The Power of Ethical Management, by Kenneth Blanchard (author of The One Minute Manager) and Norman Vincent Peale (author of The Power of Positive Thinking). The book is written in the form of a parable regarding a manager who must decide if he should hire a competitor's employee, knowing that the competitor's employee has offered to bring a disc containing secrets from the competitor. The protagonist in this book must grapple with the need to succeed - especially with the pressure from his boss - versus the need to conduct himself in an ethical manner. The authors suggest that an individual follow three pronged "Ethics Check" questions to determine whether or not one' conduct is ethical: 1) Is it legal? 2) Is it balanced? 3) How will it make me feel about myself. The third prong of the question is also known as the person in the mirror test. Can you look yourself in the eyes in the mirror and be proud of your actions and your decisions? If so, this means that you have acted in an ethical fashion. The other method to assure that you are acting in an ethical fashion is to follow what the authors have entitled the Five P's of Ethical Power. The Five P's are: 1) Purpose; 2) Pride; 3) Patience; 4) Persistence; and 5) Perspective. The Five P's of Ethical Power hold true both for individuals and for organizations. In holding with the Five P's of Ethical Power, managers and leaders should learn to treat their employees as important components of the organizations success. The book covers the proper approach to evaluating employee performance, stating that managers and supervisors should coach their employees everyday so that an annual or semi-annual is not just a list of poor performance, rather an interactive process by which the employee may work to improve everyday. They authors also state the importance of building an employee's self-esteem by catching them doing things right. Too often, managers get caught up into what the authors describe as the seagull approach to management. The seagull approach manager flies in, makes a lot of noise, dumps on everyone, and then flies back out. There were some interesting thoughts on the topic of pride. The authors opine that "people with humility don't think less of themselves... they just think of themselves less often." This is an enjoyable and meaningful book. Ethical leadership is such an important and necessary component to individual and organizational success, and this book does a succinct job of showing why. 5 Stars.



4. As a senior manager for the Federal government for the past 25 years. I can verify that this book has been an invaluable resource and has been on my desk and by my side throughout my career.
   I bought the book back in the late 1980s and am still refering to it even in my retirement!
   An excellent and much needed book for any manager!
   Ed



5. You hardly hear the word integrity in todays world. The Power of Ethical Management shouts it from the roof tops. It's not enough to work hard. Doing the right thing, and following the rules needs to get back into society, and I mean now! This book leaves the reader feeling they have a choice to do the right thing in business and in love. I recommend it to the world! Sincerely, Joyce Atkinson

5 comments about The Generosity Factor: Discover the Joy of Giving Your Time, Talent, and Treasure.

1. This book is a delightful tale that can easily be read in one sitting. It is written by Ken Blanchard and takes the format of a parable, though it is based on the life of S. Truett Cathy who founded Chick-Fil-A. It is written in a similar style to many of Patrick Lencioni's leadership books, and I have found this format to be quite engaging.
   
   The basic premise revolves around the imagined life of a young, driven, materialistic broker and a relationship that he develops with an older, successful, generous executive. Throughout the story, the executive takes great pains to teach the general life principle to the broker that significance is infitely more worthwhile than success, and he suggests that the only way to truly achieve significance is to generously give away time, talent, treasure, and touch. It is hard to argue with this notion, especially when presented so effectively.
   
   One aspect of the book that was particularly appealing to me is its insistence on giving God priority and primary ownership over all of our things. Both Blanchard and Cathy are committed Christians, and this reality bleeds right into the text of the book. However, they were not overbearing with this theme, to the extent that some key principles would probably ring true to those outside the Christian community. Still, I appreciated their reference to God as the creator and owner of all, and they seem to suggest, quite compellingly, that it is ultimately impossible to embrace the generosity factor without an appropriate view and reference of God.
   
   Ultimately, the "conversion" of the broker by the end of the story was a bit contrived and saccharine, but such can easily be the nature of parables. This book isn't particularly profound or earthshattering, but it is certainly accessible and helpful. Blanchard and Cathy offer some great ideas, a few that will probably shake some readers who come to the book without a heart of generosity. I have certainly been impacted, and I would recommend this book to anyone with a willingness to more fully understand the generous lives to which God has called us.



2. This book has the potential to change the world as we know it by changing how we treat each other. I loved it, and my entire company is now dedicated to changing the world by doing the right thing.



3. You can read this book on a two-hour flight, even if you stop to mark up the pages and underline key quotes --- which you will! This well-told tale by Ken Blanchard and Truett Cathy is one of the most inspiring books you'll read this year or any future year. A fictional parallel to the recent "Why Good Things Happen to Good People" this book shows you why giving matters --- and then motivates you to become a giver --- for life. Extremely well done!
   
   Dr. David & Lisa Frisbie
   The Center for Marriage & Family Studies
   Authors of Raising Great Kids on Your Own: A Guide and Companion for Every Single Parent



4. This book is excellent. Easy to read and full of great gems. It is in a story fashion that is very entertaining with lots of reminders about being successful and generous.



5. This is the best book (other than the Bible) I have ever read. It is wonderful. Life lesson and terrific, easy read. I mean it is EASY to read and fast. You will not want to put it down once you get into the characters, you will be on the egde of your seat to find out what happens next. READ IT! and then pass it on the EVERYONE you know. The world needs to read and learn from this book and then we can all live in a better place.

5 comments about Safety 24/7: Building an Incident-Free Culture.

1. Good book, easy read. Makes you think that zero injuries and accidents are possible (and they are). Just work at it 24/7...



2. I was first introduced to the book while providing consulting services (for the company who I now work for) at one of their customer's locations. The particular customer provides a copy of the book to all contractors doing business at their site!
   
   I have been in the field of safety for approximately 15 years; 6 years with a Japanese Company, 7 years with a major Lift Truck manufacturer, 1 ½ years with the State of Ohio, and approximately 6 months with my current employer dealing with Construction, Crane & Rigging, Maintenance, etc. This is the first book dealing with safety that I could not put down; I had to read the entire book in one sitting!
   
   I have taught behavioral safety and found that most of the items I have covered in training were in this book. It is the perfect book for everyone from top management to a newly hired employee to read. I am a member of the Society of Ohio Safety Engineers and I took Safety 24/7 to a meeting with me, briefed the members on it and strongly recommended that they all get copies. We (PSC) purchased several copies of the book and are in the process of giving copies to all of our supervisors. We have had several employees read the book, write summaries of the book and indicate how building an incident-free culture is beneficial to their workplace. Our goal is to have all employees who work for us, go through this - on our time!
   
   We have provided copies to some of our customers to help impress upon them how strongly we feel about safety! I just can't say enough good things about the material covered in the book! I must also tell you that when the owner's of PSC came to me to ask me to come work for them I told them they had to do two things; 1) Support me in "safety" and be actively involved and 2) Read Safety 24/7!
   
   Thank you so much for the wonderful book! It goes beyond what a safety professional can teach! I am looking forward to a sequel!
   
   Julie Cotrell



3. This book provides us the basic fundamentals that every managers and supervisors must read and implement to achieve the target of zero incidents.
   
   All the stuffs as suggested in this book are essential elements that to develop and nurture a positive safety culture.
   
   What it does not cover is how to handling incidents in a positive manner.



4. Bought 30 books for my safety team. Highly recommended especially for newbies to safety. The main character speaks to the newbies challenges.
   
   Jeff Stachowiak, Natl. Safety Director Sunbelt Rentals



5. Safety 24/7 is an exceptional book regarding the requirements for a safety culture. I dog eared 18 pages for quick review and reference and I read it in one sitting. I commend the authors for showing a process for getting to a culture that recognizes and embraces safety first. Thanks to them for showing the hurdles and how to get over them when developing a safety program. Great book. I will recommend that my company buy multiple copies for our people to read.