Summary: Leadership 101 (John C. Maxwell)
Source By Admin
Leadership is one of those topics that makes me uneasy, only because it seems to attract charlatans, especially within the corporate world. That’s why the word has some negative connotations to it, at least in my mind. But there is nothing mysterious or negative about true leadership.
Author John C. Maxwell proves this with his refreshing book, Leadership 101. While the title of the book does sound basic and unoriginal, the content of the book is surprisingly strong. It covers the topic of leadership — within the context of an organization — in a very clear and concise manner.
By taking the most powerful excerpts and quotes from the book, which is already a concise volume, I find that the knowledge can be refreshed, and thus retained, in a fraction of the time it would take to re-read the book in its entirety. Below is my personal summary.
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Did you know that each of us influences at least ten thousand other people during our lifetime? So the question is not whether you influence someone, but how will you use your influence.
Sir Francis Bacon observed that knowledge is power. Back when he lived and information was scarce, that may have been true. But today, it would be better to say that knowledge empowers — as long as it’s what you need.
PART 1: THE DEVELOPMENT OF A LEADER
Why Should I Grow As A Leader?
Leadership ability is the lid that determines a person’s level of effectiveness.
Your leadership ability — for better or for worse — always determines your effectiveness and the potential impact of your organization.
The higher you want to climb, the more you need leadership. The greater the impact you want to make, the greater your influence needs to be.
Leadership has a multiplying effect.
To change the direction of the organization, change the leader.
To reach the highest level of effectiveness, you need to raise the lid of leadership ability.
How Can I Grow As A Leader?
Leadership develops daily, not in a day.
What matters most is what you do day by day over the long haul.
“The secret of our success is found in our daily agenda.”
Leadership is complicated. It has many facets: respect, experience, emotional strength, people skills, discipline, vision, momentum, timing — the list goes on.
Leadership is influence.
The Four Phases of Leadership Growth:
- Phase 1: I don’t know what I don’t know
- Phase 2: I know what I don’t know
- Phase 3: I grow and know and it starts to show
- Phase 4: I simply go because of what I know
To be conscious that you are ignorant of the facts is a great step to knowledge.”
-Benjamin Disraeli
Successful leaders are learners. And the learning process is ongoing, a result of self-discipline and perseverance.
Whenever you come across a golden nugget of truth or a significant quote, file it away for the future.
There is an old saying: Champions don’t become champions in the ring — they are merely recognized there.
If you want to see where someone develops into a champion, look at his daily routine.
Boxing is a good analogy for leadership because it is all about daily preparation.
Leadership doesn’t develop in a day. It takes a lifetime.
PART 2: THE TRAITS OF A LEADER
How Can I Become Disciplined?
The first person you lead is you.
No matter how gifted a leader is, his gifts will never reach their maximum potential without the application of self-discipline.
Self-discipline: No one achieves and sustains success without it.
A Disciplined Direction:
- Challenge your excuses
- Remove rewards until the job is done
- Stay focused on results
If you lack self-discipline, you may be in the habit of having dessert before eating your vegetables.
If you know you have talent, and you’ve seen a lot of motion but little concrete results — you may lack self-discipline.
Look at last week’s schedule. How much of your time did you devote to regular, disciplined activities?
How Should I Prioritize My Life?
The discipline to prioritize and the ability to work toward a stated goal are essential to a leader’s success.
Success can be defined as the progressive realization of a predetermined goal.
Twenty percent of your priorities will give you 80 percent of your production.
Examples of Pareto principle:
- Time: 20 percent of our time produces 80 percent of the results.
- Counseling: 20 percent of the people take up 80 percent of our time.
- Products: 20 percent of the products bring in 80 percent of the profit.
- Reading: 20 percent of the book contains 80 percent of the content.
- Job: 20 percent of our work gives us 80 percent of our satisfaction.
- Speech: 20 percent of the presentation produces 80 percent of the impact.
- Leadership: 20 percent of the people will make 80 percent of the decisions.
- Business: 20 percent of the people in an organization will be responsible for 80 percent of the company’s success.
- Determine which people are the top 20 percent producers.
- Spend 80 percent of your “people time” with the top 20 percent.
- Spend 80 percent of your personal development dollars on the top 20 percent.
- Determine what 20 percent of the work gives 80 percent of the return and train an assistant to do the 80 percent less-effective work.
- Ask the top 20 percent to do on-the-job training for the next 20 percent.
Remember: We teach what we know; we reproduce what we are. Like begets like.
If this person takes a negative action against me or withdraws his or her support from me, what will the impact likely be? If you won’t be able to function, then put a check mark next to that name.
Remember: It’s not how hard you work; it’s how smart you work.
The ability to juggle three or four high priority projects successfully is a must for every leader.
A life in which anything goes will ultimately be a life in which nothing goes.
Leaders:
- Initiate
- Lead: pick up the phone and make contact
- Spend time planning: anticipate problems
- Invest time with people
- Fill the calendar by priorities
Followers:
- React
- Listen; wait for phone to ring
- Spend time living day-to-day reacting to problems
- Spend time with people
- Fill the calendar by requests
What is required of me?
What gives me the greatest return?
Am I doing what I do best and receiving a good return for the organization?
What is most rewarding?