As we begin 2021, the idea of leadership continues to come to my mind. As we know, there is leadership on all levels, from the leader of the neighborhood drive-by celebrations to world leadership and everything in between. You have most likely been tested as a leader or seen your leaders tested with the pandemic and its effect on nurses and healthcare. With that in mind, I mentioned to a friend who is a leader that I was looking for something to review to help others in these times. She mentioned a book and the affiliated website that she found to be useful.
The book is Spark: How to Lead Yourself and Others to Greater Success by Angie Morgan, Courtney Lynch, and Sean Lynch. Published in 2017 by Houghton, Mifflin Harcourt, Boston, NY, it is 210 pages in length and contains a Foreword, Introduction, eight chapters, a Conclusion, Acknowledgments, and an Index. Each chapter ends with "Spark Actions" or summary of topics and "Charging Ahead" that are suggested activities to help you develop. Some suggested activities are in the book and others found online at the website: http://www.sparkslead.us. The book and the website are both very informative. Although the website might be useful as a stand-alone experience without reading the book, the book can be ordered through the website for between $12.00 and $15.00 depending on the format. The free website offers numerous useful resources for your personal growth or growth of others as you lead them or an organization.
In the book, the foreword, written by Frederick W. Smith, chairman and CEO of FedEx Corporation, establishes the focus of the book that "Your ability to lead-whether that's yourself, your team, or your organization-will make the difference in the results you experience for years to come." (p. xi)
The Introduction defines a Spark as people who recognize they don't have to accept what's given to them; they can do things differently to create the change they want to see. Or, a Spark can be a moment when you recognize that you can create the change yourself. Sparks are not based on where you fit in the organizational chart but are defined by their actions, commitment, and will. Examples are given.
Chapter 1 confronts the myths of leadership and how, if you accept these myths as truth, you will limit your leadership potential. These myths are discussed and examples given. Chapter 2 discusses the congruence between your character and your values and actions. This chapter starts by discussing trust; a key concept in my experience as a leader. If you are not trustworthy, people will not follow you. Chapter 3 presents the four "keys" to being credible. These four keys are interdependent and can be undertaken with conscious intent.
Chapter 4 is about becoming an accountable leader and seeking to identify how the leader's actions or inactions contribute to the situation. Chapter 5 discusses making decisions that matter. Strategies are discussed that can help overcome challenges. In Chapter 6, the need to recognize and be of service to others is discussed and the importance of this outward focus is presented. Interestingly, the importance of building your confidence is not discussed until Chapter 7 because the authors state that confidence isn't a skill that needs to be relearned; once you have gained confidence, it remains with you. Chapter 8 discusses the need to demonstrate consistency, which relates back to the messages in Chapter 3. The Conclusion recaps the concepts previously presented and addresses how you can inspire more people to be a Spark.
I can see why my friend recommended this book and website. I think it provides information that can be learned and applied. Using the website, there are materials that help you teach someone these principles in small to large groups. It also provides material to use for a leadership book club session. I highly recommend it.
A second book on leadership is much different than Spark. I located this book when searching for "leading in troubled times." Subsequently, I learned that the author Doris Kearns Goodwin, a historian, had recently been interviewed on PBS Evening News, I believe, because of its title Leadership in Turbulent Times. It was published in 2018 by Simon & Schuster, New York, NY, and costs between $15.00 and $30.00. It has 473 pages, a Foreword, three sections with 12 chapters, an Epilogue: Of Death and Remembrance, Acknowledgments, Bibliography, Business Books on Leadership Skills, Abbreviations used in the Notes, Notes, Illustration Credits, and an Index. So as not to deter anyone from picking up this book, the narrative content ends on page 368.
Many of you may be familiar with Goodwin. She has studied and written extensively about four presidents: Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Lyndon Baines Johnson. This book is her exploration of the early development, growth, and exercise of leadership of each of these presidents. Goodwin poses the questions: Are leaders born or made? Where does an ambition come from? Does the leader make the times or do the times make the leader?
In the Foreword, Goodwin describes that after writing an extensive book about these four presidents, she thought that she knew them well but after her study of each man through the "exclusive lens of leadership," she felt that she was meeting them anew.
The book has three parts. In Part 1, Ambition and the Recognition of Leadership, the reader is introduced to each man as they enter public life, how they entered, and what lessons they learned from this process. Abraham Lincoln is the subject of Chapter 1. Goodwin details Lincoln's youth and his reasons for entering public life. As she takes the reader through the years, she highlights that Lincoln's moral courage and convictions outweighed his ambition. Goodwin states that Lincoln had developed a conception of leadership based upon the leader's shared understanding for his follower's need for liberty, equality, and opportunity. This theme is repeated throughout the book when she analyzes Lincoln's actions. This approach is consistent throughout the book as she details the actions of the presidents.
Theodore Roosevelt is the subject of Chapter 2. His entry into politics was markedly different than Lincoln's based on the times. Lincoln was from a poor family whereas Roosevelt's name was recognizable by the Irish political boss. This and other "advantages" are explored. His purposeful, determined personality is also discussed and seen in later chapters. Franklin Roosevelt is described in Chapter 3 as a "late bloomer." In his case, local Republican political leaders were interested in the "resonance of his name." His ability to adapt to changing circumstances to match new situations proved a key to his leadership success. Lyndon Johnson is the subject of Chapter 4. His father was a politician and Lyndon grew up participating in his father's political life. Goodwin's skill lets the reader see how and why these men developed their unique talents and skills. The reader will see the themes interwoven throughout the book.
Part 2, Adversity and Growth, begins when these four men knew that they were leaders and that they were called to public service. Their further development as a leader would require the ability to transcend both public and private adversity. The fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth chapters detailed the adversities each encountered and their reaction to those adversities. As expected, each man encountered a different adversity and how they each addressed recovering from or overcoming the adversity reveals how they would respond to future adversity and how it influenced their leadership approach.
I think the reason to read this book is found in the third part, The Leader and the Times: How They Led. The first two parts are necessary to set the stage for the readers' understanding of how each man's past influenced one of or the greatest challenge they faced in their presidencies. Although you can read through the first two parts fairly quickly, I urge you to slow down and read the last four chapters and consider the leadership lessons being illustrated. Goodwin helps the reader by using subheadings that identify the leadership principle in action. Transformational Leadership: Abraham Lincoln and the Emancipation Proclamation (Chapter 9) shows how much Lincoln could relate to those he was leading and how it made him adjust his plans. He also demonstrated that he had enough confidence in himself to be purposefully surrounded himself with men who thought quite differently than he did and asked for their opinions on his plans. His reaction to their input illustrated his leadership essence.
The next chapter, Crisis Management: Theodore Roosevelt and the Coal Strike, describes how Theodore Roosevelt acted without legal or historical precedent to intervene in a coal strike that had the likely result of shortages of coal, food, and jobs, and suffering for those living in the Northeast as winter approached. The leadership principles are enumerated and the reader sees how the president leads the country through the crisis while preserving the dignity of the coal mine operators and the coal miners on strike. Theodore Roosevelt demonstrated leadership principles such as be visible and cultivate support among those most directly affected by the crisis, clear the decks to focus with single-mindedness on the crisis, frame the narrative, be ready with multiple strategies, share credit for the successful resolution, among many others.
Chapter 11, Turnaround Leadership: Franklin Roosevelt and the Hundred Days, details the first 100 days of the Roosevelt's administration that began as the economic system of the United States had been in decline for 3 years and was described as being in a physical and spiritual state akin to death throes. Roosevelt was inaugurated March 4, 1933, and the previous mid-February the "full-brunt" of the Depression struck. Roosevelt knew that three lines of attack were necessary and the steps he took during the next 100 days would forever alter the relationship between the government and the people. Goodwin details the leadership principles Roosevelt used as he addressed the problems as those he learned in previous situations. Chapter 12 is Visionary Leadership: Lyndon Johnson and Civil Rights. Again, Goodwin identifies the leadership principles Johnson used as she explains his actions in passing Civil Rights Amendment and the Great Society. Goodwin adds a coda that asks how Johnson's successful approach was not used regarding the war in Vietnam and offers a very interesting assessment. In the Epilogue, Of Death and Remembrance, Goodwin discusses how each president's legacy resulted in their places in communal memory.
As I stated earlier, the remainder of the book is not essential to the leadership lessons that can be learned by the reader. It contains useful material for those inclined to review it. I highly recommend this book and, although it is not considered "light reading," it is worthwhile reading in my mind.
The two books and one affiliated website reviewed are highly recommended. They are quite different one from the other but both offer excellent leadership principles. The book Spark and the affiliated website are great resources for the development of yourself and or others. Leadership in Turbulent Times is useful for learning and reflecting on your leadership or the leadership of those with whom you work.