When I was working in management, I use to read monthly articles by the late Peter F. Drucker (1909-2005) in the business magazine. My workplace was near the bookstore. At the age of 90, he was more active than most 25-year-olds. As a consultant and an author known as 'the father of management thinking,' he was continually working on new books, most of which became bestsellers. Yet, midst his massive accomplishment, he still found time to read three to five hours a day on a wide range of subjects - a habit he first cultivated as a young man. Like Charles H. Spurgeon, one of my heroes of faith, you just have to admire them but don't need to emulate them. "Every few years I pick another major topic and read in it daily for three years," Drucker once said candidly. "It's not enough to make me an expert, but it's long enough to understand what the field is all about. I've done this for 60 years." When I enter the full-time ministry, I somewhat learned this strategy from Drucker (and Spurgeon): read widely, from many different fields NOT just Christian books. Drucker is the epitome of the 'knowledge worker,' a term he coined to describe the most valuable resource in the new economy - intellectual capital."Your knowledge and your experience are your new wealth. They belong to you, not your company. Leave an organization and you take that wealth with you." Learning how to learn and increase your intellectual capital with practical skills. Be valuable. One of the best ways (meaning, not the only way) to do this is by READING BOOKS and/or through good literature. It takes curiosity and also discipline. In the Information and Digital Age, like the late Peter Drucker, the discipline of reading will be well rewarded. Wherever you go, you take that wealth with you. #ServeToLead #PeterFDrucker #LifeTimeLearner #ReadersAreReaders #IntellectualCapital #KnowledgeIsWealth #LetsMakeReadingCoolAgain To read other articles on reading and book reviews, CLICK HERE All things media: https://linktr.ee/LEGASI.tv
Since MCO I lost the sense of time and I hardly use my planner (there was one time I forget where I put it). I forget to manage my time. Thanks to Cal Newport for the reminder. I fully recommend reading DeepWork
Derailed:
Five Lessons Learned from Catastrophic Failures of Leadership (2009)
by Timothy
Irwin, PhD
Derailment means "off the
rails." To be a derailed leader means to fall short of inner
character that result in outer disaster. Maybe it's better to say that a
derailed leader is not a ‘leader' after all. In the second section of
this book, Irwin, a consultant on leadership development, shares about six
famous leaders who greatly derailed, namely: Robert Nardelli, Carly Fiorina,
Durk Jager, Steven Heyer, Frank Raines & Dick Fuld. Irwin doesn't shame these
six high profile leaders because their derailments are known to the public and
were reported from respected media. In their cases, fraud was not the reason.
"What ultimately caused the derailment of the individuals profiled in
upcoming chapters was a failure of character!" write the author. "The
big lesson is that no matter how brilliant, charming, strategic or commanding
in the presence a leader is, the consequences of a failed character are
extraordinary disabling and will bring down even the strongest among us."
But ultimately, this book is not
about them… it's about us – you and me, especially we who are in a
leadership position and/or authority. It's about how we can avoid derailment
and recognize the early warnings of it. As Patrick Lencioni, the author of The
Five Dysfunctions of a Team, warned, "No one is immune from the
derailment." I take the message of this book seriously and I thank
Irwin for making it clear, urgent and essential for aspiring leaders like me.
I've been to the dark valley of my character flaw. I went to prison because of
it. A minor crime, I assure you, but a serious lack of character issue. If
Irwin knew me (and if I'm famous), I can have a long profile chapter in this
book! How did derailment happen? First, we must understand that it's a process.
A slow but sure progression. Stage
1: A Failure of
Self/Other-Awareness > Stage 2: Hubris, Pride Before the Fall > Stage
3: Missed Early Warning Signals > Stage 4: Rationalizing > and
then, of course, Stage 5: Derailment.
Why did derailment happen? As Tim
Irwin already says: a failure of character. Most good leaders
have high IQ but most fallen leaders have low CQ (Character Quotient). "Character
is the foundation of great leadership. We have to get this right to stay on
track." There are three (3) tests of character: 1) Does the leader have
a strong moral/ethical guidance system that functions well in ambiguous
situations? 2) Does the leader make decisions just for expediency? And 3) Does
the leader handle adversity with grace? To "stay on track" is
an exercise of character. Tim Irwin outlines four character-based qualities
that can help leaders to do just that:
#1 Authenticity (My strength that can be my weakness too)
#3 Humility (remind me of Lencioni's values: Smart, Hungry and Humble)
#4 Courage (I love the story of his father, Jim Irwin)
In the last section of this book,
Irwin shares some practical suggestions, tips and axioms. He lists Five Critical
Lessons In Leadership and Five Critical Habits of the Heart. To know
about it, you have to read this book. It's worth the price and your time (by
the way, I bought it during the sale for only RM10!). I fully recommend it.
Although for me it comes in a bit late – remember I shared with you about my
derailment incident – I'm glad that I learned from it quickly. I resolve by
God's grace and guidance that I want to improve my character personally and as
a leader. As Tim Irwin closes this book: "We must keep intense light on
our character as well as continue to become more and more competent at what we
do."
Dr. Kenneth Blanchard, the
co-author of The One-Minute Manager,
says, “You are helping your people too much if you take responsibility for the
care and feeding of their monkeys” 🐒🙊🙉 ‘Monkey’ in this context refers to the tasks, jobs or
problems that are the responsibility of other people. If you take other
people’s ‘monkeys’ (responsibilities) on your back too much it will add
unnecessary stress to your life and reduce your time for your own main
responsibilities.
Here are three (3)
responses for keeping the ‘monkeys’ on other people’s backs and off of yours:
1) SUPPORTIVE RESPONSE🐵 State that you understand the complexity of the
other’s problem and that you are willing to talk with them about how they (not
you!) can get is solved
2) DELEGATING RESPONSE🐵 Inform others that this is their responsibility, but
give them some suggestions they might try
3) COACHING RESPONSE🐵 If you feel others do not have the ability to handle
their ‘monkeys’ then give them specific directions. Explain the next move or
strategy or resources that you would recommend and then supervise what they do
Remember, I repeat, DON’T
TAKE other people’s ‘monkeys’! 🙊🙉🐒 #ServeToLead
Based on the comic below,
every day LEADERS are faced with choices that may bring failure or success to
the team or organization. Peter F. Drucker famously says, "Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right
things"✔
You may use 'gold' or
'whip', 'rules' book or 'staff', 'money' or 'carrot' as shown above. Or you may
use your own methods or guidance from your mentors. Each choice has
consequences. "Leadership is a
subtle art of choosing carefully." It supposes to be a funny comic,
but I see wise counsel in here 😉⚡🙏#ServeToLead
_______________________________________
The Ruler's Guide: China's Greatest Emperor and His
Timeless Secrets of Success
(2017)
by Chinghua Tang
"The ruler has only one heart," says Tang Taizong, the greatest
emperor of China (598-649), a good leader and wise ruler, "but it is the goal of many people. Some want
to win it by bravery, some want to win it by eloquence, some by flattery, some
by cunning, some by satisfying its desires. The ruler is being assaulted from
all sides. Everybody tries to sell him something in order to attain power and
wealth. If he drops his guard for one moment, he can make a serious mistake and
get into trouble. That is why it is difficult to be a ruler." Just
change the word ‘ruler’ to ‘leader’ and The Ruler’s Guide automatically become a leadership book.
I have to choose between
reading Sun Tzu's The Art of War and
Chinghua Tang's The Ruler's Guide
because if I read one and then I don't like what I read, I won't read the other
one. I'm glad I've chosen (if you believe in human's freewill) The Ruler's Guide. Probably I will read The Art of War soon. In this 160+ pages
book, Chinghua Tang, Shanghai-born who runs his management consulting firm,
Concorde Universal Inc. in New York, presents conversations between Taizong and
his wise and talented advisors that reveal core aspects of leadership,
management, government and personal legacy. I don't like the fact that he
killed his brother to gain the throne but after he became China's emperor, he
was a change – not perfect – man. When he founded the Tang dynasty (his dynasty
lasted about 300 years, the longest), Taizong was only 28 years old. He was a
fierce warrior who killed about 1,000 enemies on the battlefield but more than
that, he is a great leader on par with Augustus, Genghis Khan and Napoleon.
The format of this book is
simple. The primary source for the quotes based on the conversations between
Tang Taizong and his advisors is from The
Zhenguan Executive Guide (670-749) and then organized into 12
topics/chapters, namely:
#1 On Being Emperor
#2 On Human Resources
#3 On Moral Character and Talent
#4 On Management
#5 On Remonstrance
#6 On Virtues
#7 On the Art of War
#8 On Crime and Punishment
#9 On Frugality
#10 On the Rise and Fall of an Empire
#11 On Parenting and Educating the Next Generation
#12 On Being Well Remembered
What makes Tang Taizong
extraordinary are many, but three (3) are most admire: 1) Personal Leadership. He assembled a team of advisors who are
much older and wiser than him before he assumed the throne; 2) Polymath Leadership. He was a gifted
administrator, a master military strategist, a mighty warrior, an archer,
hunter, horseman, poet, composer, philosopher and calligrapher; and 3) Tolerance Leadership. He allowed
women to speak especially in his relationship with his wife. He also, although
he was closer to Taoism, was very tolerant of religion. He allowed both
Christianity and Islam into China for the first time and was, indirectly, the
cause of Buddhism's being planted in Tibet. Taizong has many shortcomings, but
I love the way he admitted it and daily he tried to improve himself. "Today, [Tang Taizong] is revered as among the greatest emperors
of China," writes Chinghua in the last chapter. "As a wise and rational monarch, he is a role
model for all rulers. And his dynasty is recognized as one of the most glorious
eras in Chinese history." Love this book!
It takes time to collect
information, and there's a sense in leadership that you need to move quickly.
As leaders, we are paid (or expect) to respond and act, not to sit back and
wait for someone else to solve problems 😊
Yet I made the mistake of
acting before analyzing. In a few cases, I judged the situation prematurely, I
didn't take time to listen, and I'm lack of patience to wait (young blood) 😅
As a leader, you and I
must get as much data and information as possible before taking actions. Of
course, you don't have to wait until you get 100% of the data, but get enough
to be sure that you're taking as many considerations and alternatives. Always
make the effort to analyze before taking actions 😉 Do the right things.
The Mystical Leader: The Seven Myths of Leadership (2017) by Ron Edmondson
What a productive day! I
enjoy reading this book and appreciate how Ron explains each myth with his own
examples honestly and thoughtful. I love that he didn't push too much with
Christian message but outlines his ideas practically and do-able.
Here is a fact: the
church - and organizations and non-profits - need stronger leaders. But
many leaders suffer from seven common misunderstandings of leadership, making
them weak and ineffective. Ron writes, "In my long career in business and government leadership, and now after
serving in church planting and church revitalization, I've found the problems
churches face are generally the same. We need better leadership."
Here are The
Seven (7) Myths with simple summary for each chapter:
1) A Position Will Make Me a Leader. Some
believe simply has a big or fancy title makes them a leader. Not true. I’ve
known many people with huge positions whom no one was truly following. They may
give out orders and command certain obedience, but no one is willingly
following their lead. They may be a boss, but “I wouldn’t call them a leader,” writes Ron.
2) If I Am Not Hearing Anyone Complain, Everyone Must Be
Happy. Have you ever heard of passive aggression? The fact is sometimes
the leader is the last to know about a problem. Some people are intimidated by
leadership. Other times, they don’t know how to approach the leader, so they
complain to others, but not the leader. And, sometimes, as the author said, the
way I’m leading dictates who tells me what I really need to know.
3) I Can Lead Everyone the Same Way. So not
true. It simply doesn’t work. Actually, people are different and require
different leadership styles. The author not saying it’s easy, but if you want
to be effective you will learn your people and alter your style to fit their
personalities.
4) Leadership and Management Are the Same Things.
Great organizations need both, but they are not equal and they require
different skills. Simply put — Leadership is more about empowerment and guiding
people to a common vision — often into the unknown. Management is more about
maintaining efficiency within a predetermined destination but leadership
requires change and innovation.
5) Being the Leader Makes Me Popular. “My file of criticisms...,” writes Ron, “[is]
larger than my encouragement file.”
The truth is leaders can be very lonely people. (It’s why leaders must surround
themselves with encouragers and continually seek renewal). The only way to
avoid criticism and be “liked” as a leader is to make no decisions, do nothing
different, never challenge the status quo — in other words — don’t lead.
6) Leaders Must Have Charisma and Be Extroverts.
Some of the best leaders I know and read are very introverted and subdued (read
Susan Cain’s Quiet: The Power of
Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking). And, honestly, they are
leading some of the biggest churches and organizations. Leadership IS about
influence. If someone is trustworthy, dependable, has integrity and is going
somewhere of value — others will follow no matter how introvert or extrovert
the leaders are.
7) Leaders Accomplish by Controlling Others. Absolutely
not! This is not leadership. It is a dictatorship. Effective leaders encourage
others to lead. They challenge people to be creative and take ownership and
responsibility for accomplishing the vision. They learn to delegate through
empowerment.
I enjoyed and benefitted
from this book. I would recommend this book to pastors and those who involve in
church ministry.
LESS THAN 10 MINUTES BOOK REVIEW on M. David Dealy with Andrew Thomas's Managing by Accountability: What Every Leader Needs to Know about
Responsibility, Integrity - and Results (2007)
At its core, accountability is the
responsibility to act. It is the commitment to do the right thing and stand by
your decisions. And it is something that must come from within 😊. In
this video, I would like to share 5 Key Lessons that I Learned from this book.
Enjoy!
Engaging the Hearts and Minds of All Your Employees:
How to Ignite Passionate Performance for Better Business Results (2009, 2018)
by Lee J. Cohan
Truly this is the classic
leadership guide to engaging and inspiring employees. I read this book from the
perspectives of employer and employee. In this way, I get the most benefits. I
asked myself this question, “Am I excited to come to work?”
frequently when I read it. This question is important because Lee Cohan defines
three different types of employees that may best represent what type of
employee I am now. Which one are you? #1 Engaged employees love their work and look forward to it every
day; #2 Disengaged
employees “punch the clock” but are not involved in the work, and #3 Actively disengaged employees
don’t like their work and let it be known throughout the workplace. If you’re a
leader, you already know which category you want your employees or team to fall
into (hint: #1). You see, engaging
leader invest time and energy into the team because he/she knows that engaged
team is more likely to: stay with the organization, perform at high levels,
influence others to perform well, promote the organization externally, deliver
unparalleled customer service, etc.
As a leader, you must
avoid #2 and #3 (especially) at all cost. Why? Because as Lee Cohan points out,
the disengaged employees will most likely bring harm and toxicity in the
organization. “A Gallop poll found only
26% of U.S. employees are fully engaged at any time. At the other end of the
spectrum, 19% of employees are actively disengaged, meaning they intentionally
act in ways that negatively impact their organizations. The annual cost,
nationwide, to employ this actively disengaged group exceeds $300 billion”
(Gallop Management Journal, 2001). $300 billion! If we were to do polling in
Malaysia, with the state and attitude of Malaysian employees nowadays, I think
we can use the annual cost of disengagement to cover 1MDB lost in 3 years!
Disengagement is very costly. Here are some symptoms of disengagement: increase
turnover, missed deadlines, low morale, high burnout rates, complacency,
finger-pointing and name-calling, lack of accountability and responsivity, and
increased absenteeism. “Disengagement is simply the result of
unfulfilled needs” writes Lee Cohan.
So in this book, Lee Cohan
identifies the six basics needs to be required to fully engage your employees or
team. Three (3) of these needs are emotional and the other three (3) are
intellectual (refer to pic). “Engaged minds build employee performance,”
explains the author, “engaged hearts ignite people’s passion.”
By engaging the hearts AND minds of employees, they will achieve Passionate Performance. “Passionate
Performance is about passion and
performance” – this is what Lee called engaged employees. Let me summaries
each needs one by one:
The Intellectual Side: Engaging the Mind. “Thought, not
money, is the real business capital,” said Harvey S. Firestone. To engaged
people’s minds, they need:
#1 Achievement.
We all want to succeed at something. Two key strategies to fulfill your
employees’ need for achievement include: 1) Eliminate barriers to achievement
by ensuring that your team has the resources to achieve the result you want,
get into the fundamentals, match authority and responsibility levels, and be
decisive, and 2) Define crystal clear goals by using the SMART method (Specific,
Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-framed).
#2 Autonomy. We all want to control our work. Two key strategies to fulfill your
employees’ need for autonomy include: 1) Involve employees in improving their work
processes such as making it easy for them to implement ideas and listen at least
50% of the time in order to prevent blind spots; and 2) Set broad yet clear boundaries,
let your team determine the best methods to achieve their goals.
#3 Mastery. People have the need to develop expert skills and/or knowledge. Two
key strategies to fulfill your employees’ need for mastery include: 1) Fit
person to position for ‘highest and best use’ by designing sweet spot jobs; and
2) Seize teachable moments to coach employees to make them be better people,
not just better employees.
The Emotional Side: Engaging the Heart. “It’s not the
size of the man,” writes Evander Holyfield, “but the size of his heart that matters.” To engaged people’s hearts,
they need:
#4 Purpose. We all want to be part of something bigger than ourselves. Two key
strategies to fulfill your employees’ need for purpose include: 1) Create a
compelling purpose for yourself and your team by asking “Why do we ultimately do what we do?”; and 2) Stay focused on activities
that directly support your team’s purpose because time and energy are very
previous.
#5 Intimacy. Everybody wants to feel like they belong. Two keys strategies to fulfill
your employees’ need for intimacy include: 1) Maintain the sense of smallness
by creating more, smaller teams as you grow rather than fewer larger teams; and
2) Create rituals and celebrations. Focus on only one or two new rituals to
ensure 100% reliability in performing them and keep it simple.
#6 Appreciation. People want to be recognized for their work. Two key
strategies to fulfill your employees’ need for appreciation include: 1) Find
opportunities to appreciate employee’s contributions. Make your employee
recognition personal, memorable, sincere and meaning full; and 2) Demonstrate a
sincere interest in your employees as people. Remember: Leadership is [still] a
high-touch job.
I love this book. Short,
packed and full of wisdom. Read it and get ready to change your perspective!
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