Time To Lead

Where is leadership when we need it? What can today’s corporate, non-profit, military, and public-service leaders learn from daring decisions that changed history? In Time to Lead, Jan-Benedict Steenkamp presents a fresh examination of history-making leaders by holding a magnifying glass up to a life-changing dilemma each of them faced. What we learn is how powerful the personalities of leaders and their decision-making processes can be in determining the course of human events—and the fates of millions of people. Steenkamp explains how these great men and women arrived at the solutions to the problems they confronted by virtue of their character traits and whether they were foxes or hedgehogs—as in the ancient parable—or, as he further categorizes, eagles or ostriches. Sixteen carefully curated case studies hold powerful lessons that today’s leaders can apply in their own professional lives. Readers will recognize Roosevelt, Washington, Mandela, Thatcher, Alexander the Great, and MLK, but other lesser-known leaders, such as Themistocles, Clovis, Peter, Fisher, and Nightingale provide equally valuable insights into how individuals make decisions based upon one of seven leadership styles (adaptive, persuasive, directive, disruptive, authentic, servant, and charismatic) and four personality classifications (hedgehog, fox, eagle, or ostrich). Steenkamp’s assessment tools provide seasoned and aspiring leaders alike with the means to not only determine their own individual styles, but how to step up when they inevitably come face-to-face with their own moments of truth. Chapter takeaways, leadership principles, and open-ended, reflective questions will confer encouragement, enrichment, and empowerment on readers when they realize they can utilize the same tactics as these leaders in their own lives. Time to Lead is about great men and women, their actions in leadership that have withstood the test of time, what we can learn from them—and the lessons that are relevant for us here and now.

Make every communication count—with a simple, four-step speaking model Whether it's among colleagues at lunch or an audience of a thousand, a leader's role is to move and inspire others. It's not only the big occasions that test a leader's mettle, but the little ones as well—in a casual conversation in the elevator, in phone calls, or one of many incidental, seemingly "insignificant" interactions in everyday work life. Written by one of the world's leading communications coaches, Speaking as a Leader shows you how to make the most of your daily communications, creating a presence on the job as a genuine and constant leader. In this eye-opening guide, aspiring (and established) leaders can enhance their reputations and influence by following a few simple steps. Speaking as a Leader: Shows how to structure your thoughts and message in any situation using a four-step model Offers tips on listening effectively, in three dimensions Details why you are the best visual and how to avoid "Death by PowerPoint" Offers guidance on taking the "numb" out of numbers Includes tips on moving from subject to message With Speaking as a Leader, you'll learn to tap into your innate leadership skills at every occasion—whether small or large—and earn the sort of respect that creates devoted friends and passionate supporters.

Four-star General Wesley K. Clark became a major figure on the political scene when he was drafted by popular demand to run for the Democratic nomination for President of the United States in 2003. But this was just one of many exceptional accomplishments of a long and extraordinary career. Here, for the first time, General Clark uses his unique life experience—from his difficult youth in segregated Arkansas where he was raised by his poor, widowed mother; through the horror of Vietnam where he was wounded; the post-war rebuilding of national security and the struggles surrounding the new world order after the Cold War—as a springboard to reveal his vision for America, at home and in the world. General Clark will address issues such as foreign policy, the economy, the environment, education and health care, family, faith, and the American dream. Rich with breathtaking battle scenes, poignant personal anecdote and eye-opening recommendations on the best way forward, General Clark's new book is a tour de force of gripping storytelling and inspiring vision.

Based on cutting-edge academic research, insights from his extensive executive coaching practice, and lessons he has learned from over seventy-five interviews conducted with top CEOs, bestselling authors, and TED speakers, Craig Dowden's A Time to Lead provides an inspiring and practical roadmap to maximizing your potential to be the leader the world needs you to be. Being a leader has never been easy. Today, the responsibility is even more daunting. Now, leadership stretches well beyond managing our balance sheets. It also includes managing social, environmental, and emotional concerns. Most importantly, to be a successful leader, we must be able to successfully lead ourselves. This book shows you the way. To successfully navigate the current and future terrain of leadership, we must be able to successfully lead ourselves. This is the fundamental premise of A Time to Lead: Mastering Your Self... So You Can Master Your World. Written by best-selling ForbesBooks author, Craig Dowden (PhD), A Time to Lead makes the case that the best leaders possess an advanced understanding of the inner workings of our minds and our hearts. Dowden highlights the importance of mindset and how we can stay in growth mode, and he talks about how we can avoid a major blind spot and common derailer for most executives--our emotions. A Time to Lead sheds light on the scientific secrets of resilience as well as how we can discover and leverage our strengths. It provides insights into how we can receive feedback well so we can continue to have the impact we desire. Dowden closes with the importance and challenges of authentic leadership and outlines key reflection questions, which enable us to bring our true selves to every situation.

This essential reference offers a multitude of ideas, tips, and strategies for organizing every aspect of a principal's job—from controlling your calendar to creating newsletters.

A back-to-basics approach to employee engagement, Time to Lead provides common sense leadership practices for busy leaders like you. It is a practical resource on how to address your administrative responsibilities while increasing your presence with employees and customers. Each goal focused exercise and self-assessment tool comes directly from the collective experiences of leaders like you. By practicing Time to Lead principles, you will enhance your ability to: Align your activities with your professional values and work unit priorities; Spend quality time with your employees and customers; Develop a cohesive team where employees effectively communicate within and between work units; Ensure employee understanding and acceptance of team goals, roles, policies and resources; Teach employees the difference between problems (that can be solved) and realities (outside of your control); Conduct results oriented meetings where employees constructively participate in decision making; and Hire and retain those employees who demonstrate high Emotional Intelligence (E.Q.).

A Time to Lead and A Time to Follow By: Scott Espinda I arrived in Virginia Beach, Virginia—from Oahu, Hawaii. My dad just passed away, and I wish I could say the haunted memories of finding him that morning and carrying him on the stretcher to watch the van drive away was what set me on my mission. In reality, I spent my life with him building our family company, and when he disappeared—so did the company, so did my life. I believe no one ever starts over, we just get knocked down. I got knocked down—big time. My resume was shot. I had no personal references, because the leadership path is a long and lonely road. And on paper it looked one of two ways. One: I was a greedy crook, or two: a deadbeat. This bothered me. I set sail like a modern pioneer to rekindle a spark in our generation, to be the person I most wish I had—a leader. I lived in my camping tent for a good year or so, and I walked into a job where I knew I would do a lot of good. A gas station. At this gas station, I was able to see my life’s training come into play, and took the opportunity to share experiences, methods, stories, and conversations to inspire people to use A Time to Lead and a Time to Follow as a tool—a tool to help you and your team become a valuable asset at your job, and in your community.