The Leadership Secrets of Colin Powell
by Oren Harari

Here’s a book that caught me totally off guard and turned out to be much different than I had expected. I must admit that I was drawn to it because I had the opportunity to meet Colin Powell in person at a reception following one of his many motivational offerings as part of a national speaking tour. Observing him from the audience and later at the reception, I couldn’t help but admire his ability to captivate, motivate, and communicate with a wide variety of personality and leadership styles. Like him or not—agree with or not—you’ve got to admit that this man exudes integrity as he proves to be witty, articulate, insightful, and self-deprecating. He spoke on leadership that particular day, and it was obvious that he was an authority on the subject. He held the audience in the palm of his hand throughout his presentation. Meeting him in person was even more impressive as he looks you straight in the eye and focuses on your every word. It’s easy to understand why he’s gained the admiration and respect of so many.

Now let me tell you about the book. As I mentioned earlier, this book is misleading—which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. If you’re thinking of passing on this particular publication because you’re not interested in the military and/or politics, you might want to take a closer look. This is obviously a book on leadership, and you don’t have to be a CEO, Lieutenant-colonel, Senator, or even a front-line manager to find value here. Any reader will find wisdom here that can easily be applied to daily life.

This book is not a biography of Colin Powell. Again, it dwells on leadership using Powell as the source and role model for the principles it shares and attempts to apply to any setting.

This book is not written by Powell nor is it intended as a tribute to Colin Powell. The author is a professor of management at the University of San Francisco, speaker, consultant, and prominent author of six previous books. Although it’s obvious that the author respects, admires, and even likes Powell, he admits that this renowned leader has his critics and detractors, and even includes some of their opinions throughout the book. I found this refreshing as it added credibility and realism to the contents.

Something I found especially useful was a content summary and a recap of Powell Principles at the end of each chapter. At the end of the book, you’ll find a seven-page Leadership Primer containing Quotations from Chairman Powell … an article reprinted from a previous issue of the American Management Association magazine. In it you’ll find 18 priceless leadership lessons … a compendium of advice from the General that anyone will find useful in today’s challenging environment.

Let me close this review with a few samples of what you’ll find within the pages of The Leadership Secrets of Colin Powell.

• Put people over plans.
• Change before you are forced to.
• You don’t know what you can get away with until you try.
• Don’t be afraid to challenge the pros, even in their own backyard.
• Being responsible sometimes means pissing people off.
• Great leaders are always great simplifiers who can cut through argument, debate and doubt, to offer a solution everyone can understand.
• Never let your ego get so close to your position that when your position goes, your ego goes with it.
• Surround yourself with people who take their work seriously, but not themselves, those who work hard and play hard!

(This book review was originally published in 2002 as one of the Top 10 Books – Edition 10.)

How to Succeed in Business Without Working So Damn Hard
by Robert Kriegel

Here’s an author who grabs you with his titles and holds you with his content. Remember his previous best sellers, Sacred Cows Make the Best Burgers and If it Ain’t Broke … Break It!? Bob Kriegel has the uncanny ability of creating titles that attract readers to his content, provide them with useful tools and techniques to enhance their performance, while enticing them to return for more to his next best-seller. He’s a pioneer in the field of human performance and the psychology of change.

Kriegel has made his name crusading for more efficiency in the workplace. Kriegel looks at the long work week and so-called “digital helpers.” In an age where gadgets are designed to create more leisure time and promote convenience, we are working more than ever. Our average work week is climbing higher and higher and, since the proliferation of cell phones and the wireless Internet, it has become harder to escape the office. Kriegel provides us with an out. This book lays the groundwork for a new, more efficient working style with the classic tagline, “Work smarter, not harder.” These days, it seems people are working harder than ever before. But does putting in longer hours necessarily translate into greater productivity? Robert J. Kriegel thinks not. All too often, individuals respond to a chaotic work environment by racing to meet deadlines, spinning their wheels, and missing opportunities to create positive change.

He suggests that finding success in today’s business world means breaking old habits and adopting new ideas that can dramatically increase performance levels, like having younger employees tutor the more senior, technology-phobic. As conventional systems are challenged, dramatic new solutions are revealed, and everyone gets ahead without working so damn hard. This book is a well-written and helpful antidote to the rat race.

(This book review was originally published in 2002 as one of the Top 10 Books – Edition 10.)

Whale Done!: The Power of Positive Relationships
by Ken Blanchard

This talented author, speaker and business consultant possesses a very unique God-given gift, as a storyteller, for making the seemingly complex easy to understand. He has done exactly that in the millions of books he has sold worldwide in more than 25 languages. When Ken speaks, he does so from the heart with warmth and humor. His unique gift is to speak to an audience and communicate with each person as if they were alone together. He is often described by his many fans as being one of the most insightful, powerful, and compassionate men in business today.

His rapidly-growing library of work includes such best sellers as Raving Fans, High Five!, Gung Ho!, Mission Possible, Everyone’s a Coach, Management by Values, The Heart of a Leader, Leadership by the Book, Empowerment Takes More Than a Minute, and his renowned series of One Minute Manager titles. Whale Done! is destined to join this list of best sellers.

As usual, Dr. Blanchard weaves a moving and inspirational yarn that will impact readers in a very positive and productive way. He’ll relate the similarities between employees, family members, friends and five-ton killer whales through the eyes of a gruff business manager and family man visiting SeaWorld. He reveals the research that substantiates the fact that both people and whales perform better when you accentuate the positive, build trust, and redirect negative behavior. He demonstrates how using the techniques of animal trainers—specifically those responsible for the killer whales of SeaWorld—can supercharge your effectiveness at work and at home.

Fictional business manager Wes Kingsley examines his own often accusatory management style and recognizes how some of his shortcomings as a manager and family man actually diminish trust and damages relationships. Join Wes in mastering and applying the powerful techniques that will allow you to become a better parent, more committed spouse, and more effective and respected leader. This 123-page tale is certainly Whale Done!

(This book review was originally published in 2002 as one of the Top 10 Books – Edition 10.)

50 Companies That Changed the World
by Howard Rothman

This book is an excellent companion piece for any number of today’s current business magazines or newspapers trying to make sense of our current business climate. Over the past 200 years, a number of companies, both large and small, have made a substantial impact on our world and on the way business is done today. Learn how some of the greatest companies of all time achieved their success—found untapped niches, stayed on top of trends, managed progressively and encouraged creativity. You’ll also learn how some, nonetheless, fell from their pinnacle when they failed to follow the path that made them successful. Much of the history you’ll learn from Rothman’s research will certainly help you understand many of today’s headlines.

For each of the 50 companies spotlighted in the book, the author presents a lively sketch that describes, in great detail, the company from its founding and initial development through its heyday to the present time. Strengths and weaknesses alike are described at length in the context of each company’s individual operation, historical context, and specific industry. Along the way, you will meet individuals with extraordinary vision, courage, and commitment who struggled to realize their ideas and drive these companies to success. Learn about the early development of such vital operational innovations as the assembly line, franchising agreement, brand extension, and temporary employee. If you’re a history buff or a student of business, a young uninitiated new employee or an older, more seasoned veteran, you’re going to want to add this book to your business and/or personal library.

(This book review was originally published in 2002 as one of the Top 10 Books – Edition 10.)

The Rule of Three: Surviving and Thriving in Competitive Markets
by Jagdish Sheth and Rajendra Sisodia

After reading this book, I realized that we are surrounded by so many things we take for granted. I discovered several deceptively simple but powerful principles and existing conditions that have been a part of my culture and environment for decades. What was both extremely interesting and, at the same time, unsettling was the fact that while these things were all around me, I had never noticed them. It makes me wonder how many other obvious principles, conditions, lessons, etc. are right under my nose and I have yet to discover them. It certainly makes tomorrow both exciting and challenging.

Let me share one of the obvious facts I learned from Sheth and Sisodia in The Rule of Three. Name any industry and more likely than not you will find that the three strongest, most efficient companies control 70% to 90% of the market. Consider these few examples:

• McDonald’s, Burger King, and Wendy’s (Burger Chains)
• General Mills, Kellogg, and Post (Cereal Companies)
• Nike, Adidas, and Reebok (Athletic Shoe Companies)
• Fortune, Forbes, and Business Week (Business Magazines)
• American, United, and Delta (Airlines)
• Hershey, Mars, and Nestle (Candy Makers)
• Visa, Mastercard, and American Express (Credit Card Networks)
• Duracell, Energizer, and Rayovac (Battery Makers)
• Wal-Mart, K-Mart, and Target (Discount Merchandisers)
• AT&T, MCI/Worldcom, and Sprint (Long Distance Carriers)
• Allstate, State Farm, and Farmers’ Group (Insurance Companies)
• Levi Strauss, Lee, and Wrangler (Jeans Makers)
• Carnival, Royal Caribbean, and Princess (Cruise Lines)
• Marriott, Hilton, and Sheraton (Hotel Chains)

The list goes on for pages. This book reveals why every market will be dominated by three major players, with small specialty players filling niche markets, and any company caught in the middle swallowed up and destroyed. True, there are a few examples where there are only two major competitors such as the soft drink market (Coke and Pepsi). However, efficiency’s favorite number is three: two companies would lead to monopoly pricing or mutual destruction, while four guarantees consistent price wars.

Markets tend to fall into two complementary sectors—”generalists” which cater to a large, mainstream group of customers; and “specialists” that successfully concentrate on niche products (such as high-end audio gear) or niche markets (like fashions for professional women) at both the high and low ends of the market. Any company caught in the middle (“the ditch”) is likely to be swallowed up or destroyed. The authors point out that most markets resemble a shopping mall with specialty shops anchored by large stores.

The authors examine this pattern of market evolution and the “radical disruption” that can occur when technology or regulation changes or a new entry “succeeds in altering the rules” (as Starbucks did by sneaking up on coffee’s Big Three). Of particular value is the detailed descriptions of the strategies that are most likely to succeed and fail, and the most frequent causes of those outcomes.

Make certain you have an ample supply of highlighters before turning your first page because regardless of your industry, the size of your business, or your ambitions, you will be well rewarded by the time you spend with this book.

(This book review was originally published in 2002 as one of the Top 10 Books – Edition 10.)

Practice What You Preach: What Managers Must Do to Create a High Achievement Culture
by David H. Maister

I can’t believe this book title hasn’t surfaced until now. It’s a phrase that most of us have known since childhood. It’s great advice and something you might assume to be an obvious game plan for anyone striving for success. I wonder if it’s been avoided for so long because so few people and organizations actually do it?

In this book, the author asked and answers a very simple question: “Are employee attitudes correlated with financial success?” The answer he found, was “an unequivocal ‘Yes!’” This highly respected consultant bases his findings on a worldwide survey of 139 offices in 29 professional service firms in 15 countries in 15 different lines of business. He proves that if your firm doesn’t promote enthusiasm and high morale in your employees, your firm will make less money. Maister wrote the text in plain language and deferred all statistical language and presentation to the appendices. You’ll learn, in no uncertain terms, how you can create a culture in your organization that promotes growth and superior financial returns.

Loaded with case studies, comparisons, strategies, questionnaires, and characteristics of successful organizations, this insightful work will facilitate your growth as a business leader and manager. Upon completion of this book and adoption of its principles, you’ll be well on your way to joining a very exclusive group of leaders … those who practice what they preach!

(This book review was originally published in 2002 as one of the Top 10 Books – Edition 10.)

Please Don’t Just Do What I Tell You, Do What Needs to Be Done: Every Employee’s Guide to Making Work More Rewarding
by Bob Nelson

Here’s another mini-book, 105 pages, that packs a real wallop in a simple, smart and savvy way. Bob Nelson is the million-copy best-selling author of the 1001 Ways series (1001 Ways to Reward Employees, 1001 Ways to Energize Employees, and 1001 Ways to Take Initiative at Work) and Managing for Dummies.

In what is certain to be Bob’s next best seller, he spells out the message that should be shared with every new employee and seasoned staff member alike: “You never need permission to do great work. Wherever you work, whomever you work for, management expects that you will always use your own best judgment and effort to figure out what needs to be done and then do it without having to be told.” The author calls this The Ultimate Experience.

Wouldn’t you agree that this is a message that every employee needs to hear, but few employers explicitly state? Nelson illustrates his theory with examples and anecdotes from real life situations. He maps out a specific and easy-to-follow strategy that is brief, to the point, and inspiring.

Here’s another winner destined for your mini-book shelf!

(This book review was originally published in 2002 as one of the Top 10 Books – Edition 10.)