The Books That Have Shaped My Leadership
John Piper has said, “Books don’t change people, paragraphs do — sometimes sentences.”
Piper's insight stands behind this "Top 10" leadership list. I chose the books below because each has marked my life and shaped my leadership. At times, the entire volume hit home; but more likely God has used a key paragraph or even sentence to continue fashioning me as a leader.
I have divided this work by category rather than sequential listing with a view to differentiating various aspects of leadership and to enable you to quickly scan areas of interest to you. It is not exhaustive and I have attempted to keep this collection “on leadership.”
“Self-Leadership”
“We are, in a certain sense, our own tools, and therefore must keep ourselves in order. ”
The Effective Executive by Peter Drucker (because it is a classic)
Jim Collins says, “IF YOU ARE to read one book on executive self-management, it should be … The Effective Executive. Drucker is considered the father of modern management. This book is on many “Top-10” lists and with good reason. I recommend the 50th Anniversary Edition as it has the Jim Collins foreword, which is an excellent addition.Ordering Your Private World by Gordon MacDonald (for the insights of a lifetime)
God used this book to teach me the importance of self-leadership. I have read it and re-read it and re-read it. Wisdom and insight runs through these pages: "Beware of the barrenness of a busy life," "Look for the kernel of truth," and "MacDonald's Laws of Unmanaged Time" are just a few of the gems that sparkle in this book. MacDonald also helped give me an appreciation for biography. Read Ordering Your Private World and you will understand why this book has sold more than 1,000,000 copies. And yes, MacDonald was in a difficult place in life when he wrote this book, which speaks to God’s redeeming work despite ourselves.The Reformed Pastor by Richard Baxter (because it has lasted 350 years)
I wish I could write a book that would survive me by 350 years. This “book” was originally a group of lectures prepared for a group of pastors in 1655. Baxter was not feeling well as he prepared his notes; fascinating because The Reformed Pastor is powerful. This one sentence is the Holy Spirit's continual whisper to me: "Take heed to yourselves, lest your example contradict your doctrine . . . lest you unsay with your lives, what you say with your tongues; and be the greatest hinderers of the success of your own labours." And that is just one admonition from the heart of this 17th century pastor. Outstanding.
Leadership: How It Works
“Leadership is the art of getting people to want to do what must be done.”
On Leadership by John Gardner (for the breadth of his leadership)
To choose Gardner’s work on leadership is to choose steak over cotton candy. He is a leader writing about leadership. He is an academic (Ph.D. University of California) processing a key concept. Gardner was an officer in the U.S. Marine Corp in WWII, president of the Carnegie Foundation, the U.S. Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare under LBJ (the only Republican in Johnson’s cabinet). He served six U.S. Presidents in various capacities. He has been a director for Shell, American Airlines, and Time, Inc, and was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian award.Leadership Is An Art by Max De Pree (for its genius)
Max De Pree was the former CEO of Herman Miller. His book, Leadership Is An Art, has probably sold more than a million copies. In it, he writes, "The first responsibility of a leader is to define reality. The last is to say thank you. In between the the two, the leader must become a servant and a debtor." These words and others from his book have marked my life and leadership. You can learn more about this amazing leader and thinker at the Max De Pree Center for Leadership.Tough Choices: A Memoir by Carly Fiorina (for her leadership frame)
I thought I had a good leadership frame, until I saw Carly Fiorina’s. After reading hers, I stopped using mine. I have since modified Fiorina’s good work (as my understanding of leadership has developed), but her thinking stands behind much of how I process leadership. When Fiorina led HP, she was responsible for an organization of 250,000 people. I have never led at that level. I would buy Fiorina’s book if just for her leadership framework. Click here to see how I have built on her work.The Leadership Challenge by Kouzes and Posner (for their practice-based model)
Kouzes and Posner's work is a leadership classic. The authors breakdown leadership into five practices: (1) Model the way, (2) Inspire a shared vision, (3) Challenge the process, (4) Enable others to act, (5) Encourage the heart. My copy is marked, highlighted, and very well worn. I also like Andy Stanley's Next Generation Leader. Stanley's work is, in some ways, a miniature Leadership Challenge from a Christian perspective.
Leadership From A to Z
“There must be—in every segment and at every level—individuals capable of taking leader-like action to make their piece of the system work.”
Spiritual Leadership: Principles Of Excellence For Every Believer by J. Oswald Sanders (for its thoroughness and simplicity)
Not only has Sanders’ work sold more than 800,000 copies, it is a gold mine of leadership wisdom -- for any leader. I think it is the finest one-volume primer on leadership. It is a must read for the beginning leader and for every seasoned leader too. Sanders covers leadership from A-Z.Developing The Leader Within You by John M. Maxwell (for its street smarts)
It’s plain hubris to ignore a leadership volume that has sold 2,000,000 copies. Clear trumps clever in my book. Maxwell is both clear and clever in his writing. His life has been an adventure in highly effective leadership.Axiom: Powerful Leadership Proverbs by Bill Hybels (for the way he distills important principles into memorable axioms)
I chose Axiom for two reasons: First, because I believe leaders operate more effectively when they can distill key principles into memorable proverbs or pithy sayings; Second, because so many of Hybels' axioms are a part of my leadership vocabulary. For example: "Make the big ask," "Facts are your friends," "Take a flyer."
Leadership: Learning From History
“An ounce of history is worth a pound of logic.”
Churchill: A Life by Martin Gilbert (to witness leadership on a global stage)
Sir Martin Gilbert (1936-2015) was the official Churchill biographer. This book is his 1000-page “summary” of his official eight-volume work. Many consider Andrew Roberts’ more recent work, Churchill: Walking With Destiny, as the best one-volume biography of the “20th Century’s greatest leader,” but I got my start reading Churchill as I made my way through Gilbert’s pages each night.Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln by Doris Kearns Goodwin (for a historian’s perspective)
Doris Kearns Goodwin is a presidential historian and Pulitzer-Prize winning author. She has written books on Teddy Roosevelt, FDR, LBJ, and Lincoln. Goodwin has “lived with Lincoln for a quarter of a century.” Team of Rivals was the basis for the 2012 movie, “Lincoln", staring Daniel Day-Lewis. The History Channel’s documentary “Abraham Lincoln” is based on her book, Leadership In Turbulent Times. Kearns-Goodwin was also the Executive Producer of that documentary. Lessons aplenty!The Years of Lyndon Johnson by Robert Caro (for its historic and literary mastery)
I am fascinated by LBJ! He is an enigma, the best and worst of leadership. Caro has devoted his life to probing the depths of our 36th president. Caro writes with painstaking historical accuracy and yet with a prose that makes his reading an absolute delight. I have learned SO MUCH about leadership reading the life of LBJ. Caro has played a big part in my learning.
Leadership Wisdom
“Blessed is the one who finds wisdom ... for the gain from her is better than gain from silver and her profit better than gold. She is more precious than jewels, and nothing you desire can compare with her.
Long life is in her right hand; in her left hand are riches and honor.”
Who Moved My Cheese by Spencer Johnson (for the stickiness of his central metaphor)
This simple book has been a game-changer for my life and leadership. Johnson's parable about mice and cheese teaches the importance of how to respond to change in one’s life. “Move with the cheese" is a principle that echos in my mind. God uses this principle to keep me moving when life does not go according to (my) plan.
Leadership: Change, Strategy, and Execution
“If you don’t know where you are going, any road will get you there.”
Leading Change by John Kotter (because it is the seminal work on change management)
Kotter’s eight-step change process is now legendary. Some take issue with it, many have “improved it,” but Leading Change is still the foundational text for leaders around the world.Managing Transitions: Making The Most of Change by Bridges (for it’s critical insight)
William Bridges offers a critical insight that is lost on many leaders and organizations that are working through change: “It isn’t the changes that will do you in; it’s the transitions.” This distinction is critical. Get it, apply it, and work it . . . and you and your organization will be better for it.The Four Disciplines of Execution by Chris McChesney, et al (for it’s ability to help you identify and do the wildly important)
This book has served me well both during my tenure as Senior Pastor at Spanish River Church and as president of Lancaster Bible College | Capital Seminary & Graduate School. Follow it and you will move from strategy to execution on strategy.
Leadership: Thinking Biblically and Critically
“The scandal of the evangelical mind is that there is not much of an evangelical mind.”
The Call: Finding And Fulfilling The Central Purpose Of Your Life by Os Guinness (for “the why” behind our leadership)
Os Guinness is brilliant and here he brilliantly encapsulates the primary and secondary call of God on our lives. Guinness will introduce you to great authors and wonderful insights, such as Hudson's Taylor's "A little thing is a little thing, but faithfulness in a little thing, is a big thing" and "Abraham Kuyper's "There is not one square inch of the entire creation about which Jesus Christ does not cry out, 'This is mine. This belongs to me.'" I include The Call because his message provides the "Why" behind our leadership.Total Truth: Liberating Christianity From Its Cultural Captivity by Nancy Pearcey
Pearcey wrote, "We must begin by being utterly convinced that there is a biblical perspective on everything--not just on spiritual matters." That line has marked my life. Everyday Theology and The Scandal Of The Evangelical Mind are great companion volumes. So is Developing Critical Thinkers: Challenging Adults to Explore Alternative Ways of Thinking and Acting by Stephen D. Brookfield. While I do not agree with Brookfield's presupposition that there are no universal truths or total certainty, I agree with his practice of "challenging the presuppositions." Leaders need to think and think biblically. They need to "love God with their minds." These books help us do just that.
A final word (for now) . . .
In the end, no list is perfect and many would take issue with my choices. So be it. Time does not suffice to talk Tichy and Collins; Patrick Lencioni and James MacGregor Burns; Hesselbeing and Gerber; or for Greenleaf, Bennis, Boleman and Deal, Chran, Hackman, Juran and many more. For now, pick up one of these. Read it, digest it, and implement it. I think they will help you fulfill God's admonition through Paul:
“We have different gifts, according to the grace given to each of us. If your gift is ... to lead, do it diligently.”
How about you?
Drop a line in the comments. I’d love to see what writers have impacted you.
Notes:
“IF YOU ARE to read one book on executive self-management . . .” from Jim Collins’ Foreword to the 50th Anniversary Edition of The Effective Executive. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, page vii.
“There must be—in every segment and at every level . . .” from John W. Gardner, On Leadership (New York: The Free Press, 1990) p. ix.
“The scandal of the evangelical mind . . .” from Mark A. Noll, The Scandal of the Evangelical Mind. Grand Rapids: W.B. Eerdmans Publishing, Company. 1994. Page, 3.