Could an author of 46 titles have anything more to say? John Maxwell is known for good content, but can he deliver again? Scanning the Table of Contents, my curiosity is piqued. Titles like “The Toughest Person to Lead Is Always Yourself,” “Influence Should Be Loaned but Never Given” and “Experience Is Not the Best Teacher” draw me in.
Maxwell tackles topics like integrity, priorities and the burden of leadership with his characteristic honesty, and doesn’t hold anything back as he challenges leaders to take ownership in a new level of change needed for a new generation. His stance is to build leaders, who will in turn build leaders. The power of influence creates impact when a leader invests in the modeling of the next generation. And that is where this book goes to a different level than other books on leadership. Maxwell creates a game plan for mentoring by giving tips, formulas and questions to pursue with a mentee. By investing in a life, the mentor is creating a legacy that will outlive the natural course of work.
Maxwell says, “If you want to make an impact, then work on your influence. If you want to add value to others, help them work on theirs.” (p. 194)
He does deliver again, by adding value to those who pick up his book. Not only does The Leadership Handbook provide practical application, but it calls the leader to rise to a new level of accountability and personal investment in the lives of people. Maxwell says, “You must come to realize how unimportant you are in comparison to the task with which you have been entrusted as a leader. That requires a level of objectivity, maturity, and humility that many leaders never attain. Your goal as a leader isn’t to be indispensable to the people you lead; it is to leave your people something that is indispensable to them.” (p. 248)
And therein lies the mark of a true leader, when that leader learns how to serve.
Sally
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