In this book you will find examples from some of the best leadership activities and behaviors observed firsthand in the working world. Some of the best examples have come from small, privately run companies with a handful of employees while others come from multi-national organizations with thousands of employees worldwide. Some are from the retail world, from manufacturing, heavy industrial operations, the service sector, not-for-profit agencies and even Mom and Pop operations.
There are leadership styles from within Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom. Leaders' behaviors and personal styles vary from private, public and not-for -profit businesses and these different styles and approaches provide valuable lessons for leaders everywhere.
Some of the people you will find in these pages have a 'fresh-faced' enthusiasm, an energy and passion fresh from college or university while others wear a time worn expression that speaks of experience, results, changes and maturity. There are examples of leaders who continue to look for ways to improve their own working style; they strive to develop the people around them, and seem to constantly be considering ways to make yet another contribution, to apply a new approach, to leave a legacy, to know they have made a difference.
As you leaf through the pages you may recognize your own style in some of the activities, while some examples may trigger you to think of alternative approaches; places where you can make adjustments. For some of you there will be gentle reminders to go back to some the things you once did so passionately but have since forgotten. For others there will be a fresh new concept on every page.
My hopeis that this book will inspire you to try something new, to re-visit familiar but seldom-used approaches, and to re-connect with your people in ways that build skills, competence and confidence.
In these pages you'll find ways to make profound changes that can catapult your career upwards and inspire emerging leaders to make their own mark. If you act, and act carefully, following the concepts and examples from these pages, others will, in time, recognize your abilities because results will be more evident. You will find that your employees will become more courageous, more capable, more confident, and you will have made your mark as a leader worthy of respect.
Read slowly, ponder long; proceed carefully. Be courageous, step forward, and try something new. Make certain that when you retire or move on to advance your own career, you leave behind highly skilled and capable employees because of your leadership and coaching.
How does this book work? It started one letter at a time which conjured up a thought and then a lesson, a memory of a leader and an example of the leadership in action. Each one could, and does stand alone; there is no pattern, no sequence, and no place to start or end.
Flip through the book in a random fashion, read a page a day, pick something that seems to "speak to you," or settle down for a journey into leadership development. The choice is yours.
There's something for everyone within these pages. Read, enjoy, reflect, apply and learn. A fresh new leader is just around the corner.