Offering an array of fresh innovations to remedy the most daunting leadership challenges of today's complex and rapidly evolving world, this practical how-to guide is for anyone who has ever had qualms about his or her lack of leadership experience or imagined limitations. Everyone in a leadership or management role wants a quick and effective solution to the most severe problems. This book enables even a novice to proactively work through the largest challenges. Rather than providing clichés or superficial advice, the authors leverage the most impactful examples of key elements of leadership in a practical way that readers can translate to their own situations, no matter if they are in charge of a for-profit, not-for-profit, educational, religious, family, or social organization. The questions for analysis in each chapter specifically guide readers as they apply the material to their own experiences and challenges, making the insights pragmatic, relevant, and immediately useful. The book presents innovative tools and techniques, such as the use of Pascal's Wager to make momentous decisions despite gaps in relevant data and an uncertain future, as well as a way to reduce or eliminate the career-ending threat of any reader's most severe "Achilles' heel" vulnerabilities. The time management chapter supplies dozens of pragmatic ideas to do more in less time—and do it better; the chapter on "Quicksand Quadrants" enables any leader to quickly assess the optimal mix of approaches in any situation. It all adds up to an essential—and user-friendly—manual for every leader at every level.

What Duke Ellington and Miles Davis teach us about leadership How do you cope when faced with complexity and constant change at work? Here’s what the world’s best leaders and teams do: they improvise. They invent novel responses and take calculated risks without a scripted plan or a safety net that guarantees specific outcomes. They negotiate with each other as they proceed, and they don’t dwell on mistakes or stifle each other’s ideas. In short, they say “yes to the mess” that is today’s hurried, harried, yet enormously innovative and fertile world of work. This is exactly what great jazz musicians do. In this revelatory book, accomplished jazz pianist and management scholar Frank Barrett shows how this improvisational “jazz mind-set” and the skills that go along with it are essential for effective leadership today. With fascinating stories of the insights and innovations of jazz greats such as Miles Davis and Sonny Rollins, as well as probing accounts of the wisdom gleaned from his own experience as a jazz musician, Barrett introduces a new model for leading and collaborating in organizations. He describes how, like skilled jazz players, leaders need to master the art of unlearning, perform and experiment simultaneously, and take turns soloing and supporting each other. And with examples that range from manufacturing to the military to high-tech, he illustrates how organizations must take an inventive approach to crisis management, economic volatility, and all the rapidly evolving realities of our globally connected world. Leaders today need to be expert improvisers. Yes to the Mess vividly shows how the principles of jazz thinking and jazz performance can help anyone who leads teams or works with them to develop these critical skills, wherever they sit in the organization. Engaging and insightful, Yes to the Mess is a seminar on collaboration and complexity, against the soulful backdrop of jazz.

The New York Times bestseller by the acclaimed, bestselling author of Start With Why and Together is Better. Now with an expanded chapter and appendix on leading millennials, based on Simon Sinek's viral video "Millenials in the workplace" (150+ million views). Imagine a world where almost everyone wakes up inspired to go to work, feels trusted and valued during the day, then returns home feeling fulfilled. This is not a crazy, idealized notion. Today, in many successful organizations, great leaders create environments in which people naturally work together to do remarkable things. In his work with organizations around the world, Simon Sinek noticed that some teams trust each other so deeply that they would literally put their lives on the line for each other. Other teams, no matter what incentives are offered, are doomed to infighting, fragmentation and failure. Why? The answer became clear during a conversation with a Marine Corps general. "Officers eat last," he said. Sinek watched as the most junior Marines ate first while the most senior Marines took their place at the back of the line. What's symbolic in the chow hall is deadly serious on the battlefield: Great leaders sacrifice their own comfort--even their own survival--for the good of those in their care. Too many workplaces are driven by cynicism, paranoia, and self-interest. But the best ones foster trust and cooperation because their leaders build what Sinek calls a "Circle of Safety" that separates the security inside the team from the challenges outside. Sinek illustrates his ideas with fascinating true stories that range from the military to big business, from government to investment banking.

Children in today's world are inundated with information about who to be, what to do and how to live. But what if there was a way to teach children how to manage priorities, focus on goals and be a positive influence on the world around them? The Leader in Meis that programme. It's based on a hugely successful initiative carried out at the A.B. Combs Elementary School in North Carolina. To hear the parents of A. B Combs talk about the school is to be amazed. In 1999, the school debuted a programme that taught The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Peopleto a pilot group of students. The parents reported an incredible change in their children, who blossomed under the programme. By the end of the following year the average end-of-grade scores had leapt from 84 to 94. This book will launch the message onto a much larger platform. Stephen R. Covey takes the 7 Habits, that have already changed the lives of millions of people, and shows how children can use them as they develop. Those habits -- be proactive, begin with the end in mind, put first things first, think win-win, seek to understand and then to be understood, synergize, and sharpen the saw -- are critical skills to learn at a young age and bring incredible results, proving that it's never too early to teach someone how to live well.

Harvard Business School's Michael Roberto draws on powerful decision-making case studies from every walk of life, showing how to promote honest, constructive dissent and skepticism; use it to improve decisions; and align organizations behind those decisions. Learn from disasters like the Space Shuttle Columbia and JFK's Bay of Pigs Invasion, from successes like Sid Caesar and Bill Parcells, from George W. Bush's decision-making after 9/11. Roberto complements his compelling case studies with extensive new research on executive decisionmaking. Discover how to test and probe a management team; when 'yes' means 'yes' and when it doesn't; and how to build real consensus that leads to action. Gain important new insights into managing teams, mitigating risk, promoting corporate ethics, and much more.

Offering an array of fresh innovations to remedy the most daunting leadership challenges of today's complex and rapidly evolving world, this practical how-to guide is for anyone who has ever had qualms about his or her lack of leadership experience or imagined limitations. Everyone in a leadership or management role wants a quick and effective solution to the most severe problems. This book enables even a novice to proactively work through the largest challenges. Rather than providing clichés or superficial advice, the authors leverage the most impactful examples of key elements of leadership in a practical way that readers can translate to their own situations, no matter if they are in charge of a for-profit, not-for-profit, educational, religious, family, or social organization. The questions for analysis in each chapter specifically guide readers as they apply the material to their own experiences and challenges, making the insights pragmatic, relevant, and immediately useful. The book presents innovative tools and techniques, such as the use of Pascal's Wager to make momentous decisions despite gaps in relevant data and an uncertain future, as well as a way to reduce or eliminate the career-ending threat of any reader's most severe "Achilles' heel" vulnerabilities. The time management chapter supplies dozens of pragmatic ideas to do more in less time—and do it better; the chapter on "Quicksand Quadrants" enables any leader to quickly assess the optimal mix of approaches in any situation. It all adds up to an essential—and user-friendly—manual for every leader at every level.

In The 7 Habits of Happy Kids, Sean Covey uses beautifully illustrated stories to bring his family's successful philosophy to the youngest child. For the Seven Oaks friends, there is always something to do. Whether they're singing along with Pokey Porcupine's harmonica or playing soccer with Jumper Rabbit, everyone is having fun and learning all sorts of things. These seven stories show how practicing the 7 Habits makes this possible for the whole Seven Oaks Community. From learning how to take charge of their own lives to discovering how balance is best, the Seven Oaks friends have tons of adventures and find out how each and every kid can be a happy kid!