Product Description

This provocative yet practical book,  is the essential guide to the theory and practice of leadership - whatever your level in an organisation. It's both an indispensible yet entertaining guide to the core skills of leadership and a practical handbook for getting to the top and staying there - the single book guide to a successful career.

A unique and brilliant combination of authoritative guidance and stimulating and entertaining advice, it includes novel material on career limiting moves, advice on what to do when you look like you are about to become an involuntary member of the cock up club and how to lead by following.

This leadership handbook will help managers become leaders and help them rise to the top. It is the single book, whole career guide.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1054 in Books
• Published on: 2005-03-03
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 240 pages

Synopsis
This provocative yet practical book, is the essential guide to the theory and practice of leadership - whatever your level in an organisation. It's both an indispensible yet entertaining guide to the core skills of leadership and a practical handbook for getting to the top and staying there - the single book guide to a successful career. A unique and brilliant combination of authoritative guidance and stimulating and entertaining advice, it includes novel material on career limiting moves, advice on what to do when you look like you are about to become an involuntary member of the cock up club and how to lead by following. This leadership handbook will help managers become leaders and help them rise to the top. It is the single book, whole career guide.

From the Back Cover

How to Lead

What you actually need to DO to manage, lead and succeed

There’s no doubt about it – leadership skills are a very powerful career advantage. Every organization is looking for emerging leaders, and for those who stand out, there’s a bright future ahead.

The good news is that everybody can develop and show leadership skills, wherever you are in your career. It’s never too early, or too late.

An awful lot of guff has been written about leadership – whatever others would have you believe, you can be an effective leader even if you aren’t a composite of Nelson Mandela, Ghandi and Shackleton.

How to Lead is the book to cut through the daunting hero talk, the nonsense and the fluff. Put simply, leadership is about what you do and how you behave, so that’s what this book is about.

Based on actual research, it sets out the practical skills and behaviours that distinguish effective from less effective leaders, and shows you how to develop and deliver these vital assets.

It doesn’t absolutely guarantee success, but it loads the dice in your favour.

About the Author
Jo Owen has an outstanding track record of leading and creating businesses in the UK and Japan. Most recently he is the founder and Director of Strategy for Teach First - a not for profit initiative that takes the top graduates from UK universities and places them in inner city primary schools for two years before going on to a corporate career. He writes the leadership column for the Institute of Directors and as Director of Strategy for Teach First is shaping their “Learning to Lead” programme for top UK graduates. Jo is the author of the bestselling Management Stripped Bare, which is now in print in several languages worldwide.

Customer Reviews

Boring - we've heard it all before
Yet another management book that takes what we already know, dresses it up and then sells it back to us. Nothing new, nothing original, nothing worth paying for. Give it a miss!

Lead better
Great stuff from Jo Owen. I've always tried to play the straight man with my guys. If they're bad, I will quite literally lead them round the office by their nose, over desks and chairs, for five minutes or so to show them what happens to muppets. However if they come up with the goods, they get tossed a sweetener - Burtons voucher, golf brolley etc. Jo Owen gives me something to add to my arsenal. We've now started on a more 'human relations' route in the team, with feedback sessions on 'how does that make you feel' and 'how to value yourself and your colleagues'. I might think it's a lot of old cobblers myself, but if it keeps the troops happy, I'm happy.

A cracking book
This book is fantastic. A real eye-opener. It says obvious things when you read it, but you'd never think of it otherwise. A cracking read, and should be a must for anyone responsible for a team.