Take the Lead: Motivate, Inspire, and Bring Out the Best in Yourself and Everyone Around You

by Betsy Myers, John David Mann, David Gergen (Foreword by), Warren Bennis (Afterword)

Overview

This life-changing book from White House insider and leadership expert Betsy Myers “is a perfect read for anyone seeking to understand, develop, or unleash his or her genuine leadership potential” (Publishers Weekly).

Why is it that some people challenge and motivate us, while others drain our spirit? What is that magical quality certain people have that makes others engage fully?

In her hugely inspirational and practical book, Betsy Myers—senior adviser to two US presidents and former executive director of Harvard’s Center for Public Leadership— demonstrates that you do not need to be in a boardroom, on a battlefield, or on a ballot to have a profound impact on everyone around you. Good leadership is not about having the most knowledge or power but about how you make others feel. Drawing on her experiences from the Oval Office to the playground, Myers reveals seven core principles that will help you:

• Set the right priorities for yourself

• Uncover problems while they are still easy to fix

• Connect with others on a deeper level

• Collaborate with those whose viewpoints differ from yours

• Push through your fears

True leadership is not just all around us—it’s within us.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781439160695
Publisher:	Atria Books
Publication date:	07/24/2012
Pages:	240
Product dimensions:	5.62(w) x 8.28(h) x 0.67(d)

About the Author

Betsy Myers served as chief operating officer and senior adviser to Barack Obama’s 2007–2008 presidential campaign and chaired the Women for Obama organization. A senior official in the Clinton administration, she was the first director of the White House Office for Women’s Initiatives and Outreach. Before joining the Obama campaign, she was executive director of Harvard’s Center for Public Leadership, and she currently serves as founding director of the Center for Women in Business at Bentley University in Waltham, Massachusetts. She lives with her family near Boston. Visit her online at BetsyMyers.com.

John David Mann is coauthor of the beloved classic The Go-Giver, which has sold nearly a million copies in twenty-six languages and was awarded the 2017 Living Now Book Award’s Evergreen Medal for its “contribution to positive global change.” His books have sold more than 2 million copies and have earned the Nautilus Award, the Axiom Business Book Award Gold Medal, and Taiwan’s Golden Book Award for Innovation. Learn more at JohnDavidMann.com.

David Gergen has been a leader in the public arena for more than half a century. He has served as a White House adviser to four US presidents of both parties: Nixon, Ford, Reagan, and Clinton. Gergen then served as the editor of US News & World Report. For the past two decades, he has served as a professor of public service and founding director of the Center for Public Leadership at the Harvard Kennedy School. He is also a senior political analyst for CNN where he is a respected voice in national and international affairs.

Table of Contents

Foreword David Gergen ix

Introduction: A Road Map for Leadership 1

1 Authenticity: Freaking Out with Joy 17

2 Connection: The Story of Us 39

3 Respect: Seeing Past the Sunglasses 71

4 Clarity: Torch Relay 101

5 Collaboration: The Joy of Jamming Together 133

6 Learning: Uncontaminated Curiosity 163

7 Courage: Bright Lights in Dark Days 191

Conclusion: Being Conscious 211

Afterword Warren Bennis 219

Acknowledgments 223

Index 227

Editorial Reviews

A home run.... a perfect read for anyone seeking to understand, develop, or unleash his or her genuine leadership potential.”
—Publisher’s Weekly

“An enjoyable and insightful read for anyone interested in increasing their personal and professional effectiveness.”
—Kirkus Reviews

“An ‘original’ take on leadership sounds absurd. But Betsy Myers has given us just that. This peerless book truly is for everyone. ‘Take the lead’ means you and it means me; and it means today, not tomorrow.”
—TOM PETERS, author of the #1 national bestseller In Search of Excellence

“Betsy Myers will help you recognize the leader within you and show you how to use that gift to bring out the best in others. Read this book over and over and absorb its simple truths.”
—KEN BLANCHARD, coauthor of the #1 national bestseller The One Minute Manager ® and Lead with LUV

“After forty years of being a boss, I’ve found Take the Lead the most inspirational new tool, not only for leadership but for life.”
—KAY UNGER, cofounder of Phoebe Couture and Kay Unger New York

“A principled yet practical guide to twenty-first-century leadership. Myers’s candid, courageous stories offer convincing evidence of what it takes to be an authentic leader.”
—BILL GEORGE, author of True North and former CEO of Medtronics

“Betsy Myers, adviser to US presidents and longtime advocate for women, shares her considerable experience and wisdom with everyone who cares about high-level and everyday leadership. This charming, engrossing book will particularly excite and empower women, who will treat this book as their personal mentor and apply Myers’s principles to enrich their lives.”
—ROSABETH MOSS KANTER, Harvard Business School professor and bestselling author of Confidence and SuperCorp

“A must-read for current and rising leaders. Betsy Myers approaches leadership in a personal, compelling, and actionable way.”
—ELLIOTT MASIE, chair, The Learning CONSORTIUM

“Take the Lead captures essential, practical wisdom, anchored by powerful stories with key insights for any reader who aims to lead.”
—RONALD HEIFETZ, founder of the Center for Public Leadership, John F. Kennedy School of Government, Harvard University

“In working with some of the most powerful leaders in the world, Betsy has had the opportunity to see into their hearts and minds and understand what makes them inspiring and successful leaders. The result is a book filled with insight and wisdom. ”
—STEVE BELKIN, chairman, Trans National Group

“One of the most topical and well-written business books ever. This book will be given to all leaders in my department, as I believe the concepts Myers discusses are absolutely critical for success in any business.”
—BRIAN HIRSHMAN, senior vice president, Southwest Airlines

“True leadership requires both IQ and EQ—the right combination of head and heart. The leadership principles Betsy Myers illuminates are not only good for business, they are also economic and social imperatives.”
—GLORIA CORDES LARSON, president, Bentley University

“Betsy has a huge heart, tremendous empathy, and a genuine interest in others. That not only makes her a wonderful friend, it also makes her an exceptional leader. In Take the Lead, she makes a compelling case that all of us can learn to lead with our hearts.”
—DEE DEE MYERS, former White House Press Secretary and author of the New York Times bestseller Why Women Should Rule the World

"The defining difference in this superb book is Ms. Myers’ insistence that every day provides leadership opportunities for every one of us — from the most junior employee to the top of the organization."
— The Washington Post, The Best Leadership Books of 2011

From the Publisher

Following her own advice, former Clinton official and Obama campaign COO Betsy Myers sounds utterly authentic and helpful as she narrates her exceptional work. Not a voice pro, she speaks quickly, but that’s who she is, and it works well with this fast-moving yet personal material. Part of the book’s appeal is how the author’s insights and insider political experience inform her views on developing others, forming alliances, and moving worthy goals forward as a team. It’s the female leadership model of connecting with people, not just using them, and she sells this model with enormous credibility and engagement. With compelling observations and examples drawn from her family and her experiences in government and business, this is a memorable collection of principles that leaders at all stages of their careers can grow with. T.W. © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine

AUGUST 2012 - AudioFile

A modern, holistic approach to leadership, framed around a commitment to authenticity, the ability to listen and an awareness of the feelings of employees and constituencies.

Myers, the executive director of Harvard's Center for Public Leadership and COO of the Obama presidential campaign, offers a cogent, articulate addition to modern leadership theory, citing her experiences with both President Clinton and Obama. Her easy-to-digest volume is filled with anecdotes that illustrate the importance of a feelings-based approach to achieving major policy goals. In today's world, dominated by the Internet and the drive for individual fulfillment, Myers argues that "the emerging need is not simply forbetterleadership but for a newkindof leadership, one based on listening, transparency, and a fundamental honoring of relationships." But the author's stories are not limited to those in the Oval Office; sprinkled throughout the book are vignettes of ordinary people who lead by example and through compassion. Myers' message is that leadership qualities apply to all areas of life: business, politics, school and family. She suggests that paying attention to seven core ideas—authenticity, connection, respect, clarity, a willingness to collaborate, an openness to continuous learning and the courage to do the right thing—is not merely a formula for kinder, gentler leadership, but also a conduit to greater success in achieving financial and policy-oriented goals.

An enjoyable and insightful read for anyone interested in increasing their personal and professional effectiveness.

Kirkus Reviews