The Serving Leader

Everyone loves a good story. Even better is a story that can be personal to you, where parts of the story are really parts of your story. Add to that story lessons that we can learn, that can move us to apply those lessons that are taught. That is what this book does, through a story of a father and son who have little it common or so it seems. How many of us have parents who we can’t seem to please, or who don’t recognize or acknowledge our efforts or accomplishments? This is a story of a father and son who are worlds apart but through tragedy come back together.

This book comes with some pretty powerful contributors with Forwards by Leadership experts Ken Blanchard and Orrin Woodward. Ken Blanchard best known for his book The One Minute Manager, and Whale Done is a legend in the leadership world. Orrin Woodward is the international best-selling author of Resolved and co-author of the NY Times Best Seller; Launching a Leadership Revolution. He is founder of The LIFE company and Independent Association of Business “Leader of the Year”.

The authors of The Serving Leader Ken Jennings Ph.D. and John Stahl-Wert, D. Min. both have extensive education, and a wealth of experience leading and teaching. Mr. Jennings is a past co-director of the Global Leadership in Healthcare Program at University of Michigan Business School, and has a Bachelors in Behavioral Science from the Air Force Academy, and was an adjunct professor at Columbia University Business School. John Stahl-Wert is President and CEO of Pittsburgh Leadership Foundation and on the faculty of Geneva College’s Masters of Science in Organizational Leadership.

“Five Powerful Actions that will Transform your Team, your Business and Your Community” That’s the tag line just below the title describing how this book, The Serving Leader, can impact us.

This book delivers. Read it, then give me your feedback.

I’d love to hear if this book impacted you the way it did me.

I’d love to hear your story.

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Could You Be A Leader?

As I have read books from various business leaders such as John Maxwell and Orrin Woodward, both one of the world’s top 25 Leadership Gurus I have noticed that they are consistent in their messages. Each has their own message and own style but you can readily see that these leaders do not vary in their beliefs. Unlike many politicians who send one message to one group and a quite different message to another group to collect votes, these leaders stay true to their beliefs. This is very refreshing in a day when there is such confusion around truth, and when everyone seems to want to vent their opinion (even when there is no substance to back it up).

It is also interesting to see their peers. Take a look at just some of the Worlds Top 25 Leadership Guru’s and see if you recognize any of these names;  John Maxwell, Stephen Covey, Ken Blanchard,  Ram Charan, Mark Driscoll,  Anthony Robbins, Rudy Giuliani,  Jack Welch, Jim Collins, Tony Dungy, Meg Whitman, and Orrin Woodward.  I’m sure you recognize some if not all of these names.

Who are most peoples peers? Who are yours? Are they positive or negative? Do they uplift or tear you or others down? It IS interesting to note that although all of these men and women are accomplished in their fields, all are controversial in one way or another. That’s one of the things that set them apart. They are not doing what everyone else does.  They do not follow the crowd. For example; John Maxwell originally was a Pastor in a church and today is the #1 leadership expert in the secular world, Rudy Giuliani the former Mayor of New York during the September 11 World Trade Tower attack stood up and led NYC and gave the country hope during our countries most trying time has been criticized on his handling of the crisis, Jack Welch the former CEO of GE was call “Neutron Jack” because he fired so many people to do what best selling author Jim Collins called “getting the right people on the bus and the wrong people off the bus” yet in doing so built it into one of the most successful companies in the world, Meg Whitman as CEO of e-Bay led it to become one of the worlds most recognized names was criticized from both the left and right when she ran for Governor of California as being incapable to lead the State of Calif. Tell me a leader who hasn’t been criticized and I will have to question whether they really lead something worthwhile.

I hope as you begin or continue on your leadership journey that you have the courage of your convictions to stay the course even in times of opposition.  That is one of the qualities that make a leader a leader.