Leadership Can Be Learned

Book excerpt: Leadership is poorly understood because human systems are poorly understood. Like the "flat earth" theory of old, modern work culture is limited by a paradigm in which problems are understood as "clashes of personality,"' and blame is directed at the superficial level of individuals, groups, and structure. Leadership Can Be Learned: Clarity, Connection, and Results charts the course to a new paradigm of leadership and systems and how to leverage the relationship between the two. Leadership can be learned because it is a combination of art and science. Ultimately, high- performance culture and high-performance leadership mirror each other, and leaders must use their own unique strengths to foster both. Gilmore Crosby guides the reader by breaking the topic into four powerful sections. The first focuses on the transformational leadership model of Dr. Edwin Freidman, the second describes the systems theory from which that leadership model emerged, the third offers a unique exploration of emotional intelligence and critical interpersonal skills related to leadership, and the fourth and final section applies all the previous sections to attaining organizational results. This book: Delivers a clear how-to guide for leading organizations to higher performance Helps each reader understand, respect, and rise above their own authority issues Conveys a proven approach to life-long self-development so readers can continue to mature in a more objective, non-defensive, and intentional manner. In addition, it provides the skills and framework for applying this approach to effectively coaching and developing others Describes how leaders can be more effective in their interpersonal, group, and large-system interactions Teaches the approach through an engaging mix of historical examples, lessons learned through the author’s experience, quizzes, and metaphors. Provides a solid foundation for leadership development programs With this book, readers will gain a new understanding of themselves and of human systems and learn how, in the words of Gandhi, to "be the change they wish to see in the world" so they and their colleagues can attain and sustain world-class results.