How the Best Did It


Book Description

How the Best Did It is an accessible and insightful explanation of how the most important leadership traits from America’s eight greatest presidents can be implemented by today’s leaders. “A discerning examination of what all of us can learn from some of our most effective leaders who have held—and wielded—ultimate power at the highest level.” —Jon Meacham David O. Stewart (author of George Washington: The Political Rise of America’s Founding Father) on the George Washington chapter: “In How the Best Did It, Talmage Boston demonstrates rare gifts in sifting gold nuggets from the endless gravel beds of known facts about eight leading presidents, then delivering them concisely and persuasively. In his insightful study of George Washington, he finds the core of America’s first great leader without exaggerating his talents, and makes him someone from whom we can learn and cherish.” Annette Gordon-Reed (Pulitzer-winning historian and coauthor of Most Blessed of the Patriarchs: Thomas Jefferson and the Empire of the Imagination) on the Thomas Jefferson chapter: “Thomas Jefferson was one the most effective American leaders of his time, creating a political party that dominated American politics for more than a quarter of a century. With great insight and clear writing, Talmage Boston brings Jefferson to life as the talented leader who shaped the course of early American society.” Ronald C. White Jr. (author of A. Lincoln and three other notable books on Lincoln) on the Abraham Lincoln chapter: “Talmage Boston offers a wise and wide-ranging understanding of Lincoln’s leadership qualities. What makes Boston’s chapter distinct is the personal questions that challenge the reader to apply Lincoln’s values to their lives today.”




Effective Presidency


Book Description

The second edition of this classic work adds a new chapter on Barack Obama and updates coverage of the end of the George W. Bush administration. Presidential scholar Erwin C. Hargrove extends his analytical framework of presidential effectiveness to show how Obama combines eventful leadership with pragmatism to move the nation forward in an intensely polarized partisan environment. Features of the textbook: Uses an analytical framework to assess historical context, personal skills and attributes, and the ability to "make a difference" in each of ten presidencies. Four presidents are judged to be "event-making" leaders: Johnson, Nixon, Reagan, and George W. Bush. Six presidents are assessed as "eventful" leaders: JFK, Ford, Carter, George H. W. Bush, Clinton, and Obama. As much a study of leadership as an analysis of ten presidencies, this book adds to our understanding in political science, history, and public administration and management.




Presidential Leadership and the Creation of the American Era


Book Description

How presidents forged the American century This book examines the foreign policy decisions of the presidents who presided over the most critical phases of America's rise to world primacy in the twentieth century, and assesses the effectiveness and ethics of their choices. Joseph Nye, who was ranked as one of Foreign Policy magazine’s 100 Top Global Thinkers, reveals how some presidents tried with varying success to forge a new international order while others sought to manage America’s existing position. The book shows how transformational presidents like Wilson and Reagan changed how America sees the world, but argues that transactional presidents like Eisenhower and the elder Bush were sometimes more effective and ethical. It also draws important lessons for today’s uncertain world, in which presidential decision making is more critical than ever.




President as Leader


Book Description

By analyzing the leadership skills of five recent American presidents, this book seeks to de-mystify the elements and dynamics of effective presidential leadership which our democracy has come to depend upon and value. Building on the pioneering work of political scientist Fred Greenstein and others, this book argues that leadership in the White House can be explained and assessed by using a consistent set of criteria to analyze presidential performance. Siegel shows that presidential leadership is exercised by real, flawed human beings, and not by superheroes or philosopher-kings beyond the reach of scrutiny or critique.




Leadership


Book Description

Now an epic documentary event on the HISTORY Channel! The illuminating, bestselling exploration on leadership from Pulitzer Prize–winning author and presidential historian Doris Kearns Goodwin, and also the inspiration for the HISTORY Channel multipart series Abraham Lincoln and Theodore Roosevelt. “After five decades of magisterial output, Doris Kearns Goodwin leads the league of presidential historians” (USA TODAY). In her “inspiring” (The Christian Science Monitor) Leadership, Doris Kearns Goodwin draws upon the four presidents she has studied most closely—Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and Lyndon B. Johnson (in civil rights)—to show how they recognized leadership qualities within themselves and were recognized as leaders by others. By looking back to their first entries into public life, we encounter them at a time when their paths were filled with confusion, fear, and hope. Leadership tells the story of how they all collided with dramatic reversals that disrupted their lives and threatened to shatter forever their ambitions. Nonetheless, they all emerged fitted to confront the contours and dilemmas of their times. At their best, all four were guided by a sense of moral purpose. At moments of great challenge, they were able to summon their talents to enlarge the opportunities and lives of others. Does the leader make the times or do the times make the leader? “If ever our nation needed a short course on presidential leadership, it is now” (The Seattle Times). This seminal work provides an accessible and essential road map for aspiring and established leaders in every field. In today’s polarized world, these stories of authentic leadership in times of apprehension and fracture take on a singular urgency. “Goodwin’s volume deserves much praise—it is insightful, readable, compelling: Her book arrives just in time” (The Boston Globe).




Presidential Lessons in Leadership


Book Description

Presidential Lessons in Leadership crystallizes the methods of leadership from six of America's greatest presidents during moments of personal challenge and turns them into concrete lessons that business leaders, and anyone interested in becoming a more effective leader, can use each day. The six presidents include: Abraham Lincoln: Principle-based Leadership John F. Kennedy: Leadership through critical thinking Franklin D. Roosevelt: Leadership through innovation Teddy Roosevelt: Leadership through influence Ronald Reagan: Leadership through ideology In this exciting and instructive book, CEO-historian Dr. Ron Felber dramatically renders the moral complexities behind these presidents' moment of greatest challenge and crystallizes the essence of the character-driven leadership they exercised into practical lessons that readers can apply in the workplace as well as in their day-to-day lives. Once a reader delves into these inspirational tales of challenge and triumph and the lessons they teach, they will never forget them!




Lessons in Leadership


Book Description

In this practical guide, Emmy Award-winning public broadcasting anchor Steve Adubato teaches readers to be self-aware, empathetic, and more effective leaders at work and at home. His powerful case studies spotlighting dozens of leaders—from Pope Francis to New Jersey governor Chris Christie—are complemented by concrete tips and tools based in real-life scenarios. With Lessons in Leadership, readers can learn to steer others through difficult economic times, to mentor rising leaders, to provide straight talk to underperforming employees, and even how to lead a company through a significant change.




Presidential Leadership


Book Description

Over the course of his life Dan Nielsen has traveled all over America, and in the process discovered a national treasure known as the United States Presidential Libraries and Museums. These unique institutions, operated by the National Archives and Records Administration, preserve the presidential legacies through expansive historical archives, fascinating interactive displays, and numerous educational programs. Dan has spent hundreds of hours visiting and studying the presidential libraries and museums, and has a personal collection of more than 15,000 photographs he has taken at each one.Presidential Leadership: Learning from United States Presidential Libraries & Museums combines Dan's passion for these institutions with his passion for achieving greater success through leadership excellence. Dan strongly believes that the ultimate strategy for success is leadership excellence. He also knows that excellent leaders focus on strengths more than weaknesses, and much can be learned from studying the strengths of highly successful leaders.There is no doubt that despite their individual weaknesses and flaws, the United States Presidents each achieved the most prestigious, powerful, and influential leadership position in the world. No matter your political leanings, you can learn from the leadership strengths of the U.S. Presidents.Presidential Leadership features fourteen former U.S. Presidents whose legacies are preserved by presidential libraries and museums. The book focuses on three or four leadership strengths of each president, and also provides Dan's eyewitness perspective of each library and museum, supplemented by a selection of his personal photographs from each one.This unique journey through the life and times of these presidents brings home the power and impact of leadership strengths in a whole new way. It also opens your eyes to the virtually limitless resource that can be found by studying highly successful leaders both past and present. It is Dan's hope that this book will inspire you to select one or two leadership strengths to focus on and improve in your own life. He also hopes you will be inspired to visit and explore for yourself the incredible resources drawn upon for this book--the United States Presidential Libraries and Museums.




100 Valuable Leadership Lessons from 10 U. S. Presidents


Book Description

Learn the leadership lessons of: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Woodrow Wilson, Franklin D. Roosevelt Dwight D. Eisenhower, John F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon and Ronald Reagan We are fortunate enough to have a lot of content around us that teaches leadership. We even have the power to excavate important lessons from some of the most historical figures in history. Today's business leaders can learn a lot by looking back on the important lessons bestowed by great men like George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Franklin D. Roosevelt, and John F. Kennedy. This is true no matter how you might feel about their differing policies, beliefs or skills. Effective leadership is essential for being President. That's a given. So is the fact that CEOs of corporations must be great leaders. However, even if you have a small business or are self-employed, you too can benefit from being a great leader - perhaps even more that a CEO of a large corporation. The most effective leaders act from their set of core values. Sure, some people might not align with those values but those are not the people you should focus on anyway. To be a great leader, you must take those values and cultivate them into a vision. That's what the lessons highlighted throughout this book are going to show you. Can you adapt your leadership style to meet the unexpected? Are you ready to get started?




Team of Rivals


Book Description

One of the most influential books of the past fifty years, Team of Rivals is Pulitzer Prize–winning author and esteemed presidential historian Doris Kearns Goodwin’s modern classic about the political genius of Abraham Lincoln, his unlikely presidency, and his cabinet of former political foes. Winner of the prestigious Lincoln Prize and the inspiration for the Oscar Award winning–film Lincoln, starring Daniel Day-Lewis, directed by Steven Spielberg, and written by Tony Kushner. On May 18, 1860, William H. Seward, Salmon P. Chase, Edward Bates, and Abraham Lincoln waited in their hometowns for the results from the Republican National Convention in Chicago. When Lincoln emerged as the victor, his rivals were dismayed and angry. Throughout the turbulent 1850s, each had energetically sought the presidency as the conflict over slavery was leading inexorably to secession and civil war. That Lincoln succeeded, Goodwin demonstrates, was the result of a character that had been forged by experiences that raised him above his more privileged and accomplished rivals. He won because he possessed an extraordinary ability to put himself in the place of other men, to experience what they were feeling, to understand their motives and desires. It was this capacity that enabled Lincoln as president to bring his disgruntled opponents together, create the most unusual cabinet in history, and marshal their talents to the task of preserving the Union and winning the war. We view the long, horrifying struggle from the vantage of the White House as Lincoln copes with incompetent generals, hostile congressmen, and his raucous cabinet. He overcomes these obstacles by winning the respect of his former competitors, and in the case of Seward, finds a loyal and crucial friend to see him through. This brilliant multiple biography is centered on Lincoln's mastery of men and how it shaped the most significant presidency in the nation's history.