The Leadership secrets of colin powell by oren harari

This version of Colin Powell’s leadership principles (as opposed to the two other’s I recommend on my list) isn’t written by Colin Powell. And if I hadn’t read it in the introduction, I would have thought the author had worked directly with Powell on this book. But he didn’t.

This book is a very good examination of many of the leadership principles to be found in My American Journey and It Worked For Me, but with some extra points thrown in that are really helpful to expand upon Powell’s ideas; many taken from speeches and other sources of Powell’s views. I particularly like the following from the book:

“…the leader's role, in this situation, is to overcome institutional (and individual) inertia. Pissed-off people are the inevitable result of challenging the status quo. In fact, they may be the best indicator that the leader is on the right track.”

The goal of leadership is not to piss people off. Instead, it’s to take people places they aren’t really sure they want to go. You’re invariably going to piss off some in the group. Powell is saying, and I agree, that it is a pretty good indication you are actually being a leader.

Recommended for all ranks