4 out of 4 stars
Share This Review
The Leading Man by Stephen J. Blakesley
The Leading Man is a non-fictional book on leadership and was authored by Stephen J. Blakesley. This is a short and easy read. The writer starts out by giving an overview of what is leadership. He then goes into unpacking what he considers to be the six basic and most essential skills needed to be a leader. As ascertained in the book, leadership entails being able to influence others toward achieving a particular goal. In order to have such an influence and be regarded as an exceptional leader, one needs to acquire or develop these fundamental skills outlined in the book. The Leading Man is primarily about the personal development necessary in order to effectively lead others. Before seeking to improve others or change a situation, it might be important to first seek personal development, as certain shortcomings can damper a leader’s influence.
As a person who has worked in the corporate world for many years, I am always keen on developing my leadership skills. This book has highlighted key areas in which I can and need to develop in order to be the exceptional and inspirational leader I am endeavoring to be. The book just briefly covered the essential skills for leadership but although concise, the points were well laid out and gave me much to think about. I recognize areas in which I can improve and points I need to take action on. As noted in the book, an individual needs emotional intelligence to be a good leader and one area of emotional intelligence is to have self-awareness. Knowing one’s self is very important if he/she is to lead others. Also essential, is understanding others: what they do and why they do the things they do. These and more key points are covered in the book.
The Leading Man brought attention to many key skills needed as a leader but it only skimmed the surface on these topics. I personally which the writer had provided more details on each skill, to better develop the points. The writer, however, provided references to a lot of other useful books on leadership and the underlying skills covered in the book. The reader has to, however, take initiative to apply and develop these skills, as the book does not provide a very practical guide to developing these skills. I would suggest that the reader take these points and do further research and action steps in the areas that are applicable to him or her.
I would give this book a 4 out of 4 star ratings. This book did cover the topic well. Although concisely done, key points where covered that would be a useful guide to those aspiring to develop leadership skills. It offers a lot to think about and fundamental points for personal reflection. The book is also professionally written and authored by an individual with experience and proven leadership qualities. Given the vast amount of references to other books on this topic, it is apparent that the author did a lot of research before writing this book. These attributes give the book credibility and in my opinion, a stronger reliability factor.
The Leading Man would be helpful to any aspiring leader. Leadership skills are learned and not necessarily inherited at birth. There are many young and even mature professionals that are not achieving the leadership results that they would like. This book would help such a person to understand what might be missing and why he/she is not an effective leader as intended. One needs to, therefore, be intentional about his/her leadership growth and also cognizant of his/her leadership ability. I believe this book will help to guide such a person on the right leadership path.
******
The Leading Man
View: on Bookshelves
Like Juliet144's review? Post a comment saying so!
