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The Leadership Challenge

james m. kouzes barry z. posner

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When it was initially written in 1987, few could have predicted that The Leadership Challenge would become one of the best-selling leadership books of all time. Now, faced with the new challenges of our unpredictable global business environment, Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner--two of the country's premier leadership experts--have completely revised and updated their classic book. Building on the knowledge base of their previous books, the third edition of The Leadership Challenge is grounded in extensive research and based on interviews with all kinds of leaders at all levels in public and private organizations from around the world. In this edition, the authors emphasize that the fundamentals of leadership are the same today as they were in the 1980s, and as they've probably been for centuries. In that sense, nothing's new. Leadership is not a fad. While the content of leadership has not changed, the context has-and in some cases, changed dramatically.

496 pages, Paperback

First published October 1,1987

This edition

Format
496 pages, Paperback
Published
January 1, 2003 by Jossey-Bass Inc Pub
ISBN
9780787968335
ASIN
0787968331
Language
English

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About the author

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james m. kouzes

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Jim Kouzes has been thinking about leadership ever since he was one of only a dozen Eagle Scouts to be selected to serve in John F. Kennedy's honor guard when Kennedy was inaugurated President of the United States. Kennedy's inaugural call to action -- "Ask not what your country can do for you; ask what you can do for your country." -- inspired Jim to join the Peace Corps, and he taught school in Turkey for two years. That experience made Jim realize that he wanted a career that offered two things: the chance to teach and the opportunity to serve. It was in his first job back in the U.S. training community action agency managers that Jim found his calling, and he has devoted his life to leadership development ever since.
Jim Kouzes is the coauthor with Barry Z. Posner of the award-winning and best-selling book, The Leadership Challenge, with over 3.0 million copies in print. He's a Fellow of the Doerr Institute for New Leaders at Rice University and also served as the Dean's Executive Fellow of Leadership, Leavey School of Business, Santa Clara University. Jim and Barry have coauthored many bestselling leadership books including A Leader's Legacy, Encouraging the Heart, The Truth About Leadership, and Credibility. They are also the developers of The Leadership Practices Inventory—the bestselling off-the-shelf leadership assessment in the world. Their books are extensively researched-based, and over 500 doctoral dissertations and academic studies have been based on their original work.
Not only is Jim a highly regarded leadership scholar, The Wall Street Journal cited Jim as one of the twelve best executive educators in the U.S. He is the 2010 recipient of the Thought Leadership Award from the Instructional Systems Association, listed as one of HR Magazine's Most Influential International Thinkers, named one of the Top 100 Thought Leaders in Trustworthy Business Behavior by Trust Across America, and ranked by Leadership Excellence magazine as one of the Top 100 Thought Leaders. Jim was presented with the Golden Gavel, the highest honor awarded by Toastmasters International, and he and Barry are also the recipients of the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD) Distinguished Contribution to Workplace Learning and Performance Award, presented in recognition of their extensive body of work and the significant impact they have had on learning and performance in the workplace.

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Rating(4.1 / 5.0, 100 votes)
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DevilSwordDante
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 1,2025
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This is definitely a five-star leadership book for me. The sharing is concise, encouraging and inspiring. And I definitely agree with the last point in the last chapter that it is love that fuels the motivation of being a leader.

The points are very well organised, that exemplary leaders usually practice the following:

1. Model the way
- clarify values: find your voice & affirm shared values
- set the example: live the shared values and teach others to model the values

2. Inspire a shared vision
- envision the future: imagine the possibilities and find a common purpose
- enlist others- appeal to common ideals and animate the vision

3. Challenge the process
- search for opportunists: seize the initiative and exercise outsight
- experiment and take risk: generate small wins and learn from experience

4. Enable others to act
- foster collaboration: create a climate of trust and facilitate relationship
- strengthen others: enhance self-determination and develop competence & confidence

5. Encourage the heart
- recognise contribution: expect the best and personalise recognition
- celebrate the values and victories: create a spirit of community and be personally involved

At the end, leading is doing. There are many moments that we lead: listen more, share more, saying thank you etc.

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BlernsballMVP
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 1,2025
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A lot of practical application based on research - much different than a John Maxwell type of book
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bubble
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 1,2025
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Pleasantly surprised by how much I got out of this book. Although slow at times, with perhaps a few too many examples, there was lot of good to take in here. Simple, thoughtful, and approachable.
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PotatoFrenzy
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 1,2025
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I just finished reading this for a Leadership Class in college. I also completed the Leadership Challenge Workbook. Although the my peers (while in front of the prof) were keen to talk about how much they got out of this book. I have to say, I just don't see it.

To me, the points made in this book were common knowledge. Yes, sometimes we need to be reminded because it is easy to become desensitized to the bad leadership practices that surround us. But for the most part, bad leadership skills stick out. You know the teams in your company that no one is happy to work with or be a part of.

This book is a basic guide to how to lead other humans in a respectful and responsible way. If you are wondering "Gosh, how do I do that?" then this book is for you.
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debu811
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 1,2025
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This book is a great option for university students to prepare themselves mentally for corporate sector. It's a great book for those who want to lead people, who want that people follow them. This book also give some really fantastic tips to newbie regarding Corporate culture, how to put themselves on company's fast track and much more. No doubt Authors (James Kouzes and Barry Posner) had done great research for this book, they conducted interviews of some really great people from different organizations. This book is a must read!
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emanime
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
April 1,2025
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The book is great in that it covers a lot of real-life examples of leadership exhibited in organizations of all sizes and industries all around the world. The principles in it are also key to success. I probably could have skimmed the whole book and gotten a similar level of output. Glad I learned that for future similar texts.
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