This book is about leadership-the kind of practical, mission-and people-based leadership that Colin Powell has practiced, and which throughout this career has translated into performance excellence and competitive success. Whether you run a small familiy business, a large corporation, a National Guard unit, or your local Parent Teachers Association, you'll benefit from looking at leadership the way Powell himself has looked at leadership.-From the prologue

Born and raised in the humble environsof the Bronx, Colin Powell has learned to operate with skill and ease in the world's most exclusive, exating corridors of power.

Comfortable and confident in today's bareknuckles geopolitical areana, the self-effecing Powerll ha salways been wiling to deflect credit if it meant achieving his stated goals.

But ake no mistake. Colin Powell is andd always will be in command.

The Leadership Secrets of Colin Powell reveals the deep-seated wisdom and rock-solid foundation beneath Colin Powell's leadership success. Drawing striking parallels between Powell's military and political skills and their value in today's no-quarter world of business, this timeless resource reveals insights into'

Powell on leadership: 'The day soldiers stop bringing you their problemsis the day yu have stopped leading them.'

Powell on itegrity: 'Untidy truth is better than smooth ies.'

Powell on perseverance: 'You cannot slay the ddragonevery day. Some days the dragon wins.'

The Leadership of Colin Powell take us inside the man Newsweek calls '...the most respected figure in American public life.' Whether revealing Powell's ability to make individuals perform, or demonstrating his uncanny knack to articluate vivid goals and values, this one-of-a-kind book reveals the man's techniques in a voice that is crisp, clear, and unmistakable in its resolve.

Change before you are forced to...Put people over plans...The Leadership Secrets of Colin Powell provides no-nonsense, proven leadership solutions. It examines the principles that motivate Colin Powell -nobility in purpose, credibility of leadership, integrity in organization, and victory in performance-and shows how they can help to guide you through virtually any situation. Just as important, it paints a portrait of leadership that is vintage Colin Powell-short on talk, long on action, and guaranteed to succeed when failure is not an option.

Oren Harari, Ph.D., is a professor of management at the McLaren Graduate School of Business, University of San Francisco. A prominent author, speaker, and consultant in the areas of competitive advantage, organizational change, and transformational leadership, Harari is the author or coauthor of six previous books, and has contributed to Harvard Business Review, California Management Review, Industrial Relations, Small Business Reports, and numerous other professional publications.

The performance of an organization is the ultimate measure of its leader.

Colin Powell has established an entirely new paradigm for leadership excellence. Through four U.S. presidents and countless world crises-including the current high-stakes campaign against global terror-the blunt-spoken four-star general has grown to become one of the world's most effective, bottom-line leaders.

The Leadership Secrets of Colin Powell goes beyond other books to take an in-depth look into the foundations of Powell's compelling leadership style. With penetrating insight, it examines:

Powell as provocateur-Techniques Powell uses to encourage group debate-and consistently arrive at the best solution.

The Powell character-The Powell model for assuming the role of leader and setting a positive tone throughout any organization.

Powell principles-Concise yet powerful credos that have guided Powell through times of triumph and doubt.

Sparked with insights and observations that are refreshingly honest and realistic, The Leadership Secrets of Colin Powell is the most comprehensive exploration of Colin Powell's goal-driven approach to leadrship.

Contents

Acknowledgements
Prologue 1
Part I: Powell as provocateur
Chapter 1 Know when to piss people off
Chapter 2 Promote a clash of ideas
Chapter 3 The ego trap
Chapter 4 Don't go looking for 'no'
Chapter 5 The chief 'dis-organizer'
Chapter 6 When to challenge the pros
Part II: Powell on strategy and execution
Chapter 7 Close with the enemy
Chapter 8 People over plans
Chapter 9 Vigilance in detail
Chapter 10 Situation dictates strategy
Chapter 11 Powell's rules for picking people
Chapter 12 Trust those in the trenches
Part III: The Powell character
Chapter 13 The Powell way
Chapter 14 Optimism is a 'force multiplier'
Chapter 15 Take leave when you've earned it
Chapter 16 Prepare for loneliness
Appendix 'Quotations from Chairman Powell: A leadership primer'
Sources
Notes
Index

This is a relatively short book on the leadership skills of Colin Powell. The concepts discussed are logical and well explained. I will try to use the ideas in my management. The traits to be desired in new hires make sense but may be challenging to discover during the hiring process. Focus is certainly logical and flexibility makes sense. Humor and concern for employees are good to hear. I liked the book and hope to have learned something. ( )

A good book that gave some advice that to be honest I didn't found that profound or anything else that I didn't know already. So if I were to be asked if I had learned anything new from this book I would say that probably not, everything in the book is pretty simple and straight forward types of things. None-the-less it was a good book. I felt that many of the chapters within the book were somewhat redundant and could've been shortened down considerabley.
I like how the book was set up, it had each chapter that went into one specific iota of leadership qualities and so it would be a good reference book to have and look at later on when needing to be reminded about something. At the end of each chapter it summarized everything and then gave a few (5-ish) "Powell Principles" that also helped sum everything up. Something that after reading the book I could go back in and reread these items and still be reminded about what the book was about and what it's message was without rereading the entire book.
This was a good book that I may go out and buy, someone at work suggested this book to me and allowed me to read his, I might go buy a copy just for future reference, even though the message in it is simple it's always good to read and see in other great leader's lives too ( )

This book was recommended to my by a good friend. I really enjoyed it. It doesn't contain any secrets to make one a great leader, though. What it does contain is a lot of anecdotes about Secretary Powell and how he became a great leader and what he believes are important points to being a leader. The stories are very pointed and show exactly how the traits are lived by a great leader. While bringing home how difficult it is to be a great leader, it also offers hope that some of the rest of us can attain this status under the right conditions and work.

One of the important points that really stuck out to me is to have a clearly defined mission that is simple and understandable by everyone. It must be compelling and just. Another is to know when to "piss people off." Being a new manager myself, I have struggled learning this one. It is not possible to be liked all the time and you have to know when to push. One of the more revolutionary ideas that hit Washington under Powell is that the people in the field are smarter than those at headquarters - trust those in the trenches. I think many leaders need to learn this lesson.

Regardless of your role in life, I feel there is much to be learned from reading this book. Secretary Powell has some great lessons for all of us. Reading this book has made me want to strive for both being and following a great leader. This is one book I recommend buying and reviewing many times. ( )