From the author: “Ten days before Abraham Lincoln took the oath of office in 1861, the Confederate States of America seceded from the Union, taking Federal agencies, forts, and arsenals within their territory. Lincoln … was viewed by his own advisers as nothing more than a gawky, second-rate country lawyer with no leadership experience.”
Yet history reveres Lincoln as one of our most successful and dynamic leaders. “Lincoln on Leadership” by Donald T. Phillips shows us why. This book is stuffed to the breaking point with engaging stories from the life and career of the most popular American President.
Below are some of my favorite quotes.
- The foundation of Abraham Lincoln’s leadership style was an unshakable commitment to the rights of the individual.
- Lincoln spent 75 percent of his time meeting with people.
- “No man is good enough to govern another man without the other’s consent.” – Lincoln
- Lincoln knew the value of making requests as opposed to issuing orders.
- The architecture of leadership, all the theories and guidelines, falls apart without honesty and integrity. It’s the keystone that holds an organization together.
- Lincoln also understood that if people were going to come to him with ideas, suggestions, and better ways of making things work, he had to provide the climate to allow it.
- [All leaders] likely will be subjected to severe criticism as well as personal attacks on their honor and character. Lincoln realized this fact of life and was prepared for it, as every leader should be.
- Too many of today’s leaders resign themselves to the limits imposed on them by flawed systems rather than rethinking those systems.
What are some of your favorite books on leadership?
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