Building a Leader's Brain: The Underdog Plan

Leadership is fascinating because it's rooted in mystery. What makes certain leaders great? What makes them tick? How do they know the right thing to do?

One way to approach the mystery it through the window of a small question: why did so many mailroom workers rise to become CEOs?

Here's a partial list:

Dick Grasso (NYSE)Barry Diller, Michael Ovitz, and David Geffen (William Morris)Mike Medavoy (Universal)J. Lawrence Hughes (William Morrow)Ned Tanen (MCA)Jeffrey Katzenberg (Paramount)George...