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How to Grow Leaders: The Seven Key Principles of Effective Leadership Development
""Authoritative & wise"" -- Warren Bennis ""John Adair is without doubt one of the foremost thinkers on leadership in the world"" -- Sir John Harvey-Jones There is a revolution underway. We are moving -- rapidly in some areas, slower in others -- from management to business leadership. As the market for good leaders who can achieve results increases, so-called leadership development programs have proliferated. Many of these are old management development programs renamed, and others are full of confusing theories and unproductive approaches. This ground-breaking new book aims to set the record straight. It looks at the body of knowledge on leadership, identifies the seven key principles of leadership development, and answers key questions on how to select, train and educate leaders. In ""How to Grow Leaders,"" John Adair continues to inspire new audiences with his timeless vision. A vital addition to the debate on leadership from a true expert, this book also considers the global challenge and long term issues involved.
208 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2005
25 people are currently reading
145 people want to read
About the author
John Adair
174 books84 followersJohn Eric Adair is a British academic who is a leadership theorist and author of more than forty books (translated into eighteen languages) on business, military and other leadership.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
August 28, 2013
Excellent work by a true veteran genius who is a throw back to England's Churchill days in his assertiveness. Adair is often self-congratulatory, but his wit and wisdom, coupled with deep knowledge of the Greek and Roman world make his work refreshingly accessible, historically connected, and truly possible. The principles are simple and Adair speaks concisely and directly. If anything, the book could have been pared down even further. After reading him, I am compelled to read Xenophon, Montgomery, and Lawrence.
October 25, 2021
Author John Adair makes a strong case for dismissing the notion of "born leaders" while showing how capable people may be cultivated and developed to become effective leaders.
December 17, 2024
Excellent starting point. Highly recommended.
June 21, 2014
This is a pompous, self-serving waste of time. But there are quotes in it, you know. Quotes give books gravitas. Gravitas is good.
There's that line in Gone With the Wind that comes to my mind, where Scarlett says something like, "I will tear Tara down brick by brick, I will sow every acre with salt before you live here!"
Other than expressing my displeasure, that has little to do with this book--but don't despair! You'll have lots of little quotes and factoids by the end, and that's pretty important when looking, uhm, important.
As Shakespeare, who lived in the same country where I went to college, once said, "Though she is but little, she is fierce." That pertains to me, you see, and is therefore good.
That the 7 Principles don't really, when scrutinized, represent 7 distinct ideas should not bother you, because, you know, 7 is the number list makers like to use. I, myself, employ lists of 7 when appropriate.
Dorothy Parker once said, "You can lead a horticulture, but you can't make her think." How true. Thinking is very important in leadership, but not too MUCH thinking. You'll realize, if you think, that the one best way to train a leader to think like a leader is to use John Adair's ideas. He is very famous, you know. So was Lawrence of Arabia, who is featured in this book, a LOT. And did you KNOW, he was British, too, just like Shakespeare and John Adair??? Wow.
Every page was a torture of self-aggrandizing, over-used and misunderstood quotes, and horrible disorganization.
Concepts and almost word-for-word quotes from one principle are repeated in the next. Lazy factual errors such as Leonardo da Vinci never taking apprentices (he didn't have a formal school, but yes, he did have apprentices) are used to illustrate ideas that are nothing new, anyway. The book I have in my hands is the fifth printing and no one has yet thought to correct the spelling of "principals" in the header.
If you must use this book, as I had to for a class, get it from a library. Don't give one more penny to the publisher or to Adair.
So is Adair the world's expert on leadership? If I had only this book to go on, I'd never believe it to be true. I'd think the __illusion__ of leadership is maintained because the man is English, well-educated, sufficiently articulate and cocky enough that people want to follow him.
There's that line in Gone With the Wind that comes to my mind, where Scarlett says something like, "I will tear Tara down brick by brick, I will sow every acre with salt before you live here!"
Other than expressing my displeasure, that has little to do with this book--but don't despair! You'll have lots of little quotes and factoids by the end, and that's pretty important when looking, uhm, important.
As Shakespeare, who lived in the same country where I went to college, once said, "Though she is but little, she is fierce." That pertains to me, you see, and is therefore good.
That the 7 Principles don't really, when scrutinized, represent 7 distinct ideas should not bother you, because, you know, 7 is the number list makers like to use. I, myself, employ lists of 7 when appropriate.
Dorothy Parker once said, "You can lead a horticulture, but you can't make her think." How true. Thinking is very important in leadership, but not too MUCH thinking. You'll realize, if you think, that the one best way to train a leader to think like a leader is to use John Adair's ideas. He is very famous, you know. So was Lawrence of Arabia, who is featured in this book, a LOT. And did you KNOW, he was British, too, just like Shakespeare and John Adair??? Wow.
Every page was a torture of self-aggrandizing, over-used and misunderstood quotes, and horrible disorganization.
Concepts and almost word-for-word quotes from one principle are repeated in the next. Lazy factual errors such as Leonardo da Vinci never taking apprentices (he didn't have a formal school, but yes, he did have apprentices) are used to illustrate ideas that are nothing new, anyway. The book I have in my hands is the fifth printing and no one has yet thought to correct the spelling of "principals" in the header.
If you must use this book, as I had to for a class, get it from a library. Don't give one more penny to the publisher or to Adair.
So is Adair the world's expert on leadership? If I had only this book to go on, I'd never believe it to be true. I'd think the __illusion__ of leadership is maintained because the man is English, well-educated, sufficiently articulate and cocky enough that people want to follow him.
August 4, 2014
Desde Leader Summaries recomendamos la lectura del libro Cómo desarrollar líderes, de John Adair.
Las personas interesadas en las siguientes temáticas lo encontrarán práctico y útil: liderazgo, características de un buen líder.
En el siguiente enlace tienes el resumen del libro Cómo desarrollar líderes, Una guía para seleccionar, capacitar y desarrollar líderes dentro de una organización: Cómo desarrollar líderes
Las personas interesadas en las siguientes temáticas lo encontrarán práctico y útil: liderazgo, características de un buen líder.
En el siguiente enlace tienes el resumen del libro Cómo desarrollar líderes, Una guía para seleccionar, capacitar y desarrollar líderes dentro de una organización: Cómo desarrollar líderes
July 5, 2013
The book is partly interesting. Author who have spent his life and career on the leadership topic. I have impression that he wrote too many books and he treats them as something continuous. On one hand author has described how leadership should be developed but on the other hand there is too much about his personal achievements. Lectures and courses he gave etc. He could be less self centric more informative. And better focus on subject. I like refers to history in book.
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February 11, 2013What a great book. I love it when John Adair talks of practical wisdom(phronesis) as one of the greatest thing a leader should have. You cannot lead without practical wisdom because the same practical knowledge is the one we use even on times when we apply leadership to situational issues.
It is a very geat book.
It is a very geat book.
April 22, 2021
I was so disappointed. I’ve studied Adair’s model of leadership and read others critiques/studies of his models and teaching which I think are excellent. However this book is 95% “look how brilliant I am” and only 5% teaching. All of the case studies relate to either Sandhurst or public schools which are totally unrelatable and a lot of the historical background is totally irrelevant.
February 1, 2007
execellent book about getting the best of your team and business with ideas and tips for leading and coaching people.
May 15, 2015
I am very grateful to have this book. although I can not master the whole book, but I had to practice what I understand. and the results are very intriguing. all praise be to Allah
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July 7, 2011I like with Jangan ajari jalan-jalan dihutan pada Gorilla
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews