Reflections on "21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership"

This past weekend, I visited a friend's apartment for the first time.One of the first things I noticed when I walked in was a fairly impressive amount of books in a bookcase. (I wasn't on the hunt for books, but the bookcase was next to the entrance, so it was hard to miss). I took a quick glance to see what kind of books she had in her bookcase. I've said this before, but I think that it is interesting to see what kind of books, CD's, movies, etc. a person has for display. You can tell a lot about a person's interests by the kind of media they consume. I stopped when I cam across The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, by John Maxwell. Now, like I said, I wasn't on the lookout for books to read. However, since I am interested in leadership, and have written several papers on both leadership and followership though the years, I thought it would be an interesting read. I asked my friend if I could borrow it, and after laughably calling me a nerd, she abided.

I will start by saying, this is not an end-all-be-all guide to leadership. With that being said, Maxwell does concisely defines leadership and introduces several points which, if put into practice, can greatly increase a person's effectiveness as a leader. Unlike many other authors who write about the topic of leadership, or any other topics of self-development for that matter, Maxwell actually makes his points actionable. Whereas many people write about what traits or characteristics are "good," Maxwell goes a step further and specifically describes how to put these traits into practice. This is not intended to be critique, nor a synopsis of the book, so I will not take this time to go into great detail about what is said exactly. I feel like this book is worth a look, especially since it is an easy read that can be completed in a weekend (yes, even if you're the busy type). I'll leave you with this: some of the steps that are outlined in the text I have actually implemented myself in order to grow as a person and leader.

When it really comes down to it, enhancing one's communication skill is very necessary and no changes worth having occur overnight. If you make a regimen to constantly work towards a goal, whatever that goal may be, you'll eventually get there. I know that this has been a relatively short post, but I find it difficult to dive too much into the text without giving everything away. If you have read this book, or plan to pick up picking it up, let me know what you think. Like always, all feedback is welcome. Until next time...peace.

Bibliographic Information:

Maxwell, C. J. (1998). The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership. Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America: Thomas Nelson, Inc.