Training - Leadership mastery : how to challenge yourself and others to greatness

Also available from Dale Carnegie Training

The 5 Essential People Skills

Fireside

A Division of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

1230 Avenue of the Americas

New York, NY 10020
www.SimonandSchuster.com

Copyright 2000, 2009 by Dale Carnegie & Associates, Inc.

All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book or portions thereof in any form whatsoever. For information address Fireside Subsidiary Rights Department, 1230 Avenue of the Americas, New York, NY 10020.

First Fireside trade paperback edition November 2009

FIRESIDE and colophon are registered trademarks of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Leadership mastery : how to challenge yourself and others to greatness / Dale Carnegie Training.

p. cm.

A Fireside book.

1. Leadership. 2. Executive ability. I. Dale Carnegie Training (Firm). II. Title.

HD57.7 .L43434 2009

658.4'092dc22

2009014059

ISBN 978-1-4165-9549-6

ISBN 978-1-4391-3477-1 (ebook)

Originally published as Dale Carnegie Leadership Mastery Course as an audio edition in 2000.

Where have all the leaders gone? There is a vacuum of leadership in the world, in all of our major institutions: government, education, business, religion, and the arts. The crisis has arisen in part because many of those institutions have been reinvented. Life is therefore much more uncertain and leadership is hence much more risky. However, most of the leadership crisis has crept up on us because of the incredible technological revolution were now experiencing. We are told that the scientific method can solve all our problems and that technology can distribute the answers to those problems far more quickly and efficiently than before. A global society connected by the Internet is emerging, yet never have so many people felt so isolated from one another. Individuals the world over find themselves disconnected from their roots and unsure of their future. This is because in a world quickly becoming more virtual, the skill of human relations is quickly being lost. Thus, never before has the skill of human relations been more valuable and sought after.

Just about everyone who is anyone has a Web site and an e-mail address. The only way to differentiate yourself and your business is to become exceptionally skilled at leading and persuading others. Think of it: In the previous era of hierarchical organizations, big government, and traditional families, the need for leadership was evident. We knew what the rules were. We needed the leaders to hold us to those rules. However, in an era of flattened organizations, the increasing irrelevance of government, and two-career families, we no longer have a clear set of rules to follow.

Whats more, the command-and-control leaders who try to hold us to seemingly irrelevant and arbitrary rules are no longer successful. Whats needed is a new type of leader, one who can inspire and motivate others within this virtual world while never losing sight of the leadership principles that never change. Therefore in this cutting-edge book, well introduce you to a new type of leader: a leader who is flexible and adaptable. Well introduce you to an individual who is a servant, not a slave, to his or her partners; a distributor of power, trustworthy, tough, and decisive.

The core philosophy of this book will be taken from the man whose name has become synonymous with influence and human relations, Dale Carnegie.

In the words of Dale Carnegie himself:

And now Ive just got time to tell you about a couple of simple tests that you can make to prove to yourself how easy it is to make people like you instantly; here they are. Test one, starting tomorrow morning, you smile at the first five people you see at work every day for a week. I mean a good, broad, genuine smile and a hearty good morning. Test two, pick out just one person every day for a week, one person who has never meant very much to you, and become genuinely interested in him and show that youre interested in him with a smile and some friendly comment. Now two words of warning; be sincere, utterly and eternally sincere. You will just be wasting your time if you pretend to be interested in other people in order to get something out of them. Thats foolish as well as wrong, because youll be found out sooner or later. Why not make those two simple tests yourself and keep a record of the results. Remember if you want to be liked instantly, do as the puppy does: Become genuinely interested in other people and show it.

These human relations principles have made Dale Carnegie a household name for more than fifty years. Throughout this book, youll read Dale Carnegies famous leadership principles exactly as he wrote about them in some of his classic works. Principles like these will never change. It is how they are applied that will change. In the past, an order from the boss may have given the employee enough want. Today leaders must create that want by engaging others in the mission with same the goals but by different processes.

Whats more, youll learn how the virtual world does not have to become more impersonal. You can use high-tech tools to stay in touch as a leader. Yes, leadership, like any other skill, is not something you are born with. It must be learned. When you have read this book and completed all of the action steps at the end of each chapter, you will possess the most vital skill for succeeding in the new economy: the skill of leadership. The need for this skill will only grow in value as our virtual world expands.

Finally, once you have completed this book youll no longer ask, Where have all the leaders gone? Youll realize that leadership is no longer for the chief executive officer, the president, the general, the boss, or the mom and dad. Leadership is available to each and every one of us at every level of organization, be that society, business, government, or family. Complete this book and discover your full potential. Become a leadership master.

Keep your mind open to change all the time. Welcome it. Court it.

Dale Carnegie

I n the chapters that follow well be engaged in a very ambitious and extremely important undertaking. It will be of great benefit to you, and also to everyone who comes into your life both personally and professionally.

Well be exploring a fundamental principle of human behavior. Its the basis of successful companies and even of whole nations and cultures. This is the concept of leadership . More specifically, well focus on the meaning of leadership in the context of business and entrepreneurial success. Well see how leaders made the most of prosperous times, and how they survived even severe downturns in the business cycle.

Who are the leaders? What are the leaders made of? Who are the men and women who made it happen for themselves and the people around them? How did they overcome obstacles? Where did they discover opportunities? This is critically important information for anyone who aspires to financial success, personal satisfaction, and the sense of accomplishment that comes when potential turns into actuality.

In todays world, the quality of leadership is both respected and revered, but its also subtly devalued. We celebrate the birthdays of Washington and Lincoln, great leaders of the past, yet we are deeply suspicious of those who occupy leadership positions in the present day. Perhaps its because we know too much about them in our present media-dominated environment. No one knew what Washington and Lincoln did every day, much less every minute of the day. Incredible as it now seems, Franklin Roosevelt served more than three terms as president without the majority of people even aware that he could not walk.