|
The Myths of Leadership
|
Jeff Miller
|
Jun 07, 2006 12:17 PDT
|
Greetings
I'm frequently amazed (and often amused) by the reverence we show "so
called leaders" because of the power we perceive them to have. Here's my
question.... what power does any CEO, school superintendent, university
president, or any elected official really have?
I once was the administrative head of a statewide youth program that
involved close to 50,000 young people and over 7,000 volunteers. Was I
really in charge? In my more humble moments I tended to think of myself
has "having the illusion of being in charge".
I say all this as a way to present to you this entry... a new book that
has been written by a couple of Stanford professors. "Hard Facts,
Dangerous Half-Truths, and Total Nonsense: Profiting from Evidence-Based
Management, by Jeffrey Pfeffer and Robert I. Sutton. Harvard Business
School Press.
Here's the lead paragraph in an article I just read about the book:
Leaders have far less control over organizations than people believe,
but they can be more effective if they understand leadership myths and
use them to their institutions’ advantage.
The full article can be found at:
http://www.gsb.stanford.edu/news/bmag/sbsm0605/feature_leadership.html
This might give you something new to think about when considering power
and how it's viewed. This book certainly will be added to my reading
list.
Be well.... /jeff
|
|
 |
|
