What’s a good book on leadership?

“𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁’𝘀 𝗮 𝗴𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗼𝗻 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝘆𝗼𝘂’𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝗱?”

That’s a common question I can get when delivering training to managers. There are many excellent titles out there, but one I often mention is 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘓𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳’𝘴 𝘊𝘰𝘥𝘦 by Donovan Campbell.

If his name sounds familiar, it’s because he also authored 𝘑𝘰𝘬𝘦𝘳 𝘖𝘯𝘦, a compelling account of his Marine platoon’s experiences in Iraq.

While Joker One is a gripping war memoir, 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘓𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳’𝘴 𝘊𝘰𝘥𝘦 takes a broader look at leadership, exploring the traits Campbell believes are essential for leading well: Mission (knowing your purpose), Excellence, Kindness, Discipline, Courage, Wisdom, Virtue, and Servant Leadership. Each is unpacked with clarity and backed by a number of practical principles.

But it’s his chapter on 𝗵𝘂𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 that truly stands out. Campbell defines humility as a realistic and unflinching view of yourself, together with the ability to recognise your strengths and weaknesses, as well as to be able to self-reflect and accept praise and constructive feedback (that may include criticism) from others.

As Jack Welch, former CEO of General Electric, once put it: “𝘍𝘢𝘤e 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘵 𝘪𝘴 – 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘢𝘴 𝘪𝘵 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘰𝘳 𝘢𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘩 𝘪𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦.”

Humility matters in leadership because only when we see ourselves or what we do clearly, can we then grow effectively. In fact, Campbell notes that, “Of all the studies the leadership department at Harvard Business School has done on various types of leaders, the one quality many successful leaders share is humility.”

That’s food for thought. And 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘓𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳’𝘴 𝘊𝘰𝘥𝘦 is well worth a read.