Brief Overview of the Book and Thesis
The book was published in 1998 on the topic 21 laws of leadership. The author describes 21 rules that leaders should follow in order to have and maintain their followers. In the year 1999, the book was listed in the bestseller list by the New York Times. The book contains 21 chapters, with each forming a basis for the irrefutable leadership laws. John Faulkner, who is a Christian businessperson, denotes that reading the book led to a start his business magazine. The book provides insightful lessons for leaders and managers to help them keep control of their followers. The paper provides a discussion of the leadership concepts, lessons, and summary of the book. In addition, the paper focuses on discussing lessons learned from the book and how I might apply to my personal and business life.
Leadership Concepts and Summary of the Book
The book contains 21 laws of leadership which include:
Respect
The author notes that leaders must be respectful to their followers in order to be respected. In addition, employees follow and get inspired by leaders with respectable traits. Moreover, leaders should be stronger and better than those they lead in order to gain their respect and admiration.
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Influence
The law states that all leaders should have the ability to influence through charisma and appropriate decision-making. Effective leadership is measured by how well a leader can influence his followers ( Maxwell, 1998) . Influence enables leaders to rally individuals to a particular cause and mentor them to take a certain direction.
Empowerment
Effective leaders are able to empower their followers in many ways, such as by giving them valuable information and opportunities. In addition, individuals become effective leaders by believing in their followers and delegating some of the functions to them.
Connection
Leaders should have an emotional connection with people and employees in order to make them loyal. The connection is, therefore, essential for leaders since it enables them to communicate effectively with people and understand their needs. In addition, connecting with followers portray that a leader cares, which, as a result, makes employees be more loyal.
Sacrifice
Leaders should learn how to make sacrifices in order to achieve organizational objectives. In some instances, they are expected to sacrifice themselves in order to gain opportunities for their followers. The law, therefore, suggests that leaders should be selfless.
Timing
Good leaders are effective at timing and know when to take certain actions. For instance, a leader is able to tell when to make a decision or seize a moment. The law denotes that effective leaders always read situations and make decisions at the right time.
Priorities
The law suggests that many leaders have busy schedules with many activities. However, effective leaders are able to prioritize the most important, thereby enabling them to achieve success ( Maxwell, 1998) . In addition, doing more work and being busy does not equate to success. Leaders are, therefore, required to deal with issues according to priority.
Inner-circle
The law denotes that leaders should have close associates with the best interest at heart since they determine the potential and success of an individual. Leaders cannot achieve success in isolation and should, therefore, have a strong inner-circle that helps shape their lives.
Magnetism
The law describes leaders as magnets since they are able to attract followers towards their course. In addition, Individuals must be great people in order for them to attract many followers. The law of magnetism outline that leaders are able to attract followers with similar characteristics and traits as them.
Victory
Leaders should always be hopeful of winning. In addition, they should develop effective strategies to help them achieve victory for the organizations they lead. Moreover, Individuals who believe in the law of victory refuse defeat and always motivate their employees to achieve success.
Legacy
The law describes that effective leaders always look forward to achieving a great legacy. The author describes that leaders try to develop something unique that they will always be remembered for. Also, leaders believe in teamwork more than individual success and achievements.
Explosive Growth
The author outlines that leaders should have the will and capability to grow other people to become better. For instance, effective leaders mentor people and motivate them to become better at what they do and achieve success. Great leaders work closely with junior members in order to make them effective.
Process
The law denotes that leadership is a process and not an event. Effective leaders exhibit knowledge and skills that require continuous improvement ( Maxwell, 1998) . Therefore, leaders keep learning a new thing every day and are always willing to be taught. Moreover, leaders ought to have an open mind to continuous improvement.
Intuition
The law of intuition stipulates that a leader is able to lead followers through facts and instincts. Therefore, Individuals should use their instincts and intuitions to solve challenges.
Navigation
Effective leaders chart a course for their followers and are able to predict the future. Therefore, leaders should be realistic, listen to their team members, and stay in control of the dreams and aspirations of their followers.
Lid
The law of the lid suggests that effective leaders are able to increase their ability to lead, which determine success and influence. In addition, the law denotes that as leaders continue to grow their abilities, so do they have a bigger impact on the people.
Solid Ground
The law stipulates that all leaders should have the capability to make appropriate decisions and live by them. In addition, leaders are expected to communicate what they desire in order to maintain the trust of their followers. Moreover, great leaders should not be easily swayed and always stand on what they believe in.
Buy-In
The law of buy-in stipulates that leaders should be in a position to convince people to believe in their vision and ideas. Therefore, leaders should behave in a credible manner for their followers to believe and trust them.
Big Mo
The law of Big-Mo outline that leaders need to have momentum in order to change situations. In addition, they should have a passion for management so they can get admiration for the people they lead. Moreover, having momentum enable them to improve performance.
The Picture
The law stipulates that leaders should always lead by example, since people follow on the basis of what they see. Therefore, leaders should ensure their actions are honest and beyond reproach.
Addition
The law of addition indicates that leaders should engage in activities that build others and not themselves. Furthermore, they serve by adding value to their employees and followers ( Maxwell, 1998) . For instance, effective leaders should always engage their followers by asking them how best they would like to be served.
Application of the Leadership Concepts to my Personal and Business Life
The leadership concepts I read from the book are applicable to both my business and personal life in many ways, such as the importance of making appropriate decisions and leading by example. The 21 laws of leadership apply in my business life since I require the principles to achieve set targets. For instance, the law of respect applies to my business life since colleagues can only respect me if I behave in a respectable manner. In addition, the law of influence has impacted my life since I have learned that I ought to have charisma and great skills in order to convince colleagues to believe in me. Moreover, the law of addition applies to my personal life and acts as a lesson that I should focus on adding value to people around me, for instance, by equipping them with meaningful skills. Furthermore, the law of solid ground enables me to always believe in my dreams and should not allow to be negatively influenced. For instance, the law will help me to always shun from peer pressure and stand on the principles I advocate and believe in.
I will apply the leadership law of magnetism in my personal life by having values such as honesty and integrity in order to attract many followers. Besides, the law of inner circle has taught me that I ought to have close friends and colleagues who will always correct me when I am wrong and give a sense of direction. Therefore, the leadership concepts and laws in the book are applicable to my life and will help me to become an effective leader. For instance, I will always reflect on the law of priority to help make appropriate decisions based on the essence and urgency of a particular issue. Furthermore, the law of timing will enable me to always focus on the most important activities and issues at the right time in order to achieve organizational success. Also, I will seek to empower other people to become better and eventually make great leaders. Some of the ways I would use to empower my followers include giving them the correct information, correcting their mistakes, as well as offering mentorship programs for them to become great leaders and effective at their actions.
Recommendation and Conclusion
The book contains 21 laws and concepts of leadership that all leaders should adopt to achieve organizational success. The author denotes that the law of influence is the greatest of all. Therefore, leaders should always behave in a responsible manner in order to influence their behavior, aspirations, and goals on their followers. Leaders should behave in a respectable manner since it enables their followers to trust and remain loyal to them. After reading the contents of the book and understanding the 21 laws of leadership, I would recommend the book to other people. The author captures almost all concepts of leadership, and therefore it would be a great book to help individuals improve on their skills. In addition, I would recommend the book to all types of leaders since it would help them to improve their efficiency and ability to make effective decisions.
Reference
Maxwell, J. C. (1998). 21 Irrefutable laws of leadership. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson .
