Best Leadership Books of All Time

The famous military treatise, "The Art of War" written by Sun Tzu depicts a philosophy of war for managing conflicts and winning battles. Some modern philosophers believe that apart from the writings of the author, it also contains commentary and clarifications from later military philosophers, such as Li Quan and Du Mu. This masterpiece, since its first publication, has been translated and distributed internationally, and was frequently referred and used by generals and theorists. There are numerous theories concerned with the completion of the text but it has been archeological proved that the Art of War was composed by at least the early Han dynasty. Since it is nearly impossible to predict the correct date of its completion, the differing theories regarding the work's author(s) and date of completion will never resolve. It was one of the six survived major works written before the unification of China in the 2nd century BC. In the late 1st millennium AD, during the Song Dynasty, these six major works were combined with a Tang Dynasty text into a collection also known as the Seven Military Classics. Being the central part of the collection, "The Art of War" formed the bases of orthodox military theory in China. The language used in the book can be distinguishable from a Western text on warfare and strategy. It was said that the text had recurrent mentions such as a leader must be "serene and inscrutable" and capable of comprehending "unfathomable plans", which was confusing for Western readers who lack the awareness of the East Asian context. These statements will make clear sense if studied with Taoist thought and practice. According to Sun Tzu, an ideal general was an enlightened Taoist master which led to "The Art of War" to become a prime example of Taoist strategy. It is different from the other Western works, such as Prussian general Carl von Clausewitz's On War on its spiritual dimension. To have well understanding of this text, it is essential to have awareness on Taoism. This book also gained popularity among the political leaders and those in business management. Today, it is also used in public administration and planning. Apart from describing the theories of battles, this text also discusses the diplomacy and developing relationships with other nation's importance for the sovereignty of a state. It is now listed on the Marine Corps Professional Reading Program and is recommended to be read by all United States Military Intelligence personnel. CIA officers are also required to read this book. Scholars discovered a collection of ancient texts written on unusually well-preserved bamboo slips in early 1970s. These texts included "The Art of War" and Sun Bin's "Military Methods". Sun Bin's "Military Methods" was written by a descendant of Sun and was lost since then. It is considered very important because of Sun Bin's relationship to Sun Tzu and also due to its addition to the body of military thought in late Chinese antiquity. This discovery led to the significant expansion of the body of surviving Warring States military theory. Sun Bin's text, apart from being the only surviving military text from the Warring States period discovered in the twentieth century, also contains the closest similarity to "The Art of War" among all surviving texts.

The Prince (Italian: Il Principe [il ˈprintʃipe]; Latin: De Principatibus) is a 16th-century political treatise written by Italian diplomat and political theorist Niccolò Machiavelli as an instruction guide for new princes and royals. The general theme of The Prince is of accepting that the aims of princes – such as glory and survival – can justify the use of immoral means to achieve those ends. From Machiavelli's correspondence, a version appears to have been distributed in 1513, using a Latin title, De Principatibus (Of Principalities). However, the printed version was not published until 1532, five years after Machiavelli's death. This was carried out with the permission of the Medici pope Clement VII, but "long before then, in fact since the first appearance of The Prince in manuscript, controversy had swirled about his writings". Although The Prince was written as if it were a traditional work in the mirrors for princes style, it was generally agreed as being especially innovative. This is partly because it was written in the vernacular Italian rather than Latin, a practice that had become increasingly popular since the publication of Dante's Divine Comedy and other works of Renaissance literature.

Examines the role of emotional intelligence in leadership, presenting actual CEOs and managers as examples and describing a process that helps leaders inspire and motivate, increase performance, and lead resonantly.

True story of a plane that crashed in the middle of the Andes mountains with 45 persons on board, only 16 survived!! The few who survived for 70 days did so by means of cannibalism !!! Very graphic, but an extremely good read to find out what us humans will do to survive !! God puts these young people to the extreme test!!

My first report on the subject was published as Leaders (Harper and Row, 1985, co-authored with Bert Nanus). Leaders covered the whats. On Becoming a Leader is the hows: how people become leaders, how they lead, and how organizations encourage or stifle potential leaders. - Introduction. Deemed “the dean of leadership gurus” by Forbes magazine, Warren Bennis has for years persuasively argued that leaders are not born—they are made. Delving into the qualities that define leadership, the people who exemplify it, and the strategies that anyone can apply to achieve it, his classic work On Becoming a Leader has served as a source of essential insight for countless readers. In a world increasingly defined by turbulence and uncertainty, the call to leadership is more urgent than ever. Featuring a provocative new introduction, this new edition will inspire a fresh generation of potential leaders to excellence.

In 2008, Howard Schultz, the president and chairman of Starbucks, made the unprecedented decision to return as the CEO eight years after he stepped down from daily oversight of the company and became chairman. Concerned that Starbucks had lost its way, Schultz was determined to help it return to its core values and restore not only its financial health, but also its soul. In Onward, he shares the remarkable story of his return and the company's ongoing transformation under his leadership, revealing how, during one of the most tumultuous economic times in history, Starbucks again achieved profitability and sustainability without sacrificing humanity. - Publisher.

Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln is a 2005 book by Pulitzer Prize-winning American historian Doris Kearns Goodwin, published by Simon & Schuster. The book is a biographical portrait of U.S. President Abraham Lincoln and some of the men who served with him in his cabinet from 1861 to 1865. Three of his Cabinet members had previously run against Lincoln in the 1860 election: Attorney General Edward Bates, Secretary of the Treasury Salmon P. Chase and Secretary of State William H. Seward. The book focuses on Lincoln's mostly successful attempts to reconcile conflicting personalities and political factions on the path to abolition and victory in the American Civil War. Goodwin's sixth book, Team of Rivals was well received by critics and won the 2006 Lincoln Prize and the inaugural Book Prize for American History of the New-York Historical Society. US President Barack Obama cited it as one of his favorite books and was said to have used it as a model for constructing his own cabinet, although he later wrote this was not the reason he chose Hillary Clinton as his Secretary of State. In 2012, a Steven Spielberg film based on the book was released to critical acclaim.

"Team spirit, loyalty, enthusiasm, determination...Acquire and keep these traits and success should follow." --Coach John WoodenJohn Wooden is without question one of the most respected and honored sports coaches in our nations history. But it wasn't winning games that drove him; it was ensuring that, regardless of the final score, his players always put forth their utmost effort and performed to the best of their abilities.One of the lesser-known aspects of Wooden is the notebooks in which, beginning in 1948, he regularly recorded his thoughts, inspirations, and life lessons. In Wooden on Leadership, the legendary coach and his longtime collaborator Steve Jamison combine the best of those notebooks with Wooden's far-more-celebrated Pyramid of Success to create a leadership skills guide designed to help anyone develop character, conviction, and remarkable achievement.Whether discussing teamwork ("It takes 10 hands to score a basket") and self-control ("Emotion is the enemy") to concentration ("Don't look at the scoreboard") and dealing with defeat ("Things turn out best for those who make the best of the way things turn out").

Selected by his grandson, a compilation of some of the finest speeches by the indomitable former British Prime Minister encompasses his entire career and includes both well-known speeches as well as those never before published in popular form.

Tony Hsieh--the widely-admired CEO of on-line shoe retailer, Zappos--explains how he created a unique culture and commitment to service that aims to improve the lives of its employees, customers, vendors and backers. Even better, he shows how creating happiness and record results go hand-in-hand.

Bound for Antarctica, where polar explorer Ernest Shackleton planned to cross on foot the last uncharted continent, the Endurance set sail from England, in August 1914. The ship became locked inside an island of ice, and was later crushed. This tale of survival by Shackleton and all 27 of his men for over a year on the ice-bound Antarctice seas defined heroism.