2018: Book #27
If I had the funds and the ability, I’d buy every American a copy of Jon Meacham’s book, “The Soul of America: The Battle for Our Better Angels.”
The book is important, significant, and enlightening.
Friends, our goal is to be a more perfect union. We must remember that perfection is not possible so we must keep striving and never give up.
Whether you’re a Trump fan or not, He makes a grand point: Dear America, we’ve been here before.
This book has so many leadership lessons…
- Leaders don’t quit.
- Leaders offer hope, not fear.
- We rally our people to a greater cause.
- We remind our teams and constituents of our grand vision repeatedly.
- Leaders must ignore the critics and soldier on.
Leaders must not be afraid to take a stand—even if it makes them unpopular.
Here are some quotes from this AMAZING book:
“History, however, shows us that we are frequently vulnerable to fear, bitterness and strife. The good news is that we have come through such darkness before.”
“FDR’s wife, Eleanor said, “It is essential that we remind ourselves of our past history, that we recall the shining promise that it offered to all men everywhere who would be free, the promise that it is still our destiny to fulfill.”
“One point of this book is to remind us that imperfection is the rule, not the exception.”
“We try; we fail; but we must try again, and again and again, for only in trial is progress possible.” – Reinhold Niebuhr
“The opposite of fear is hope, defined as the expectation of good fortune not only for ourselves but for the group to which we belong. Fear feeds anxiety and produces anger; hope…breeds optimism and feelings of well-being. Fear is about limits; hope is about growth. Fear casts its eyes warily, even shiftily across the landscape; hope looks forward, toward the horizon. Fear points at others, assigning blame; hope points ahead, working for a common good. Fear pushes away; hope pulls others closer. Fear divides; hope unifies.”
Read this book. Read it twice! This should be mandatory reading for any leader.
I have 25 more books to read to hit 52.
As of now, this would be my book of the year choice.
That’s book #27 for 2018…I finished it on a cruise ship at the port of Grand Turk.
25 more to go to reach 52 by the end of the year.
Remember, all leaders are readers.
If you want to be a better leader…be a reader.
#52in2018
