Great Leaders

In this stimulating and rewarding book, JOHN ADAIR poses the questions, who are the great leaders in history and what have they got to teach us today about the nature and practice of leadership? In asking to what degree true leadership can be identified and developed, he explores the make-up and achievements of leaders as diverse as Lao Tzu and Machiavelli, Margaret Thatcher and Mandela. Using a thematic structure, John Adair illustrates different facets of leadership, for example leadership through knowledge (Socrates), the servant-leader (Lao Tzu), the gentleman leader (Washington), charisma (Lawrence of Arabia) and women as leaders (Thatcher). He examines the very different styles of leadership of Lincoln, de Gaulle, Hitler and Gandhi; he exploresthe cardinal qualities of inspiring, communicating and decision making but he also touches on the value of humour, intuition and imagination. This is a thought-provoking book, rich in example and wide-ranging in scope: key qualities that so often appear abstract ideals - motivation, communication, decision-making, inspiration - here almost literally come to life.