Leadership Axioms: Powerful Leadership Proverbs

Don't like reading long chapters? Then this book is perfect for you. Hybels divides up this book into 1-3 page chunks of wisdom on different leadership skills. Then these skills are corralled into larger categories (Vision and Strategy, Teamwork and Communication, Activity and Assessment, and Personal Integrity). Interestingly enough the foreword is written by Dr. Henry Cloud. This book has great nuggets of wisdom and is very easy to apply due to the style that it is written in. This is a Christian centered leadership book. One of the things that I learned here is the general importance of communication while being a leader. In every area it is important that the leader communicate well with other leaders and those that they are leading. Without good communication everything else will suffer, vision, excitement, teamwork, and building followers into leaders. Leaders must be a well rounded communicator to be be most influential and help those they lead to achieve their highest potential. Some of my favorite quotes from the book: (there were so many it was really hard not to have a really long list) ".. you will never take big hills without making bold moves." - A leader must first believe in themselves and the vision that they have cast. If they don't how can those they lead believe? Thus they will eventually be forced with big decisions, and when those come they need to be willing to take risks and do big things because they genuinely believe in what they are doing. Those that are following will see this and realize the realness of the leader. Followers can only meet the leader in whatever they do. Whatever the leader puts in (excitement, hard-work, or time) followers will only match and will never go beyond. Thus a leader must be totally sold out on their vision, it will then catch fire. "They (those you lead) have to know that while you prioritize progress, you prioritize people even higher." - When those that are following truly believe that their leader is fighting for them and cares for them they can relax and focus on the vision/goal that the leader has cast. When they are worried about their own necks every day, it takes away from their motivation to work for the leader and allow that leader to shift their vision to that of the leader's. "... never once have I regretted taking the high road." - When it comes down to it, take the high road, even if it hurts, costs money, or ruins relationships. In the end it is always the right thing to do and if nothing else shows the leaders ethics. This is something that others will see.

Bill Hybels revs up in chapter one--and the good stuff is still kicking in chapter 68, "Read All You Can." He writes, "I have little patience with leaders who get themselves into leadership binds and then confess that they haven't read a leadership book in years. If you're a serious-minded leader, you will read." In the book's foreword, Henry Cloud writes, "Great leaders do their homework so that weariness and unsteadiness are kept at bay." Amen to that vote for lifelong learning, also affirmed in the "Book Bucket" one of 20 buckets in my book, Mastering The Management Buckets: 20 Critical Competencies for Leading Your Business or Non-profit . Consequently, I was eager to read the latest book from Bill Hybels, one of the most gifted leaders I've ever met. Axiom, with 76 pithy leadership proverbs, doesn't disappoint. "Speed of the leader, speed of the team," was and is one of Bill's oft-mentioned axioms. Few leaders make this pronouncement because the camera immediately focuses in on them. As the first president of Willow Creek Association, I watched Hybels up close and he always shared that core value confidently, yet humbly. His walk and his talk backed it up. He writes, "If you cannot say, `Follow me,' to your followers--and mean it--then you've got a problem, a big one." He elaborates. "Follow my values. Follow my integrity. Follow my work ethic, my commitment, and my communication patterns. Fight as I fight. Focus as I focus. Sacrifice as I sacrifice. Love as I love. Repent as I repent. Admit wrong as I admit wrong. Endure hardship as I endure hardship." Then he concludes this one-page proverb with the whole point of it. "When requisite actions back them up, these are the words that set followers' hearts soaring." Scan the 76 mini-chapter titles and you'll be pulled into the street-smart, God-smart wisdom. They include: Language Matters, Make the Big Ask, Hire Tens, The Dangers of Incrementalism, Never Say Someone's No for Them, The Tunnel of Chaos (a key idea in my Culture Bucket), Disagree Without Drawing Blood, Admit Mistakes and Your Stock Goes Up, and Arrive Early or Not at All. Warning! Don't carelessly toss these axioms into your repertoire without understanding the biblical and leadership context. In my days at Willow, "Don't Screw Up" was a common benediction at meetings--but it created anxiety, not blessing. The leader knew how to communicate it, but the lieutenants didn't.

Hybels himself claims to have been mentored by many great leaders, most of whom he has never met. He was mentored by them through studying their books. Likewise, we can all now be mentored by Hybels, and learn his leadership skills through studying this book. Axiom is divided into 76 short chapters, between 1-5 pages each. Given that many different topics, some are sure to be more useful than others. For me there were 3 or 4 chapters that are life changing, and many others that contain useful advice that I will comeback to time and again as I move into new leadership challenges. I appreciate that the bite size chapters are easy to browse through, making it easy to read what is useful at the time, and skip what doesn't apply. As my situation changes, I'm sure different chapters will apply in different ways. As a pastor I appreciate reading a leadership book by another pastor. Although John Maxwell has been a pastor, he writes leadership books applicable to any organization. Same with Andy Stanley. And Jim Collins writes specifically for business leaders. But Hybels writes from one pastor to another. In my mind this point alone made this book especially useful. I highly recommend this book for pastors looking to improve their leadership skills (and isn't that all of us?).

This is an easy to read, down to earth book of wisdom. Bill Hybels' experience comes through the pages and helps church leaders get a balanced view of their own situation. The short chapters make a joy to read and easy to digest.

Seems great read so far. Easy small but powerful sections.

This book is packed with great, and yet practical, ideas. I recommend it whole-heartedly. I even bought a copy for my manager to help him develop in his leadership skills!

Excellent. Bill lives his leadership style hence why the words literally come alive on the page. Well rounded, well thought-out lifestyle principles that any Christ follower should live by. If only every leader, Christ follower or not, read this book; they would then understand, at least in some part, the principles that Harvard and the best leadership schools try to teach.

chapters are short and to the point. some chapters must be understood from Hybels' perspective as a leader of a super-church. his personality comes into play often, too. there are still some gems in here and it's an easy read.