Leading Leaders to Leadership: 21 Secrets for Leveraging Your Way to Greater Success

Leading Leaders to Leadership is a fine book written by consultant and author John Fuhrman. The core of his message is the essential importance of mentoring to develop leadership in others. The best mentors are those who lead by example and put others first without selfishly trying to be rewarded for their efforts. Fuhrman is a proponent of servant leadership, and throughout the book he weaves in these principles in his writings. The author correctly observes that most leadership development and training is thrust upon people after they find themselves in a leadership position. Being mentored in advance by a caring leader is the most successful way to be prepared for difficult leadership responsibilities. Composed of 21 brief chapters, Leading Leaders to Leadership offers 21 different lessons to become an effective mentor. These secrets are developed from the life experiences Fuhrman has observed. For example, the second chapter entitled A Mentor's "Famous" Rules, relates the author's rules of life taught to him as a child by his father. He then concludes the chapter by drawing a lesson from this experience to help the reader become a better mentor. Leading Leaders to Leadership is a short and casual book that can be read in just one or two sittings. The author does not provide any new or revolutionary concepts in this book, but the lessons are practical, and can help build a strong foundation for a new servant leader. It has been said that in our world today, common sense is no longer common practice. This book provides both a common sense approach to mentoring and the helpful lessons needed to translate knowledge into common practice.

Usually I don't take time to write reviews because I thought they never really said anything. However, after reading (and enjoying) Leading Leaders to Leadership, I had to comment. While everyone has different tastes, it's clear to me that some don't understand why an author would use him or herself as an example throughout a book. It could be to brag, but in this case it's to let us know that John Fuhrman is an example to follow and learn from. He not only speaks of things that worked but more importantly, he reveals many mistakes he made and overcame on his way to success. I have had the chance to read a few of his other books and his style is different in that he tells us what cna really happen rather than simply telling us what to do without any real experience. He has succeeded and he has failed. And he tells us both sides of the story to help us grow.