How Successful Leaders Do Business with Their World

Book excerpt: In this rigorously researched book Stephen Barden presents compelling evidence that top leaders learn from a very early age to 'do business with the world' by using their power and authority to partner with it, rather than impose themselves on it. Based on interviews with military, corporate and educational leaders, How Successful Leaders Do Business with Their World offers powerful insight into how these findings can be applied in practice. The book illustrates how the assumptions leaders formed as children, and the way they learned to 'make space for themselves', directly links to the way they exercise their leadership as adults. Barden uses these findings and insights, as well as studies from his own corporate leadership career and coaching practice, to describe a set of common assumptions held by successful leaders. The book clearly outlines several key concepts - the Navigational Stance, the Partnering Stance, the Oppositional Stance and the Navigational Compass - illustrates each with relevant examples and makes recommendations for applying these insights in practice. How Successful Leaders Do Business with Their World will be a valuable asset for coaches, leaders, HR and L&D professionals, and all professionals working with leaders. To learn more about the author and his work, please visit stephenbarden.org.