Good Leaders Ask Great Questions

Your Foundation for Successful Leadership

By: John C. Maxwell

Narrated by: John C. Maxwell

Length: 8 hrs and 17 mins

Publisher's summary

In Good Leaders Ask Great Questions, John C. Maxwell delves into the process of becoming a successful leader by examining how questions can be used to advantage. What are the questions leaders should ask themselves? What questions should they ask members of their team? He then responds to the toughest problems leaders have presented to him. Using social media, Maxwell offered the floor to followers with unanswered questions about what it takes to achieve their professional best, and selected 70 questions on the most popular topics, including:

• How can I discover my unique purpose as a leader?
• What is the most effective daily habit that any leader should develop?
• How do you motivate an unmotivated person?
• How would you work with a difficult leader who has no vision?

This book is a thorough, insightful response to those readers and anyone who feels they have plateaued on their journey to develop their ultimate potential. Every leader has room to grow, and the advice in these pages will help listeners assess their current position, and structure an effective plan to achieve their goals.

©2014 John C. Maxwell (P)2014 Hachette Audio

Not what I expected

Maxwell of course fills the book with great wisdom, but I was expecting to learn HOW a smart person (a leader) thinks of and asks great questions. Instead he gives answers to many different questions that people may ask, specifically regarding leadership. So while I was hoping to learn the thought process that would lead me to continually ask great questions of others, instead I learned about some common leadership issues and concerns. Very different. It's still a great book, full of insight and leadership advice, but just be mindful of that so that your expectations aren't misconstrued like mine were.

My favorite leadership book, thus far.

I have read over a dozen books of John Maxwell in my 30s so it's been a while since I picked up a book that he's authored. I thoroughly enjoyed this book from start to finish. It never lost its momentum. And the bonus, because Maxwell is a fantastic narrator, the audio version is as if you are having a one on one mentoring session with him on a daily basis. This is invaluable.
If you are in a leader/manager role capacity, you need this book; If you are dealing with a difficult employee or boss, you need this book; etc. I emphasize NEED because not only does Maxwell walks you through the problem, he tells you how. His solutions are very much dialogue base driven. Thus far, this is my favorite book in leadership. It is exhaustive. It is concise. And it is very well written.

I couldn’t get past the author’s arrogance

I gave up and quit listening after Part 1. The author came off as very self-centered. The many examples he offered were all praises of himself from the people around him. I read another book by him prior to reading this one, so I was aware of a slight tendency towards arrogance (although it was a wonderful book). This book, however, was unbearable.

Good Leaders ask Great questions.

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

If you are interested in Leadership, This book is for you.

What was most disappointing about John C. Maxwell’s story?

If you are interested Great Questions and how they will inprove your business, this book is not for you.

What aspect of John C. Maxwell’s performance would you have changed?

After about one or two chapters, John goes totally of the subject of Questions and straight to his strength which is Leadership. There is not enough information on Question to improve your bottom line, getting prospects for business and improving relationships.

You didn’t love this book... but did it have any redeeming qualities?

As far as Leadership and Johns personal experience, the book has some valuable insight,

Only a leader gets to learn from this book!

I really enjoyed listening to this book because it is an aggregate of so many questions that many leaders would be asking in their lifetime - at one point or another. So Maxwell offers the answers based on his extensive experience in the various leadership positions he held in his life.

*My key take aways:
1- You won’t be able to carry people forward if they don’t want to go there themselves.
2- When working under bad leadership, DO NOT COMPLAIN, we need to CONFRONT and BEHIND CLOSED DOORS
3- FIND YOUR STRENGTHS and DON’T MAJOR IN YOUR WEAKNESSES.

*Quotes that resonated:
- I don’t Believe you can do today’s job with yesterday’s methods and be in business tomorrow.
- The book you don’t read can’t help you; the seminar you won’t attend can’t change your life. The business gets better when you get better. Never wish it were easier, wish you were better.

*
A short excerpt on Creating an Environment of Encourage & Support:
One of the ways Coach Wooden used to do that was to ask his players to acknowledge the skills and contributions of others. He told each player that if a teammate made a great pass or set a pick that allowed him to score, he should acknowledge the teammate on the way back down the court. One time a player asked, “Coach, if we do that, what if the teammate that made the assist isn’t looking?” Coach Wooden replied, “He will always be looking.” Coach knew that people look for and thrive on acknowledgment and appreciation.

Expected so much more...

I’ve heard amazing things about John Maxwell so I came to this book with great expectations. Unfortunately, this book is a waste of time. The questions and the advice could be gleaned watching an episode of Barney. Seriously, if you’re past kindergarten, don’t bother.

Christian sermon disguised as a leadership course

John Maxwell was a leader/minister of the Skyline Church in San Diego California. He discusses his church at length in the book. "Good Leaders ask Great Questions" is not what it purports to be. It is not a general course on leadership. Instead, it is a christian sermon that preaches that one should accept christianity along with many of the teachings of his fundamentalist church; that, he teaches is critical to be a great leader. One his list of top 10 questions,is a question directed toward his god. That declaration is followed by an explanation of how his giving his life to his god was the best decision of his life; a decision that regardless of your own faith you must accept if you want to be a great leader. Many many stories of skyline church follow. Maxwell preaches about humility, he preaches about the greatness of his church, and he preaches about the influence of his faith in his life and how his faith made him a great leader. Skyline is one of the most politically influential conservative churches in the nation. It is known for being homophobic, partisan, and misogynist. If you want a book about leadership that can/will apply to any situation and is free from proselytizing, this book is not it.

Awesome book

This is Asher reread. I love the way John Maxwell puts things were easy to understand and I'm really makes more sense than anything. Great book again

The Leadership Book

What made the experience of listening to Good Leaders Ask Great Questions the most enjoyable?

John Maxwell is just so easy to understand & is really on Topic

What other book might you compare Good Leaders Ask Great Questions to and why?

none yet have been this informative & useful

What about John C. Maxwell’s performance did you like?

His Soft Friendly voice ,and how he spent the Time to unpack step by step

What did you learn from Good Leaders Ask Great Questions that you would use in your daily life?

Hard to tell ,so well done ..my suggestion is to read it or Listen to it ,
Both were Great!

Any additional comments?

Any up and coming New Leaders ,Current Leaders ,and just plan someone that want to understand working with people better ,and do a Better Job at it.

Excellent book

Learning the ability to inspire people to think and give feedback. Developing leaders around you. Creating an inner circle that helps you grow. A great deal to practice and learn about yourself as a leader.

Very powerful concept

The book captures many aspects of leadership than the title suggests. The concept is simple and can be put to practice in daily life

Incredibly helpful

Incredibly helpful on many levels: self-leadership, team dynamics, working with poor leaders etc. About to listen again to a few chapters having just finished.

Me me me me and I

I’m a good couple of hours in to this book and I actually don’t think I can finish it. I’ve heard very little of use or substance but an awful lot of sanctimonious, self congratulatory fluff.

The inner circle - last chapter

Yet another good material from John Maxwell. Great practical leadership principles with personally cited tangible experiences.

Enriching and empowering

Thought provoking and insightful for every leader. This book allowed me to gain more understanding in the process of the leadership journey

A handbook for leadership

Great book on leaderships and it's challenges. suitable not only for those who want to lead but also for those who want to understand their leaders better.

A Must-Read for all aspiring leaders

A priceless and timeless book on leadership. Great content and excellent narration. Simply loved it!

Absolutely brilliant not to be missed

Best book by far on leadership I have read to date. Great tips and well formatted.

30min of egocentric rambling

For a book that costs £20+ it sure takes a long time to get to the point. I appreciate good storytelling, but I can't stand it when author's spend 30min blowing smoke up their own rear-end instead of focusing on the reader. After a 5km run I'm still listening to the author introducing the book instead of getting to the parts of the book I paid for. I'm sure there are valuable lessons. But I'm not waiting around for 3hrs to get to it.

Overall good book.

This book is a good resource to have and questions ask with the book will help shape the trajectory of your leadership.

A must listen.