Leaders

Myth and Reality

By: Stanley McChrystal, Jeff Eggers, Jay Mangone

Narrated by: Paul Michael, Stanley McChrystal

AN INSTANT NATIONAL BESTSELLER!

Stanley McChrystal, the retired US Army general and bestselling author of Team of Teams, profiles thirteen of history’s great leaders, including Walt Disney, Coco Chanel, and Robert E. Lee, to show that leadership is not what you think it is—and never was.

Stan McChrystal served for thirty-four years in the US Army, rising from a second lieutenant in the 82nd Airborne Division to a four-star general, in command of all American and coalition forces in Afghanistan. During those years he worked with countless leaders and pondered an ancient question: “What makes a leader great?” He came to realize that there is no simple answer.

With Plutarch’s Lives as his model, McChrystal looks at paired sets of leaders who followed unconventional paths to success. For instance . . . Walt Disney and Coco Chanel, Maximilien Robespierre and Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, Boss Tweed and Margaret Thatcher, Martin Luther and Martin Luther King Jr., and finally explores his former hero, Robert E. Lee, from his exceptional military career to leading an army to defeat in service of an immoral cause. He uses their stories to explore how leadership works in practice and to challenge the myths that complicate our thinking about this critical topic.

Leaders will help you take stock of your own leadership, whether you’re part of a small team or responsible for an entire nation.

Critic reviews

“Whenever Stanley McChrystal talks, I take notes. I am so drawn to his ability to cut through pop culture theories about leadership to get to the core of what actually makes a leader. Leaders takes us deeper than most other leadership books into the true and often messy mechanics of leadership. Anyone who considers themselves a student of leadership must read this book." —Simon Sinek, Optimist and author of Start With Why and Leaders Eat Last

"Leaders reexamines old notions of leadership--especially the outdated view that history is shaped by great men going it alone. General McChrystal shows us that leadership can take many forms, leaders often have different strengths, and great leaders can come from anywhere. —Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook and founder of LeanIn.Org and OptionB.Org

"Leaders is a superb, thought-provoking challenge to conventional understanding of the nature of leadership. An enlightening, entertaining must-read about why we revere so many leaders who are often deeply flawed and even unsuccessful, and the lessons for thinking about and teaching leadership in the future.” —Robert M. Gates, former U.S. Secretary of Defense

“At a time when Americans yearn for leaders we can admire and respect, this book shows what qualities are truly important. It will help you think differently about both leadership and our history.” —Walter Isaacson, professor of history at Tulane, author of Steve Jobs

“Leaders is a must-read for all leaders—whether they’re just beginning their careers, or whether they’re already leading an entire organization.” —Ken Langone, author of I Love Capitalism

Leadership is a Journey

I loved it. The book provided great examples of Leadership... Highly Recommend reading for Growth...

Great book!

This book is worth the read and a valuable take on leadership. Some parts can get a little dry but overall - this book is a great read that helps you really understand leadership styles that worked (and didn’t work) throughout history.

An Outstanding Book On Leadership!

I’ve read over 20 books on leadership in the last 10 months - and this is by far the best of the bunch! I’ve learned so much about these great leaders and how they weren’t perfect-beings — but human beings!
One could easily use this book by itself to build a university level course on leadership.
I highly recommend this book to anyone starting their journey of understanding leadership!

Insightful and informative

Excellent book. I certainly learned a lot I didn't know about these lives, and the considerations from the authors about leadership theory are extremely insightful. A must read if you are interested in a refreshing and intelligent perspective on how people work.

Great content and very well written

I enjoyed the content about leadership, but it’s one of the best written books I’ve read in some time.