By Rolf Crocker

I had the opportunity to bring our Department Heads to see John Maxwell in person at a ‘Teamwork Makes The Dream Work’ conference.  All I can say is, ‘WOW!’  John is one of the foremost experts on leadership in the world.  To be there with staff, to all hear the same thing and to be able to discuss it with different perspectives is thought provoking and invigorating.  Here are a couple of books from John:

Developing The Leader Within You (©1993 Thomas Nelson) This book is Leadership 101.  If you think of people who were great leaders (Jim Jones, Ronald Regan, Martin Luther King, Jr., Mahatma Gandhi, Attila the Hun, Jesus), they all have one common thread – Influence.  Maxwell starts with this basic premise – Leadership is Influence; Nothing more and nothing less.  From there, he explores how leadership is developed – yes, developed.  Most people are not ‘natural born leaders’ – they acquire the skills through time and training.  This book will give you an excellent overview of the basics.    5 Stars!

Becoming A Person Of Influence (©1997 Thomas Nelson) If Leadership is Influence (see above), then how do you become and Influencer?  In this book, Maxwell lines out ten (10) attributes that can be acquired to become a Person of Influence.  I emphasis the term ‘acquired’, since most people are not influencers by nature.  However, it has been shown that even the most introverted among us will influence in excess of 10,000 people in their lifetime!  Influence is value neutral – meaning that it can either be positive OR negative.  This book will help you acquire the positive skills you need to become a Person of Influence.  5 Stars!!