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Rating (5 Rising Suns is a must read - 1 Rising Sun is low interest in reading)

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Review
Another wonderful book in the Ken Blanchard collection. Like many of Blanchard's books, "The Secret" by Ken Blanchard and Mark Miller is short, easy to read, and full of useful information. Told as a story of a young executive (Debbie Brewster) who is totally overwhelmed by her recent promotion until she is mentored by the companies C.E.O. (Jeff Brown) who helps her explore and understand the five keys to successful leadership: S.E.R.V.E.

Through a series of safe and supportive mentoring sessions, Jeff helps Debbie probe and explore her experience over the past year in order to identify what went wrong and how she can achieve the success she desires. Over time, as Jeff assists Debbie in moving through a major paradigm shift, Debbie comes to understand the true power which comes from maintaining an attitude of putting others first - an attitude of service to others.

As with many of Blanchard's books, "The Secret" offers very powerful insights in very simplistic, everyday terms. It is one of those books that leaves you saying, "I knew that." However, the lessons taught, although obvious, are things we as leaders rarely think about. For example, Blanchard & Miller stress the importance of leaders always being on the lookout for new and different ways to serve. They suggest that with a little effort, "Leaders can identify countless ways to serve the people they lead."

Although some might find the language and dialogue simple and unrealistic, this is exactly what makes the book such a pleasure to read. The authors present basic concepts of leadership in a refreshing story-like format that allows the reader to both use their imagination and relate the information to their own personal/professional experiences. We highly recommend this book as a must read for anyone interested in effective leadership.

Summary of Main Points
The two major themes which run throughout the book are: 1) that all individuals within an organization, regardless of title or position, have the potential to be leaders and influence both the direction and culture of the organization, and 2) people who want to be great leaders must embrace an attitude of service to others. The three major strategies suggested are:

* All great leaders take time out on a regular basis to Assess, Affirm, and Adjust.

" Effective leadership can be enhanced through the use of an executive mentoring program.

* Leaders must serve if they want to be effective.

Throughout the book, Blanchard & Miller describe five (5) critical ways in which leaders must serve if they want to be as effective as possible:

* First, they must be willing and able to "See the Future." Effective leaders must have a vision. Effective leaders must also have the ability to help those they work with see their vision and understand the benefits of going there. In other words, according to Blanchard and Miller, "Everybody needs to see who they are, where they are going and what will guide their journey."

* Second, they must be willing and able to "Engage and Develop Others." This requires both: 1) hiring the right people, and 2) getting them to make a personal commitment. According to Blanchard & Miller, effective leaders "do whatever it takes to engage the hearts and the heads of the people." They suggest that, "Historically, many leaders have employed the hands and nothing else."

* Third, they must be willing and able to "Reinvent Continuously." Here the leader must be willing to reinvent on at least three levels. The first is personal (i.e., "How am I learning and growing as a leader?"). The second involves systems and processes (i.e., "What changes would enhance our ability to serve our customers and each other?"). The third type involves the structure of the organization (i.e., "What structural changes do we need to make to be more efficient and effective?").

* Fourth, they must be willing and able to "Value Results and Relationships." According to Blanchard & Miller, "What most people don't understand is that they can get better financial results if they have good relationships. We have to raise the value of relationships to a partner of equal importance with results. It's both/and, not either/or."

* Finally, they must be willing and able to "Embody the Values." This is one of the most important and fundamental points according to Blanchard & Miller. They suggest that if we lose our credibility as leaders, it becomes extremely difficult to get people to follow us. "We must do more than articulate values, although that is very important, we must not only say it, and we must show it."

Call To Action
As a result of reading "The Secret," the following five strategies jump out as immediate steps to effective leadership:

* Make it top priority Take time out immediately to assess the value and productivity of the programs/services and relationships within your organization.

* Affirm and support those programs/services and relationships which are helping to move the organization forward.

* Adjust and/or realign those programs/services and relationships which are no longer consistent with the organization's mission and vision.

* Show value for those you work with by listening to them, investing time with them, caring deeply about them, and recognizing their efforts.

* Look for every opportunity you can to serve the people you lead.