Practicing Greatness

This is a book that I read this past week. The book is a fairly easy read and it is a good book. I would not call it great and I would not list it in a Top 10 list of leadership book but the book also does not belong in the trash.

When it first came out Leadership Now did a review on the book and it gives a fairly positive spin on the book. Their review can be found here.

I enjoyed his other book much better. This book is geared for Christian leaders, however much of the book can be applied across the board. I am sure that you are wanting to know about the principles.

The official title of the book: Practicing Greatness: 7 Disciplines of Extraordinary Spiritual Leaders The book is broken down into seven chapters (one discipline per chapter). Here they are:

The Discipline of Self-Awareness

the single most important body of information a leader possesses

The Discipline of Self-Management

handling difficult emotions, expectations, temptations, mental vibrancy, and physical well-being

The Discipline of Self-Development

a life-long commitment to learning and growing and building on one's strengths

The Discipline of Mission

enjoying the permission pf maintaining the sense of God's purpose for your life and leadership

The Discipline of Decision-Making

knowing the elements of good decisions and learning from failure

The Discipline of Belonging

the determination to nurture relationships and to live in community with others, including family, followers, mentors and friends

The Discipline of Aloneness

the intentional practice of soul-making solitude and contemplation

For me, the toughest one is the discipline of belonging. I am going to blog on a few of the topics in this book and how they play out in my life and my ministry concept.

If you are looking for a top-notch leadership book, this may not be it. But, it may be a great book for you if you are wanting some self-evaluation.