Book Summary - The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership by John C. Maxwell

Everything rises and falls on leadership. – John C. Maxwell

In The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership: Follow Them and People Will Follow You, Leadership author John C. Maxwell highlights the 21 greatest principles, lessons learned, thoughts and insights he has garnered in his 40+ years of teaching and leading people. Irrefutable means impossible to deny or disprove. The 21 laws are irrefutable to become a great leader, according to Maxwell:

“The one thing you need to know about leadership is that there is more than one thing you need to know about leadership!” To lead well, we must do 21 things well.”

The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership:

1. THE LAW OF THE LID
2. THE LAW OF INFLUENCE
3. THE LAW OF PROCESS
4. THE LAW OF NAVIGATION
5. THE LAW OF ADDITION
6. THE LAW OF SOLID GROUND
7. THE LAW OF RESPECT
8. THE LAW OF INTUITION
9. THE LAW OF MAGNETISM
10. THE LAW OF CONNECTION
11. THE LAW OF THE INNER CIRCLE
12. THE LAW OF EMPOWERMENT
13. THE LAW OF THE PICTURE
14. THE LAW OF BUY-IN
15. THE LAW OF VICTORY
16. THE LAW OF THE BIG MO
17. THE LAW OF PRIORITIES
18. THE LAW OF SACRIFICE
19. THE LAW OF TIMING
20. THE LAW OF EXPLOSIVE GROWTH
21. THE LAW OF LEGACY

About the Leadership Laws

1. The laws can be learned. Some are easier to understand and apply than others, but every one of them can be acquired.

2. The laws can stand alone. Each law complements all the others, but you don’t need one in order to learn another.

3. The laws carry consequences with them. Apply the laws, and people will follow you. Violate or ignore them, and you will not be able to lead others.

4. These laws are the foundation of leadership. Once you learn the principles, you have to practice them and apply them to your life.

No matter where you are in the leadership process, know this: the greater the number of laws you learn, the better leader you will become. Each law is like a tool, ready to be picked up and used to help you achieve your dreams and add value to other people. Pick up even one, and you will become a better leader. Learn them all, and people will gladly follow you.

Leadership ability is always the lid on personal and organizational effectiveness. If a person’s leadership is strong, the organization’s lid is high. But if it’s not, then the organization is limited.

1. THE LAW OF THE LID

Leadership Ability Determines a Person’s Level of Effectiveness

Brothers Dick and Maurice came as close as they could to living the American Dream—without making it. Instead a guy named Ray did it with the company they had founded. It happened because they didn’t know the Law of the Lid.

Book Summary: Grinding It Out: The Making of McDonald’s by Ray Kroc.

Summary of Law of the Lid: You can not take people farther than you have gone. To reach the highest level of effectiveness, you have to raise the lid—one way or another.

Leadership ability is the lid that determines a person’s level of effectiveness. The lower an individual’s ability to lead, the lower the lid on his potential. The higher the individual’s ability to lead, the higher the lid on his potential. To give you an example, if your leadership rates an 8, then your effectiveness can never be greater than a 7. If your leadership is only a 4, then your effectiveness will be no higher than a 3. Your leadership ability—for better or for worse—always determines your effectiveness and the potential impact of your organization.

Without leadership ability, a person’s impact is only a fraction of what it could be with good leadership. The higher you want to climb, the more you need leadership. The greater the impact you want to make, the greater your influence needs to be. Whatever you will accomplish is restricted by your ability to lead others.

To increase your level of effectiveness, you have a couple of choices. You could work very hard to increase your dedication to success and excellence—o work toward becoming a 10. It’s possible that you could make it to that level, though the Law of Diminishing Returns says that the effort it would take to increase those last two points might take more energy than it did to achieve the first eight. If you really killed yourself, you might increase your success by that 25 percent.

It is easier to move from failure to success in from excuses to success.

2. THE LAW OF INFLUENCE

The True Measure of Leadership Is Influence—Nothing More, Nothing Less

Abraham Lincoln started with the rank of captain, but by the time the war was over, he was a private. What happened? He was a casualty of the Law of Influence.

LEADERSHIP IS NOT . . .

Leadership is often misunderstood. When people hear that someone has an impressive title or an assigned leadership position, they assume that individual to be a leader. Sometimes that’s true. But titles don’t have much value when it comes to leading.

True leadership cannot be awarded, appointed, or assigned. It comes only from influence, and that cannot be mandated. It must be earned. The only thing a title can buy is a little time—either to increase your level of influence with others or to undermine it.

It’s not the position that makes the leader; it’s the leader that makes the position.—STANLEY HUFFTY

When it comes to identifying a real leader, that task can be much easier. Don’t listen to the claims of the person professing to be the leader. Don’t examine his credentials. Don’t check his title. Check his influence. The proof of leadership is found in the followers.

“Being in power is like being a lady. If you have to tell people you are, you aren’t.” –Margaret Thatcher

3. THE LAW OF PROCESS

Leadership Develops Daily, Not in a Day

Theodore Roosevelt helped create a world power, won a Nobel Peace Prize, and became president of the United States. But today you wouldn’t even know his name if he hadn’t known the Law of Process.

We overestimate the event and underestimate the process.

Events encourages decision-making whereas the process encourages development. The event motivates people but the process matures people. The event is a calendar issue whereas the process

LEADERSHIP IS LIKE INVESTING—IT COMPOUNDS

Becoming a leader is a lot like investing successfully in the stock market. If your hope is to make a fortune in a day, you’re not going to be successful. There are no successful “day traders” in leadership development. What matters most is what you do day by day over the long haul.

If you continually invest in your leadership development, letting your “assets” compound, the inevitable result is growth over time. What can you see when you look at a person’s daily agenda? Priorities, passion, abilities, relationships, attitude, personal disciplines, vision, and influence. See what a person is doing every day, day after day, and you’ll know who that person is and what he or she is becoming.

“The secret of success in life is for a man to be ready for his time when it comes.”—BENJAMIN DISRAELI

4. THE LAW OF NAVIGATION

Anyone Can Steer the Ship, but It Takes a Leader to Chart the Course

Using a fail-safe compass, Scott led his team of adventurers to the end of the earth—and to inglorious deaths. They would have lived if only he, their leader, had known the Law of Navigation.

Followers need leaders able to effectively navigate for them. When they’re facing life-and-death situations, the necessity is painfully obvious. But even when consequences aren’t as serious, the need is also great. The truth is that nearly anyone can steer the ship, but it takes a leader to chart the course. That is the Law of Navigation.

A good leader remains focused . . . Controlling your direction is better than being con-trolled by it. – Jack Welch

The secret to the Law of Navigation is preparation. When you prepare well, you convey confidence and trust to people. Lack of preparation has the opposite effect. In the end, it’s not the size of the project that determines its acceptance, sup-port, and success—it’s the size of the leader.

Plan Ahead acrostic for navigating the leadership journey:

Predetermine a course of action.
Lay out your goals.
Adjust your priorities.
Notify key personnel.
Allow time for acceptance.
Head into action.
Expect problems.
Always point to the successes.
Daily review your plan.

In the end, it’s not the size of the project that determines its acceptance, support, and success. It’s the size of the leader.

5. THE LAW OF ADDITION

Leaders Add Value by Serving Others

What kind of a Fortune 500 CEO works on a folding table, answers his own phone, visits hourly employees as often as possible, and is criticized by Wall Street for being too good to his employees? The kind of leader who understands the Law of Addition.

Seek always to do some good, somewhere. Every man has to seek in his own way to realize his true worth. You must give some time to your fellow man. For remember, you don’t live in a world all your own. Your brothers are here too.”

“Adding value to others through service doesn’t just benefit the people being served. It allows the leaders to experience the following:

“ Fulfillment in leading others

Leadership with the right motives

The ability to perform significant acts as leaders

The development of a leadership team

An attitude of service on a team

The best place for a leader isn’t always the top position. It isn’t the most prominent or powerful place. It’s the place where he or she can serve the best and add the most value to other people.

When you add value to people, you lift them up, help them advance, make them a part of something bigger than themselves, and assist them in becoming who they were made to be. Often their leader is the only person able to help them to do those things.

6. THE LAW OF SOLID GROUND

Trust Is the Foundation of Leadership

If only Robert McNamara had known the Law of Solid Ground, the war in Vietnam—and everything that happened at home because of it—might have turned out differently.

Leaders cannot lose trust and continue to influence others. Trust is the foundation of leadership. That’s the Law of Solid Ground.

Trust is like change in a leader’s pocket. Each time you make good leadership decisions, you earn more change. Each time you make poor decisions, you pay out some of your change to the people. All leaders have a certain amount of change in their pocket when they start in a new Leadership position. Whatever they do either builds up their change or depletes it. If leaders make one bad decision after another, they keep paying out change. Then one day, after making one last bad decision, they suddenly—and irreparably—run out of change. It doesn’t even matter if the last blunder was big or small.

“At that point it’s too late. When you’re out of change, you’re out as the leader.”

No leader can break trust with his people and expect to keep influencing them. Trust is the foundation of leadership. Violate the Law of Solid Ground, and you diminish your influence as a leader.

7. THE LAW OF RESPECT

People Naturally Follow Leaders Stronger Than Themselves.

The odds were stacked against her in just about every possible way, but thousands and thousands of people called her their leader. Why? Because they could not escape the power of the Law of Respect.

People don’t follow others by accident. They follow individuals whose leadership they respect. People who are an 8 in leadership (on a scale from 1 to 10, with 10 being the strongest) don’t go out and look for a 6 to follow—they naturally follow a 9 or 10. The less skilled follow the more highly skilled and gifted. Occasionally, a strong leader may choose to follow someone weaker than himself. But when that happens, it’s for a reason. For example, the stronger leader may do it out of respect for the person’s office or past accomplishments. Or he may be following the chain of command. In general, though, followers are attracted to people who are better leaders than themselves. That is the Law of Respect.

When people respect you as a person, they admire you. When they respect you as a friend, they love you. When they respect you as a leader, they follow you.

If you have the courage, ask the people in your life who are closest to you what they respect most about you. And ask them to tell you in which areas you most need to grow. Then determine to improve based on their honest feedback.

A leader does not deserve the name unless he is willing occasionally to stand alone. – Henry Kissinger

8. THE LAW OF INTUITION

Leaders Evaluate Everything with a Leadership Bias

How does Steve Jobs keep reinventing Apple Computer and taking it to the next level? The answer can be found in the Law of Intuition.

Leaders look at things differently than others do. They evaluate everything according to their leadership bias. They possess leadership intuition that informs everything they do. It is an inseparable part of who they are.

Who you are determines what you see.

Reading people is perhaps the most important intuitive skill leaders can possess. After all, if what you are doing doesn’t involve people, it’s not Leadership. And if you aren’t persuading people to follow, you aren’t really leading.

If you can be intuitive, you get a head start.

9. THE LAW OF MAGNETISM

Who You Are Is Who You Attract

How did the Confederate army—understaffed and underequipped—stand up so long to the powerful Union army? The Confederates had better generals. Why did they have better generals? The Law of Magnetism makes it clear.

People attract—and are attracted to—others of similar background. Blue-collar workers tend to stick together. Employers tend to hire people of the same race. People with education tend to respect and value others who are also well educated. This natural magnetism is so strong that organizations that value diversity have to fight against it.

If you want to attract better people, become the kind of person you desire to attract.

10. THE LAW OF CONNECTION

Leaders Touch a Heart Before They Ask for a Hand

As the new leader, John knew that the most influential person in the organization could torpedo his leadership. So what did he do? He reached out using the Law of Connection.

For leaders to be effective, they need to connect with people. Why? Because you first have to touch people’s hearts before you ask them for a hand. That is the Law of Connection. All great leaders and communicators recognize this truth and act on it almost instinctively. You can’t move people to action unless you first move them with emotion.

Good leaders work at connecting with others all of the time, whether they are communicating to an entire organization or working with a single individual. The stronger the relationship you form with followers, the greater the connection you forge—and the more likely those followers will be to want to help you.

The stronger the relationship and connection between individuals, the more likely the follower will want to help the leader.

As a leader, find times to make yourself available to people. Learn their names. Tell them how much you appreciate them. Find out how they’re doing. And most important, listen. Leaders who relate to their people and really connect with them are leaders that people will follow to the ends of the earth.

Don’t ever underestimate the importance of building relational bridges between yourself and the people you lead. There’s an old saying: To lead yourself, use your head; to lead others, use your heart. That’s the nature of the Law of Connection. Always touch a person’s heart before you ask him for a hand.

Educators take something simple and make it complicated. Communicators take something complicated and make it simple.

11. THE LAW OF THE INNER CIRCLE

A Leader’s Potential Is Determined by Those Closest to Him

Lance Armstrong is hailed as the greatest cyclist who ever lived. People credit his toughness. They credit his brutal training. What they miss is the Law of the Inner Circle.

When we see any incredibly gifted person, it’s always tempting to believe that talent alone made him successful. To think that is to buy into a lie. Nobody does anything great alone. Leaders do not succeed alone. A leader’s potential is determined by those closest to him. What makes the difference is the leader’s inner circle.

You can do what I cannot do. I can do what you cannot do.Together we can do great things.—MOTHER TERESA

12. THE LAW OF EMPOWERMENT

Only Secure Leaders Give Power to Others

Henry Ford is considered an icon of American business for revolutionizing the automobile industry. “So what caused him to stumble so badly that his son feared “Ford Motor Company would go out of business? He was held captive by the Law of Empowerment.

The number one enemy of empowerment is the fear of losing what we have. Weak leaders worry that if they help subordinates, they themselves will become dispensable. But the truth is that the only way to make your-self indispensable is to make yourself dispensable. In other words, if you are able to continually empower others and help them develop so that they become capable of taking over your job, you will become so valuable to the organization that you become indispensable. That’s a paradox of the Law of Empowerment.

Self-conscious people are rarely good leaders. They focus on themselves, worrying how they look, what others think, whether they are liked. They can’t give power to others because they feel that they have no power themselves. And you can’t give what you don’t have.

The best leaders have a strong sense of self-worth. They believe in them-selves, their mission, and their people

13. THE LAW OF THE PICTURE

People Do What People See

Easy Company withstood the German advance at the Battle of the Bulge and dashed Hitler’s last hope for stopping the Allies’ advance. They were able to do it because their leaders embraced the Law of the Picture.

Good leaders are always conscious of the fact that they are setting the example and others are going to do what they do, for better or worse. In general, the better the leaders’ actions, the better their people’s.

When times are tough, uncertainty is high, and chaos threatens to over-whelm everyone, followers need a clear picture from their leaders the most. That’s when they need a leader who embraces the Law of the Picture. The living picture they see in their leader produces energy, passion, and motivation to keep going.

“Leaders tell but never teach until they practice what they preach.” —FEATHERSTONE

14. THE LAW OF BUY-IN

People Buy into the Leader,Then the Vision

They freed their nation by passively protesting, even when it cost them their lives by the thousands. What would inspire them to do such a thing? The Law of Buy-In.

People don’t at first follow worthy causes. They follow worthy leaders who promote causes they can believe in. People buy into the leader first, then the leader’s vision. Having an understanding of that changes your whole approach to leading people.

People don’t at first follow worthy causes. They follow worthy leaders who promote causes they can believe in.

When people believe in their leader and the vision, they will follow their leader no matter how bad conditions get or how much the odds are stacked against them.

15. THE LAW OF VICTORY

Leaders Find a Way for the Team to Win

What saved England from the Blitz, broke apartheid’s back in South Africa, and won the Chicago Bulls multiple world championships? In all three cases the answer is the same. Their leaders lived by the Law of Victory.

Good leaders find a way for their teams to win. That’s the Law of Victory. Their particular sport is irrelevant. Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson, and Larry Bird did it in the NBA. John Elway and Joe Montana did it in the NFL. (Elway led his team to more fourth-quarter victories than any other quarterback in NFL history.) Pelé did it in soccer, winning an unprecedented three World Cups for Brazil. Leaders find a way for the team to succeed.

16. THE LAW OF THE BIG MO

Momentum Is a Leader’s Best Friend

Story: Pixar Animation – Disney

The two-minute film was meant to show off the power of the company’s animation technology. What it did was engage the power of the Big Mo— leading to billions of dollars in revenue.

Book Summary – The Ride of a Lifetime: Lessons Learned from 15 Years as CEO of the Walt Disney Company by Bob Iger

“Momentum is like a magnifying glass; it makes things look bigger than they really are.”

When leaders have momentum on their side, people think they’re geniuses. They look past shortcomings. They forget about the mistakes the leaders have made. Momentum changes everyone’s perspective of leaders. People like associating themselves with winners.

“Getting started is a struggle, but once you’re moving forward, you can really start to do some amazing things.”

17. THE LAW OF PRIORITIES

Leaders Understand That Activity Is Not Necessarily Accomplishment

They called him the wizard. His priorities were so focused that if you give him a date and time, he can tell you exactly what drill his players were performing and why! It won him ten championships. What can the Law of Priorities do for you?

Leaders never advance to a point where they no longer need to prioritize. It’s something that good leaders keep doing, whether they’re leading a billion-dollar corporation, running a small business, pastoring a church, coaching a team, or leading a small group.

“There are many things that will catch my eye, but there are only a few things that will catch my heart.”—TIM REDMOND

Successful leaders live according to the Law of Priorities. They recognize that activity is not necessarily accomplishment. But the best leaders seem to be able to get the Law of Priorities to work for them by satisfying multiple priorities with each activity. This actually enables them to increase their focus while reducing their number of actions.

To re-order your priorities, ask the following questions:

What is required of me?
What gives the greatest return?
What brings the greatest reward ?

18. THE LAW OF SACRIFICE

A Leader Must Give Up to Go Up

What would you give up for the people who follow you? This leader gave his life. Why? Because he understood the power of the Law of Sacrifice.

Many people today want to climb up the corporate ladder because they believe that freedom, power, and wealth are the prizes waiting at the top. The life of a leader can look glamorous to people on the outside. But the reality is that Leadership requires sacrifice. A leader must give up to go up. In recent years, we’ve observed more than our share of leaders who used and abused their organizations for their personal benefit—and the resulting corporate scandals that came because of their greed and selfishness. The heart of good Leadership is sacrifice.

“When you become a leader, you lose the right to think about yourself.” – Gerald Brooks

19. THE LAW OF TIMING

When to Lead Is As Important As What to Do and Where to Go

Leaders at every level dropped the ball: the mayor, the governor, the cabinet secretary, and the president. Not one of them understood the potential devastation that can come when a leader violates the Law of Timing.

Good leaders recognize that when to lead is as important as what to do and where to go. Timing is often the difference between success and failure in an endeavor.

“Every time a leader makes a move, there are really only four outcomes:

1. THE WRONG ACTION AT THE WRONG TIME LEADS TO DISASTER
2. THE RIGHT ACTION AT THE WRONG TIME BRINGS RESISTANCE
3. THE WRONG ACTION AT THE RIGHT TIME IS A MISTAKE
4. THE RIGHT ACTION AT THE RIGHT TIME RESULTS IN SUCCESS

“I will prepare and some day my chance will…” – Abraham Lincoln

20. THE LAW OF EXPLOSIVE GROWTH

To Add Growth, Lead Followers—To Multiply, Lead Leaders

Is it possible to train more than a million people around the globe? It is if you use leader’s math. That’s the secret of the Law of Explosive Growth.

Leaders are naturally impatient. At least, all of the leaders I know are. Leaders want to move fast. They want to see the vision fulfilled. They delight in progress. Good leaders quickly assess where an organization is, project where it needs to go, and have strong ideas about how to get it there. The problem is that most of the time the people and the organization lag behind the leader. For that reason, leaders always feel a tension between where they and their people are and where they ought to be.

“If you develop yourself, you can experience personal success. If you develop a team, your organization can experience growth. If you develop leaders, your organization can achieve explosive growth.”

You can grow by leading followers. But if you want to maximize your leadership and help your organization reach its potential, you need to develop leaders. There is no other way to experience explosive growth.

“Leaders are like eagles—they don’t flock. That’s why they are so hard to find.”

“21. THE LAW OF LEGACY

A Leader’s Lasting Value Is Measured by Succession

What will people say at your funeral? The things they say tomorrow depend on how you live today using the Law of Legacy.

If you want your leadership to really have meaning, you need to take into account the Law of Legacy. Why? Because a leader’s lasting value is measured by succession.

“Life is like a parachute jump; you’ve got to get it right the first time.” – Eleanor Roosevelt

There is often a natural progression to how leaders develop in the area of legacy, starting with the desire to achieve:”

Achievement comes when they do big things by themselves.
Success comes when they empower followers to do big things for them.
Significance comes when they develop leaders to do great things with them.
Legacy comes when they put leaders in position to do great things without them.

As you work to build your organization, remember this: