Can Leadership Books Help Executives Become Better Leaders?

How can authors almost guarantee that their book sells? Put the word Sex or Leadership in the title. For business people, the search for true leadership skills may be as dangerous and elusive as the adventures of Indiana Jones, but it is a quest that millions of ambitious executives make every year.

A case in point is John Maxwell, author of 50 books on leadership, who has sold more than 50 million books. Maxwell, the son of a minister with a degree in Divinity Studies, often tops the business book best-seller list, most notably with his The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership and The 21 Indispensable Qualities of a Leader books.

“After World War II,” begins Deanna Riley Cain, who teaches leadership classes for a Fortune 50 corporation, “industrial production was still accomplished by employees operating machines or assembling goods. Back then, employees were conceived as cogs in the proverbial machine. Today, however, with our knowledge-based economy, leading people in teams through complex projects places a premium on managers who can lead, motivate and inspire their employees.”

In fact, more than 80 percent of the Fortune 500 corporations run their own leadership classes for their employees.

The key question is: Can these leadership books actually help managers become leaders or, in some cases, better leaders?

The Leadership Package

At the Philadelphia Airport, UPS Night Hub Operations Manager John Eitel is in charge of ensuring that more than 300,000 time-sensitive air packages are sorted and sent via plane to their destination. The consequences for an error on just one shipment are enormous – guaranteed refunds for late packages and customers angry enough to possibly switch to FedEx or DHL.

This enormous responsibility means that Eitel manages more than 1,500 employees, including part-time management, who battle brutal schedules to ensure that all shipments are delivered on time.

While most people sleep in the middle of the night, Eitel is like a bundle of charged particles, striding several miles in the cavernous sorting facility, exhorting employees in a deep voice that resonates with the tones of authority.

Eitel, 36, has worked at UPS since June 1991, beginning like many of its employees unloading and loading trucks at night. But as he entered management as a part-time supervisor, Eitel began to devour books on leadership.

“Although great leaders can be born,” begins Eitel, “I’ve always found that perspiration creates inspiration, so I began devouring leadership books. I’ve discovered that you have to apply the general principles and concepts to actually sharpen your leadership skills.”