book reviewonomy
BETTER UNDER PRESSURE: How Great Leaders Bring Out the Best in Themselves and Others
By Justin Menkes Publisher: Harvard Business Press (May 2011) ISBN-10: 1422138704
Never have business leaders been more under pressure than in recent years. In Better Under Pressure, Justin Menkes looks at why some CEOs buckle somewhat under such pressure,while it seems to bring out the best in others. In a very practical guide to leadership, executive assess-
ment expert Menkes draws on in-depth interviews with 150 CEOs from a wide range of industries worldwide to show why great leaders thrive in very difficult business environments, bringing their people with them. Menkes identifies three specific and “highly unusual”
traits that often run counter to normal human behaviour, but which the best leaders appear to have in common. He says they add up to a new definition for leadership for the 21st century: Realistic optimism. Leaders with this trait possess confidence without self-delusion or irrationality. They pursue audacious goals, which others would typically view as impossible pipedreams, while at the same time remain- ing aware of the magnitude of the challenges confronting them and the difficulties that lie ahead. Subservience to purpose. Leaders with this ability see their professional goal as so profound in importance that their lives become measured in value by how much they contribute to furthering that goal. What is more, they must be pursuing a professional goal in order to feel a purpose for living. In essence, that goal is their master and their reason for being. They do not ruminate about their purpose, because theirmind finds satisfaction in its occupation with their goal. Their level of dedication to their work is a direct result of the extraordinary, remark- able importance they place on their goal. Finding order in chaos. Leaders with this trait find taking on multidimensional problems invigorating, and their ability to bring clarity to quandaries that baffle oth- ers makes their contributions invaluable. Through meticulous research, Menkes and his team found that these three traits were highly consistent with
50 Irish Director Summer 2011
the top performers among the CEOs examined, and that indeed they were almost entirely absent among the worst-performing quartile of CEOs. And these traits, says Menkes, can be learnt, and peo-
ple can change. Through extensive anecdotes from real- life CEOs, he sets about offering the reader practical tools and insights that can help transform them into leaders who perform – even thrive – under these pressures. In an immensely readable book, Menkes eschewsmuch
of themanagement jargon often found in such tomes, and through pragmatic reasoning and clear real-life exam- ples, comes up with some extremely thoughtful insights for leaders and aspiring leaders. Key toMenkes’ leadershipmodel is the ability for lead-
ers to bring people with them, but also to help their peo- ple realise their own human potential. “Real leadership is recursive,” says Menkes. “It’s a con-
tinuous process that starts with a leader and is echoed in that leader’s
people.My research has shown that the best leadersworkwith the people they lead to seek theirmutual maximumpotential together; they co-create their success. “We are all born with an innate urge for triumph, but
are not born aware of this need or how to meet it,” he continues. “The most critical responsibility leaders have is to help their people flip the switch of engagement to- ward realising their potential as human beings. When leaders create a context for people to realise their poten- tial, they create a virtuous cycle that elicits people’s best selves — the selves that induce the gratification we all feel when we overcome significant challenges and realise our potential. “In today’s business environment of ever-escalating
competition, such an organisation is the only kind that is built to survive,” concludes Menkes. An extremely worthwhile read for leaders, or aspiring leaders, in these turbulent times.
Ann O’Dea
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