People Follow You: The Real Secret to What Matters Most in Leadership

by Jeb Blount

Discover the secrets to influencing the performance of the people you lead Managers don't get paid for what they do but rather for the performance of their people; therefore, a manager's most important job is coaching behaviors in order to improve performance. In People Follow You managers will learn five easily understood and implemented levers critical to influencing the performance of the people they lead. Ultimately, people follow people that they like, trust, and believe in. Understand how to build stronger relationships with direct and indirect reports that lead to loyalty, higher productivity, and long-term development. Relevant to middle and high level managers, People Follow You provides a foundation for managing people. Practical lessons help managers employ winning interpersonal skills to move others to take action. When all else is stripped away, people don't work for companies, paychecks, perks, or slogans, people work for you. Become a manager people will follow, and lead your team to greater achievements and measurable gains.

Genres: Business, Self Help, Leadership, Nonfiction, Personal Development

192 pages, Hardcover

First published October 13, 2011

Reviews

[Garland Vance · Rating 4 out of 5]

Basic premise of the book: people do not follow vision statements, strategic plans, or paychecks. People follow leaders. This little book guides leaders through understanding how to help others follow you. It is a very practical and helpful in its suggestions. While not life-altering, I would certainly recommend this book for those in leadership positions as every person will have at least one takeaway from it.

[Ryan J · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lots of similarities to People By You. Probably could have been combined into one book.

[Timothy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jeb's simplistic and well-articulated explanation of his five leadership levers: putting people first, connecting with your people, positioning people to win, building trust with your team, and creating positive emotional experiences for your people are tried and true practices in my experience. Will you get burned by some jerk out there? Yes, absolutely. These methods will make you vulnerable to douche-bags. Is it worth avoiding the methods and potentially alienating the rest of your team so that you can avoid being offended by some douche-bag? Absolutely not. Your pride might get a little hurt, but that's one of the many costs of leadership. Jeb's examples of horrible bosses are perfect examples to emphasize the importance of the levers. If we as leaders take care of our people, 98% of the time, they'll take care of us. His emphasis that you get paid for what your people do (or don't do) is a great mantra. It can be unsettling. Some leaders aren't acquainted with failure and have a difficult time connecting expectations with guidance which often leaves their people frustrated, isolated, and discouraged. If the leader is focused on the results, they'll simply try harder and worsen the conditions. But if the leader is focused on their people, they'll see frustration and, hopefully, correct the course. Jeb's levers ring true with so many other leadership and management authors - Sinek, Covey, Spaulding, et. al. He's not saying anything new, but I do appreciate his simplicity, clarity, and illustrations of the levers in action.

[Cheruiyot · Rating 3 out of 5]

Coming

[Chad Baker · Rating 5 out of 5]

My dad should have written this book. He taught me all of this when I was 10.

[Todd Stein · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another great masterpiece from Jeb. Totally worth the read.

[Lubna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very inspiring but repetitive

[Logan Matlock · Rating 4 out of 5]

good crash course

[Doug · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent leadership book.

[Ivan Ramos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it. A book on leadership from the perspective of a salesperson. Wonderful insight.

[Charmin · Rating 3 out of 5]

HIGHLIGHTS:
1. MANAGERS:
- Managers are paid for the work of employees.
- Managers need employees more than employees need the manager.

2. KINDNESS:
- Show respect
- coach struggling employees

3. CONNECT:
- Develop deep connections with/ team members.

4. LEADERS ARE WATCHED:
- Leaders are always on stage.

5. SMALL WINS:
- Appreciate the small wins that lead to big wins.

6. CLARIFYING QUESTIONS:
- Listen and ask clarifying Qs:
- reduce the broadcasting of all your talking. Listen to learn.

7. BE NICE:
- It costs nothing to be nice.

8. APOLOGIZE:
- Apologize when you make mistakes to return to integrity.

[Bob Wasserman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful - powerful message for those who have the honor of leading others. Many messages here that I've learned over the years including putting your people first, we which had used at EY to great effect for a number of years. Great lessons to be learned in a relatively short time, thankfully the author doesn't go on and on just to make a larger book. You can get what you need and get on with leading your team.

[Davison Abrantes · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.3 Stars. I really wasn't liking this book to start with, and was ready to just rate it 2 stars. It felt repetitive, too simple, and kept dragging on. However, I noticed that since it was so repetitive and simple that the info actually stuck with me more than other similar books. Consequently, it made me implement some of the lessons right away, and with that I have seen immediate change. So touché.

[CutePups Fahy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Really good read, beneficial for any audience. It has realistic information and focuses on the necessary pieces, it doesn't pretend that there is a silver bullet that you can just purchase.

[Lisa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent! A must read for everyone that leads teams or want to do so effectively.

[Judy]

It was a good book to read. I will read it again.

[Ashley Jonas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very easy to understand. Great for anyone wanting to shape up their leadership skills.

[BLACK CAT · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great tips on leadership for all managers.

[Neil Connolly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good sales management material and ideas.

[Margarita Bastar]

Looks like another one that I should read for businesss.