Alejandro Magno Su Liderazgo / The Wisdom of Alexander the Great: Lecciones De Liderazgo Duraderas Del Hombre Que Creo Un Imperio

by Lance B. Kurke

Lideres excepcionales son los que tienen la capacidad de analizar los problemas, optimizar los recursos, inspirar lealtad y ejecutar estrategias.
No hay ejemplo tan impactante en la historia como el de Alejandro Magno, cuyas habilidades de liderazgo eran tan inmensas que resuenan todavia hoy, alrededor de 2.000 anos despues. Alejandro Magno su liderazgo , revela cuatro procesos de liderazgo que se extraen de la vida y los extraordinarios logros de Alejandro, Rey de Macedonia. Los lectores aprenderan como reencuadraba los problemas para abordar retos que parecian invencibles; construia alianzas usando su fuerza para generar confianza y respeto, no solo temor; establecio una identidad y se puso a si mismo el "sello" de unificador, manteniendo asi su territorio seguro mientras continuaba con la expansion del imperio; reconocia y asimilaba las culturas y simbolos de diferentes pueblos, lo que lo hacia una figura poderosa y confiada adondequiera que fuese. Alejandro Magno su liderazgo relata 34 fascinantes episodios de la expansion de Alejandro a traves de Asia Menor, Egipto, Mesopotamia, el Medio Oriente, el Imperio Persa y la India. Cada ejemplo, ligado a un homologo contemporaneo, provee valiosas lecciones, basadas en la inmortal leyenda de uno de los mas grandes lideres de la historia.

Genres: History, Leadership, Business, Nonfiction, Self Help, Biography

155 pages, Hardcover

First published August 30, 2004

Reviews

[Joanna · Rating 1 out of 5]

130th book of the year
9th book of September🍁☕️

0.5 ⭐️

Genially what the fuck?!?!? I got this book for free and read it even though I'm not into business or history. This book got 1 star not because it was boring and not for me, no! This book got 1 star BECAUSE SPREADING MISINFORMATION ABOUT PEOPLE WHO ARE LITTERY DEAD IS NOT OKAY!!!!

[Max Nova · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a quick, fun read about Alexander the Great, but it has a bit of a forced feeling to it. Kurke is trying too hard to extract modern business leadership lessons from Alexander. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it falls on its face. Kurke's big thesis is that Alexander used the four powerful tools of "reframing problems, building alliances, establishing identity, and directing symbols" to achieve his great success. A few choice quotes:

I believe that leaders are in the reality creation business. They make the world, obviously within constraints, the way they want it to be.

My research suggests that the greatest leaders in history-military, political, and economic-do not attempt to solve such "impossible" problems when confronted with them. Rather, they find or create a different problem so that when they solve this new difficulty, the old unsolvable, or impossible problem becomes either trivial to deal with or irrelevant

Alexander did not accept the apparent reality presented to him. Ever.

I am convinced that one of the most important skills of a leader is storytelling. Stories relate compelling lessons. Not only can you influence people with your choice of story, but you'll influence the perceptions people have about you by your choice of leader and story.

You control the story to an important extent by your writings. Write. Write with an eye on history.”

[Don · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely love this book. The way the writer compares actions by the great Greek king Alexander The Great from 2300 years ago with modern day situations are valuable lessons for everybody who wants to learn things.

[Tami · Rating 4 out of 5]

Alexander the Great ascended the throne at age 20, unified Greece in less than two years, and conquered Asia Minor, Egypt, Mesopotamia, the Middle East, the Persian Empire, and Afghanistan. In every battle he was at the forefront fighting with his men and always refused medical treatment until his men had been treated. He made a lot of really big mistakes but he also achieved a good deal.

The Wisdom of Alexander the Great looks at snippets of Alexander the Great's reign; examines the leader's actions and reactions; and then analyzes comparable strategies in modern business. These excerpts are organized according to four main leadership strategies: reframing problems, building alliances, establishing identity, and directing symbols.

The tone of this book is a little different that most business books on the market. The focus here is on building strong leadership that others will follow rather than a shared leadership scheme of many like books. Indeed, this publication states that it is imperative that a good leader know how to spin things when problems arise.

[Adeel Hasan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was not familiar with the history of Alexander. This book not only shines some light on those, it goes a step forward and helps the leaders learn from his acheivements. Recommended reading for those interested in leadership skills.

To quote the author
Tarn put it succinctly when he asserted that ‘‘he was one of the supreme fertilising forces of history. He lifted the civilized world out of one groove and set it in another; he started a new epoch; nothing could again be as it had been.1 I believe that is not overstatement.
I end with an apology. He came to be known as Alexander the Great, not Alexander the Perfect or Saint Alexander.
He did horrible things to people, he made terrible mistakes,but he changed the world irredeemably. Despite his short-
comings, I offer three larger-than-life lessons that were not explicitly addressed earlier: vision, human resources acumen, and magnanimity.

[Ali Ahmed]

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[Steve Rangoussis · Rating 5 out of 5]

Alexander the Great is the most studied, most referenced leader in all of history. In this work, Lance Kurke examines the actions of Alexander the Great, to illustrate his leadership techniques which was in most cases, ingenious. He discusses how Alexander used techniques such as reframing problems, building alliances, establishing identity, and directing symbols.

Several historical examples are used to illustrate Alexander’s capacity to reframe problems. None is more poignant than being the first general to conquer a Navy on land. The problem was that the enemy, the Persian Empire, had a seasoned Navy with more than 200 vessels. The Greeks needed control of the seas to secure there supply route. If Alexander were to build enough ships, train his Navy, and then attack the Persian fleet, it could take at least twenty years and wouldn’t ensure victory. Instead he reframed the problem. After Alexander carefully gathered data, and once he completely understood his enemy’s strengths and weaknesses, he recognized that a Navy requires fresh water for its sailors. He immediately garrisoned all sources of fresh water. The exception was the island of Tyre, who insulted Alexander’s diplomatic requests not to sell fresh water to the Persians. Alexander had his army build a mole and conquer Tyre, hence securing all the fresh water sources and thus defeating the navy indirectly. Where everyone saw an impossible foe with the Persian fleet, Alexander found a weakness. When everyone saw Tyre as an impregnable fortress on an island, Alexander saw a bridge that would lead to Tyre’s ruin. He reframed the problem early on in his campaign.

The Battle at the River Hydapsesis exemplifies how Alexander built alliances. After the Greek army under Alexander’s command defeated the Indian King’s (Porus) army, decimating it, and in the process killing three of his sons, Alexander chose an untraditional approach to victory. He guaranteed Porus’s kingdom intact and even enlarged it in exchange for the King’s loyalty. The gesture worked, as King Porus and his heirs remained loyal to Alexander’s successors for generations. In addition, Alexander and his generals made it standard practice to marry and father children of their enemies to build alliances and ensure assimilation of the Greek and Persian cultures. With an empire as vast as Alexander’s, having alliances was critical to unity.

Alexander established identity and directed symbols. He established his identity by paying homage to his ancestors, restoring revered places, and openly identifying his heroes such as Homer. He directed symbols most aptly by leading from the front. In so doing he gained credibility and respect from his troops who would all willingly give their lives for him. In one instance when the Greeks were crossing the Gedrosian Desert, one of the world’s most inhospitable places, he made a famous symbolic gesture. After receiving false information about sources of water wells, and being misled by local guides who hoped the army would die in the desert, Alexander soldiered on. Inevitably, the army ran out of water and soldiers started dying. Dehydrated and half dead, the entire army literally squeezed the last drops from their goat-bladder canteens and offered the water into a silver helmet to save their leader since they knew they were going to die. To this, Alexander responded, “I will share your fate”, and in front of his assembled army, he poured the water into the sand. This gave them the motivation they needed to push and survive their trek through the dessert.

By reframing problems, building alliances, establishing identity, and directing symbols, Alexander commanded one of the most efficient armies in all of history while securing the largest empire of any conqueror to that point. He was victorious in battles where he was well outnumbered and out armed. He put down mutinies, established authority in different kingdoms, and influenced a mix of cultures (Hellenistic) that have an impact on society even today. There are a lot of leadership skills we can learn from Alexander the Great, and Lance Kurke outlines some of the lessons we should learn.

A must read for any leader or anyone who needs inspiration.

[Viktorija · Rating 3 out of 5]

Yra gerų minčių. Bet tikiu, kad yra labiau dėmesio vertų biografijos versijų.

[Neviot · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very quick read, compiled from short chapters with examples from Alexander's history that are then spun into lessons that modern readers can extrapolate, organized according to the author's message of the four leadership processes of enactment: reframing problems, building alliances, establishing identity, and directing symbols. Some of the lessons and interpretations are either far-fetched or forced, but the majority of the book still made for both an entertaining and a thought-provoking read.

I must confess I wasn't very informed about Alexander the Great prior to this book - and it's perhaps not the best book to start with if you're interested in learning about this incredible historical figure. There's just not enough information! I found myself constantly looking up other sources midway through reading. But the author does include a list at the back of the book with recommended further reading, a list I'll be diving straight into.

[Benjamin Mak · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was surprisingly well-written, digestible, clear and to the point. The historical sources were interesting.

Kurke has instilled a myriad of tangible and invaluable practical leadership attributes here, qualities that can be learned comfortably from the man himself, Alexander the Great, as one of history's most formidable leaders.

I am keen to try attuning and emulating them in strategic and tactical planning, both my personal and professional lives. Kudos.

[Russell Hayes · Rating 2 out of 5]

I feel that this book is a bit mislabeled: it is more of a history book than one about business management. The modern-day applications of Alexander's behavior were a bit too cursory to be of much help.

That being said, the details of Alexander's conquests were fascinating, and many lessons can easily be drawn from his exploits--many more than the author described in the book.

[Jenna (Falling Letters) · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had to read this book for school - I wasn't interested in the business parts (which is kind of the point...) thought I did like the stories about Alexander the Great. If you're interested in business and Alexander the Great, then you'll like this book ;P

[Tommy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I must say, the beginning of the book was a drag, but the more I got into it, I realized this author extracts some valid examples. This guy knows what he's talking about, it's not complicated; a very simple read.

[Ming · Rating 3 out of 5]

I don't know what possessed me to read this, but it was actually surprisingly good, and possibly applicable

[Nina Santos-Becker · Rating 4 out of 5]

A must read when you're responsible for Strategic Planning & New Business Development for your organization. Lessons are still applicable today.

[Nick Woodall · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book on Alexander the Great and leadership.

[Kathryn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Alexander was great and this book has some great lessons to be learned.

[Empty · Rating 2 out of 5]

Quick read, mostly surface level, but with some interesting stories from Alexander's life and business stories from these days.