The Radical Leap: A Personal Lesson in Extreme Leadership

by Steve Farber

The business world is ready for an entirely new approach to leadership. Steve Farber has written the perfect book to energize business leaders and help them make the leap into extreme leadership. In fact, taking a giant "L.E.A.P." forward is exactly what Farber prescribes. What exactly is an extreme leader? One who cultivates love , generates energy , inspires audacity , and provides proof . In his exciting and innovative new business parable, The Radical Leap , Farber explores an entirely new leadership model, one in which leaders are not afraid to take risks, make mistakes in front of employees, or actively solicit employee feedback. His book dispenses with the typical, tired notions of what it means to be a leader. Farber, former Vice President and Official Mouthpiece of the Tom Peters Company , has written a business parable like no other, filled with vivid, fully realized, and eccentric characters, crazy plot twists, honest and believable conversations about leadership, and most importantly, an innovative program for leaders to inspire and engage their companies. In The Radical Leap , we meet Steve, a leadership consultant who is intrigued and challenged by an enigmatic man named Edg, from whom he learns the concept of L.E.A.P. Steve is then asked to help a friend, Janice, overcome conflicts at the biotech company where she works and bring back the company's inspiring former CEO. The company is revitalized, having undergone a radical and successful transformation. Farber's book reveals the questions leaders must ask themselves in order to truly become extreme leaders, including:
* Why do I love my business, my employees, and my customers, and how can I show them how I feel?
* What effect do my actions have on the energy of the people around me? (OR, what are the unnecessary, time-consuming, bureaucratic policies and procedures that suck our energy?)
* How are we going to change the world of our company, our employees, customers, marketplace, and industry?
* What have I done today to show my commitment to my colleagues and customers?

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

192 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 2004

Reviews

[Dan Archer · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was taken by surprise by this little gem. I picked up the smallest book I could see on the shelf to accompany me on a short train journey for a training course, only to find that instead of a business leadership how-to, I'd actually picked up a short novel.

Presenting the book in this way actually makes a lot of sense to me. Is there a better way to learn new concepts than to see examples of how they are outworked? At any rate, I found it very refreshing, and a lot easier to read than other books on the same subject.

The tenet on which the book is based sounds as cheesy as you may expect from a book on leadership, but I've come away from the book asking myself the questions that Farber's characters face. It seems incredibly simple to say that in order to lead others in work that we have to first have given ourselves to the work, but I dare say I'm not the only one who at times would really rather be somewhere other than the office.

The core of this book is about being invested in the work we do, and doing work that we love. Simple maybe, but it can take you a heck of a long way.

[Ratha · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the concept of the "Oh Shit! Moment" (OS!M). Real growth opportunities occur outside your comfort zone, and this concept seems like a useful way to put a name to a feeling in order to harness it.

The discussion of the role that passion ("love") plays in leadership also was worthwhile.

However, the writing was skippable. It was full of cliches, and clearly an attempt to embellish 13 pages of ideas into a 180-page book. (The 13 pages of core content are actually included in an appendix.)

[Infromsea · Rating 2 out of 5]

I begin to suspect a conspiracy in the world of “books on leadership”.

All of the reviews on this book’s jacket are from other “leadership gurus” some of whom the author has worked with or for. I don’t see a single “review” from a down in the trenches leader; they are all from the leadership “academia” so to speak. I begin to suspect that (like blogs today) all of these “leadership gurus” are just making money by writing books and then endorsing each other’s wares, creating a “circle jerk” of titles.

And now to the book. It was short, it was easy to read and it was mostly full of shit. I’ll summarize: Love what you do and you will be full of energy. Love those who work for you, show your appreciation for them in writing and they will feel your love and know that you care for them. There is nothing new here, just the same information we’ve read in other places, wrapped around an un-believable tale. The author makes note of the fact that the story is some fantasy mixed with some reality and it might be tough to determine what is what. The overall effect is a story that seems completely ridiculous.

To be honest, I didn’t realize how little I like this book until I started writing this review. I’m a Navy Chief who runs a maintenance department with 8 shops and 200 Sailors working for me on a daily basis. That doesn’t make me the “be all to end all” of leadership but I’ve seen my share of good leaders and bad leaders, I’ve read numerous books on leadership and I try my best to be a good leader on a daily basis. This book has great intentions and a few good passages but overall it feels like just another book written for a buck. When I read a book on leadership I hope to take something away from it to add to my “toolbox” of leadership knowledge and skills, while this book did give, it gave very little, put it at the very end of your leadership reading list.

My personal grading criteria:

1 star = couldn’t finish it, don’t bother, burn it

2 stars = too simple in concept, poorly written, bad plot, hard to read, concepts not clear

3 stars = a good book, worth your time, either enjoyable as a relaxing read or good at conveying information as a learning tool

4 stars = excellent plot, well developed characters, good information, unique concepts, information you might not get elsewhere

5 stars = a classic, worth reading again (possibly several times), superb story, excellent pacing, new and enlightening concepts or knowledge, may be very difficult to read based on subject matter or extremely easy to read if recreational

[Debbie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Steve Farber who was a VP for Tom Peters who in the 1980's did such great books on customer service wrote a great parable about the new paradigm shift in today's businesses.
I experienced about 4 aha moments while reading - the book brought tears to my eyes.
I have read a lot of books and attended lots of courses on leadership.
So I am always looking for the human truth and I found it in Steve's book.
I am reading this at a time in my life when I want to be re-energized and renewed and Steve's book was an affirmation.
Here are the words that spoke directly to me:
"Love inspired audacity is courageous and bold and filled with valor (I love this word). It's the kind of audacity that's required to change the world for the better".
"In what well do you dip your cup to get the nourishment you need to meet the obstacles and challenges that you and yours face everyday? Find out and go there often."
I get my books from the Multnomah County Library - #1 library in the US for Portland's demographics and the last time this book had been checked out is 2010. This book should be standard reading material for everyone in business!!

[Alison · Rating 1 out of 5]

My poor overworked sister forced me to read this so I could help her come up with something smart for her to say in her leadership seminar. There is simply nothing smart, nor any good point to glean from this book. It is perhaps the most specious piece of bullshit I have ever read. "Love generates Energy, inspires Audacity, and needs Proof" isn't actually any sort of organizing or organizational principal.
#NeverGettingThisHourOfMyLifeBack

[Jeffrey · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was required reading for my new job. I am predisposed to hate books like this. I think it stems from the time I borrowed the car of my first boss to run an errand and he had some sort of business/motivational tape on at full volume. It not only bruised my ears, but I think it damaged my soul a bit. To this day, I've never recovered...

This LEAP book (Love! Energy! Audacity! Proof!)...it just seemed so hokey the way it was written. Like maybe if I had been retarded I might have been more entertained. But mostly I just felt like I was being talked to like I was in summer camp and I was 10 and it was story time.

[John Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

i want to write business "inspirational" books like this and sell it to corporations and retire comfortably (and early)!

[Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book! Really gets to the heart of compassionate leadership and how loving our fellow co-workers and employees are absolutely necessary in creating a dynamic fun yet effective culture.

[Julie · Rating 5 out of 5]

The kind of book that makes you go, "...huh!" (In a good way.) Really enjoyable read- short and plainly written.

[Avi Poje · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this book in preparation of attending a leadership conference in December. It was damned hard to find for free--only annoyingly available on Hoopla, which I had to read on my phone. Thankfully, it's a short book.

I wasn't impressed. I have a number of issues with the book.

First, there were bits that seemed sexist to me, or at best, from the perspective of a heterosexual male. For example, the part where he says, "Most of the passes say 'Escort Required' (but they never live up to the promise in a way that would make it really interesting)."

There are times when you can acknowledge the sexual nature of your desires without sounding objectifying. But perhaps a leadership parable isn't a place to even attempt it?

Second, a lot of his attempted humor fell flat with me. I don't know what it was--it didn't feel genuinely funny. It just felt ingenuine and awkward. For example, "That's why I soon found myself sitting in a small booth at Saska's Steakhouse, a Mission Beach landmark since God created cows."

Third, his dialogue was similarly awkward at times. His characters would say things that no human would actually say. For example, a character who knows the protagonist for a long time says, "Sorry," she said with resolve. "Have a seat, Steve." Steve responds: "No need to apologize, Janice." People don't usually use each other's names like this when they know each other well enough.

Fourth, he tries to be edgy with his language, introducing the term "OS!M" as for "oh shit! moment." I get what he was trying to go for, but it seems he's trying to hide it behind a weird abbreviation with an exclamation point in it. Later in the book, he also threw in "OF!M" and "flying f**ked company.com" and several other expletives. I'm not a prude--I say *shit* and *fuck* quite often, actually. But the book didn't seem to earn the right to cross that familiarity barrier yet.

Fifth, a minor quibble, but he confused the settings a number of times. His characters would enter a trailer home, start talking, and suddenly it'd talk about the wind blowing their their hair and sun shining, as if they suddenly teleported to the back yard without letting the audience know.

Sixth, there were some anachronisms. This book was originally published in 2004 so maybe I'll forgive it, but surely the 10th anniversary edition could leave out several reference to telephone books? I can't remember the last time I used one myself.

Seventh, his mentor "Edg" was teaching him the principles of LEAP, but he really didn't get past L very far, before Steve himself started talking about other parts of the acronym, especially P for Proof. I thought the introduction of the acronym was clunkily handled and he forgot to plan out his story well enough to integrate the principles in the order they needed to be discussed.

Eighth, he writes with too many modifiers: "He was wearing a bright yellow Hawaiian shirt patterned with ripe, bulbous pineapples."

Okay, now that I've gotten the book's criticisms over with, how about its message?

Well, I can certainly see that embracing your discomforts (the oh shit! moments) can lead towards progress as well as risk.

The focus on "Love" struck me as a little too close to what Cal Newport calls the "Passion Hypothesis" in So Good They Can't Ignore You (Newport 2012). I lean towards Newport on this one; not everyone has the privilege to magically fall into a job that they'll love. Farber's focus on finding a reason to love the work, and then that provides the E - Energy to lead others, smacks of some privilege to me.

The message of A - Audacity was lost in this book. Despite saying that he was "not normally impressed by acronyms," I think he stuck Audacity in there just to avoid the word "LEP." In fact, introducing it, he had to quote from Webster's Thesaurus that audacity has several different meanings, and pointed out the one he meant.

P - Proof was, as I mentioned earlier, introduced by the protagonist in the story without much discussion, a de facto given. I agree though, that goals without actions are just dreams.

He throws around the term “extreme leadership” without explaining how it’s different from the regular kind. I imagine it sells better, just like Radical Candor and Extreme Ownership did for Scott and Willink.

So what did I learn? That you can't have a vision without acting on it. You can't lead without putting all your energy behind it. You need to push yourself towards your own discomfort to make progress. You need to be genuine and true to yourself.

[Megan · Rating 3 out of 5]

My husband recommended me this leadership book that he read almost a decade ago, but still felt very impactful to him all of these years later. Most of the time I spent reading; I kept thinking, “This all has to be made up;” “Why did my husband like this book so much?” “Isn’t this all pretty obvious?” And yet I read it so quickly because I just needed to see the full picture. In the end, I really liked it and think the principals are great reminders about how we can inspire as leaders and why we work in the first place. I am excited to review this book with the other leaders we are trying to develop within our organization and see if we can’t use the elements of LEAP to develop further belief in themselves and our company mission. I’d give a solid 3.5 but since no half stars in good reads, 3 stars it is!

[Weaver · Rating 4 out of 5]

I find myself surprised by how much I enjoyed this. It's a quick, easy read but it's rather dense with interesting ideas. For me, it's a lot more about the perspective than about the process, which I don't know enough managers-who-want-to-be-leaders focus on. I like the whole LEAP ideal, actually, but it also makes me ask questions about the more mundane jobs out there. How can this philosphy be applied to jobs (or perhaps people) less focused on changing the world? The writing style's not bad either, but the incorrectly punctuated/formatted dialogue kind of bothered me...

Buy, basically, it's got me thinking. I like that.

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Cultivate love in order to generate boundless energy and inspire courageous audacity."

"Employees who love you will bring themselves fully into their work day after day, no matter if the company down the street is paying a bit more. Love is your retention strategy." -The Radical Leap by Steve Farber

"Give everyone you serve something to love about you and what you're doing."

Look for experiences that will help you "ride bigger waves" later. Set leap goals. Do hard things. Fear often means that you are about to do something truly significant.

[Michelle Baumann · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like the philosophy, but like radical candor and others, I didn’t feel like I needed an entire book. An essay could have gotten me there. Maybe it’s because I feel I already live this style of leadership. His metaphors were terrible haha. He tried to add flowery language and probs shouldn’t have.

But I loved the construct and some really good considerations as a leader, particularly around considering your purpose at work. Liked the twist on Edg too, who I thought was a rogue metaphorical character but now makes sense.

[Andrew Bernstein · Rating 1 out of 5]

1.5-2 stars downgraded for several unnecessary misogynistic passages. On the positive side it was easy to read and it had its moments, however the simplicity of the story and message made it seem as though it was directed at preschoolers

[Ben Spilger · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another prototypical ‘good’ business book. Good concepts, not particularly original, unnecessary acronyms, could have been 10 pages but would have been a much less enjoyable read. Better than most, still par for the course.

[Kristen Considine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved it! I was expecting the normal leadership book on textbook principles and got none of that. Wonderful to read something based on passion and expression and communicating, sharing, and instilling it in your people.

[Alyssa · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easy read and I loved the fiction format! It has made an impact in how I live- taking audacious risks!!

[Grant Gardner · Rating 5 out of 5]

Easy reap to LEAP into great message and perspective.

[Alex · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing Read

This is a very thought provoking book. I am anxious to continue my leadership journey by incorporating LEAP in my daily life. Stay Tune....

[Cari · Rating 4 out of 5]

Patrick Lencioni-esque leadership fable but a bit more cheesy. Simple, powerful concepts.

[Foster · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read it in one sitting could not put it down.

[Bill Pritchard · Rating 5 out of 5]

A delightful, quick read that helps center one on what is important for those looking to lead others.

[Antipoet · Rating 1 out of 5]

Inane corporatist bullshit.

[Max Schroeder · Rating 4 out of 5]

The take away to me: do what love what you do, and do what you love. As a leadership book, it was an excellent method to provide the information. A very fast read with resounding message.

[Charles Goodger · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent - highly recommended

[Julia Wood]

HD57.7 .F37 2009

[Vanessa Haberman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great, easy read.

[Dennis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Wish I felt more motivated

[Eva Matuszyk · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very anecdotal, but the premise was good.