A More Excellent Way

by Neal A. Maxwell

Essays on Leadership for Latter-Day Saints

Genres: Religion, Leadership, Church, Spirituality, Lds, Nonfiction

142 pages

First published January 1, 1967

About the author

Neal A. Maxwell was well known as an Apostle, author, administrator, and educator. A graduate of the University of Utah, he was the Commissioner of Education for the Church Educational System for six years. He also held a variety of administrative and teaching positions at the University of Utah, including that of executive vice-president.

In 1974 Elder Maxwell was called as an Assistant to the Council of the Twelve. From 1976 to 1981 he served as member of the Presidency of the First Quorum of the Seventy, and in 1981 was called to the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles.

Elder Maxwell has written numerous books on Latter-day Saint themes, including "If Thou Endure It Well"; "Lord, Increase Our Faith"; "That Ye May Believe"; and "Not My Will, But Thine". He and his wife, Colleen Hinckley Maxwell, had four children.

Elder Maxwell died July 21, 2004.

Reviews

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a nice little book about leadership. Leadership is something that I've thought and read a lot about and have been interested in for a while – especially after working in this field for a couple of years in Washington DC, but I particularly like this book because it speaks of leadership principles as they relate to the gospel of Jesus Christ and service and leadership opportunities in church assignments. Even though it is written specifically to this audience I think the principles apply more broadly to other settings as well.

Good leadership has to do with love. Leadership includes change, patience, listening, gathering information, being candid and open, commending and reproving, problem solving in groups, learning at home and pondering. Jesus was the perfect person and leader.

Here are a few quotes that I liked….and in going back to re-read some of these I realize again how profound and important these principles are:

"'…yet shew I unto you a more excellent way' (1 Cor. 12:31)… [Paul] boldly declares that love undergirds everything else….The linkage between love and leadership is obvious…There is love that includes the power of reproof…There is love that is candor…There is love that causes us to serve and work for others…He who loves sees others with honest concern (p. 2)."

"Jesus is the only perfect leaders to grace the globe, and he was the only individual who was perfect in his love (p. 4)."

"The quality of our work and our service to other people is a direct indication of our capacity for love (p. 9)."

"Our eternity will be a direct and inevitable reflection of what each of us does 'with the time that is given us (p. 11).'"

"Leadership should seek to create a climate in which the leader and members of the group bring forth the best they have to offer….One of the great qualities Jesus had was his ability to demand of his disciples quality in thought and action, which, while temporarily uncomfortable, finally produced a cohesive kind of loyalty based on a sense of accomplishment….The leader who makes no demands of his disciples cannot really lead them at all. The sense of new excitement and new challenge generated by the gospel will be blunted by leaders who shield followers from the full demands of followership (p. 34)."

"There are no ordinary people. You have never talked to a mere mortal…it is immortals whom we joke with, work with, marry, snub, and exploit (C.S. Lewis, p. 37)."

"Active love is labour and fortitude…Leadership is love in action. That leadership which is greedy 'for immediate action rapidly performed in the sight of all' is a leadership which is oriented to applause, recognition, and rapidity. Most human situations in which we are called upon to exercise leadership are in fact those in which there will be little recognition and small applause (p. 44)."

"Change and improvement are also blocked by an inordinate fear of the unknown and the risks of change. This kind of fear can immobilize us; it can block us from accepting challenges that might permit us to grow. Significantly, the pioneers did not look over their shoulders out of nostalgia for Nauvoo; they moved into the unknown—but guided by God.
"Change and improvement are also blocked when we compartmentalize our lives so that learning in one part of our life does not affect another portion….Finally, suppression and rationalization will keep us from changing and growing (p. 48)."

"Good leaders and followers need to store up 'gladness' from previous experiences in order to weather out the tests and the buffetings of today and tomorrow in their relationships (p. 51)."

"Jesus was not only the perfect man, but also the perfect leader….
1. Jesus loved the people he led.
2. Jesus' leadership had a purpose which his followers came to appreciate and to share.
3. Jesus freed his followers from any sense of being force to follow.
4. Jesus gave his disciples meaningful, challenging tasks, not just busy work.
5. Jesus knew he was responsible, not only to his purposes, but to his people.
6. Jesus was a good listener.
7. Jesus often put questions to his followers to help them think through their own ideas and to understand better what he was trying to teach them.
8. Jesus was consistent in his life (p. 53)."

"The Book of Mormon speaks of the need for us to 'be familiar with all' (Jacob 2:17). This is not simply a matter of economic familiarity and of imparting of our economic and material substance to others…We need to be familiar with others psychologically and spiritually—to know them well enough to know their other kinds of needs: spiritual, intellectual, and emotional (p. 58)."

"Our relationships with each other today are seldom the relationships that last over decades. Because of our mobility and changes in economic conditions, our relationships with others are often temporary and even fleeting. If we are to have an impact on each other it must be achieved with relative speed (p. 73)."

"Of real significance for leadership is our ability to develop deep relationships (p. 75)."

"Trite expressions, devoid of feeling, are not particularly helpful in inter-personal relationships. How many of us have answered 'Fine' to the query 'How are you?' when we were not fine at all? This is not to suggest that we impose all our feelings and problems on others, but rather to note the meaningless rituals we sometimes engage in that can deaden the chances for real communication. Perhaps some of our failures in inter-personal relations stem from the fact that our religious and ethical beliefs lie at the very center of our being—at the very core of our concerns. They are the things which we share with the fewest number of people and which are the least easily penetrated parts of our personality….much could be accomplished 'if people would talk about their religion in the same, simple, straight-forward, matter-of-fact way that they talk about other things….It is significant, again, to note that in this respect we find Jesus revealing himself and his personality openly, candidly, talking about things that mattered most….candor and openness can create a climate of trust in which mis-communication can be reduced (p. 77).'"

"While leadership based on love is a more excellent way, it takes courage to love (p. 85)."

"There is in the admittedly authoritarian structure of the Church much more opportunity to use participative approaches than is realized…too many opportunities are missed by members because of erroneous or lazy assumptions (p. 99)."

"Some leaders are principle-oriented, some leaders are organization-oriented, some leaders are people-oriented. Jesus blended these marvelously—since each orientation, at times, is vital (p. 107)."

"Since the early years have such a profound and lasting effect on character and behavior, they offer an opportunity in leadership training which few families utilize. No other leadership training can exceed in value the training that can occur in the home. In fact, more and more research points up the relationship of child-rearing practices to the quality of a whole society (p. 121)."

"In a leadership role in the kingdom it is necessary, of course to have conceptual skills that embrace not only basic gospel concepts, but also basic leadership concepts (p. 125)."

"The need for greater individual study of the gospel—more scholarship on the part of individual members who do not demand of the Church that it supply them with intellectual handouts—is also something which can start to be met in the home. We can be much more effective as leaders and followers if we engage in individual gospel scholarship (p. 126)."

"Developing congruency and avoiding compartmentalization of one's life is, of course, necessary for the wholeness and integrity we all crave, but which is so elusive at times (p. 127)."

"I came to a night, some years ago, when, on my bed, I realized that before I could be worthy of the high place to which I had been called, I must love and forgive every soul that walked the earth, and in that time I came to know and I received a peace and a direction, and a comfort, and an inspiration, that told me things to come and gave me impressions that I knew were from a divine source (p. 139)."

[Jaron Dunford · Rating 3 out of 5]

Notes:

Without the church, how many of us individually would have sent supplies to beleaguered Chileans a few years ago after the earthquakes there? How many of us would take a regular interest in the families of our neighbors if we were not called as home teachers? How many of us would meaningful involved in aiding young people if there were no mutual? How many of us would fast or give regularly to the poor if the were no prodding from the church? By organizing our concern we become more involved, more effectively involved, enlarging our circles of concern. Otherwise, we might become mere checkbook christians, contributing money but not involving ourselves with others.

The fellowship of the ring has two of his characters engaged in this dialogue as follows:
"I wish it need not have happened in my time," says Frodo. "So do I," replies Gandalf, "and so do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us." Our eternity will be a direct and inevitable reflection of what each of does with the time that is given us.

Leadership should seek to create a climate in which the leader and members of the group bring forth the best they have to offer. Sometimes, of course, the best which individuals have to offer is not of a high quality, but we must assure them as to the acceptability of their offering. Our task is to avoid unnecassary mediocrity, too, and our tolerance of poor performance by ourselves and others is, at times, not tolerance at all but lazy leadership. By setting church standards clearly and helping ourselves and others to grow within these standards in mind-stretching and ability stretching ways we will experience infinite variety in outcome.

The leader who makes no demands of his disciples cannot really lead them at all. The sense of new excitement and new challenge generated by the gospel will be blunted by leaders who shield followers from the full demands of followership.

We find in Paul the ability to respond to the clarion call. Lord, what wilt though have me to do? Openness to the new and surprising challenges which God may place in front of us is requisite of every leader. Some of us shrink from such calls to adventure. Resistance to the routine experiences that church life can bring us is as depriving, ultimately as shrinking from adventure.

The gap between our knowledge and god's knowledge is ignorance. The gap between our knowledge and our behavior is sin.

[Sherman Langford · Rating 4 out of 5]

A thoughtful and approachable set of musings on leadership directed at members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. A short and worthwhile read. Many practical insights to carry along on a disciples journey where opportunities to both lead and follow abound.

[Layne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have been doing some personal study about leadership. As part of my study I tried to find a book about leading with love. I found several books about leading like the Savior, but most of them seemed to simply list some leadership characteristics that the Savior possessed and then told you to go and do likewise.

I stumbled across this book and I was glad that I did. The think I liked about this book is that Elder Maxwell starts at the doctrine level of leadership, not at the application level of leadership. (Referencing the doctrine, principles, and application discussion in Elder Bednar’s book “Increase in Learning”). I loved his definition of leadership. “Leadership is love in action”. That definition has really resonated with me.

This book is one of Maxwell’s early writings so it is just a bit dated with some of the examples and church terms that he used, but the information is still very relevant.

It is well worth my time to read this book and I highly recommend it.

Note: DO NOT buy the Kindle version on Amazon. It is way overpriced and very poorly formatted. Also, the tables, diagrams and pictures are missing. Find somewhere else to buy it.

[Aubrey Dustin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Neal A. Maxwell was a member of the Quorum of the 12 Apostles of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, better known as the Mormons. He served in this capacity from 1981 until his death in 2004. He was well known in the Church for his clarity and depth of expression as an orator and writer. In A More Excellent Way, Elder Maxwell shares a series of essays on leadership that focuses on love as the key ingredient of values based leadership. His insights have amazing breadth and depth. Some notable highlights are a section on leadership lessons that can be learned from Christ’s actions in scripture, and another section on leadership traits taught by scripture. He includes a valuable section on things that block change and improvement and things that spur change and improvement. A collection of insights on values based leadership as potent and well-written as this should not be overlooked by any student of the topic.

[Timber · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good book about how to be an effective leader. It is not a book of "do this" or "do that." Instead, Maxwell points out mentalities and reasons why effective leadership are so important in the LDS church and how to gain those ways of being. As is typical of all Maxwell writings, this is a dense read--not a particularly easy book to get through!

[Andre · Rating 5 out of 5]

Except for Orson Scott Card, we probably own more books by Neil A. Maxwell than any other author. He is one of the most literate LDS Apostles and writers. All of his writing lifts the reader and conveys to her or him his love of Jesus Christ.

[Barbara Lovejoy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I had read this book--years ago. I wanted to read it again because Neal A Maxwell challenges me to ponder and think about things more deeply. I had forgotten how wonderful this book was. Yet, I need to read it again...and probably again...and start applying what I am learning.

[Heather · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love anything written by Elder Maxwell, he is a beatuful poet.

[Brad Partridge · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was a tough read but i pushed through it.