ماذا تسأل الشخص الذي تراه في المرآة : أسئلة حاسمة لكي تصبح قائدا أكثر فعالية وتصل الى أقصى قدراتك

by Robert S. Kaplan

يعتقد كثير من الأشخاص أن القادة العظماء يتمتعون بموهبة امتلاك الإجابات الصحيحة، ويعتقدون أن هؤلاء القادة يتمتعون بموهبة فطرية لمعرفة ما يجب فعله في أي موقف؛ فهم يعرفون كيفية البقاء في المسار الصحيح، وكيفية إلهام الموظفين للعمل نحو هدف مشترك والتنظيم بفاعلية وقيادة أعمالهم، ويظن هؤلاء الأشخاص أن القادة العظماء يولدون بمواهب معينة ورؤى وشخصية جذابة وهو ما يميزهم عن غيرهم. بالطبع، هؤلاء القادة العظماء واثقون للغاية بأنفسهم؛ لأن هذا يتأتى إليهم بشكل طبيعي للغاية!

ومن الأفكار الشائعة للغاية: أن هناك نوعًا نادرًا من القادة الناجحين الذين يتبعون مسارًا منهجيًّا صاعدًا في أثناء مسيرتهم المهنية، ويتجنبون الإخفاقات الكبيرة دائمًا ولا يعانون فترات من الارتباك، ونادرًا ما يشعرون بالفشل، كما أنهم يتمتعون بموهبة خارقة تتعلق بتوقع ما هو وشيك واستشراف المستقبل.

هذا الأمر يبدو لطيفا، لكنني لا أعتقد ذلك.

فعلى مدى خمسة وعشرين عاما - عملت في البداية مديرًا لأحد المشروعات ثم أستاذًا جامعيًّا لمادة ممارسات الإدارة بكلية هافارد للأعمال - توليت قيادة عدة شركات وقدمت نصائح بشكل مستمر لمجموعة كبيرة من كبار التنفيذيين والقادة الناشئين، وبالتأكيد اقترفت حصتي من الأخطاء، ومن هذه الأخطاء، اكتسبت رؤية أكبر في أساليب القيادة التي تميل إلى تعزيز فاعلية التنفيذيين، فضلا عن معرفة تلك الممارسات التي تضعف الأداء في أحيان كثيرة.

وفي سياق هذه التجارب، اكتشفت أنه تقريبًا وبدون استثناء، يمر القادة الناجحون بفترات طويلة من الوقت يشعرون فيها بالحيرة وبالإحباط وبعدم الثقة في أنفسهم وفي قراراتهم، فهم يشعرون كما لو أنه ينبغي عليهم أن يكونوا في مكان آخر ويفعلوا شيئًا آخر، ويتساءلون عن السبب الذي يجعل التنفيذيين الآخرين يبدون كأنهم يمرون بأوقات أكثر سهولة عند القيام بوظائفهم. لكن هؤلاء القادة يمرون بمراحل عصيبة يبحثون فيها عن إجابات ويشعرون بالوحدة في الواقع. وحتى عندما يعطون انطباعًا بالثقة، فإنهم يكتمون بداخلهم مشاعر عميقة من عدم اليقين والتخوف.

يجد كثيرون من التنفيذيين الناجحين صعوبة في تصديق أن أقرانهم الناجحين الآخرين يشعرون بهذه الحالة، وكثيرًا ما يسألونني على نحو متشكك: "لو كان هذا صحيحًا، إذن ما الفرق بين التنفيذيين الناجحين وهؤلاء التنفيذيين الأقل نجاحًا؟".

إجابتي هي أن الفرق الجوهري بين هؤلاء الذين يكتشفون إمكاناتهم وهؤلاء الذين لا يكتشفونها يكمن في كيفية تعامل هؤلاء الأشخاص مع فترات الحيرة وعدم اليقين، ولا تكمن البراعة في عدم تجنب هذه الفترات العصيبة؛ وإنما تكمن في معرفة كيفية الرجوع خطوة إلى الوراء، والتحليل وإعادة التنظيم والمضي قدما بعد ذلك.
كتب مشابهة

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

248 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2017

Reviews

[Said AlMaskery]

Although it took me a lot of time reading this book, I would still mark it as a-must-read business book especially if you are in your initial stages as a young organisation leader. There were a lot of practical aspects that help identify certain core questions, questions that encourages you to think about both the organisation and your self.

Can the book serve as a bible for business leadership? I wouldn't say that as there are far better books, such as " The I of Leadership" or "Strategic Leadership" previously reviewed in my read archive. However it is still a book you would like to read even later on in your career as it brings you back to some basics that you might have missed as you progressed in your career.

The centric idea of the book is the creation of identity. Whereby your own identity cannot be separated from that of your organisation. Hence the more you understand thyself (strengths & weaknesses) the more effective you are in leading the ship.

[Steve Long]

great business book

[Ritesh Chhajer]

Ask right questions

Leadership is not about knowing all the answers. It’s about asking the right questions. Invest in talent. Talented people are the most important asset any organization can have. Do not rely on empty rhetorics to command excellence. Instead, build excellence. Build a winning team.

Time

Time is very important asset and it’s a finite one. Once spent, it cannot be replenished. The challenge with time management is life as a leader is extremely chaotic. Events happen at their own schedule and we are forced to respond. So it’s highly imperative to use your own time as well we as your people’s time wisely.

Feedback loop

Criticism basically implies judgement and we all recoil from feeling judged. Offering feedback has to be a humble exploration rather than declaration, a dialogue rather than a monologue, curiosity rather than certainty.

[Paiman Chen]

Combined with MJ “A man in the mirror”, this is a masterpiece that help whoever willing to develop their leadeship skills - with or without title, with or without direct reports. Why? It starts with one self. It is about cultivating the right mindset — Believe+Courage - to do the right thing, be yourself, help others and sacrifice for the success of the organisation. Be mindful to develop your own style - fit for you personally as well as your organisation. How? It takes a lot of practice. Believe+Courage.

This is definitely a right pick to start the year. Call it a year of reflection, a year of discovery. It feels right to plan ahead.

[Brendan O'Brien]

I read this in one of my organizational management courses during my Masters Program. I thought the book gave a really good perspective of that it takes to be a good leader. Not only does it give you perspective of what employees look for in a manger. It gives you questions to ask yourself when you are leading.

My criticism to the book was it felt very repetitive after the first 100 pages. I think it could have been condensed. It wasn’t a long read by any means. I just think the author started to repeat the points he wanted to get out of the book.

[Ietrio]

When daddy planned the whole life for you, like in the case of Kaplan, you would find yourself trusted in management positions that are way over your head. Only this book is not about leaders. Kaplan doesn't know. It's about how to wing it so your bosses will feel you were meant for that middle management job.

[Mark Simmerman]

First book to go on my DNF shelf. It was a bit of a bait and switch with the author, Robert Steven Kaplan, not one of the co-authors of BSC. I lost confidence that his leadership advice would be more than generic after the 2nd chapter. I might pick it up again someday.

[Christian Lin]

Rating: 4/5 To the degree that leadership is a concrete concept, this book was engaging because of the principles and philosophy that Kaplan advocates for

Favorite quotes and ideas:
https://christianinc.substack.com/p/b...

[Luciano Elementi]

Lot of important things in it.
Well presented, things to focus on.

[Anne]

I actually didn't finish it, my library loan was up before I could. True confessions. Might go back and get it later but it's not the most inspiring book. Kinda made me feel tired.

[Jerome]

this book should be on every MBA's classroom.

[Wei Luo]

Never stop growing from inside to the ouside

[Robert S.]

This book is not mine. Please remove it from my author list.

Robert S. Kaplan, HBS Professor

[Stefani B]

Decently good read if you’re trying to become a stronger leader. Recommend for managers or senior executives.

[Miriam]

for class

[Vienda Giacomelli]

Interessante ma un po’ lungo da leggere. Più adatto ad imprenditori.

[Eric Anthony]

Very good book for its genre -

[Jaideep Khanduja]

Great Lessons For A Leader

http://pebbleinthestillwaters.blogspo...

Book Review: What To Ask The Person In The Mirror By Robert S Kaplan: Great Lessons For A Leader

Recently I read a good book from Robert S. Kaplan titled as What To Ask The Person In The Mirror. Robert Kaplan is well known as co-creator of the Balanced Scorecard. Formerly he was vice chairman of Goldman Sachs. In this book he has raised some genuine concerns related to Leadership like - Why focus is important for leaders? Is it possible to create leaders or it is only born leaders? How leaders cope up with setback? What all changes happen with moving one step up on the ladder of growth and success?

A deep introspection is required for a leader, as per Kaplan in a way that when a leader stands in front of a mirror, he must ask some basic fundamental questions from himself. Robert S Kaplan teaches in Harvard University in the field of management practice. Kaplan states that leaders have a very good quality of posing confident all the time even if they are not sure about the situation at times. Let us take a note of few important points on What lessons can a Leader get from Robert S Kaplan based on his latest book What To Ask The Person In The Mirror:

1. There is a great relationship between Leader and Being Focused.

2. Leadership qualities can be inculcated in a Leader by means of adopting few important qualities.

3. A good Leader has to be a good actor too, especially at the time of crisis.

4. A good Leader becomes expert over period of time on getting out of state of confusion quicker
than others.

5. A good Leader when not sure about his decisions, takes a call based on his inner strengths.

[Mudit Aggarwal]

Are you comfortable asking questions?

Usually, people don’t ask questions for one of three reasons:

1. They are sure of everything that they need to know, beyond any scope of doubt
2. They are concerned not to come across as someone who doesn’t know (i.e. stupid)
3. They think they need to act quickly (it’s an emergency)

And here is a book that not only suggests we ask more questions, but also suggests many pertinent questions we could ask in different situations.

The author, Prof. Robert Kaplan, is no stranger to management and leadership struggles. There are seven key areas taken up by him in this book:

Vision & priorities
Managing your time
Giving & getting feedback
Succession planning & delegation
Evaluation & alignment
Leader as role model
Reaching your potential

Each key area is discussed in great detail, and Prof. Kaplan has provided some questions that we need to ask ourselves to better understand our own position on each of these key areas. And, finally, he has provided a framework that neatly ties everything together.

Through this book, Prof. Kaplan makes it easier for people to ask questions. A skill most of us need to develop.

A self-help book that would make sense to every manager / leader.

[Chitra]

Have recently started reading this book. Kaplan has spoken about a 7 step approach for becoming effective which starts from having a vision, defining the value proposition, leader becoming a role model.

What I had expected from this book is partially met right now as it hasn't been able to engage me in the first few pages.

A book which you can kind of avoid buying!

[Cathy]

I haven't read a lot of leadership books. I thought Rob made a lot of sense and many good particle suggestions. There's even homework assignments. I like his idea of articulating and updating gols frequently. It's a quick read, but something I'll go back to.

[Carlos]

The concept of reflection to align the company with threats and opportunities. I enjoyed reading on the mini cases on how this approached has worked with top level executives. I wish the author would had mentioned the execs.

[Stephen]

READ JUL 2013

Good for any current leader to be reminded of what most likely drew them into leadership roles. Essential for any emerging leader to understand ways to develop good practices to enhance their development as leaders.

[Hector Maldonado Maldonado]

En un estilo ligero, entrega valiosos puntos para aquellos que dirigen un grupo, e incluso a los que no.

[Mildred]

Recomendado, después de leer Inteligencia Emocional e Inteligencia Emocional para los negocios. Así como para Emprendedores y todos aquellos que desean una vida trabajadora más sana.

[James Barr]

This book encourages you to develop and reflect on critical questions for reaching your potential as a more effective leader. It provokes thought and motivates action.

[Rodrigo Acras]

Nothing really new, but very well wirten and a concise guide to be a good and peacefull leader!

[Glennie Mercer]

Some practical tools and tips for honing your leadership

[Johanna Elsener]

Interesting.

[Jeremy]

A clear set of questions to ask. easy read.