The best historians in the land consider examples of great leadership, well known and surprising, from Washington to Willkie and more. What made FDR a more successful leader during the Depression crisis than Hoover? Why was Eisenhower more effective as supreme commander during World War II than he was as president? Why was Grant one of the best presidents of his day, if not in all of American history? What drove Bobby Kennedy into the scrum of electoral politics? Who was Pauli Murray and why was she one of the most decisive figures in the movement for civil rights?
Find the surprising and revelatory answers to these questions and more in this collection of new essays by great historians, including Sean Wilentz, Alan Brinkley, Annette Gordon-Reed, Jean Strouse, Robert Dallek, Frances FitzGerald, and others. Entertaining and insightful individually, taken together the essays represent a valuable set of reflections on the enduring ingredients of leadership―the focus of an introduction by Walter Isaacson.
This book is a treat for lovers of fine history. 13 black-and-white illustrations
Walter Isaacson, a professor of history at Tulane, has been CEO of the Aspen Institute, chair of CNN, and editor of Time. He is the author of 'Leonardo da Vinci; The Innovators; Steve Jobs; Einstein: His Life and Universe; Benjamin Franklin: An American Life; and Kissinger: A Biography, and the coauthor of The Wise Men: Six Friends and the World They Made. Visit him at Isaacson.Tulane.edu and on Twitter at @WalterIsaacson
Although academic history has become a specialized enterprise, there has been a resurgence of interest in popular histories and biographies as Americans seek to understand their past. This new book of essays edited by Walter Isaacson, "Profiles in Leadership: Historians on the Elusive Quality of Greatness" consists of thirteen essays by as many different historians on the contributions and leadership styles of important Americans, some of whom are less well known than they deserve to be to today's readers. Isaacson is the director of the Aspen Institute in Washington, D.C.. He has written biographies of Einstein, Benjamin Franklin, and Henry Kissinger, among others.
In the book's title and in the good introductory essay, Isaacson notes that the quality of leadership is "elusive" and non-formulaic. He draws a broad distinction between those who become leaders by articulating and staying with a principle and those who are flexible and pragmatic and respond to their perception of immediate need. This distinction is valuable, but it does not capture the many different qualities of leadership illustrated in the book. I have enjoyed reading the short biographies in the American President's series edited by Schleisinger and Willenz for their insights into the leadership qualities of the presidents. But, intellectuals, ministers, financiers, activists, and baseball managers, as well as politicians, can show leadership. What is leadership and when is it effective?
In preparing this book, Isaacson and an organization called the Society of American Historians asked several leading historians to write about whatever interested them on the subject of leadership. The result is a diverse series of thoughtful essays from a variety of perspectives. Here are the subjects considered in the book.
1. A study of George Washington's military leadership during the Revolution by Thomas Fleming. Sometimes criticized for his alleged lack of military knowledge, Fleming gives a persuasive account of Washington's strengths as a commander.
2. Charles Finney by Frances Fitzgerald, winner of the Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award for her study of Vietnam. Finney was an evangelist most active between 1820 -- 1850. Fitzgerald shows how he changed the character of American religion with his passion, personality, egalitarianism, and individualism.
3. The Presidency of Ulysees Grant by Sean Willentz, professor of history at Princeton and author of many studies of the Jacksonian Era. Many recent historians have revisited Grant's presidency and argued that its low reputation is undeserved. Willentz focuses on Grant's efforts both to promote equality for the Freedpeople in the South and to end violence against them and to reunite the nation.
4.J.P. Morgan by Jean Strouse, author of biographies of Morgan and of Alice James. A sympathetic account of this financier and capitalist who intervened on several occasions to rescue the American banking system and mitigate the effect of financial panic.
5. Chief Joseph by Elliott West, Professor at the University of Arkansas and author of many books on the American West. Highly moving account of this great Nez Perce leader discussing the leadership qualities he displayed in peace and in war and the respect he garnered from a spectrum of Americans.
6. Presidential weaknesses by Robert Dallek, Professor Emeritus, UCLA Good overview of many presidential shortcomings over the years. Dallek offers a remedy I find questionable in the form of a proposed constitutional amendment.
7.W.E.B. DuBois bu Annette Gordon-Reed, Professor of Law, Harvard Law School Overview of DuBois's many achievements as a scholar, intellectual, and activist.
8.Joseph McGraw by Kevin Baker A study of the successful, pugnacious, in-your-face leadership style of the manager of the New York Giants.
9. Hoover and Roosevelt by Alan Brinkley, Professor of History at Columbia One of the better essays in the book. It compares the background and leadership styles of the two presidents of the Great Depression and suggests why Hoover failed and Roosevelt succeeded.
10. Eisenhower as General and President by David Kennedy, Professor Emeritus at Stanford Another excellent comparative study, this time of one person in two roles. Kennedy finds that Eisenhower was more successful as General than as President and offers reasons about why this was the case.
11. Wendell Willkie by David Levering Lewis, Professor of History at NYU Wonderful essay, best in the book, reminding me of a person I have long admired. Willkie was a dark-horse candidate who ran against FDR's third term. Willkie showed both principle and pragmatism before, during, and after his presidential run. He supported civil rights and internationalism and made famous the concept of the "loyal opposition". I think his short career was our nation's loss.
12. Pauli Murray by Glenda Gilmore, Yale University Captures the character and accomplishments of an early, eccentric leader in Civil Rights and women's rights.
13. Robert Kennedy by Evan Thomas, Professor of Journalism at Princeton This essay seems to me overly sympathetic towards a complex figure, Robert Kennedy, who ran for president in 1968 after LBJ announced his decision not to run, and who was assassinated in a year of great tragedy and trauma.
The book concludes with good brief bibliographies of its subjects for readers who wish to explore further. The essays in this book are varied and thoughtful and will stimulate reflection on America's leaders and on the nature of leadership.
This is not the book I thought it was. I thought it was written by Walter Isaacson. It's many authors. Some stories are good, most average. Or maybe I was just to disappointed to appreciate it.
This isn't really a series of profiles on leadership, but rather a collection of actions from people the various authors appreciated with no clear connection to "the elusive quality of greatness."
The profiled individuals were all Americans, Interesting profiles nonetheless. Some unlikely and unexpected leaders made the cut but it was welcomed. No particular trait was zeroed-in as the condition of greatness but you get the sense that all leaders profiled were tactically and strategically astute with the on-and-off romance with pragmatism. Good insights.
It was your average history book, emotionless and very little synopsis at the end of each chapter. Each chapter was a sort of essay written by a different historian, hoping to gain some good advice from the book I was simply only told what that person did, not how their leadership was effective or of the different styles they took. The advice that there is no set definition for gaining leadership I believe was true but in the end all it did was tell the story of great leaders in a bland sense with no moral at the end.
Quote from the book "Leaders aren’t just the few famous people who dominate the news or find their place in history books. They don’t always represent the majority. They aren’t always popular. They don’t always win, and they aren’t always remembered. Leaders such as Pauli Murray, brave and obscure men and women who act on their convictions even though they fail time and time again, sometimes change the course of history."
This was not written by Isaacson - he just collected short essays written by other of famous and obscure figures in history. All of them tragically flawed who persevered
The third book in my leadership series discusses the profiles of leaders after going through the prevalent leadership models or approaches and evolution of leadership over the course of time. Since leadership in simple words is also what leaders do so it was logical to see what they do, how they do and how they are judged by history ? No better place to start than the United States of America, the biggest democratic experiment , a melting pot and a country which achieved greatness in shortest possible time. There might be contest on ethical dimension of greatness but not much when it comes to the economic prosperity , military might and popular culture.
Walter Isaacson was another reason for choosing this book. The celebrated historian and biographer has chronicled the lives of Greats ranging from Da Vinci to Benjamin Franklin and from Henry Kissinger to Steve Jobs. His particular interest in creativity and innovation makes his books a compulsory readings in leadership. He assembled a group of historians to comment on the ‘Greats’ of US. It was pity however that he did not contribute a piece himself but just edited the volume. The book has thirteen profiles starting from George Washington to Robert Kennedy. Apart from Politicians, it has civil rights activists, an Indian chief, a money man and a basketball coach. The style and approaches of profiles differ as each author takes the subject in own way. Some sketches are analytical and some just descriptive. Americans are attuned to excessive use of word great as interchangeable with leadership, a debatable construct in itself but serves the purpose here nonetheless.
What are the takeaways generally from the quality of leadership spanned over one and half centuries, and keeping the theories of leadership in the background ? Firstly no worldly leader is or can be perfect. A leader should be judged more on what he does (achievements ) and how he does (process/ethics) than who he is. George Washington comes close to being perfect though he was known more for having no or few flaws than having abundant qualities. There are hardly leaders without baggage which makes sense because now it is accepted that leaders are made or developed , not just born and the process of making is often tumultuous and erratic. Grant, the general and president was an officer then was found selling firewood and in few years was leading union armies in civil war. Secondly, leadership is more about adaptability , flexibility and pragmatism and less about talent. Leadership is about willingness to correct oneself without compromising on values. The essay on comparison of Presidents Herbert Hoover and FDR is the best and a case in point. Hoover the academic , idealist and a systems man was a failure while FDR an averagely talented without much convictions has now been rated as the greatest president of 20th century on the strengths of pragmatism and flexibility. Same is the case with the Indian Chief Joseph who instead of taking his people to destruction surrendered and salvaged as much as possible. Another extension of flexibility is compromise which Washington achieved when the structure of United States was being formulated.
The quest for change, reform mindedness and transformation also get reinforced as the essential qualities of leaders. We have here Charles Finney- the preacher whose theology focused on the social reforms, the idiosyncratic Wendell Willkie with his ahead of time approach to global issues, Robert Kennedy and his vision for social justice and JP Morgan with his strategic vision and the grasp for bigger picture. Then one looks at the lives of great leaders and one wonders that one life is too long. Eisenhower remained a middle level (a colonel ) for two decades , Washington’s war strategy was not wining one epic battle but surviving and Morgan’s father made him study languages in Europe before launching him in business. The road to greatness has many milestones.
Finally, history has been called the best judge of character but even history has its twists and turns. Grant is a case in point, left office as a disaster and banished from the hall of fame only to be revived a century later. Chernow’s Book on Grant has been a recent success and an indication of his rising fortunes. Eisenhower on the other hand entered office as most popular and left as a credible balancer. Only recently his evasiveness on the greatest moral issue of the time i.e civil rights has been called into question. Personally I am intrigued by the popularity of Barrack Obama whom I consider overrated instead genuine, manufactured instead of charismatic and divisive instead of a unifier. There would be work perhaps that will explain how he has (unwillingly) contributed to rise of Trump and failed the liberal dream despite the best of intentions. Anyways, this book is interesting and informative read. One gets to know that before Trump, a wall street businessman almost made to white house though he was more prescient and open minded and one cannot but regret the loss of last moral leader US saw in the form of Robert Kennedy or feel awed at the relentlessness and struggles of black civil rights activists.
(Audiobook) Normally, Walter Isaacson is the writer of major biographies and figures. However, for this work, he took on the role of editor, getting various other historians to offer their insights on various leaders throughout American history, both good and not-so-good. Much of the focus is on the major figures, like many of the Presidents. However, there are major business figures, particularly JP Morgan. You will also find some who's reputation and impact are not as well known as they once were, like the legendary ball player and manager John McGraw and Wendell Willkie.
Amid this eclectic group of individuals, the author reveal how these individuals acted as leaders, noting that even those successful in one area were not always successful in other areas. For all the praise FDR achieved in guiding the nation through the worst of the Depression and World War II, one theory that resonated was that his biggest mistake was not trying to pack the courts in 1937, but rather that a weakened, sickly man ran for a 4th term, one that he lasted in for only a few months. His unexpected death put the US in difficult immediate and longer-term situations that had major ramifications. Also, this work somehow as the contradictory asserts that Grant was both an underrated, but incredibly effective President, and that he was also a failed president, one that deserved his reputation for being a lesser executive figure.
Overall, this work offers some interest insights into American leadership. This a quest for greatness, but that concept is so nebulous and fleeting, it is not really a defining characteristic that leadership analysis should use. Even the best are not always great. Perhaps it is best stated that what makes the best so effective is that they were great when they had to be. Worth at least a read/listen.
- Many historical personalities with detailed analysis. If you like Isaacson's approach, you will be pleased to dive into the narrative
# 👎🏻 What I Didn't Like About It
- It's overwhelming, like reading a historical book without any emotional context, it's felt very dry and hollow. - Plenty of unnecessary details that just ruined the flow of reading, the connection with the story or characters, so many pointers and abbreviations…
# 👨🎓 What I’ve Learned
- One of the themes of the essays in this book is that the greatest challenge of leadership is to know when to be flexible and pragmatic, on the one hand, and when it is, instead, a moment to stand firm on principle and clarity of vision. Even the best leaders get this wrong sometimes.
# 📜 Quotes
“As it is, I hope you will agree that the world is complex enough that it will always be edifying to look at the balance of traits and skills that sometimes work, and sometimes don’t, in dealing with the shifting challenges that we continually confront.”
THE HISTORIAN RICHARD HOFSTADTER SAID THAT AMERICA IS THE only nation in history that believes it was born perfect and strives for improvement.
Book was very informative, covering leadership profiles that I was aware of as well as some that I had no recognition of. The background on some of the leaders profiled in this book was different than what we have read in history books. Well worth the time to read, even if you opt to read only select profiles (chapters) and not others. I found the profiles relative to Ulysses Grant, Robert Kennedy and the chapter comparing Hoover & Roosevelt.
Essays reinforced what I had learned from biographies on George Washington, Ulysses Grant, and Robert Kennedy. Piqued my interest in learning more about JP Morgan, FDR, and Dwight Eisenhower.
Appreciations of historical figures in American history who exemplify leadership. The best are U.S. Grant, J.P. Morgan, W.E.B. Dubois, John McGraw, Wendell Wilkie, and Pauli Murray.
I enjoyed most of these essays. I had read biographies about a few and though the short summaries mostly did them justice. More importantly, I found a couple people I want to know a lot more about.
This was a good and enjoyable read: essays by excellent historians about notable Americans. I now want to read more about some of the essay subjects ... and I learned enough about the others.
The concept was good, but somewhere along the way the essayists missed the point as they reverted to their more familiar personae as historians and biographers. The actual leadership qualities became lost to me in the biographical details of most of the essays. The surprise subjects didn't help at all -- why John McGraw (the obnoxious NY Giants Manager) was included is beyond me; and why include a chapter on certain US Presidents on how they failed to lead in a book that is supposed to be about profiles in leadership (I agreed with the choices for that chapter, by the way, just not with their inclusion). Probably, I misread the subtitle and was hoping for more examples of great leaders and the qualities that made them so.
My favorite essays and those that seemed to actually define some personal qualities of leadership in their subject's profiles, were about Ulysses S. Grant (by Sean Wilentz), Dwight D. Eisenhower (by David M. Kennedy), and Robert F. Kennedy (by Evan Thomas). The last, on Kennedy, was excellent (and I have never been a Kennedy fan). Much of the rest were empty for me. Thus, I was somewhat disappointed in this book.
A solid if uneven (as multi-contributor volumes often are) book focused on the leadership - both images of greatness and of failure - of a host of well-known figures in politics, finance, social change and religion. The chapter on Herbert Hoover and Franklin Delano Roosevelt by Alan Brinkley, which contrasts their very different approaches to the resolution of Depression-era issues, is among the highlights of the book. David Levering Lewis' chapter on the improbable rise and presidential run of Hoosier Wendell Willkie is another gem, and Evan Thomas' poignant essay on Robert Kennedy makes one ponder the question, "What if he had lived and won the general election of 1968? Where might America have gone?"
An interesting collection of essays. The best ones IMHO were the essays by Dallek, Gilmore, Wilentz, and Strouse. They were the ones that most stood out in my mind, either because their subject was someone that I didn't previously know much about or the essay provided a fresh perspective on a figure that I already knew a good deal about. The essay about John McGraw, the baseball manager, though done well seemed out of place in this collection to me. Overall, though, an interesting read.
This is a very good read. It is a compilation so there is wide variety around a motif of leadership. A few of the chapters were simply adequate but there were some that I found very fascinating including the ones on McGraw, Kennedy, DuBois, Finney, Washington and Morgan.