Category - Book Reviews

In the Line of Fire: How to Handle Tough Questions… When It Counts

This was a good book. It starts out by talking about the questions President Clinton had to answer during the Monica Lewinsky scandal and reviewed some rather tough questions he had to field during that time. The book then expanded to cover a formula for answering questions, tough or otherwise. Through reviewing a number of presidential debates and interviews the book gives plenty of examples of how and how not to handle various types of questions.

If you have ever taken a course in effective/strong/great presentations then much of this information will likely be review, as the concepts are not new. However, if you have not taken such a course the information contained within these pages truly is helpful in any situation where you must answer questions from anyone. As such, I would recommend this book to anyone who will ever be in a situation where they must handle Q&A. While this book is geared towards the CEO actively pursuing an IPO, it is written in such a way that it is relevant to anyone who would be in a presentation situation.

Leadership: Essential Steps Every Manager Needs to Know, by Elwood N. Chapman and Sharon Lund O’Neil, was surprisingly good. When I first opened it up I must admit that I judged a book by its “cover” and thought that it would not be very good based upon its somewhat cheesy clip art like images. But I looked past the graphics and gave it a chance, which I am glad I did.

As with many leadership books, this one breaks the art of leadership down into a number of categories. In particular, this book defines the effectiveness of leadership as being the sum of visionary mission, decisiveness, application of mutual reward theory, effective communication, and power of influence, multiplied by a positive attitude. It goes on to explain in detail what each of these mean, how it can best be applied, and the different aspects of each. I found mutual reward theory to be particularly enlightening as I had yet to hear about this theory.

All in all, it is a good book and a rather quick read. While none of the content will revolutionize your career by itself, the information contained in these pages should help anyone identify where they can change to help bring their leadership to the next level.