ECFA Tools and Templates for Effective Board Governance

 

Issue No. 415 of Your Weekly Staff Meeting (Oct. 9, 2019) highlights a hot-off-the-press resource with 22 board governance tools and templates. And this reminder: click here to download free resources from the 20 management buckets (core competencies) and click here for recent book reviews, including StrategyMan vs. the Anti-Strategy Squad. Tool Competence! Peter Drucker, the father of modern management, once compared businesses to nonprofits with this memorable poke-in-the-ribs to both: “Although I don’t know a single for-profit business that is well managed as a few of the nonprofits, the great majority of the nonprofits can be graded a ‘C’ at best. Not for lack of effort; most of them work very hard. But for lack of focus, and for lack of tool competence.” So with that inspiration, Dan Busby, president of ECFA, and I have co-authored a hot-off-the press resource, ECFA Tools and Templates for Effective Board Governance: Time-Saving Solutions for Your Board. Jam-packed with 22 tools, the 272-page book includes access to downloadable Word documents that can be customized for any board. The tools are organized around six themes:    • Selecting and Training Excellent Board Members    • Board Assessments    • Reporting to the Board    • Taking Time for Strategic Planning    • Policies and Board Responsibilities    • Ideas for Better Board Governance Peter Drucker also wrote, “At least once every five years, every form should be put on trial for its life.” So…if it’s been five years (or 10 or 20 years) since you’ve updated your boardroom tools, this book will be a lifesaver for you. Examples: • Tool #1: The Pathway to the Board.  Ask an administratively-gifted person on your Governance Committee to track names and next steps in this customizable form for prospects in your pipeline. (It will slow you down—a good thing—so you take time to “date” board prospects before you propose “marriage.”) Six important steps. • Tool #2: Board Nominee Suggestion Form. Inspire your board and senior team to recommend board prospects with a suggestion form that factors in your board-approved criteria. A huge time-saver! • Tool #5: The Board’s Annual Self-Assessment Survey. According to John Carver, “Board self-evaluation is an inseparable part of governing, not an extraneous or optional task.” Three options for measuring your board’s effectiveness. • Tool #8: The Board’s Annual Fundraising Audit. Here’s a true or false quiz with 10 statements the board must address annually about your fundraising program. What should the board be asking the CEO and staff? Features a green/yellow/red dashboard with Celebrate/Watch/Act indicators. Tools and More! Sprinkled throughout the book are the research results from ECFA’s 2019 Nonprofit Governance Survey and comprehensive report, Unleashing Your Board’s Potential. ECFA research revealed that 82% of board members indicated that their fundraising needed the greatest improvement. Strategic planning was ranked second with 64% saying that was their nonprofit’s greatest need. • Tool #11: Monthly Dashboard Report. A one-page color-coded dashboard report from the CEO to the board can be customized to highlight three to five of your CEO’s Annual S.M.A.R.T. Goals—with this caveat from Peter Drucker, “If you have more than five goals, you have none.” This will revolutionize your CEO’s priorities—and get everyone on the same page. • Tool #15: Board Retreat Trend-Spotting Exercise. Just add water and stir—and this simple template will engage every board member in looking down the road for those important twists and turns that will impact your organization. Easy to implement! • Tool #22: Straw Vote Cards. Hundreds of boards use green and red straw vote cards in every board meeting—as a quick and courteous way to give every board member a voice. The green card means yes. The red card means no. Another huge time-saver and consensus-builder. A Lot More! I’m a tad biased, of course, but even if you use just one tool or template—you’ll bless your board members and save time and money. The book gives you access to all 22 tools and templates—so you can customize them for your board’s unique needs. Other tools include: a legal audit checklist, a financial management audit checklist, options for the board’s annual evaluation of the top leader, a quarterly board meeting agenda template, board retreat read-and-reflect worksheets, The Rolling 3-Year Strategic Plan Placemat (one page), a board policies manual template, job descriptions, tent cards and tools for leveraging board member strengths, a “Ten Minutes for Governance” practice, and the Board Member Annual Affirmation Statement. Did I mention—272 pages of jam-packed time-saving tools? Enjoy! To order from Amazon, click on the title for ECFA Tools and Templates for Effective Board Governance: Time-Saving Solutions for Your Board, by Dan Busby and John Pearson. (Note: read my tribute to Dan here.) Your Weekly Staff Meeting Questions: 1) R. Buckminster Fuller said, “If you want to teach people a new way of thinking, don’t bother to teach them. Instead, give them a tool, the use of which will lead to new ways of thinking.” What tool inspired you to think a new way? 2) “At least once every five years, every form should be put on trial for its life,” wrote Peter Drucker. Are there other unexamined or outdated programs, systems, or tools that need a refresh in our organization?   Agree or Disagree? Insights from Mastering the Management Buckets Workbook  One of the big ideas in the Board Bucket, Chapter 14, in Mastering the Management Buckets, is to “ensure that all board members hone their board competencies regularly.” That includes understanding the foundational role of the board. Agree or Disagree: Green Card or Red Card?  “There are no dysfunctional organizations, only dysfunctional boards.” If you agree with that statement, invest in your board and order ECFA Tools and Templates for Effective Board Governance. Then note the hidden webpage in the book and download the customizable Word documents that will enrich your board’s effectiveness and your organization’s impact.  For more governance resources, visit the Board Bucket here.                    JASON PEARSON: UNEXPECTED CREATIVE. Are you leveraging the extraordinary power of visual media to inspire your members, clients, or customers? Check out the innovative work from Jason Pearson at Pearpod Media (branding, digital, print, and video). If it’s been five or more years since you’ve put your visual images “on trial”—contact Pearpod Media today!   MORE RESOURCES: • BLOG: Pails in Comparison • SUBSCRIBE: Your Weekly Staff Meeting eNews • JOHN'S BOOK REVIEWS: on Amazon  •WEBSITE: Management Buckets • BLOG: Governance of Christ-Centered Organizations 22 Tools and Templates! Click here to read John's short blogs: "Index to 22 Time-Saving Governance Tools and Templates." NOTICE! Effective Oct. 1, 2025, all 657 eNews issues, previously archived on Typepad.com are slowly (!) being moved to a new website here. New book reviews will also be archived at John Pearson’s Buckets Blog. Or, click here for John’s recent book reviews on Amazon.

I Am Not a Robot

 

Issue No. 679 of Your Weekly Staff Meeting (May 15, 2026) spotlights a hot-off-the-press book on AI. It’s serious, but hilarious. I recommended it to seven friends even before writing this review! Plus, click here for back issues posted at the new location for John Pearson’s Buckets Blog, including my recent review of Postcards from PopPop: Life Lessons from the Road, by Bill Butterworth. Also, listen to the Life After Ministry Podcast's episode, "Missing Links in Ministry Successions," where Matt Davis and I have a conversation about my many leadership mistakes! Please verify you’re a human before reading this issue of Your Weekly Staff Meeting. Select all images with a bucket and recite after me, “I am not a robot—and I love to read or listen to books.” Your AI Cheat Sheet: Serious & Funny No…I did NOT use AI to write this review. But…did the author “just barf a year’s worth of notes and interview transcripts into an IT prompt…” and presto—Amazon delivers a book? Not quite. Joanna Stern writes, “Every sentence in this book started in my brain and traveled, via my MacBook keyboard, onto the page. AI never wrote anything from scratch, except in places that I’ve clearly marked.”   I Am Not a Robot:  My Year Using AI to Do (Almost) Everything by Joanna Stern (May 12, 2026)   This absolutely fascinating and highly-recommended book needs at least two reviews—especially for my more cynical readers. (“Yeah, yeah, yeah. More AI slop, Pearson? Give me something practical.”) So…I’m thinking of a second review—a Pop Quiz—and I’ll ask ChatGPT to help me write some tantalizing questions. Example: True or False? “As of October 2025, Amazon had deployed more than one million robots in their warehouses, factory floors, and fulfillment centers.” (See page 146.) 7 Reasons You and Your Team Members MUST Read This Book! #1. A YEAR WITH AI. After 12 years as the senior personal technology columnist for The Wall Street Journal, Joanna Stern took a time-off-to-write-a-book break and immersed herself, and her family, into all things AI. (Watch the video.) Example: She wore a Bee bracelet all year that recorded everything she said. “It was part diary, part creep, part assistant—and I became surprisingly reliant on it.” Her Bee bracelet “logged nearly 2,000 hours of audio and transcribed and summarized it.” And yes, she confesses, “I average three curses a day, usually when frustrated with technology...” or her work! #2. HILARIOUS. Although a book about artificial intelligence is a deadly-serious topic (see the chapter discussing “artificial intimacy”), Joanna Stern sprinkles in plenty of humor. (She could do stand-up!) Example: Before you have permission to read the book, you’re faced with a full-page CAPTCHA and this instruction:  “Please verify you’re a human who is excited to read this book by completing the CAPTCHA below.” The task: “Select all squares with a bicycle on top of a traffic light on top of a bridge.” Then check the box: “I’m not a robot.”   #3. PRACTICAL. Stern is no novice to AI per her previous day job at The Wall Street Journal. I’ve read her “Personal Technology” column for years—and implemented many of her practical recommendations. (I’m not tech-savvy and she understands that about many of us.) The book is jam-packed with AI tools and she doesn’t hesitate to hand out failing grades. Examples:    • Beginning on Feb. 27, 2025, she allowed AI to fully respond to her text and email communications (no edits—just hit “send”). Oops! After several inappropriate responses, the experiment ended the same day! Warning: Never send “Sorry, I have other plans” to your spouse! (LOL!)    • Frustrated with her eldest son’s bathroom sink—it looked “like a crime scene in a Crest commercial”—she used an AI app, Cursor, to create a video game. Why? “…if you’ve ever met an eight-year-old, you know there’s only one way to truly reach them: video games.”    • “Should I say please and thank you to AI?” Get this! She researched that question with “the great-great-grandson of renowned etiquette expert Emily Post and a director at the Emily Post Institute.” (Important! See my “P.S.” below.) View the 2-minute book trailer: #4. HYPE-BUSTER! The author saved us a ton of time—sorting through the latest AI hype. “So much of what I tested didn’t make it into this book because it sucked.” My favorite: the AI-agent-controlled vending machine she tested with her WSJ colleagues “…that ended up giving away everything for free, including a PlayStation 5 and a live fish.” Must-watch: this nine-minute video, “We Let AI Run a Vending Machine. It Lost All the Money.” (Hilarious!)   #5. YOUR AI CHEAT SHEET. Stern delivers her definition of AI on page four—and adds, “Regardless of your AI knowledge level, you’ve probably already realized that there are more types of AI than tote bags in your coat closet.” So she delivers a succinct “cut through all that confusion” AI cheat sheet of 11 big AI milestones, beginning with “The Turing Test” in 1950, plus:    • Dartmouth’s John Mc Carthy (1955)    • ELIZA, the “chatterbot” therapist from MIT’s Joseph Weizenbaum (1966)    • iRobot’s launch of the Roomba (2002)    • Amazon’s Alexa (2014)    • OpenAI’s ChatGPT (2022) OK, class! Study the cheat sheet. The pop quiz is coming. #6. NON-BORING GLOSSARY! Stern’s year of AI includes glimpses into AI in the dentist’s chair, the robot that chauffeurs her family, the clothes-folding machine in her basement, and the AI therapist “that talked me through my worst bouts of writer’s block.” With AI examples from A to Z, you’ll often reference her 10-page guide, “The Totally Non-Boring AI Glossary™”—(and this is brilliant—she trademarked the term!). Honest. The helpful info (plus the humor) in the introduction and the first 25 pages would have been enough content to write a helpful review. But I couldn’t stop! (And by the way, I do read every book I review.) I made over 50 notes—so watch for my second review. #7. TASKS FOR AI & HUMANS. In the chapter, “The Colleague Who Never Sleeps,” Stern included research about “a ranked list of 40 jobs most at risk of being taken over by AI”—using an “AI Applicability Score.” If you guessed that the 2.9 million customer service reps in the U.S. are at risk, you’d be right. What else can AI do for us? You’ll make photocopies of the chart on page 180 for your next weekly staff meeting. The author categorized her book-writing project into eight distinct tasks (three columns)—and which AI tools she used for each task. Also: her ratings!    • 1 ROBOT = Just short of useless    • 2 ROBOTS = Helpful, but needed oversight    • 3 ROBOTS = Solid assist, but with some blind spots    • 4 ROBOTS = Very effective    • 5 ROBOTS = Game changer Read how Joanna Stern created a Joanna Agent—"an AI version of me that could conduct interviews in my place.” Oh, my.  My Big Idea: Sort the tasks of researching and writing Your Weekly Staff Meeting into eight tasks and discern how AI could help me. Your Big Idea? (Maybe discuss at your next weekly staff meeting.) THERE’S MORE (watch for my second review—with AI’s help!):    • Why I’m asking my doctor (and any specialists I see) how they’re using AI—and would they read this book to learn why Stern is especially interested in AI and cancer?    • “Six Rules for Living”—especially Rule #4: “I will raise humans, not robots.” Teach kids how to question AI’s answers—plus “No companionship chatbots until at least age sixteen. Or maybe ever.” (Whew! If this book were a movie, it would be at least PG-rated. Language. Topics. You know—everyday life.)    • See the chart with five levels of autonomous driving on page 106 in the chapter, “A Way-Mo Fun Spring Break.” (Note: Level 5 doesn’t exist yet.)    • The fun graphics throughout the book—especially the occasional drawing with the subtitle, “A Not-at-All Scientific Study.”    • The author’s research: “The Effects of Reading Only AI-Written Books on One Human’s Habits and Tastes." (Ditto for a month’s diet of AI-generated music that lasted just 15 days!)    • Dozens of date-stamped journal entries throughout 2025—documenting her trials and tribulations using AI to do (almost) everything. Note: While the author carefully balances the possibilities with the perils of AI, other than one reference to Hanukkah, many of my faith-based readers will be disappointed that Stern doesn’t ask theologians and spiritual advisors about what’s coming. You’ll want to go deeper (and read more widely) on the spiritual and moral ripple effect of how companies and users are currently leveraging AI. I urge you to read this book—and keep the conversation going. MAYBE…this would sell you on the book: Before writing this review, I had already sent the Amazon link to seven friends—“MUST-READ!” TO ORDER FROM AMAZON, click on the title for I Am Not a Robot: My Year Using AI to Do (Almost) Everything, by Joanna Stern. Listen on Libro (8 hours, 2 minutes). (And thanks to the publisher for sending me a review copy.)   P.S. Reminder to clergy who also read this eNews. You’ll find a few “non-church words” in this book. If you ask AI to summarize Stern’s April 20, 2025, journal post about six hamsters, be sure to edit the response—before you preach it on Sunday!   YOUR WEEKLY STAFF MEETING QUESTIONS: 1) Zack Kass, the author of THE NEXT RENAISSANCE: AI and the Expansion of Human Potential, quotes Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, who “issued a warning to the world’s workers in May 2025.” The alert: “You’re not going to lose your job to an AI, you’re going to lose it to someone who uses AI.” Question: What jobs in our organization will be handled by AI within the next five years? (Read my Jan. 15, 2026, review.) 2) Joanna Stern, author of I Am Not a Robot, has been studying AI for years. Pick one of her WSJ columns (or videos)—and give us a five-minute report at a future staff meeting. (And yes, you can ask AI to summarize it—and recommend discussion questions!)    • “Joanna Stern explains how new technology could improve the odds for women like herself who have an elevated risk of cancer.” (Read the WSJ article.)    • “The 12 Biggest Tech Changes of the Past 12 Years” (5-min. video)    • “I Tried the First Humanoid Home Robot. It Got Weird” (9-min. video)    • “We Have No Idea How to Code. So We Got Claude to Code This Article for Us,” with Ben Cohen (Read the WSJ article.)       SECOND READS: Fresh Solutions From Classic Books You have changed—and your problems have changed—since you read this the first time! Book #47 of 99: Managing Your Boss For your team meeting this week, inspire a team member to lead your “10 Minutes for Lifelong Learning” session by featuring Book #47 of 99 in our series, “Second Reads.” The big idea: REREAD TO LEAD! Discover how your favorite books (and articles) still have more to teach you and the people you’re coaching and mentoring. Managing Your Boss (book or article - Harvard Business Review Classics) by John J. Gabarro and John P. Kotter (March 1, 2008)   When I was consulting, almost 100 percent of the time in my workshops or with clients, I had hallway conversations with really smart people who said something like, “I just don’t get my boss (or board chair). We’re rarely on the same page. Help!”    • Read my review in Issue No. 201 (Nov. 8, 2010).    • Order book from Amazon; or article from HBR.    • Management Bucket #7 of 20: The People Bucket. Join me on the "Boss Talk" path: “How many hours have you worked so far this year? How many hours have you invested in studying and understanding your boss this year?” “Is your boss a reader or a listener? What are your boss’s Top-5 strengths on the Gallup StrengthsFinder system? What is their social style (driver, analytical, amiable or expressive)?  If your boss is a Christ-follower, do you know his or her spiritual gifts (leadership, mercy, teaching, etc.)?” I explained that everyone must be a student of their boss and I urge them to read this 1980 HBR classic article, “Managing Your Boss.” In addition to a 12-point “Checklist for Managing Your Boss,” the article addresses the critical question: “Is my boss a reader or a listener?” This HBR article is a classic because the boss challenge is a classic. If your key people have given little thought to managing up, download the article from the Harvard Business Review website. Or…read the expanded treatment of this subject—the 55-page book. (See above.)   CLICK HERE FOR BOOKS BY JOHN      On page 80 in the People Bucket chapter of the Mastering the Management Buckets Workbook, you'll find the chart, “Do’s and Don’ts for the Four Social Styles.” When working with Analyticals, for example, “DON’T rush things,” and “DON’T press for immediate action.”  NOTICE! Effective Oct. 1, 2025, all 657 eNews issues, previously archived on Typepad.com are slowly (!) being moved to a new website here. New book reviews will also be archived at John Pearson’s Buckets Blog. Or, click here for John’s recent book reviews on Amazon. Free Download: 20 BUCKETS & 82 BALLS! Just posted last month, “Master List of 20 Buckets and 82 Balls” is a 14-page PDF—perfect for your weekly staff meetings. Remind your team about the 20 core competencies and the 82 actions steps featured in the book and workbook, Mastering the Management Buckets. Download the list here. MORE RESOURCES: • BLOG: Pails in Comparison • SUBSCRIBE: Your Weekly Staff Meeting eNews • JOHN'S BOOK REVIEWS: on Amazon  •WEBSITE: Management Buckets • BLOG: Governance of Christ-Centered Organizations Pearson on Podcast! Listen to the "Life After Ministry" podcast from Ministry Transitions. Matt Davis interviews John Pearson about "Missing Links in Ministry Successions." John also shares a few leadership mistakes from his CEO years. And check out the 85 episodes about ministry transitions and succession planning. (Listen also on Apple Podcasts.) NOTICE! Effective Oct. 1, 2025, all 657 eNews issues, previously archived on Typepad.com are slowly (!) being moved to a new website here. New book reviews will also be archived at John Pearson’s Buckets Blog. Or, click here for John’s recent book reviews on Amazon.

StrategyMan vs the Anti-Strategy Squad

 

Issue No. 411 of Your Weekly Staff Meeting (Aug. 16, 2019) features a fantastic book on strategy—cleverly disguised as a graphic novel! Is your team tactical or strategic? And this reminder: click here to download free resources from the 20 management buckets (core competencies). Summer Reading List #4  StrategyMan vs. the Anti-Strategy Squad “Be strategic or be gone” is the tagline of the Strategic Thinking Institute. STI launched when a struggling manager asked Rich Horwath, “I had my performance review and my boss said I’m too tactical. How can I become more strategic?” But get this! Instead of creating solutions with more talking head blah-blah-blah blue sky “imperatives,” Horwath noted the Stanford University study that says you’ll retain six to seven times more information when it’s presented in a story format. Thus...“Fwumpfh!”…“B-Zapp!”…and “Bwa Ha Ha!” Yes, I’m quoting directly from this must-must read graphic novel, StrategyMan vs. the Anti-Strategy Squad: Using Strategic Thinking to Defeat Bad Strategy and Save Your Plan. But…you’d miss the texture, color, hilarity, and brilliance of this unique business book—if I reviewed it solo. I needed help! In June, I invited our granddaughter, Carolina, a voracious reader, to share her thoughts on Scott Rodin’s novel, The Four Gifts of the King. The feedback from readers was over-the-top (thank you!)—so let’s do it again with StrategyMan! Grandpa John: OK, Carolina—your junior year in high school starts next week—so how many books have you read so far this year? Carolina: StrategyMan was my 81st book. Grandpa John: Yikes! Really…81? That’s amazing! (I better up my game!) So…what did you think of StrategyMan vs. the Anti-Strategy Squad: Using Strategic Thinking to Defeat Bad Strategy and Save Your Plan? Carolina: Amazing! I’ve read many graphic novels, but this is the first business book/graphic novel I’m read. It features three heroes, 21 villains, and 10 weapons—for fighting off those anti-strategy villains! Grandpa John: So this business story finds a company in search of a business strategy—but they’re kind of clueless! Did that surprise you? Carolina: Not really! When not fighting off the Anti-Strategy Squad villains, the characters in this fun story reported that “a survey of 400 managers found that only 44.3% of organizations have a universal definition of strategy, and less than half (46%) have a common language for strategy.” Grandpa John: Speaking of the colorful villains…my three favorites were Miss-Alignment, Jargon Goblin, and Meeting Menace (“Teleconferences or meetings that are consistently unproductive, inefficient and a drain on morale.”) Carolina: I’ll go with the Multi-Taskinators. That’s a huge problem, isn’t it? The book gives ways to defeat the villains—such as “Keep your mobile phone out of sight and out of reach during meetings.” I don’t know anyone who does that! I’m also guessing that the Dr. Yes villain is a big problem in organizations. Grandpa John: You nailed it. The Dr. Yes villain is about “the inability to say no to things that don’t contribute value to the business and directly support one’s goals.” Carolina: What was your favorite weapon? Grandpa John: Hey! I’m running this interview—but since you asked, all 10 weapons are succinct, memorable, and immediately useful. The heroine Innovatara—who’s great at “generating insights that lead to innovation”—introduces the Differentiation Detector weapon.  Carolina: Right—and three cheers for the heroine! The Differentiation Detector, I’m thinking, is the best defense against The Same villain. I’d suggest that every store manager at the mall should read this book. There’s very little differentiation today. Grandpa John: Great insight. Nonprofits, churches, and businesses all need help from the other two heroes, StrategyMan and Purposeidon (the mission, vision, values elements—and why many organizations get it wrong). Carolina: Before you give away the ending, Grandpa, do we need a spoiler alert? I’d also like to mention that I plan to loan the book to a friend whose family runs a business. The book is easy to understand, enjoyable to read, educational, and also entertaining. (I also laughed at the nerdy references!) Grandpa John: Wow—four “E’s” right off the top of your head. Nicely done. I’ve never read a graphic novel. Why do you enjoy them so much? Carolina: Duh! I am the daughter of a graphic designer! Grandpa John: You told me that you did skip the “meatier parts” (your words) of the book and I’m not surprised, but—good news—for leaders and managers, the graphics include call-outs and sidebars with serious strategy (or lack of strategy) insights: Example:    • “A recent study of more than 8,000 new, nationally distributed products found that only 40% were still on the market three years later.”    • “A survey of nearly 5,000 senior executives showed that more than 50% didn’t think they had a winning strategy in place.” Carolina: You mentioned the Jargon Goblin villain—why? Grandpa John: Whew! My experience, especially with nonprofit clients, is that if they do have a written strategy—it’s packed with meaningless rhetoric and a mash-up of business terms. (Example: never, ever use “Strategic Imperatives!”) The book blasts away on this theme. Leaders will find it personally painful, but funny. The first chapter, “Strategy Defined,” is worth the price of the book. Carolina: Is it really this bad out there, Grandpa, in the real world of business? Is strategy so ill-conceived? (Are there really villains, like Megalo-Plan, who sneak 115 slides into a VP’s sales presentation?) Grandpa John: It’s bad. Check out the villain, Status Quo-Lock. He ingeniously inspires teams to allocate 90% of resources to the same projects year-after-year! Or, read the chapter, “Strategy and Culture,” and leaders will quickly delete one of their favorite axioms from their vocabulary: “Culture eats strategy for breakfast.” (Not true!) But there is hope and there are weapons—like the “StrategyPrint” template, a two-page blueprint of a business highlighting four keys: Goals, Objectives, Strategy, and Tactics. Carolina: But you’ve always preached five keys, right? The GNOME Chart: Goals, Needs, Objectives, Methods, and Evaluation. Grandpa John: You remember! I’m good with letting leaders pick what works for them—as long as they understand and implement the whole system. Carolina: Well…if I needed to read a book on strategy, I’d pick StrategyMan. Will this be your 2019 book-of-the-year? Grandpa John: Stay tuned! To order from Amazon, click on the title for StrategyMan vs. the Anti-Strategy Squad: Using Strategic Thinking to Defeat Bad Strategy and Save Your Plan, by Rich Horwath Your Weekly Staff Meeting Questions: 1) StrategyMan notes a survey that said “only 44.3% have a universal definition of strategy.” Pop Quiz! What is your definition of strategy? 2) “Are the different functional groups in your company (marketing, sales, HR, IT, R&D, etc.) all aware of each other’s strategies and how they align?” That’s question 19 of 20 questions in the free quiz, “Is Your Team Tactical or Strategic?” Click here to take the Strategic Thinking Institute’s quiz.   Is Your Team Tactical or Strategic? Insights from Mastering the Management Buckets Workbook  One of the big ideas in the Strategy Bucket, Chapter 3, in Mastering the Management Buckets, is to be strategic about strategic planning. Rich Horwath’s StrategyMan book defines strategy as “The intelligent allocation of resources through a unique system of activities to achieve a goal.” He says you must answer two questions:    1. What are you trying to achieve? (Goals and Objectives)    2. How are you going to achieve it? (Strategies and Tactics) “Strategy is generally how to achieve a goal and tactics are how specifically.” For more resources from the Strategy Bucket, including links to more books and resources on strategy, visit the Strategy Bucket webpage here.                 JASON PEARSON: UNEXPECTED CREATIVE. Are you leveraging the extraordinary power of visual media to inspire your members, clients, or customers? Reminder: a Stanford University study says you’ll retain six to seven times more information when it’s presented in a story format. Check out the innovative work from Jason Pearson at Pearpod Media (branding, digital, print, and video).    Lessons From the Church Boardroom: 40 Insights for Exceptional Governance, by Dan Busby and John Pearson, is now available on Amazon. Read the short posts by 40 guest bloggers here.  NOTICE! Effective Oct. 1, 2025, all 657 eNews issues, previously archived on Typepad.com are slowly (!) being moved to a new website here. New book reviews will also be archived at John Pearson’s Buckets Blog. Or, click here for John’s recent book reviews on Amazon. Astronauts and Your Board Click here to find out what astronauts, Tour de France cyclists, and great board members have in common. Read John's latest post on the "Governance of Christ-centered Organizations Blog."  MORE RESOURCES: • BLOG: Pails in Comparison • SUBSCRIBE: Your Weekly Staff Meeting eNews • JOHN'S BOOK REVIEWS: on Amazon  •WEBSITE: Management Buckets • BLOG: Governance of Christ-Centered Organizations

Leaders - Myth and Reality

 

Issue No. 410 of Your Weekly Staff Meeting (Aug. 6, 2019) features profiles of 13 leaders (some with warts) and some deep thinking on the myths and realities of true leadership. And this reminder: click here to download free resources from the 20 management buckets (core competencies).  Summer Reading List #3  Leaders: Myth and Reality “While leaders are generally intelligent, exceptionally intelligent people are actually less likely to emerge as leaders.” That zinger (or perhaps comforting insight) is from “The Geniuses” section of Leaders: Myth and Reality, by General Stanley McChrystal (US Army, Retired). In reflecting on geniuses, McChrystal and his co-authors profile Albert Einstein and Leonard Bernstein.       The book’s approach is fascinating, disturbing, and thought-provoking. McChrystal’s compare-and-contrast model was Plutarch’s Lives—and, trust me, you’ll need a pen if you’re still reading books the old-fashioned way. Oh…and schedule a long vacation this month—this gem is over 400 pages, plus notes. In the news recently was an observation that only three prime ministers—across the pond—have been known by their first names: Winston, Maggie, and Boris. Between 1979 and 1990, Margaret Thatcher served as the U.K. Prime Minister. McChrystal describes her early leadership style as a cabinet minister in 1970: “Within a week, she took her abrasive tongue to the page, writing a minute at the bottom of an interim departmental report of a flagship research program. ‘This is one of the most disappointing and frustrating documents I have read. Not a penny [in funding] after 1971.’ She had a disparaging habit of refusing to send out substandard documents given to her for signature, instead ripping the tops off those pages she thought inferior.” There are more fireworks as the authors exegete leadership myth and reality in “The Power Brokers” section—contrasting Thatcher (1925-2013) with New York City’s infamous “Boss” Tweed (1823-1878).   Tweed, the corrupt politician, was nevertheless a leader. “…he increased the size of Tammany Hall’s general committee from 21 to 150 members, making the group more unwieldly and less able to make decisions.” “The Zealots” commentary positions the French Revolution’s Maximilien Robespierre (1758-1794) against the jihadist Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi (1966-2006). (Note to budding revolutionaries: both men died in their 30s.) A leader—yet a confirmed introvert, “…the Revolution took Robespierre out of his room and placed him front and center. That this deeply private man both had to and tried to play an increasingly public role would become his undoing.” (For more, read Peggy Noonan’s Wall Street Journal timely July 25, 2019, column, “What Were Robespierre’s Pronouns?”)  And for another take on never-done-this-before leadership in-the-trenches, read McChrystal’s Team of Teams: New Rules of Engagement for a Complex World. It was a runner-up for my 2016 book-of-the-year. The authors of Leaders also list book recommendations for each of the 13 leaders profiled—a generous bonus. After reflecting on leadership styles for each leader—I couldn’t stop discussing the strengths and the foibles of each leader. (Ask my wife, Joanne!) I urge you to dive into these troubling portraits of leadership. No one survives unscathed.    • The Marble Man: Robert E. Lee    • The Founders: Walt Disney and Coco Chanel    • The Geniuses: Albert Einstein and Leonard Bernstein    • The Zealots: Maximilien Robespierre and Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi    • The Heroes: Zheng He and Harriet Tubman    • The Power Brokers: William Magear “Boss” Tweed and Margaret Thatcher    • The Reformers: Martin Luther and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. I confess—I skipped the 13 profiles and read the authors’ conclusions first. “Three Myths” (the Formulaic Myth, the Attribution Myth, and the Results Myth) challenged my leadership assumptions. In the final chapter, “Redefining Leadership,” the authors include a helpful chart on page 397 calling for an improved definition of leadership. After reading the back end of the book, I then returned to the first profile on General Robert E. Lee and was stunned to read what McChrystal wrote: “On a Sunday morning in 2017 I took down [Lee’s] picture, and by afternoon it was in the alley with the other rubbish awaiting transport to the local landfill for final burial. Hardly a hero’s end.” Oh, my. You must read “The Marble Man” chapter. Leaders is jam-packed with insights and surprises. So consider these ideas for staff meetings:    • Pick four team members and inspire them to each “compare-and-contrast” two leaders at future staff meetings.    • Or…zero in on the authors’ insights summarizing each section—such as “Entrepreneurialism and Ego,” or “The Cyclic Lure of Conviction,” or the follow-up to Harriet Tubman, “A Human Need for Heroes.”    • With Hong Kong and China in the news—don’t skip the chapter on Zheng He (1371-1433). Prepare for “aha!” moments—as you learn about China’s motivations for today and the future. To order from Amazon, click on the title for Leaders: Myth and Reality, by General Stanley McChrystal (US Army, Retired), Jeff Eggers, and Jason Mangone. To listen to this book on Libro.FM audiobooks (17 hours, 2 minutes), click here. BONUS BOOK! For faith-based teams, couple Leaders with Steve Moore’s brilliant analysis, The Top 10 Leadership Conversations in the Bible: Practical Insights From Extensive Research on Over 1,000 Biblical Leaders (read my review here).  In his chapter on “Failures,” Moore notes, “There are qualifying failures, and disqualifying failures. They can be further subdivided into character-based failure, and competency-based failure. Disqualifying, character-based failure can be partial or complete. Competency-based failure can be direct or indirect.” (Another must-read!) To order from Amazon, click on the title for The Top 10 Leadership Conversations in the Bible, by Steve Moore. Your Weekly Staff Meeting Questions: 1) Leaders reports that Margaret Thatcher had a “distinct style of written command” with quick Yes, No, or Agreed notes on memos. “But a prime minister does not lead by force of memo alone.” Peter Drucker often wrote about understanding your supervisor’s learning style: is she a reader or a listener? So…what is your leader’s style? 2) In the chapter on Martin Luther, the authors share a “Table Talk” recollection: “When Luther’s puppy happened to be at the table, looked for a morsel from his master, and watched with open mouth and motionless eyes, he [Martin Luther] said, ‘Oh, if I could only pray the way this dog watches the meat!’” So…how’s your prayer life?   Delegate Your Reading! Insights from Mastering the Management Buckets Workbook  One of the big ideas in the Book Bucket, Chapter 5, in Mastering the Management Buckets, is to delegate your reading. When someone recommends a great book, buy it—even if you don’t have time to read it. Delegate some of your reading to the management zealots on your team. But…if you do delegate the reading of Leaders to someone else, don’t skip the chapter on Harriett Tubman. As our nation revisits our racial history, you’ll appreciate Tubman’s heart and style. “She never intended to lead, and that turns out not to matter—she became a hero, and a leader, all the same.” For more resources from the Book Bucket, including a link to “20 Books to Get You Started” on your lifelong learning journey, click here.                 JASON PEARSON: UNEXPECTED CREATIVE. Are you leveraging the extraordinary power of visual media to inspire your members, clients, or customers? Check out the innovative work from Jason Pearson at Pearpod Media (branding, digital, print, and video).    Lessons From the Church Boardroom: 40 Insights for Exceptional Governance, by Dan Busby and John Pearson, is now available on Amazon. Read the short posts by 40 guest bloggers here.  NOTICE! Effective Oct. 1, 2025, all 657 eNews issues, previously archived on Typepad.com are slowly (!) being moved to a new website here. New book reviews will also be archived at John Pearson’s Buckets Blog. Or, click here for John’s recent book reviews on Amazon. Astronauts and Your Board Click here to find out what astronauts, Tour de France cyclists, and great board members have in common. Read John's latest post on the "Governance of Christ-centered Organizations Blog."  MORE RESOURCES: • BLOG: Pails in Comparison • SUBSCRIBE: Your Weekly Staff Meeting eNews • JOHN'S BOOK REVIEWS: on Amazon  •WEBSITE: Management Buckets • BLOG: Governance of Christ-Centered Organizations