4 Books & 48 Niche Chapters

 

Issue No. 624 of Your Weekly Staff Meeting (Oct. 10, 2024) hopes to inspire you to mentor your team members with niche chapters from four leadership books. Plus, click here to see book recommendations in all 20 management buckets (core competencies). (Prefer listening to reading? View the podcast.) Really! The bylaws of Your Weekly Staff Meeting require us to feature this cartoon at least once a year. 4 Books & 48 Niche Chapters! Shocker! You don’t need to read every chapter of every book! Instead, mentor your team members with niche books and leverage their strengths with thoughtfully selected chapters. The late Zig Ziglar wrote, “People often say that motivation doesn't last. Well, neither does bathing—that’s why we recommend it daily.” Ditto—leadership books! As Dick Daniels urges, “Recalibrate your calling every day.” Or…as then 99-year-old Charlie Munger (1924-2023) told the WSJ last year, “I don’t know how to get smart without reading a lot.”   Your leadership and management challenges never plateau. The obstacles and thorny issues change and grow constantly. And learning leadership is not a one-and-done seminar. The leadership book you read last year may not address those keep-you-up-all-night issues that crowded your inbox yesterday.  So here you go—4 leadership books with niche chapters for what may be coming around the bend. Delegate your reading to your direct reports. Ask them to report on a “niche chapter” relevant to their biggest challenges this quarter.  #1. The Journey of Leadership: How CEOs Learn to Lead from the Inside Out, by Dana Maor, Hans-Werner Kaas, Kurt Strovink, and Ramesh Srinivasan (Senior Partners at McKinsey & Company, Sept. 10, 2024). Order from Amazon. Listen on Libro (7 hours, 51 minutes). And thanks to the publisher for sending a review copy. Best Niche Chapter: “Everyone Keeps Things From the Boss.” Using in-the-trenches examples from McKinsey’s Bower Forum, the authors mention a CEO who “complained that the people in his organization no longer told him what was really going on. Since he became the boss, he no longer had any peers, and those frank conversations he used to have with his colleagues disappeared. He felt lost and worried that some bad news would eventually blindside him.” To “Encourage Truth Telling,” the authors give very specific and practical suggestions including how to “foster dissent by actively seeking it.” They mention the classic example from 2006 when Alan Mulally became Ford’s new CEO. He introduced a weekly meeting with red/yellow/green scorecards. In the first meeting, 16 execs reported that every project was green! “Incredulous, Mulally challenged the executives, asking how all the projects could be going well if the company was losing money” (more than $17 billion!). What happened? View “Alan Mulally: The Ford Traffic Light” (7 minutes). The authors pack wisdom and wit into this chapter. “After one executive retired, she said the best thing about retirement was she no longer had to walk down the halls and when someone said good morning have to think about what they really meant.” LOL! Bonus Niche Chapter: “Practice Making Mistakes.” What team member needs to read Chapter 11 on adopting fearless learning? “Teams that avoid failure miss the point, because people learn as much, if not more, from mistakes as from successes.” (Amen!) Admiral William H. McRaven (U.S. Navy Retired), author of Make Your Bed, is mentioned in this chapter, as is the “Plan B” culture of Navy Seals. Example: the raid on Osama bin Ladin’s compound—and why you sometimes need to “fall out of love with the primary plan and shift to a backup plan or develop a new one.”  #2. Leading People from the Middle: The Universal Mission of Heart and Mind, by William P. Robinson (Jan. 20, 2010). Order from Amazon. And thanks to Jim Canning for recommending this book. Best Niche Chapter: “Driven and Rhythmic Leadership.” (Oh, my. This assignment I gave myself is hard work! There are way too many “best niche chapters” in Bill Robinson’s powerful book.) Chapter 7 begins, “Leading is hard work—a lot harder than just being in charge.” I’ve never read such a compelling chapter on the leader’s rhythm. The author was the president of Whitworth University (1993 to 2010) and concludes his seven-page chapter with this: “I’m not all that sappy, but once in a while the smallest thing will just overwhelm me.” He adds, “Sometimes I wonder if God made me for the singular purpose of hanging around with collegians. I don’t know, but here’s what I do know beyond any doubt: our students have made me a better leader than I was every meant to be.” Bonus! Honest—the preface and introduction are meaty. Learn why this 2010 update of his 2000 book is both shorter and better. He defines “leading from the middle” and uses a memorable three-point outline: “Can’t, Can, Must.” He writes, “First, you can’t lead the way I lead. You wouldn’t want to and the people you lead wouldn’t want you to either. The best leaders lead from their strengths.” #3. Lead Bigger: The Transformative Power of Inclusion, by Anne Chow (Sept. 10, 2024). Order from Amazon. Listen on Libro (7 hours, 56 minutes). And thanks to the publisher for sending a review copy. Best Niche Chapter: Check out the three “Bigger Conversations." • Gen. Stanley McChrystal: “If You Want to Win” • Arianna Huffington: “Taking a Whole-Human Approach to Well-Being” • Adam Grant: “If You’re Not Inclusive, You’re Not a Leader” With endorsements from Stephen M. R. Covey and Liz Wiseman, this book has niche chapters on “Beyond the Daily Grind,” “Deliver Results and Impact,” and “Dimensionality: Expand Your Understanding of People.” In the author’s conversation with Gen. McChrystal, author of Leaders: Myth and Reality and Team of Teams, McChrystal said that, as a major, he had three different U.S. Army bosses in three years. Boss #1: fairly inclusive. Boss #2: more elitist. When the “cool guys” were in the room, McChrystal was not invited. Boss #3: “incredibly inclusive.” McChrystal notes that those three years were a “…whipsaw effect, but it was a great way to remind me how someone in my role feels when it’s good and when it’s not good. That variable changed my outlook on the job completely.” #4. Attentive Church Leadership: Listening and Leading in a World We've Never Known, by Kevin G. Ford and Jim Singleton (Foreword by Ed Stetzer, April 2, 2024). Order from Amazon. Listen on Libro (10 hours, 6 minutes). And thanks to the publisher for sending a review copy. Best Niche Chapter: “How Do We Create Community in a Narcissistic World?” If the co-pastors of our home church asked me to recommend one chapter from this important book—I’d urge them to read the whole book, but affirm that they are doing many things well, especially: 1) creating community, and 2) serving with humility. Yet this reminder:  The authors quote Tom Nelson, author of The Flourishing Pastor. “The crowd need not be big nor the stage prominent for the celebrity pastor to emerge. Celebrity is not necessarily tied to the size of the audience, but rather the size of the ego to be stroked.” Ford and Singleton add, “An inflated ego is not only found in megachurch contexts; it can reside in any human heart.” (See also The Leader’s Palette and Let Us Prey.) By the way, my “Page 25 Rule-of-Thumb” played out again. Jim Singleton describes on page 25 the insurmountable barrier that faced Whitworth University in 1991-1992. Then he relates how the “identify of Whitworth was revived” when Bill Robinson arrived (see Book #2 above). 4 BOOKS…and 48 niche chapters. Watch for additional reviews of these four books and more of my favorite niche chapters.   YOUR WEEKLY STAFF MEETING QUESTIONS: 1) What’s the most helpful leadership or management book you’ve ever read? Why? 2) What are two or three of your “Reading 101 Principles” for getting the most out of a book? 3) Name a “niche chapter” you have recently recommended to someone. Why? Note: These questions are included in “The Book Bucket” chapter of Mastering the Management Buckets: 20 Critical Competencies for Leading Your Business or Nonprofit.        Mastering 100 Must-Read Books Part 17: “Nonprofit” Is a Tax Designation, Not a Management Philosophy! Book #94 of 100: Mastering the Management Buckets For your team meeting this week, inspire a team member to lead your “10 Minutes for Lifelong Learning” session by featuring Book #94 in Mastering 100 Must-Read Books.  Mastering the Management Buckets:  20 Critical Competencies for Leading Your Business or Nonprofit by John Pearson   Books #92 through #96 spotlight five helpful books for nonprofit CEOs, senior staff, and board members. Shocker! You don’t need to read every chapter of every book! Instead, mentor your team members with niche books and leverage their strengths with thoughtfully selected chapters.     • Read reviews from others here and here.     • Order from Amazon.     • Download the 100 Must-Read Books list (from John and Jason Pearson). OK, I’ll confess again to hyping one of my books—but please keep reading. How would you coach a team member on the following? • A rookie manager needs to learn the importance of affirming team members. • A senior leader has a faulty “sequential” view of priorities (God first, family second, church third, career fourth). • Due to continued workplace dysfunction, trust has been broken in the finance department. • A board member has workaholic tendencies and an imbalanced life. • A department head is a “reader,” but her direct reports are all “listeners.” Read the core competency in Chapter 5,“The Book Bucket,” and then explore how to mentor team members with niche books and niche chapters. (You do have a massive management library and purposeful book culture, right?) See also: Mastering the Management Buckets Workbook: Management Tools, Templates and Tips from John Pearson, with commentary by Jason Pearson (2nd Edition, 2018) - Order from Amazon.   Join John Pearson on Oct. 18, 2024 The 4 Big Mistakes to Avoid With Your Nonprofit Board While space remains, The Barnabas Group/Orange County invites nonprofit CEOs and board members to their board governance seminar, led by John Pearson, Oct. 18, 2024 (Friday 7:30 - 11:30 a.m.) in Irvine, Calif. The complimentary seminar includes a continental breakfast and the 100-page workbook, The 4 Big Mistakes to Avoid With Your Nonprofit Board (3rd Edition): How Leaders Enrich Their Ministry Results Through God-Honoring Governance. More info here.   CLICK HERE FOR BOOKS BY JOHN         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. VIEW THE PODCAST, "Niche Chapter Playbook," a summary of John's review of "4 Leadership Books and 48 Niche Chapters." Click here. (Note: AI-generated.) 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 12 Niche Chapters on Influence Good luck landing on your favorite niche chapter in this book. It's impossible. Bill Butterworth delivers 12 nominees on the theme of "The Secret Sauce for Greater Influential Effectiveness." Perfect topics for your next 12 weekly staff meetings. Read my review. And for more book reviews, visit the Pails in Comparison Blog.

Ancient Secrets to Project Management

 

Issue No. 684 of Your Weekly Staff Meeting (June 24, 2026) spotlights a stunning combination of project management savvy and soul care wisdom—based on the Book of Proverbs. Plus, click here for back issues posted at the new location for John Pearson’s Buckets Blog, including my recent reviews of books on two U.S. presidents: Destiny of the Republic: A Tale of Madness, Medicine and the Murder of a President and The River of Doubt: Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey. And this reminder: download four lists of books I’ve reviewed here. PLAN A: Write a business book and then “crowbar” a few Bible verses into it. PLAN B: Start with Scripture and then align the business book with ancient wisdom. (Graphic: ChatGPT)   No Crowbar Theology Yikes! Is this a brilliant book on project management (comprehensive, yet even I could understand it)? Or is this a wake-up call on soul care—and matters of the heart—by a humble and accomplished executive who shares how to avoid the pitfalls and snares of success? YES. This gem is so worth your time: Ancient Secrets to Project Management:  How to Lead and Thrive in Your Professional and Personal Life by Robert M. Schraeder (Aug. 17, 2025) Sure…you’re pretty good at project management. (I thought I was too. Then I read Schraeder’s book.) Oh, my. We still have a lot to learn. And thanks to the author—who has managed projects totaling more than $4 billion—this step-by-step guide will be a lifesaver for you and your organization (no matter your size). But get this! He’s a leader in the construction and design industry and the former president of the American Society of Civil Engineers Construction Institute (ASCE CI). His projects: huge! His empathy for project managers: also huge. He’s been there: behind schedule, over budget, huge conflicts—and no sleep. “Years ago,” Schraeder confesses, “I took over as project manager on a $600 million transit project, which was behind schedule and had cost overruns and turmoil with the client. I was commuting by train to downtown Los Angeles and had to arrive at the train station every morning by 6:10 to get a parking spot. I slept an average of five hours a night and gained thirty-five pounds. While working to get the project back on track, I was living an out-of-balance life and unknowingly putting my health at risk.” (It gets worse—much worse.) Wait. What? This overworked licensed professional engineer, with degrees in civil engineering and applied mathematics—clearly a lifelong learner—also allocated time to pick up a master of divinity degree? Why? And now he’s a professional leadership coach and integrates project management with Biblical wisdom? (This I gotta see.)  But before I tell you about the step-by-step project management process of coordinating huge construction projects (huge!), let’s go back a few years. “When I was 26, I was dating a beautiful woman way above my class and trying to decide if I should ask her to marry me. I had heard some long-married couples confess that at least once in their lives they had questioned whether they married the right person. I didn't want to have regrets. I wanted my decision to be sound and not based solely on love and desire. So I did what engineers do: I made a matrix of the pros and cons to marrying this amazing woman. I analyzed my list, prayed about it, and then realized I was being an idiot. It all came down to one simple question: ‘Could I imagine life without her?’ The answer was a resounding, ‘No.’ So I proposed, and we've been happily married for over thirty years.” That’s from “Part 2: Vibrant Personal Life,” a very practical and transparent look at pitfalls and snares of success, long-term success, and instructions to your heart. And if you’re wondering—how does an engineer connect the dots from “Part 1: Successful Project Management” to the second half of the book? And why even try? (It’s brilliantly done and I’ve not read a book quite like it. Note: he mentions his discerning wife, Nancy, often.) NO CROWBARS! You know those “business/management” books, written by people of “faith,” that you sense had zero biblical principles in the first draft? They you’re guessing that—perhaps—an editor with the help of ChatGPT “crowbars” into the book a dozen or more Bible verses. (“AI thought these might be good fillers.”) Arrrrgh!  GOOD NEWS! There are no crowbarred Bible verses in Ancient Secrets to Project Management. Instead—you’ll be amazed at the depth and width of Robert Schraeder’s understanding and use of Scripture (especially Proverbs). What’s different? I sense that the author starts with Scripture as the foundation and the guardrails—thus allowing the content to flow out of this ancient wisdom leadership: dozens and dozens of perfectly positioned verses, such as Proverbs 27:23-24, at the beginning of Chapter 7, “Track Your Performance.” “Know well the condition of your flocks, and give attention to your herds, for riches do not last forever; and does a crown endure to all generations?” (This guy knows his Bible—and that informs his approach to project management. Schraeder could teach a master class on integrating Scripture with your nine-to-five life. Maybe he already does? And if you currently have a 6:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. work life—help is available—he’s also a leadership coach.) PROJECT MANAGEMENT PRINCIPLES Schraeder warns about destructive behavior patterns that may get the project done—but will torpedo your personal life. “It is rare to meet an extremely successful manager who also has a vibrant personal life.” So, on the project management side, you’ll learn about his time-tested processes (as well as his mistakes) that contribute to that work-life balance goal. My favorites: 7 Interview Questions. In the chapter, “Leading Your Team,” Schraeder shares “good questions to ask in an interview that help reveal a person’s character, motives, dreams, and personality.” Wow—I should have used these back-in-the-day: • “What specifically did you do to prepare for today’s interview?” • “What top three things annoy you about coworkers?” 5 Rules for the Care and Feeding of Monkeys. The author reminds us about the HBR bestseller reprint, “Management Time: Who’s Got the Monkey,” with the five rules for monkeys (tasks), including Rule 2: “The monkey population should be kept below the maximum number the manager has time to feed. It shouldn’t take more than fifteen minutes to feed a properly maintained monkey.” (Read the book by Ken Blanchard, William Oncken, Jr., and Hal Burrows. See also the Delegation Bucket.) Plus: see Proverbs 14:4, 24:17, and 26:10. “Never Fall in Love With Your Own Argument!” That’s one of the pull-quote graphics in the very practical chapter, “Protect Your Scope and Margin.” And by the way, I counted 65 pull-quotes from page 1 to 175. Really…it’s impossible to read this book like you’re supposed to. I couldn’t help myself. I skimmed the entire book first looking for those 65 juicy and memorable quotes! Like this one, on the inevitability of mission creep: After mentioning Proverbs 9:4-6, the author pokes another rib: “Being wise means anticipating that your project will face external problems, some quite complex. They shouldn’t surprise you. If your project were easy, the client wouldn’t need you.” “Relationships Are Your Biggest Asset” is Chapter 5’s theme and launches with wisdom from Proverbs 22:11 and 11:17, “A man who is kind benefits himself, but a cruel man hurts himself.” You read that right—Schraeder (an engineer) invests significant pages on the relationship side of project management. He admits early mistakes. He learns from Proverbs. And if you're like me, you’ll read many of his one-liners to your spouse or colleagues.    • “You have the great privilege of working with incredibly talented, dysfunctional people. The sheer entertainment value is worth the price of admission.”    • “An inspector in the field once told me, ‘Let’s admit it, Bob. I’m a [*&!%] and so are you.’ I replied, ‘Oh, Dave, give me a hug.’ From this interaction, we learned how to work together even though we had disagreements.” Read why the author once walked out of his own meeting! “If you can’t control angry words from coming out of your mouth, put yourself in time-out.” Similar to putting children in time-out, “This also works for adults who have no emotional reserves left to deal with idiots.” (LOL! Schrader then adds, “I shouldn’t have said idiots.”) $5 Million Dirt! Read how—because of a strong relationship—Schrader once saved a client $5 million in trucking and disposal fees by offering an alternative plan. Maybe Proverbs 12:18 (be winsome) is not only wise, but cost-effective? Are You a 2026 World Cup Fan? View this short video—and imagine the project management expertise that was required to prepare L.A.’s SoFi Stadium for the 2026 games! Click here. (I wonder if anyone read Schraeder’s book first?) View “SoFi Stadium's massive transformation for the 2026 FIFA World Cup” (2.5 minutes).  “SoFi Stadium VP Juan Carrero and Clark Construction executive Rick Solomon broke down the months-long transformation that turned the Inglewood venue into a FIFA World Cup pitch, including natural grass grown 1,600 miles away in Washington and a playing field elevated higher than any NFL game ever played there.”  CLICK HERE. 5 Conflict Handling Modes. You’ll photocopy the chart on page 89, “Five Conflict Handling Modes.” The four corners: Competing, Collaborating, Avoiding, and Accommodating—with two continuums of Assertiveness and Cooperativeness. (Read more about the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument. But only click on this link if you’ve ever mishandled conflict on the job or at home!)   1 Chapter in Proverbs Each Day. Schraeder reads one chapter of Proverbs each morning (31 chapters: one per day). He also reads five chapters each day from Psalms. That habit prompted me to return to that enriching Proverbs practice. One recurring theme I’m noticing: “The Lord is near.” Too Much to Share! There’s not space to share another dozen gems—so I hope you read this book and learn what fuels this modern-day Nehemiah:    • Why Schrader supported rescue missions in the neighborhoods where he managed a project.    • His pick for the best book on negotiating and why a former FBI agent used his “FM DJ voice—deep and reassuring” when negotiating with terrorists.    • Why the author sometimes “mutters” to God when he can’t sleep! Morning Meditations. Some of my readers will remember that in Issue No. 666 of Your Weekly Staff Meeting (Dec. 17, 2025), I highlighted “12 Inspirational Resources” (one per month in 2026) for your daily inspirational times. You might be surprised to learn that Ancient Secrets to Project Management was one of those 12 books. Over the past few weeks, I’ve enjoyed spending early mornings in this meaty book. The inspiration was expected, but the insights and wisdom on project management—a big bonus. I love this book and you will too. TO ORDER FROM AMAZON, click on the title for Ancient Secrets to Project Management: How to Lead and Thrive in Your Professional and Personal Life, by Robert M. Schraeder. (And thanks to the author for gifting me with a review copy.)   YOUR WEEKLY STAFF MEETING QUESTIONS: 1) Raise your hand if you are responsible for project management on our team (any size, any type). Now…raise your hand if you’ve ever read ONE book on project management.  2) Ancient Secrets to Project Management is one book of a “baker’s dozen” list of books recommended in Issue No. 666, last December. If you’d didn’t launch your inspirational reading on January 1, 2026—you can start fresh on July 1, 2026, with the very short daily readings in Reconstructing Faith: 365 Days to Reconsider Jesus, by Dick Daniels. (Watch for my review.) What fuels your soul every morning?       SECOND READS: Fresh Solutions From Classic Books You have changed—and your problems have changed—since you read this the first time! Book #52 of 99: Halftime For your team meeting this week, inspire a team member to lead your “10 Minutes for Lifelong Learning” session by featuring Book #52 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. Halftime: Moving from Success to Significance by Bob P. Buford (foreword by Jim Collins)   Bob Buford (1939-2018) wrote, “I truly believe that God uses people in their areas of strength and is unlikely to send us into areas in which we are likely to be amateurs and incompetents.”    • Read my review (Issue No. 34, April 27, 2007).     • Order from Amazon  (20th anniversary edition).    • Management Bucket #12 of 20: The Volunteer Bucket Bob Buford suggested that people in “Halftime” ask the following questions: What am I really good at? What do I want to do? What is most important to me? What do I want to be remembered for? If my life were absolutely perfect, what would it look like? My question for you: How effective is your organization, or church, in helping people in the second half of their lives move “from success to significance?” Bob Buford’s life coach asked him a life-changing question, “What’s in the box?” Read Bob’s response. (See the second article in Issue No. 383.)   CLICK HERE FOR BOOKS BY JOHN      For more on the Volunteer Bucket, read Chapter 12 in Mastering the Management Buckets Workbook, and also read Lesson 6 (the Board Hat, the Volunteer Hat, and the Participant Hat) in Lessons From the Church Boardroom. (Read the blog.) 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. Oops! Oops! Your new board member’s not working out? You shoulda read my blog, “We Failed to ‘Date’ a Board Prospect and Now We Have a Loose Cannon!” Read more at ECFA’s “Governance of Christ-Centered Organizations” blog.  250 Years of USA Books! See the list of books about U.S. presidents and American history, “250 Years of USA Books.” You’ll read at least one book on America during our Semiquincentennial, right? See more book reviews at the Pails in Comparison Blog.

Being Mortal

 

Issue No. 394 of Your Weekly Staff Meeting (Nov. 17, 2018) recommends a MUST READ book on end-of-life issues that also oozes with leadership and management insights. The author notes, “People die only once!” And this reminder: click here to download free resources from the 20 management buckets (core competencies).   Pick One: Custer or Robert E. Lee Apparently, I’m a slow learner. You would think that when your daughter-in-law encourages you to read a book—you would read it. Ditto book recommendations from your wife. Melinda and Joanne—sorry it took me a year to read this. But thank you. Because Being Mortal is now on my Top-10 book list for 2018.  In this riveting book, Dr. Atul Gawande reminds us: “People die only once.” So when facing fork-in-the-road sick and dying decisions, “They have no experience to draw on. They need doctors and nurses who are willing to have the hard discussions and say what they have seen, who will help people prepare for what is to come—and escape a warehouse oblivion that few really want.” Being Mortal: What Matters in the End changed—totally changed—my thoughts about end-of-life decisions. Whew. On one level, I agree that this New York Times bestseller [as of 2026, almosts 50,000 reviews on Amazon!] is a brilliant and deep look at the “…still unresolved argument about what the function of medicine really is—what, in other words, we should and should not be paying for doctors to do.” Yet on another surprising level, this writer (four bestsellers), surgeon, and public health leader—delivers fresh management and leadership insights in every chapter. Custer or Robert E. Lee? The author says that medicine’s job is to fight death and disease—the enemy—but that the enemy eventually wins. “And in a war that you cannot win, you don’t want a general who fights to the point of total annihilation. You don’t want Custer. You want Robert E. Lee, someone who knows how to fight for territory that can be won and how to surrender it when it can’t, someone who understands that the damage is greatest if all you do is battle to the bitter end.” Yet Gawande admits, “More often, these days, medicine seems to supply neither Custers nor Lees. We are increasingly the generals who march the soldiers onward, saying all the while, ‘You let me know when you want to stop.’ All-out treatment, we tell the incurably ill, is a train you can get off at any time—just say when. But for most patients and their families we are asking too much. They remain riven by doubt and fear and desperation; some are deluded by a fantasy of what medical science can achieve.” By the way, watch for my review of Leaders: Myth and Reality, by General Stanley McChrystal (US Army, Retired), which includes a 30-page chapter on Robert E. Lee, and why this Civil War general’s picture no longer hangs in McChrystal’s office. What should families do? My suggestion: ask your doctor (like I did this week) if he or she has read Being Mortal. (He had.) Gawande notes that medical school taught him two styles of doctor/patient interactions: paternalistic and informative. The “paternalistic relationship” is the “priestly, doctor-knows-best model, and although often denounced it remains a common mode, especially with vulnerable patients—the frail, the poor, the elderly, and anyone else who tends to do what they’re told.”  Doctors make the critical choices. “If there were a red pill and a blue pill, we would tell you, ‘Take the red pill. It will be good for you.’ We might tell you about the blue pill; but then again, we might not.” The “informative relationship” sounds good, at first. “’Here’s what the red pill does, and here’s what the blue pill does,’ we would say, ‘Which one do you want?’ It’s a retail relationship. The doctor is the technical expert. The patient is the consumer.”  The down side? Doctors become “ever more specialized” and “We know less and less about our patients but more and more about our science.” He writes, “In truth, neither type is quite what people desire. We want information and control, but we also want guidance.” In his medical school, there was also the brief mention of a third type of doctor-patient relationship often labeled “interpretive.” “Here the doctor’s role is to help patients determine what they want. Interpretive doctors ask, ‘What is most important to you? What are your worries?’ Then, when they know your answers, they tell you about the red pill and the blue pill and which one would most help you achieve your priorities.” Makes sense right? Gawande notes that this relationship is also called “shared decision making” and added, “It seemed to us medical students a nice way to work with patients as physicians. But it seemed almost entirely theoretical. Certainly, to the larger medical community, the idea that most doctors would play this kind of role for patients seemed far-fetched at the time. (Surgeons? ‘Interpretive?’ Ha!)” But two decades later, the author describes a meeting with his father (also a surgeon) and his father’s neurosurgeon. The task: review the MRI images of his father’s giant and deadly tumor. The neurosurgeon “saw himself as neither the commander nor a mere technician in the battle but instead as a kind of counselor and contractor on my father’s behalf. It was exactly what my father needed.” To get the conversation going in your family, maybe insert a reminder into your Thanksgiving prayer next Thursday that everyone around the table will die only once! Then, mention this book as required reading for at least one family member. (“Grammy—please pass the turkey and that Being Mortal book.”)  Dr. Gawande is an amazing writer. The poignant stories are page-turners. The innovative solutions—inspiring and encouraging. I’ve already re-told many of the memorable fork-in-the-road stories (tears will flow) to friends and colleagues and ordered the book for several friends. Be sure to read the hilarious story of the very creative nursing home that added two dogs, four cats, and 100 parakeets! (Memo to Purchasing: Next time, order the cages before the birds are delivered!)  I should have jumped on this 2014 book much, much sooner—because I still rave about Gawande’s 2010 insightful bestseller, The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right (read my review). I had no idea that there were checklist connoisseurs! The Checklist Manifesto moves eloquently through medicine, aeronautics, and sky-scraper construction—noting why checklists will make or break a venture. For example, Boeing’s checklist expert uses “pause points” when designing checklists for pilots in crisis. Within each pause point, he limits the checklist to between five and nine items.  As a staff writer for the New Yorker, Gawande’s latest article, “Why Doctors Hate Their Computers,” was published on Nov. 12, 2018. Click here to read or listen to the article online. (Customer Bucket Pop Quiz: Are computer systems for the doctors or for the patients?)  And—get this—Gawande is also CEO of the health care venture formed by Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway, and JPMorgan Chase to deliver better outcomes, satisfaction, and cost efficiency in care. Stay tuned! To order from Amazon, click on the title for Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End, by Atul Gawande.  Your Weekly Staff Meeting Questions:  1)  What is your management style? How do you relate to your customers, clients, or donors? A) “Take the red pill—it will be good for you.” B) “There’s a red pill and a blue pill—you pick.” C) “We have some pills, but first, tell me what is most important to you?” 2) Custer, Lee, or Jesus? Read 1 Corinthians 15:57 in The Message and then discuss the ultimate fork-in-the-road end-of-life issues. “…In the resurrection scheme of things, this has to happen: everything perishable taken off the shelves and replaced by the imperishable, this mortal replaced by the immortal.” Who will have the last word?    Is Your Marketing Sick or Dying? Insights from Mastering the Management Buckets Workbook (2nd Edition with 17% Fewer Typos!) Speaking of medicine, if your marketing or fundraising is sick or dying, here’s a reminder from The Customer Bucket chapter in Mastering the Management Buckets. Leaders, managers, fundraisers, and marketing specialists must use the right tools for the right people at the right time. One size doesn’t fit all—so if you’re trying to shoehorn all of your messaging to all of your customers and prospects with just one message—you will fail or die. If you need help moving customers from ignorance to purchase—contact Pearpod Media and they’ll help you craft the right message for the right audience within these six distinct levels of awareness:    • Level 1: Ignorance    • Level 2: Awareness    • Level 3: Interest    • Level 4: Trial or Consideration    • Level 5: Preference    • Level 6: Purchase For more help on messaging, check out the free 57-page eBook on ministry branding, by Jason Pearson.               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.  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 What are your favorite books on board governance? Check out this series from John Pearson, "18 Best Board Books," originally posted on the ECFA Governance of Christ-Centered Organizations blog--and read why John Carver says boards should never give a "vote of confidence" to their CEOs. Click here.

Eisenhower 1956

 

Issue No. 221 of Your Weekly Staff Meeting (June 30, 2011) highlights a timely book for my U.S. readers as we approach the 4th of July. Timely--because, hmmm, Egypt is next to Libya...and Congress and the President disagree...and, oh yes, an election is coming. If you think you have it tough, read this hot-off-the-press book on President Eisenhower. Plus, this reminder: check out my Management Buckets website with dozens of resources and downloadable worksheets for your staff meetings.


President Eisenhower: "Plans are worthless but planning is everything." (Graphic: ChatGPT)
 

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Ike’s White-knuckle Crisis

OK. I know this is a stretch to cajole you into reading a book about a dead president. But hang with me a minute—and let me try.

Two-term U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower wrote in his memoirs that “October 20, 1956, was the start of the most crowded and demanding three weeks of my entire presidency.” And according to author David Nichols, “During this period, Eisenhower embodied the wisdom of his preachment that ‘plans are worthless but planning is everything,’ enabling him to ‘do the normal thing when everyone else is going nuts.’”

There’s one big reason you should read this book: crisis management (The Crisis Bucket).  Nichols summarizes this stunning account—and Eisenhower himself—on the book’s last page with this one-liner, “By any standard, his was a virtuoso presidential performance—an enduring model for effective crisis management.”

Eisenhower 1956: The President’s Year of Crisis—Suez and the Brink of War is unlike any book I’ve read. It covers mostly one year, 1956, with the greatest focus on Ike’s most demanding three weeks of his presidency. (I study leaders. Ike was a leader, not just a general.)

For starters—have you ever had a couple of weeks like this?

   --Eisenhower couldn’t convince Congress to use foreign aid to fund Egypt’s proposed Aswan Dam project, so after a soft commitment to Egypt’s President Nasser, Ike pulled the plug on the deal.

   --In response, Egypt’s President Nasser nationalizes the Suez Canal.

   --Oops! Western Europe is almost totally dependent on the flow of oil through the canal (with oil reserves of just 15 to 30 days).

   --Ike’s best friends—Britain and France, the nations he rescued in World War II—plotted secretly and devised clever smoke screens to keep the U.S. not just ill-informed but misinformed about their intentions. Read: bald-faced lies!

   --Britain, France and Israel go to war against Egypt.

   --Ike refuses to provide cover to his double-dealing, deceptive friends, and suggested they “be left to burn in their own oil.”

   --At one point, commenting on the flurry of cables between London and Washington, he quipped that it had turned into a “trans-Atlantic essay contest.”

Oh…and did I mention: The President had a heart attack on a trip in the fall of 1955, requiring seven weeks off in Denver, and then more surgery later in 1956 for a cancerous tumor the doctors and staff had kept from him.

Doctors told him to take it easy—and in that we get a humorous picture of Ike. He wrote a friend that he had been ordered “to avoid all situations that tend to bring about such reactions as irritation, frustration, anxiety, fear and, above all anger.” So he had snapped at the doctors, “Just what do you think the presidency is?”

Yet, he decides he’s healthy enough to run for a second term; Adlai Stevenson, his opponent, disagrees. Often. And quite publically!

“The real reason a President wants to run again,” suggested aide Sherman Adams, “is because he doesn’t think anybody else can do as good a job as he’s doing.”

Oops! Then during the campaign, the Soviet Union hustles tanks into Hungary.

 

So whatever your current leadership or management crisis is (you’ve had some doozies and will continue to have them), you gotta admit…it ain’t as challenging as Ike’s crises in 1956.  At one point he whined to his personal secretary, Ann Whitman, “why anyone would want such a job as that of the President.”

If you’re not a history buff or a dead presidents buff, you may find the first half of the book slow-going, even tedious perhaps—but the beauty of this one-year historical feast is the author’s amazing quilt of quotations he threads together from newly released sources like the top secret minutes of the National Security Council and Oval Office meetings.

But keep reading, because when Nichols (a former prof and academic dean) hits Ike’s three most demanding weeks of his life, it’s a page-turner—and I don’t use that phrase lightly. The crisis management insights and best practices are served up on almost every page. 

His campaign buttons announced, “I LIKE IKE.” Ditto. I was so sad when page 286 arrived that I even read the “Acknowledgments,” hoping for another crumb or two. I got ‘em!

To order this book from Amazon, click on the title for Eisenhower 1956: The President’s Year of Crisis—Suez and the Brink of War, by David A. Nichols.

Your Weekly Staff Meeting Questions:

1) On addressing Ike’s response to the Soviet occupation of Hungary, the author writes, “This was standard Eisenhower doctrine, to give an opponent an escape hatch from a confrontation that could escalate into great conflict.” Think of your last crisis—did it escalate unnecessarily?

2) Nichols writes, “Eisenhower had long ago perfected the art of embracing a messianic mission and making it sound like a simple soldier’s call to duty.”  Does our organization have a big vision—and is it stated simply enough?

Top-10 Customer Hunches - Insights from Mastering the Management Buckets: 20 Critical Competencies for Leading Your Business or Nonprofit

One of the big ideas in the Customer Bucket, Chapter 2, in Mastering the Management Buckets is to learn how your customers will change.

Try a stand-up meeting. With bagels. 

“OK. For the next 20 minutes, we’re going to fill this flipchart with all of our best guesses on how our primary customer (per Peter Drucker’s definition) will change in the next 36 months.

“Then, we’ll vote for the 10 most likely changes and assign people to do some in-the-trenches customer research to discern if our hunches are accurate.  We’re going to do something very, very radical this month: talk to our customers!”

For more resources from the Customer Bucket, including book recommendations, visit the Customer Bucket webpage.

2026 Update: For more books on U.S. Presidents and American history, see the list and links posted at "250 Years of USA Books" at the Pails in Comparison 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

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.