Where Have All the Leaders Gone?

Thank you, Lee Iacocca for this book. It is great to have such a straight shooter today. People pick up this book and get a glimpse at not just a phenomenal businessman, Iacocca did in fact bring Chrysler back from bankruptcy to being an automotive giant, but also a great man. I am not going to give all of the book away to readers. I liked the reason Lee Iacocca never followed people's advice, and possibly became Senator Iacocca. That story will make the reader laugh. The best part of the book is when Mr. Iacocca talks about leaders and mentors; why it is important for kids to have leaders, and even more interesting who makes for the best mentors and leaders for kids. A telling message Lee Iacocca gives is the idea of happiness, and how even a very wealthy man like Lee Iacocca will tell you money is not the ticket to happiness. He would know. Buy this book and get a glimpse at a true American legend.

I was hoping to enjoy this book and it covers some good points, but no matter what topic he leads into he quickly turns it in to a way to bash former President George W. Busch. It really takes away from the overall book and takes the book from one on leadership and turns it in to just another political perspective book.

Lee Iaoccoa rarely had misses in his lifetime, this is one of them. It is too time sensitive to remain universally reverent beyond the timeline in which this books was written. Rather than make it about qualities for leadership that are aspirational to ensure change, it is a lot of pointing out well known faults. Still worth a read if nothing from a historical perspective of how a blood red republican thinks.

Review: "Where Have All the Leaders Gone?"For the past several years, I have been wringing my hands about the growing dearth of leadership in our nation. I suspect this arises as education snobbery pushes common sense aside in favor of intellectualism. When I learned that Lee Iacocca, one of our greatest contemporary leaders, was similarly concerned and had authored a book on the subject, I was eager to read it. I was confident that he would have some good ideas and would offer some sound advice.Discouragingly, I was wrong.Where have all the leaders gone? I wonder if the author chose the title, since the book does not give us a direct answer. On the chance that was because he could not figure it out, here is my answer: They have gone into hiding, Lee, just like you!According to his memoirs, as documented here, Lee Iacocca had at least three opportunities to serve his country in government and in positions as high as President. His reasons for passing on those solicitations were the same as usually uttered by other very capable people; they are not confident about their ability to participate effectively in the degradingly duplicitous and disingenuous management system that we currently call "politics." That, of course, has left leadership positions open to those who are comfortable in that paradigm. Hence today's situation.As an alternative, he recommends that we all get more conscientious about voting, and evaluate candidates much more critically before going to the polls. Gee; thank's Lee. We never thought of that!I'm sorry, but we're tired of rolling up our sleeves and donning our thinking caps to evaluate - as Jerry Brown cleverly put it over ten years ago - "the evil of two lessers." Since people of your caliber choose to excuse themselves, our role defaults to bottom-fishing. Carp, mud puppies and other scavengers; all junk fish with no fight in them, and never worthy of our table. Not worth fishing for! Why bother?The last sentence in the book is, "Won't you join me?" My first take on that was surprise: 'join you in what?' However, on second thought, I guess my answer is, "Yes." We are all doing the same thing as you. We are bitching and complaining, but keeping far enough away from the mud-wrestling pit that we will not get splattered.Harry Truman was a lot like Lee Iacocca in many ways - common, practical, decisive, responsible and plain talking. Wonder where we would be today had he felt the same way and let things default to lesser men.The above notwithstanding, I give Lee's book high marks.First, because the author is Lee Iacocca, a staunch, real life American icon - someone with a story every youngster should know about. Second, because there is so much more in the book that in conversations with family and friends, no matter what the topic, I currently find myself mentioning what Iacocca had to say. I guess that means I think what he had to say on those things is worth knowing about. Solutions for Secretaries of Small NPO's The Manitou Passage Story

It is always refreshing when a public figure tells it like it is. We are so accustomed to being test-marketed, polled, sound-bited, obfuscated, and outright lied to that anyone who will speak to us like adults gets our attention. Lido has been telling it to us straight since the early 1980s--would that enough of us had remembered his words during the following decades, his concerns about "free" trade, education, health care, greed and the political process. Pretty much all of the bad things he wrote about way back when have come to pass. Of course, politicians know that once you get in office (and even the process of getting to that office), talking straight becomes a romantic idea that can leave one un-elected at the next round. This is, unfortunately, the way the world really works; but this doesn't preclude our elected officials and public figures from leading by example.And Lee Iacocca has led by example.For those who have paid attention, there is not much that is new in "Where Have All The Leaders Gone?" But the book does work as a salve for the very bruised patriots of this nation, for the people who have been fighting since January 20, 1981 to push these insane ideologues back away from the middle so that America can be governed with liberty and justice again. It has been a lonely fight, but if someone like Lee Iacocca agrees with you, the fight may yet be winnable. There is hope.Lee is p****d off, but he remains optimistic: man, that's the American Way. Still, though, I also picked up on a little sadness between the lines. He supported George Bush in 2000, regrets it terrifically, and perhaps leaked a little of his omniscience toward the more natural state of one who makes mistakes from time to time--sometimes (in the case of 2000) really BIG mistakes. But he's in his eighties now, and although he says he is in good health and plans to live to a hundred, there is, as he writes, much more behind than ahead. I hope we don't lose Lee Iacocca any time soon because we will surely need his straight talk again twenty years hence.

As a young child growing up in Detroit, the "Big Three" auto companies, and themanufacturing strength of that city held a fascination for me, and demonstratedmanufacturing "prowess" to be imitated and envied throughout the world.Working my way through MSU / WMU universities, with one summer at"Hamtramck Assembly" / Dodge Main as a UAW member ("closed shop"),I experienced, a "not negotiable, you will strike" situation (1973), allexperiences that opened my eyes to the industry.Additional insight comes from reading Iacocca's 2007 book in 2011,following interim quantum changes in America (2008 elections) in the administration(all three "branches"), continued massive government (over) expenditures, the failureand bail out of the GM / UAW business model, the failure and bail out of theChrysler / UAW business model, and our country's current /growing militaryendeavors (with NATO and the UN as partners) in three Muslim countries (soonto be 4 Muslim countries, adding the Ivory Coast), and continued Middle Eastupheavals, revolutions, and turmoil.An update of Iacocca's 2007 book, for these massive changes in America, would bemost welcome!MDHAmerican Citizen in the Balkans

This should be compulsory reading for all politicians, who should then be tested on it, before they can stand for election

Very powerful

Ich hatte "Iacocca - eine amerikanische Karriere" gelesen (deutsch) und wollte gern wieder einmal ein englisches Buch lesen. Es bot sich für mcih als Nachfolgewerk an. Es enthält zum großen Teil eine Abrechnung mit amerikanischen Politikern. Es ist daher einseitig amerikanisch ausgerichtet. Was beide Bücher auszeichnet: Er ist ein Mann, der sein Leben lang mit Menschen kommunizierte. Mit Freunden und Gegnern. Im Geschäftsleben, Privatleben und in der Politik, mit der er als Präsident zweier großer Unternehmen mehrfach Kontakt hatte.Zwischen den Zeilen entdeckt man Weisheiten, die sich im persönlichen Leben, in Vereinen, Kirchen, Betrieben jeglicher Größe und in politischen Ämtern umsetzen lassen. Im Grunde beschreibt er uralte Wahrheiten, die sich nie geändert haben. Deshalb ist das Buch wertvoll zu lesen.4 Sterne, weil der Inhalt einseitig amerikanisch geprägt ist. Als Lehrbuch ist es daher nicht 1:1 auf deutsche und europäische Denkweise umsetzbar. Wer die Welt (positiv) verändern will, sollte solche Lebensbilder lesen und das Gute daraus nachahmen.

Awesome read, a little different, just go for it!!