Primal Leadership: Realizing the Power of Emotional Intelligence [ABRIDGED]

Rating:
Summary: Too stretching
Review: I really liked Dan Goleman's previous books on Emotional Intelligence (EI). Goleman's article on "Primal Leadership" appeared in Harvard Business Review (HBR) a few years ago. His book version of primal leadership is a little too stretching. If you are not keen on reading the not-so-interesting details, I would recommend the article version in HBR, which gives a very good synopsis of the book.

Rating:
Summary: Read this book if you are a leader (or planning to be one).
Review: I think a few clarifying questions should be answered here. Is this a useful book about identifying and improving critical leadership traits/competencies? Yes. About emotional traits? Yes. About "gushing"? Absolutely not. Is it useful for self-improvement? Yes (strongly). Helping others in their self-improvement? Yes. Does this book clear away the "mythology" of leadership? Yes.

The authors assert that leadership traits can be trained, and that there isn't an upper age limit to retrain. It also asserts many things that you will know in your gut to be true. What is important is not the individual facts that are highlighted, it is the connections between those observations and their implications. Yes, the book often restates material but there is a reason. Buy the book and read it. Digest it slowly. Why? Because improving leadership competencies requires much more repetition than is required for cognitive tasks - it involves the reprogramming the basal ganglia, or emotive brain, which much different than the neocortex, or the thinking brain, that is used most heavily in academic learning. What is important is the "why" (i.e., the sustainability and effectiveness of leadership improvement) and the "how" (the technique). Does this book answer all your questions on this subject. Probably not. It will show you the basic leadership competencies, and that an effective leader must have strengths in each of the 4 base competency areas: this last point is of some utility in my leadership coaching role. It will also tell you about the basic leadership styles, their pros/cons, and how to facilitate each style and their blends. It will drive home the need for sustained learning (...those one week leadership effectivess classes you have attended statistically don't work, but you probably already knew that), and the importance of setting your own goals and plans (...no one really ever causes you to change your style, rather you identify the improvement areas that you are willing to change, and use a learning approach that you adopt). The book will help you identify leadership styles in others. It tells you why stressful environments physiologically defeat your ability to improve, and what you can do to mitigate this effect. It gives underlying rationale for advice in Drucker's "Management Challenges of the 21st Century" (Chap. 6 Managing Oneself) , Collins' "Built to Last", and Buckingham's "First, Break All the Rules".

It this all you need for leadership improvement? Probably not, but I'll add this one for the record: your chances for success are very much diminished without understanding the deeper principles found in this book...

Rating:
Summary: Hits The Nail On The Head
Review: I think Daniel Goleman's "Primal Leadership" hits the nail on the head when it talks about Emotional Intelligence and making those you are leading feel good. It sounds like a modern way of saying what philosophers throughout the ages have said, as even I as a professor learned from Norman Thomas Remick in "West Point: Character Leadership...", about "good-leaders" giving followers the "will" to follow. Goleman goes on in his book to talk about the practical, how-to, ways of imparting the emotional "will" to follow, as did Remick talk about the practical philosophy behind this important subject. I recommend first reading Goleman's "Primal Leadership", then going on to read the Remick book to build your knowledge.

Rating:
Summary: Really awful book--zero substance
Review: I was shocked. I really thought that EI was something special, unique. I never really read anything by Goleman, until now. BTW, I am no newbie....I am an organizational psychologist specialized in leadership measurement and development, and know quite a bit about psychometrics.

First, there is zero evidence linking brain/neurological factors to leadership. Second, EI measures have not been validated. Third, general intelligence and personality factors are far better predictors of leadership than is EI.

I guess the best way to summarize the book is to use the final paragraph of a recent scholarly review of the book appearing in Personnel Psychology, a very well respected applied psychology journal. The authors had this to say:

"....we were disappointed with this book. We hoped it would be a landmark work, adding to our understanding of leadership. Instead the text delivered a very generalized treatment of old ideas couched in new terminology. In addition, the authors have filled the book with what should be done to become an effective leader but only allude to the how of doing so."

If you really want to know the truth about Emotional Intelligence "Emotional intelligence: Science and myth" by by Gerald Matthews, Moshe Zeidner, Richard D. Roberts. Once you read this work, you will realize that EI is really in its infancy and that it is lunacy to make recommendations and build theories around something that had not yet been properly defined, is poorly understood, and has no or very little practical utility.

Rating:
Summary: EQ motivates
Review: I'm a personal coach and work a lot with people on energy, motivation and emotional intelligence. In Buckingham and Clifton's book, "Now, Discover Your Strengths," they list the things a manager should ask his or her employees, and one of them is, "Do you have a best friend at work?" This has mystified the people I've mentioned it to, or else they consider it trivial. And yet, when we've discussed it, they realize they've done their best work in the places where they did have a best friend. And what is a "best friend"? Someone who likes us, supports us, and makes us feel good about things. The authors build a good case for an emotionially intelligent leader, which has been a long time coming. Emotions are the key to motivation and yet they've been considered a "soft" skill. We look to our leaders to lead us, and teach us; however, the end result is that they teach us who they are and how they feel about things. It's not what a leader does or says, but who he or she is ... and we are our feelings. As the authors point out, if you wish to create change, and sustain it, you must build an emotionally intelligent organization. It's a great book, whether you're the boss or the employee. Most of us want to do our best, and to do so, we need the kind of primal leadership the authors talk about.

Rating:
Summary: Using What You've Got
Review: I'm familiar with Daniel Goleman's other books. I remember being astonished by his book, Emotional Intelligence. Prior to this, I always felt dumb because I was a moron with academics. But his books, and his revelations on emotional IQ, made me feel smart again. We have talents and intellect on many levels. The brain is so complex and it goes beyond just the four R's. Some of us may stink at math but are brilliant at art. Some may be lousy at science but great in social environments. It was brought to my attention in Goleman's works that it's people with emotional IQ who tend to be more succsessful than folk with all the degrees but none of the common sense. This book takes his other revelations and applies it to business. Great Vision. Another book I would like to recommend, that is within the same genre, is called, The Little Guide To Happiness. I too is an enlightening book, though more on a personal level.

Rating:
Summary: Just like my boss...
Review: I'm listening to the audio book version of Primal Leadership and I think it's fantastic. Goleman's approach takes Emotional Intelligence into the Business world and shows its many applications. He cites examples of effective managers that use emotional tools to manage better and it is a good read.

To some degree, he's putting common sense to work. It's pretty obvious that managers with out of control emotions do not earn the respect of their employees. However, Goleman quantifies this with statistics and examples that are fascinating to read (or hear).

I really like hearing about the role of empathy and honesty when approaching your employees. My current boss is like the "coach" that Goleman describes. I completely trust my boss because I know he is acting with my best interests at heart. My boss is sincere and cares about my future with the company. In fact, I'm considering having a long distance marriage in the future just to continue working where I work and under my current boss. The principles of Emotional Intelligence are vastly underutilized in today's companies and I know my boss is a rare find.

I'm giving this book four stars instead of five because Goleman does have a tendency to repeat himself. He sounds like a broken record and I have wondered if his editor didn't read all of the chapters. I want to tell Goleman that 'we get it already,' but on the whole, the novel hits home.

I already have list of managers at work who will randomly receive copies of this book from Santa! <wink, wink>

Rating:
Summary: Leadership toolkit
Review: If there is a way to understand the ingredients of successful leadership, assimilate these ingredients and make your own recipe, this book has it all. Human capabilities can be grouped under three broad categories-Technical Skills, Cognitive abilities and Emotional Intelligence. While all the three are essential for performance, better and sustainable results emanate from EI based leadership more so at higher levels of management responsibilities.

EI capabilities are classified into four main domains- Self Awareness, Self Control, Social Awareness and Relationship Management which are further broken down into eighteen competencies. The leadership styles that emerge are either Resonant or Dissonant. Visionary, Coaching, Affiliative and Democratic styles are Resonant while Pace Setting and Commanding are Dissonant. Primal leadership relies on the understanding of these distinct styles and the ability to identify and build those styles that are in lacking and consciously eliminating the dysfunctional.

The authors, in addition to listing and describing all the above factors in detail, constantly touch upon the anatomy of the human brain and link its functioning to explain the results. By understanding the pattern of information flows and its processing, it is argued that it one can identify and practice favorable patterns that are responsible for resonance. These concepts are then extended to maximizing emotional intelligence of teams.

As clearly brought out in the book, acquiring primal leadership skills needs lots of practice and it may take even months. Reading the book is just the beginning to that wonderful resonant journey.

Rating:
Summary: Must reading for all management people
Review: If you are in business or a management capacity, this bookis a must read. It will transform your results.

Rating:
Summary: How to optimize leadership competence
Review: In this interesting book, the authors discuss the concept of resonance, where leaders bring out the best in people by being positive about their emotions. Four aspects of emotional intelligence are discussed with reference to various types of leadership. Essential and specific steps are recommended to become a more positive leader and create a better organization. But as an Optimal Thinker who has incorporated Optimal Thinking into my corporation, I understand that seeking to improve an organization with suboptimal positive action will not bring out the best in leaders or others. This valuable book can be most easily optimized with an infusion of Optimal Thinking. Recognized by leaders like myself as the mental resource to be our best, Optimal Thinking is now being employed in top corporations to deal with all situations, including those resulting from emotional incompetencies. Employees are asking the best questions to elicit optimal solutions. Read this book along with Optimal Thinking: How to Be Your Best Self and you will optimize results.