The concept of Servant Leadership has been around for eons, and modeled by Jesus as he developed his disciples. But the label is fairly new and there remains questions of how to implement it. This is where Ken Blanchard and Renee Broadwell’s Servant Leadership in Action: How You Can Achieve Great Relationships and Results brings clarity and inspiration by collecting insights from several thought leaders on the topic.
The book’s forward is penned by one of the foremost servant leaders, John Maxwell, and contains contributions from more 40 different voices. It contains contributions from the likes of Brene Brown, Jon Gordon, Craig Groeshel, Patrick Lencioni, Dave Ramsey, Simon Sinek, Cheryl Bachelder, Colleen Burnett, and more. Because of the diversity of contributing thought leaders, the content and lessons span multiple Industries, ranging from food service and banking to civil rights, military, and sports.
I was invited to review an advance copy of Servant Leadership in Action. This post is that review along with some personal take-a-ways. But, before digging into that, I also find if relevant to mention that all royalties from book sales are going to the Foundation for Servant Leadership.
That’s pretty cool. 🙂
Foundations of Servant Leadership
One thing I really enjoyed about this book is that it’s so much more than a collection of people writing unguided essays. It’s sectioned into six distinct parts. As such, the early content focuses in on the foundations of servant leadership.
That means there are frequent references to Robert Greenleaf, who is credited with first coining the term and dedicated his life to training up fellow servant leaders. His legacy lives on through those he’s mentored and to this day through the Greenleaf Foundation.
Several contributors also observe that Jesus is the ultimate model, citing Mark 9:35 as one of the examples of evidence.
He sat down, called the twelve disciples over to him, and said, “Whoever wants to be first must take last place and be the servant of everyone else.” – Mark 9:35 NLT
In addition to part one’s focus on the fundamentals, the remaining five parts flow in natural progression. Part two through six focus respectively on the elements, lessons, exemplars, deploying, and transforming impact of servant leadership.
Servant Leadership Nurtures Environment
The concept of Servant Leadership has been around for eons, and modeled by Jesus as he developed his disciples. But the label is fairly new and there remains questions of how to implement it. Blanchard’s Servant Leadership in Action collects several thought leaders to bring clarity and inspire.
A key theme present throughout the book is the emphasis on how a servant leader sets the environmental tone. In this regard, the contributors show how servant leadership is both strategic and operational.
From the onset of the book, Blanchard is intentionally setting the tone by defining servant leadership as:
In their cultures, servant leaders promote environments of trust. This breaks barriers that are related to fear and anxiety, ensuring no lingering threats to performance and productivity.
Servant leaders also are active in preventing cultures of shame because the very foundation of servant leadership is courage, and shame almost certainly breeds fear.
As the parts and chapters unfold, we see exactly how various leaders have achieved and experienced this. In addition, many of the contributors specifically speak to what servant leadership is not.
Concluding Thoughts on Servant Leadership in Action
Like many books, Servant Leadership in Action came to me at just the right time. I found it to be a great, inspiring read. I found it providing me with exposure to the minds of many of my favorite leaders. Perhaps more importantly, though, it exposes readers to different voices they would not have otherwise known. I have no doubt many (if not all) the contributions are immediately applicable to you and your career no matter your industry and role.
A couple of the essays I consider to be must reads, are those from Henry Cloud (The Four Corner’s of the Leader’s Universe), Erwin Raphael McManus (A Baptism of Leadership), and Laurie Beth Jones (The Servant Leader Identity).
But don’t let the title fool you. In addition to helping you be a better servant leader, it will help you be an equally great follower. Some readers may get put off by the occasional repetition. Also, there is some overt selling by some of the contributors. I guess that’s a likely expectation in a book like this, where contributors are also writers and speakers in their own rights.
Even that is fairly minimal though, showing that the contributors are genuinely walking their talk. Head out to your local bookstore or buy Servant Leadership in Action today.