Leadership: In Turbulent Times

I’ve read several of Doris Kearns Goodwin‘s books and found them very informative on topics and leaders that go beyond the history books. This book uses four US presidents to represent four different leadership styles and yet how those styles serve them and their country. Very good reading.

I just finished reading the Leadership book by Doris Kerns Goodwin. What an outstanding book! The book is about the leadership styles of Lincoln, Franklin Roosevelt, Teddy Roosevelt, and Lyndon Johnson. The last chapter is about each of their deaths and how they are remembered - truly heartbreaking. This is a book everyone should read, especially those in roles of leadership, or thinking about leadership positions. I wish President Trump had read it and I certainly hope Joe Biden has read it. The steps taken in the leadership roles are certainly ones that could be imitated and many programs might be worth revisiting to get the economy moving again. There are many quotes that are applicable particularly now. One example, especially for Senator Lindsey Graham from his fellow Republican President Teddy Roosevelt, “The people think my word is good, and I should be mighty sorry to have them think anything else.” or Lyndon Johnson’s quote concerning "the plight of being “Black in a White society”.” " It must be our goal “to assure that all Americans play by the same rules and all Americans play against the same odds.” ." How far have we really come since 1972? Or think about how things could have been different if President Trump had read about Franklin Roosevelt’s belief that “if the people “were taken into the confidence of their government and received a full and truthful statement of what was happening, they would generally choose the right response”." And, of course, we all would benefit from studying the life of Abraham Lincoln, who “considered history, an understanding of how we came to be, the best vehicle for understanding who we are and where we are going.” and “singled out education “as the most important subject which we as a people can be engaged in,...”.” Are we at the point Teddy Roosevelt predicted was “the greatest and most dangerous rock in the course of any republic, when “two sections, or two classes (in our case, parties) are so cut off from each other that neither appreciates the other’s passions, prejudices, and, indeed, point of view.”? Did his intention of restoring the Republican party to the progressive party of Lincoln, where “the fellow feeling, mutual respect, the sense of common duties and common interests which arise when men take the trouble to understand one another, and to associate for a common object” die when a blood clot reached his lungs on January 6, 1919? It is such a thought provoking book. I am so glad I read it as part of my goal to read about all the U.S. Presidents.

“Leadership: In Turbulent Times.” It’s hard to imagine a more relevant topic in today’s political times. I find myself looking to history in these very challenging moments to find solace that even when things are at their darkest there are answers from the past about how to make it through. Famed presidential historian Doris Kearns Goodwin examines the lessons of the leadership of Presidents Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin Roosevelt, and Lyndon Johnson, each of whom led the US in times of enormous political crises. While the extreme historical crises they faced were shattering in so many ways, each managed to come through thanks to the leadership qualities each. She looked at each leader in their early formative years, including what brought them to politics. She examined a crisis moment that each faced early in their political careers that nearly brought each down, but through amazing resilience, they each totally reshaped their lives and how they approached politics. From the ashes of their early crises, they rose anew Phoenix-like, reborn in their commitment and fortitude to serve the greater good. She looked also at key moment(s) in their presidencies, but through the lens of the leadership qualities they possessed that helped them triumph. Finally, she looked at their years after their presidencies (or in the case of Lincoln and F. Roosevelt, as they died in office, at moments when they looked toward the times when they could see an end to their intensely dramatic presidential crises in hopes of easier times). Oddly Kearns Goodwin didn’t point this out, but I was deeply struck how each of these presidents, only separated by about 3 decades between each successive one, were deeply connected in their major achievements. Lincoln, the great emancipator, led a crucial reformation of society in ending slavery and seeking for genuine Black participation, to some degree, in society. Theodore Roosevelt, sought to reform society to assure that the haves did not wantonly tread over the have nots in total disregard. Franklin Roosevelt sought to create a societal safety net for those who suffered deeply from the economic crisis of the Depression. And Johnson wanted to reshape American Society to reach its promise that Lincoln first envisioned 110 years prior in bringing about more civil rights for Blacks but also in furthering attempts to eradicate poverty and enhance the social safety net for the most vulnerable Americans. While intense societal injustice doesn’t right itself overnight, a great lesson of history is that Rome wasn’t built in a day. Creating meaningful lasting change takes time. It is easy to make physical changes but to change hearts and minds is a much slower and more stubborn process. Great leaders don’t falter at that challenge though and instead build upon the work of those who come before them, while leaving a strong path for those who follow from behind as they forge their own path to future. The lessons gleaned in this book from each president are intriguingly collected. Kearns has considered leadership qualities well, and few historians have the depth of knowledge of so many presidents, so her analysis is invaluable. However if she wanted to focus more on leadership as the star of this book, I think her approach of looking at characteristics would have been more valuable to the reader if she had done more purposeful comparison and contrast about the common leadership traits each president shared (or didn’t share) and how that impacted each of them. With Johnson she showed the great success of his Great Society initiatives, but she also showed his abject failure with Vietnam. It would have been valuable to see where his leadership traits failed him there, though she did do that to some degree, but not with convincing success. She missed an opportunity though (as we do learn through failure also), since she didn’t examine the other presidents in terms of their failing moments. Each suffered great presidential failures as well, though perhaps not as stunningly as Johnson did. Still this book is highly readable and interesting — and most importantly is is profoundly relevant. I read it to gain a sense of hope that good presidential leadership can make a decisive difference. This book helped me affirm (again) that great presidents can help meet challenge. As Kearns Goodwin shows, they have in the past, and will again in the future.

Amazing book. The stories behind each president and analysis of their administration is very insightful. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in what makes a great leader, including the adversity they sustained and how

Libro arrivato celermente ottime condizioni. Mi piacerà leggerlo.

Excellent book! Very insightful. Well researched. No wonder the author won the Pulitzer Prize! The stories are relevant to today so very much and definitely resonate with anyone interested in learning about leadership. I learned a great deal by reading this book. I bought the large print edition by mistake and would have preferred the normal sized print. This is a really big book because of the large print.

Very few times a book like this comes..it is one of those books which you will remember for a long long time ... What it takes to be a great leader.??.. it's not a easy path...it takes phenomenal courage to keep going and learn from your mistakes... Read it...

Tons of interesting advice and stories from different great Americans. Much more interesting than I expected.