by Donald T. Phillips (New York: Warner Books, 1992)

Reviewed by: Dorothy Smith of University of California Cooperative Extension

When we think of our country's history we routinely think of those we consider to be great leaders but what we do not realize is that many of our past leaders practiced those critical leadership skills we are teaching today.  Lincoln was one of those leaders.  In his first month of office he faced challenges that would make even the most experienced CEO of today tremble: "Only ten days before Abraham Lincoln took the oath of office in 1861, the Confederate States of America seceded from the Union, taking all Federal agencies, forts, and arsenals within their territory." He was a President elected by a minority of the popular vote, despised by many of his own advisers, without military training and with limited financial, managerial and political experience. So how could he possibly save the nation?

This book offers a unique perspective into Lincoln's leadership style. Donald Phillips has studied Lincoln's presidency to identify those personality characteristics that made him such a charismatic leader. This would be interesting in itself; but Phillips goes further to infuse these traits with life in the context of modern leadership issues. In studying the management techniques and people skills that Lincoln used to achieve the impossible, Phillips finds a number of useful lessons for today's managers: "Get Out of the Office and Circulate Among the Troops......Persuade Rather than Coerce....Lead by Being Led....Keep Searching Until You Find your 'Grant'" are just a few of the book's chapters.

Phillips divides his book into a sequence of key lessons, each based on one of Lincoln's distinctive leadership traits and illustrated by specific examples. At the end of each lesson, he summarizes the Lincoln principles as they apply to leaders today.

In this book you will discover why you should:

·         Seize the initiative and never relinquish it

·         Wage only one war at a time

·         Encourage risk-taking while providing job security

·         Avoid issuing orders and instead-request, imply, or make suggestions

This short (just 173 pages) leadership book is great reading. Lincoln on Leadership is a book written for managers by a manager who has successfully implemented these techniques in his own career. It's also a interesting glimpse into the character of one of America's strongest leaders. Philips doesn't lecture about Lincoln, instead he let's Lincoln speak for himself, quoting a variety of excerpts from Lincoln's letters, speeches, anecdotes and jokes. This book was one of the most enjoyable leadership books I have read in a long time.