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Certain
Trumpets - The Call of Leaders
Simon
& Schuster, 1994 (336 pages in paperback)
Author
Garry Wills
ISBN
0-671-65702-X
Wills has a keen sense of the importance of followers to
leadership. In the introduction to the book he states plainly “The leader most needs
followers”. He goes on to explain that in reality followers “have a say” in
what they are led toward! The theme of Certain Trumpets is that a
successful leader doesn’t just trumpet or sound their own certain message, but
instead they sound a specific call to others capable of following. He believes
that leaders need to understand their followers more than followers need to
understand them! What is Garry Wills basic definition of a leader? “One who
mobilizes others toward a goal shared by the leader and followers”. In other words, coercion of others is not leadership, it
is just power.
With this introduction in mind the rest of the book consists of
Wills discussion of individuals who have possessed leadership in various ways.
The author believes that different leaders should be considered notable because
of their own goals rather than their personalities, which is the most common
perspective. As a result of this perspective, Wills does not treat leadership
as a single thing, but mentions sixteen various kinds of leadership within the
book. He also goes on to discuss various subdivisions within the sixteen kind’s. Certain Trumpets attempts to define these
distinctive types of leadership by using examples that range from Franklin
Roosevelt (Electoral Leadership) to Dorothy Day (Saintly Leadership). To make
this exploration interesting, and to provoke thought, he also provides an
antitype character in contrast to each distinctive type of leader presented. It
is Wills hope to exemplify the individual’s characteristics by providing this
contrast. Wills doesn’t think we lack leaders today, but sufficient followers.
He refers to this as the “real problem with leadership”. Certain Trumpets
is easy to read, stimulating and creative enough to look at leadership from a
different lens.
weLEAD rating recommended
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