Scott Couey

Another winner from John C. Maxwell!

Former pastor turned leadership guru, John C. Maxwell is known for his insight and experience when it comes to the business industry. What I find helpful is Maxwell’s teachings are applicable to other environments such as church, small groups, and relationships. His 2004 release Winning With People specifically deals with relationships. Quite frequently the mindset of the business world is “What can I do to get ahead?” or “How can I succeed?” Maxwell challenges the reader to think outside of the box and change his or her thoughts to “How can I help others succeed?”

The book is broken down into five sections that ask the following questions: Are we prepared for relationships? Are we willing to focus on others? Can we build mutual trust? Are we willing to invest in others? Can we create a win-win relationship? Each section has 5-6 different principles that will help the reader refocus to help answer the respective question in a positive way.

I found so many takeaways within this book including:

• “You can’t control another person’s response to you. All you can do is make yourself the kind of person others want to know and with whom they can build a relationship.”
• “People respond to what they are prepared to believe. And what prepares them for what they believe is their experience.”
• “It takes four positive statements to negate the effect of one negative statement.”
• “You may be able to impress people with your successes, but if you want to influence them, share your failures.”

This book is an easy read and is one from which almost anyone can gain something – especially those in a leadership position (be it professionally, church, or in relationships). I highly recommend this book and if you are also interested in more leadership principles, make sure to read Developing The Leaders Around You, Becoming A Person of Influence, and Developing The Leader Within You (all by Maxwell). You can also follow John Maxwell’s Leadership Blog.

Photo Credit: By The John Maxwell Co.