John Stanko

I just finished Marshall Goldsmith's book entitled What Got You Here Won't Get You There.  I used to read Marshall's material when I was more involved with Peter Drucker's world, for Marshall was on the Drucker board and contributed regularly to Leader to Leader magazine.

I wasn't sure what to expect from this book, but I enjoyed it and found it helpful.  Marshall is a big proponent of the 360-degree assessment, which gives an executive anonymous feedback from people from every area of his life including family.  In this book, he basically talked about the need for leaders to be coached out of their bad habits and into new, more productive behavior.

I always find it interesting when non-Christian material focuses on Christian values like love, humility and discipline.  Goldsmith tells leaders in this book that, when they receive feedback on how to improve or concerning some weakness, they should "shut up and say thank you."  Meanwhile, most Christian leadership material would tell those trying to give such feedback to "shut up and touch not God's anointed."  That's why I read a lot more secular leadership books than so-called Christian. 

If you are looking for a book that gives practical advice on how to change your work or ministry behavior for the better, I would recommend this book.  Marshall certainly has the credentials as an executive coach and delivers some practical wisdom that will make you more effective. 

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