The Power Of Positive Leadership: How and Why Positive Leaders Transform Teams and Organizations and Change the World

The first step for leaders is to be a person whom others want to follow. This requires investing in relationships and being caring and trustworthy. Gordon argues that the two questions that teams are always asking of their leader are “Can I trust you?” and “Do you care about me?” (101).

For this reason, leadership starts with love. Gordon points to Bob Goff, author of Love Does, who founded a nonprofit by the same name to rescue underage girls from sexual slavery in India and Uganda. For Gordon, Goff’s story shows that love is the “greatest leadership principle on the planet” (102). As another example, Gordon says that good teachers know their lesson plans but that great teachers know and love their students.

Gordon explains that lack of communication is a major cause of team breakdowns and that communication requires building a trusting and loving relationship. Gordon gives the example of a women’s volleyball coach whose communication tool is called the “1-Minute Drill”: The coach calls a player into his office several times each season to tell them what they are doing well, what needs work, and what to focus on in the next training cycle. Conversely, when communication is absent, negativity is likely to result; communication helps prevent rumors and negative energy from spreading. Even families can benefit from weekly meetings to discuss the family mission statement, past and future challenges, and anything else that is important.

Because communication is so vital, good leaders get out of the office and interact with their team. That the dynamics of groups are constantly changing makes this especially important. Gordon suggests asking questions, listening, learning, and then using the information to make decisions. Listening is especially important, helping the leader understand the situation better while making the other person feel heard and valued. Positive leaders welcome criticism because it makes them better.

When it comes to delivering positive and negative feedback, Gordon likes the phrase “Shout praise, whisper criticism” (111), which he learned from basketball coaches. The “shout” comes in front of peers, while the “whisper” is done in private.

Smiling is an important part of positive communication. Smiling produces serotonin, an antidepressant, in the brains of both the giver and the receiver. Other nonverbal techniques are nods, high-fives, pats on the back, and fist bumps. Sharing positive news about others and offering encouragement are other forms of positive encouragement; with regard to the latter, Gordon notes that being encouraging means believing in others more than they believe in themselves. For instance, he told his own daughter that she was “unstoppable” when she was a very tentative lacrosse player, and she improved to the point of receiving offers to play in college.

Nevertheless, connection requires more than communication. Team members must feel the leader’s own commitment to them; leaders must put the needs of the team before their own. This may involve serving team members, as great leaders such as Jesus and Martin Luther King, Jr., served others. The leader must decide to serve “me or we” (119). Gordon gives the example of a time when he had to cut back on his travels to help his family manage their relationships at home. Although, at times, he wished he had a different “team,” he made sure to encourage his children and study with them, and he helped his wife with the laundry. He realized that the “team” was not the problem; as the leader, he himself was. Moreover, the challenges that teams present make leaders better. To illustrate this point, Gordon recounts the story of the CEO of 24 Hour Fitness ordering the company’s executives to train at their own centers to spend time interacting with staff members and learn how to better serve them. They also had to work for a week in one location each year. As a result, the executives better understood the needs of their customers.

Great leaders have what Gordon calls a “caring trademark,” a unique way to show that they care. For instance, as CEO of Campbell Soup, Doug Conant wrote over 10,000 thank-you notes to employees. Similarly, the superintendent of a high school district in Texas writes a note to every senior who graduates. Gordon himself learned a lesson in leadership from his mother when she grew tired during a walk that they were taking yet insisted on continuing to get to a store and make a sandwich for him. It was the last time he saw his mother conscious.

A positive leader constantly pursues excellence and is a lifelong learner, no matter their age. These leaders are demanding but not demeaning. They provide both love and accountability, a lesson that Gordon considers the most important in the book.

Alan Mulally, who turned Ford around, is an example of a leader who combined love and respect for the employees with accountability. He had “zero tolerance” for violating established processes and addressed such violations to show his own commitment to the process. Coach Dabo Swinney is another example of a leader who provides both love and accountability. He holds players responsible for following the team rules, even if it means keeping a star player out of a game.

While Gordon believes in tough love, he prefers the idea of “love tough,” which he defines as a leader’s willingness to challenge the team. The result is a team of craftspeople rather than carpenters, the difference being that the craftsperson is engaged not merely in building but in making art. He gives an example from Steve Jobs’s childhood, when he was helping his father build a fence. Jobs’s father told him that he had to care as much about crafting the back of the fence as the front because Jobs would know if the job was not well done. At the same time, Gordon acknowledges that Jobs was widely thought to fall short in developing relationships. Jobs was a craftsman, but no one is a “perfect positive leader” with every trait Gordon discusses (145). 

Gordon introduces the “one percent” rule: the idea of giving 1% more time and effort than one gave the day before. A team of 35 people all giving 1% more gives 35% daily.

Ultimately, excellence requires clarity and action. Mulally, for instance, used various visual images to communicate the Ford team’s management policies, processes, and strategies—e.g., laminating the images on a two-sided card so that everyone could work toward the same goals.