The Monroe Doctrine
An ABC Guide To What Great Bosses Do
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
Leadership is the key to excellence. And leadership can be learned. Thank goodness, because many people who fall into managerial positions haven't the foggiest notion how to lead. They don't feel driven to attain the competencies of a boss -- much less a great boss. Lorraine Monroe is a born leader. She caught the bug early, as secretary of the student council in the fourth grade at P.S. 157 in Central Harlem. She went on to found the Frederick Douglass Academy in Harlem, a remarkably successful and innovative public school, and became one of the most respected education reformers in America. Now Monroe translates her extensive experience in New York City public schools into the "Monroe Doctrine" to show other education and business leaders how to create and maintain high-achieving organizations.
The Monroe Doctrine offers readers concrete lessons in the craft of leadership. Its brief, catchy lessons and anecdotes will help potential leaders tap into their natural gifts and harness those gifts to lead seemingly by instinct. Monroe's personal story of conquering the most overwhelming challenges will inspire leaders of all types to try new ideas to enrich their lives and the lives of their organizations. With The Monroe Doctrine by their side, readers will be able to lead any organization -- whether a hospital, a house of worship, a sorority, a family, a school, or a business -- with renewed passion and results.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Monroe, founding principal of the Frederick Douglass Academy (a successful public school in Harlem) and a leadership consultant, offers succinct and practical strategies on managing and getting ahead. Drawing on her background in education, Monroe offers definitions of key concepts for every letter of the alphabet (in some cases several per letter) from "analyze" to "zigzag." In no more than one and half pages per subject, she explains by using incidents from her own life and provides problem-solving suggestions. Under "imagine," for example, she says, "I have never undertaken any project (including this book) without first imagining on paper what it would ultimately look like.... To simply imagine without writing out my thoughts is unthinkable to me and utterly impractical, since all the doers who would be responsible for carrying out my imaginings have to be informed and let in on the dream." Monroe is innovative and believes workers and bosses need to support each other, offering several examples of principals backing up teachers even when other administrators weren't helpful. She says managers need to spend time understanding what their staff does, but she also asserts that managers need to let valued employees know they're important. Her advice is sound and will be especially useful to new managers and those who have just entered or are re-entering the workforce. The definition-driven format works well, although the short sections don't allow for a complete overview. Overall, this is a practical manual that will provide immediate tactics for readers.
