FZ Book Club: The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership

We're proud of our leaders and their dedication to constant growth and learning. That's why we've start the FZ Book Club. Every month, one of our leaders will share what they've been reading and some takeaways that they are looking to apply to their job.

Leader: Derek Kirkland, Preconstruction Manager
Book: The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership by John C. Maxwell

In The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, John Maxwell outlines 21 principals that are essential to successful leadership. Maxwell emphasizes that these laws are timeless, universal, and applicable across industries and markets; something that I agree with. I found that this book served as a good starting point to expanding my concept of leadership and how I can change little things to lead more effectively.

Of the 21 Laws Maxwell describes, I found the following three the most interesting.

Law 2: The Law of Influence: When you think about being a leader, what are you actually trying to do? The answer is actually pretty simple. You are trying to influence a person to do something in a certain way or follow a certain vision without them seeing the total picture clearly. It all comes down to your ability to influence those around you.

Law 3: The Law of Process: This one hit very close to home for me. Over the last few years, we’ve developed new processes at FZ that we've coined 'The FZWay.' They range from estimating a project all the way down to how we present ourselves to a new client. Living into these processes gives my team a structure and clear expectations, which allows them to be truly successful. Maxwell said that "Leadership develops daily, not in a day." It is through my daily commitment to the FZWay processes that influence change.

Law 14: The Law of the Buy-in: Simply put, people first buy into the leader and then the vision. Effective leaders gain trust and buy-in from their team before they can effectively lead them towards the vision. Over my career in estimating, I've repeatedly been told, "Do it this way," or, "Don't do it that way." I was so focused on the little details and doing things right vs. understanding the overarching goal. With the processes we have now, I'm able to show my team the end goal which allows them to see how the day-to-day processes lead to that goal.