“I love stories. In the course of my career, I gathered a number of them that mean a lot to me. Most come from my military life. I was in the military from age seventeen, as an ROTC cadet, until I was a retired GI at age fifty-six. Others came from my service as Secretary of State or National Security Advisor. Yet others came to me as I just wandered through life. In this book I want to share with you a selection of these stories and experiences that have stayed with me over the years; each one of them taught me something important about life and leadership. I offer them to you for whatever use you may wish to make of them.
As you will see, there are no conclusions or recommendations, just my observations. The chapters are freestanding. You can read them straight through or jump in anywhere. Everyone has life lessons and stories. These are mine. All I can say is that they worked for me.”
~ Colin Powell from It Worked for Me
Colin Powell is a beautiful man.
That’s what I thought when I first looked at the cover. And, I felt that at an even deeper level after reading this brilliant book.
In fact, one afternoon as part of my shutdown complete ritual I cleared off my desk and put this book in the center as a symbol of my focus for my next morning’s AM1 Deep Work time block.
After placing it there, I was captivated by Powell’s presence and thought to myself as I anticipated my time reading the book, “Wow. I’m really blessed. I get to hang out with the coolest people on the planet.”
Then I thought of just how true that statement is. I get to hang out with some of the world’s leading thinkers (via their books and interviews) AND I get to hang out with YOU. What a joy.
I’m smiling as I type this thinking about the fact that I get paid to basically connect cool people to one another. Thank you for making that possible! I’m honored. Now… On to the show!
I got this book after finding a Colin Powell quote related to a Google search I did on “force multipliers.” It’s a fantastic look at his “Thirteen Rules” of leadership plus a ton of other wisdom.
It’s now one of my favorite leadership books and memoirs. I loved it and highly recommend it. (Get a copy of the book here.)
Of course, it’s packed with Big Ideas. And, of course, I’m excited to share some of my favorites so let’s jump straight in!
Unlock this PhilosophersNote
Create your account to get more wisdom in less time. Personal development made simple so you can flourish in energy, work, and love. Today.
