Rating: 
Summary: A great book on leadership!
Review: In "Leadership Secrets of Colin Powell," Oren Harari distills and expounds upon the leadership style of one of the most well respected leaders of our time. It is not a biography about or tribute to Powell, neither is it a book written by Powell. Rather, Harari has drawn from a wide range of sources such as personal communication with Powell, magazine articles, books, speeches, etc. The result is a powerfully motivating and thought-provoking book."Leadership Secrets" has 16 chapters divided into 3 main sections: Section 1-Powell as Provocateur-jumps right in with "Know When to Piss People Off." The other chapters in include "Promote a Clash of Ideas," "The Ego Trap," "Don't Go Looking for No," "The Chief Dis-organizer," and, "When to Challenge the Pros." Section 2-Powell on Strategy and Character-is milder but just as thought provoking with, "Close With the Enemy," "People Over Plans," "Vigilance in Detail," "Situation Dictates Strategy," "Powell's Rules for Picking People," and, "Trust Those in the Trenches." Section 3-The Powell Character-dwells on some of the less concrete aspects of leadership with "The Powell Way," "Optimism Is a Force Multiplier," "Take Leave when You've Earned It," and, "Prepare for Loneliness." The book moves along at a good pace. Harari does a nice job of presenting concepts without feeling the need to spell things out in excruciating detail. Each chapter is self-contained making the book easy to pick up and read in spurts. Finally, each chapter ends with a nice summary of the main concepts. "Leadership Secrets" is certainly on the upper end of the bell curve of business and leadership books. I give it an unequivocal endorsement.
Rating: 
Summary: A model to emulate
Review: Oren Harari has pulled together some of Colin Powell's words of wisdom, many of which were already published in Powell's autobiography, and turned them into a useful leadership book. Harari fleshes out many of Powell's ideas and gives memorable examples of what he believes Powell means when he says, for example, that "being responsible sometimes means pissing people off." This book is a tribute to Powell and can at times come across as interpreting the teachings of the Messiah, but since Powell is one of the few leaders in today's world that is virtually universally respected, this is forgivable. The Leadership Secrets of Colin Powell is a valuable addition to any leadership library.
Rating:
Summary: Highly Recommended!
Review: Perhaps no political leader in the United States is more widely respected than Colin Powell, decorated soldier, architect of the 1991 U.S. victory over Iraq, former presidential contender and current Secretary of State. Using anecdotes and quotations from Powell's life, management professor Oren Harari distills leadership philosophies and methods that can be applied to business. The book is written in a short, pithy style, reflecting Powell's own direct approach. While the principles Harari uncovers are not innovative, they are comprehensive and practical. Charged with maintaining an international coalition in the ongoing war on terrorism, Powell has been thrust into one of the world's most important leadership roles. For this reason alone, we from getAbstract recommend Harari's book for its insight into the man's leadership philosophies, which have had a profound influence on U.S. military and government organizations.
Rating: 
Summary: So much common sense
Review: This book is a joke. It is written by a guy who has followed Colin Powell around and has taken a lot of notes on what he has said. He then put together a bunch of Powell's stories and comments into this book. The "secrets" are not secrets at all. They are common sense to most people. After the first couple of chapters I realized that I was wasting my time trying to read each word and just went to the summaries at the end of each chapter. It's all summed up there. Powell did not contribute to this book, he was merely a speaker who fed the author enough information to pull this book together.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Management Took
Review: This book was excellent! On Friday night I sat down with it and could not put it down until I read through all 16 principles that Oren highlighted. The tools were so applicable to my business and personal life that I raved about the book all weekend to friends/family and on Monday I brought it in to our company meeeting to share with the staff (a definite must for the people I manage directly). Readers you would be doing yourself a diservice not to read this book from cover-to-cover. My favorite principle is Chapter 14 when he talks about optimism as being a 'force multiplier.' Especially during this poor economic time these our words to live by!!!
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Management Took
Review: This book was excellent! On Friday night I sat down with it and could not put it down until I read through all 16 principles that Oren highlighted. The tools were so applicable to my business and personal life that I raved about the book all weekend to friends/family and on Monday I brought it in to our company meeeting to share with the staff (a definite must for the people I manage directly). Readers you would be doing yourself a diservice not to read this book from cover-to-cover. My favorite principle is Chapter 14 when he talks about optimism as being a 'force multiplier.' Especially during this poor economic time these our words to live by!!!
Rating: 
Summary: Average book
Review: This is an average book at best. I would not recommend it to anyone. If you think you would like it, you should read the book Powell wrote himself. It will help you understand this book.
Rating:
Summary: Inspiring and captivating
Review: This is an excellent leadership book for military members and corporate managers. If you were in any way confused about how to lead units, build confidence in organizations or improve yourself.....get this book! I can't put it down. I'm pouring over it in preparation for my next military assignment. I originally purchased the book to learn about the "Powell Way", but I quickly realized it could also be "my way" as well. I'm a LCDR in the U.S. Navy and also a freshly minted MBA--what a great book to prepare me for the upcoming challenges in my career. The book is packed full of cogent examples of problems and how Secretary / General Powell executed his plan to quickly resolve them. I wish, however, the book contained more failures or unsuccessful exploits and the lessons Powell learned. I believe that kind of insight is also just as valuable in leadership....how to deal with failure. Overall, I highly recommend this book be made required reading for every MBA, officer candidate, cadet and midshipman--Simply put, this is good stuff.
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