Rating: 
Summary: Highest praise. Best book I've read this year!
Review: Full Steam Ahead! had such an impact on me that I decided to take the time to write a review, which I've never been moved to do before. I think it's important to let others know about this excellent book. It was given to me as a gift, which I left on the shelf for awhile. However, one evening I picked it up and started reading. I couldn't put it down and read it in one sitting! It made so much sense to me and it gave me great ideas that I could start using immediately. That was six months ago. Before I read the book, I thought my team was doing fine. After reading the book, I understood how much more we could be doing. I involved the rest of my team in creating a vision and we moved to a new level. Not only has my team been recognized for our contributions, but I've recently been promoted!
Full Steam Ahead! is a practical, down-to-earth book with excellent advice on how to get momentum, direction, focus and energy from your work as well as in your personal life. It is packed with examples of real situations such as an accounting department in an insurance agency, a fire department, and a public school. It also has great examples of how to create a personal vision for one's own life.
The first half of the book explains what makes a compelling vision--one that really provides direction (not some airy-fairy statement or bunch of platitudes like we see in so many places) but a vision that is capable of mobilizing people. The second half of the book focuses on how to make the vision a reality. What you need to do once you have identified a vision.
Full Steam Ahead! uses a parable format, which makes it easy to read and not so theoretical and dry. It includes some of the same ideas as The Fifth Discipline by Peter Senge but is much easier to read and understand. But it's not a recap of what others have written. It offers new and fresh thinking. While others write that vision is important, Full Steam Ahead! explains the elements of a compelling vision and how to create one. I've never found a book before that actually did that. Full Steam Ahead! is not just inspiring and fun to read, it gives practical information on what to do. If you're only going to read one book this year, this is the book to read!
Rating:
Summary: Praise for Full Steam Ahead!
Review: Full Steam Ahead! is by far the best book I've read in the past two years. An enjoyable, easy to read book, it is powerful, practical and full of good advice. It should be required reading for all managers or anyone who aspires to any kind of leadership position.
Full Steam Ahead! is packed with real-world examples that show how the ideas presented in the book translate to action. It gives examples of real businesses, public schools, fire departments, etc and also personal examples of real people. Blanchard and Stoner say that anyone can create a powerful vision, and they show you how. They EXPLAIN HOW to create a shared vision for your team and also how to create a compelling vision for your own life. If you have been feeling that something is missing or wondering what to do next, by all means read this book. It will show you how a vision provides energy, focus and clear direction, how others have successfully created vision and how you can do it also. Some of the core messages are;
1) There are three important parts to a vision: significant purpose, clear values, and picture of the future. You need all three to have a compelling vision. 2) Purpose is your reason for existence. It needs to be defined from your customer's viewpoint. It's not just the products and services that you provide. 3) Values guide your behaviors and decisions on a day by day basis. 4) A picture of the future is not something vague like being number one or beating the competition. 5) Others need an opportunity for involvement in creating the vision. This leads to deeper understanding and commitment. 6) Ongoing communication is essential. Vision isn't something you create, file, and then forget. You need to keep it alive. 7) Live the vision as if it is happening now. You must behave consistently with you vision. The best advice I can give you is to do what I did. First read it yourself. Next have everyone on your team read it. Then follow the advice in the book and go Full Steam Ahead!
Rating:
Summary: Outstanding book!
Review: Full Steam Ahead! is by far the best book I've read in the past two years. An enjoyable, easy to read book, it is powerful, practical and full of good advice. It should be required reading for all managers or anyone who aspires to any kind of leadership position.
Full Steam Ahead! is packed with real-world examples that show how the ideas presented in the book translate to action. It gives examples of real businesses, public schools, fire departments, etc and also personal examples of real people. Blanchard and Stoner say that anyone can create a powerful vision, and they show you how. They EXPLAIN HOW to create a shared vision for your team and also how to create a compelling vision for your own life. If you have been feeling that something is missing or wondering what to do next, by all means read this book. It will show you how a vision provides energy, focus and clear direction, how others have successfully created vision and how you can do it also. Some of the core messages are;
1) There are three important parts to a vision: significant purpose, clear values, and picture of the future. You need all three to have a compelling vision. 2) Purpose is your reason for existence. It needs to be defined from your customer's viewpoint. It's not just the products and services that you provide. 3) Values guide your behaviors and decisions on a day by day basis. 4) A picture of the future is not something vague like being number one or beating the competition. 5) Others need an opportunity for involvement in creating the vision. This leads to deeper understanding and commitment. 6) Ongoing communication is essential. Vision isn't something you create, file, and then forget. You need to keep it alive. 7) Live the vision as if it is happening now. You must behave consistently with you vision. The best advice I can give you is to do what I did. First read it yourself. Next have everyone on your team read it. Then follow the advice in the book and go Full Steam Ahead!
Rating:
Summary: Great Book!
Review: Full Steam Ahead! is one the best book I've read. I passed it on to my boss, and then got copies for everyone in our department. As a result, we've had some very interesting discussions about our work, the values that guide us and our pictures of success. We're creating a vision that is not some fluffy feel-good activity. It's exciting and energizing and the quality of our work has improved significantly. Full Steam Ahead! is a delightful book to read. I read it in one sitting-couldn't put it down. It's a well-written story that keeps you involved. But beware! Once you read this book you start to find all kinds of places in your life you want to apply the ideas.
This book helps you understand what vision really is and how to use it in your life. I highly recommend it for anyone, any age, anywhere.
Rating:
Summary: Great Book!
Review: Full Steam Ahead! is one the best book I've read. I passed it on to my boss, who then got copies for everyone in our department. As a result, we've had some very interesting discussions about our work, the values that guide us and our pictures of success. We're creating a vision that is not some fluffy feel-good activity. It's exciting and energizing and the quality of our work has improved significantly. Full Steam Ahead! is a delightful book to read. I read it in one sitting-couldn't put it down. It's a well-written story that keeps you involved. But beware! Once you read this book you start to find all kinds of places in your life you want to apply the ideas.
This book helps you understand what vision really is and how to use it in your life. I highly recommend it for anyone, any age, anywhere.
Rating:
Summary: Highest Praise for Full Steam Ahead!
Review: I read this book in one day having been totally absorbed in the journey that Jim Carpenter and Ellie embarked on to discover a mission statement for the insurance agency. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book and liked the style of writing that made me feel as though I was overhearing someone's conversation. The most poignant part of this book was a telephone message by Jim that said, " ...if you think your self-worth is a function of your performance plus the opinion of others, then you're caught in a trap that leaves your self-esteem up for grabs every single day. But if you're playing to a higher audience or higher set of values, that's a different thing. Now you can do what is right because you know it's the right thing to do, instead of being driven by other people's opinions of you. It's what allows you to act with integrity." Another key point which stuck me from Full Steam Ahead is that it's vital to be in the present, to start living your vision once it becomes conscious, acting on what you know. I found this book extremely helpful not only on a professional level but also on a personal level.
Rating:
Summary: Well Written, Well Worth It!
Review: If you're like me, and have spent countless hours in countless meetings trying to develop a "vision statement" for your organization without ever really getting to the point, then this book is for you. Blanchard (The One Minute Manager) and Stoner have skillfully crafted an allegorical tale of Jim and Ellie, one a successful but uninspired business owner, and the other a recently-hired employee who serves as a sounding board and confidant. In their conversations, Jim confides to Ellie that running the insurance company his father created just isn't all that exciting anymore. Notes Jim: "When my father was president, everything here was full steam ahead." He goes on to say that his father really inspired the employees - they felt like they were doing important things at work, and there was real joy in the agency then. When Ellie asks whether "full steam ahead" means being reckless, or moving ahead blindly in the face of danger, Jim responds, "No, I think it's the opposite. It means having vision - being so clear about your purpose, so committed to it, and so sure about your ability to accomplish it, that you move ahead decisively despite any obstacles." This characterizes the tone and sentiment of the book - discovering the ability to unleash transformative power by developing a clear vision of where you want to take your organization and your personal life. The authors delineate the three elements of a successful vision: significant purpose, clear values, and a picture of the future. This last element, what the future will look like, resonated especially strongly for me as I read the book- the idea that you know you're on the right path when you can see a clear picture of what it's going to look like when you reach your goal. Examples abound here: JFK's vision of putting a man on the moon by the end of the 1960s, Soviet athletes' technique of "mental rehearsal" in the 1976 Olympics, even skiing down a difficult hill. Using Ellie as a creative muse, Jim comes to realize that his insurance company does have purpose (peace of mind) and values (ethics, relationships, success) which permit him to develop a picture of the future where employees look forward to coming to work each day and strive to provide unparalleled customer service. Of course, the process of creating the vision is perhaps as important as the vision itself - working together to develop a common theme invests members of the organization as stakeholders, and that can build cohesion and a common sense of purpose. In the final analysis, this book is extremely well-written, engaging, and hard to put down!
Rating:
Summary: Highest Praise for Full Steam Ahead!
Review: If you've ever been on a team or committee, you know how challenging it can be when people disagree on how to proceed. Full Steam Ahead! shows that these kinds of issues can be easily avoided when everyone on the team shares the same vision. Blanchard and Stoner show us how to help our teams create an energizing vision that provides direction and focus. The book can be easily read in one sitting. It's in an enjoyable story format that holds your interest. Full Steam Ahead! was recommended to me by a friend. It's the most helpful book I've read in a long time! Now I'm passing that recommendation on to others. It will help you not only at work, but also in your personal life!
Rating:
Summary: Highest Praise for Full Steam Ahead!
Review: If you've ever been on a team or committee, you know how challenging it can be when people disagree on how to proceed. Full Steam Ahead! shows that these kinds of issues can be easily avoided when everyone on the team shares the same vision. Blanchard and Stoner show us how to help our teams create an energizing vision that provides direction and focus. The book can be easily read in one sitting. It's in an enjoyable story format that holds your interest. Full Steam Ahead! was recommended to me by a friend. It's the most helpful book I've read in a long time! Now I'm passing that recommendation on to others. It will help you not only at work, but also in your personal life!
Rating:
Summary: Highly recommended!
Review: Like Jim, in the book, I've been trying to get the "sparkle" into our office. Full Steam Ahead! showed me what I've been doing right and also showed me what else I need to do. I got a copy of the book for everyone in the office. Everyone thought the book was great and it provided a basis for some great discussions on our vision. The story itself is well-written and enjoyable-it has much more depth than any of the current parable-type business books. In fact, it reads like a good novel. However, more importantly, it is packed with insights and useful information. I listened to the tape twice and am still thinking about it.
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