Rating: Average Legacy blurb excerpt: James Kerr goes deep into the heart of the world’s most successful and dominant sporting team, the New Zealand All Blacks, to reveal 15 key lessons in leadership. Lessons they attribute to their enduring success.
My opinion: Although this book is revered among many, I didn't love it.
The book blends Maori folk wisdom with cliché phrases, references from much better books, and a scattering of practical examples. Kerr does a great job of simplifying the message and should be applauded for his use of storytelling. However, if you are not a fan of Rugby Union or are well-read in the field of leadership it will likely be an underwhelming read. Touted as one of the Best Business Books in 2019 (likely due to the world cup and hype around the All Blacks) this was a much anticipated read for me that didn't hit the mark.
Lessons from Legacy;
Sweep the sheds - Never be too big to do the small things that need to be done.
Go for the gap - When you are on top of your game change your game.
Play with purpose - Ask why.
Pass the ball - Leaders create leaders.
Create a learning environment - Leaders are teachers.
No dickheads - Follow the spearhead.
Embrace expectations and aim for the highest cloud.
Train to win - Practice under pressure.
Keep a blue head - Control your attention.
Know thy self - Keep it real.
Sacrifice - Find something you would die for and give your life to it.
Invent a language - Sing your wold into existence.
Ritualise to actualise - Create a culture.
Be a good ancestor - Plant trees you will never see.
Write your legacy - This is your time.
Lessons expanded:
1. Character. Collective character is vital to a team’s success and is valued higher than talent.
To the All Blacks, the foundations of character are built on humility and discipline. They believe that winning requires talent, but repeating it requires character. When you are after enduring success, the character is more valuable.
Let someone else praise your virtues and never be too big to do the small things that need to be done (sweep the sheds).
2. Adapt. Go for the gap. When you are on top of your game, change your game.
Organisational decline is inevitable unless leaders plan for change even when standing at the peak of success. Adaption should not be the result of a reaction, but the result of continuous action.
Four steps to drive change:
A case for change
A compelling picture of the future
A sustained capability to change
A credible plan to execute
Decision cycle. Aka the OODA Loop
Observe - data collection through the senses
Orient - analysis. Synthesise all available data in a coherent map (a working theory of our options)
Decide - Point of choice
Act - Execute and go back to the beginning to observe.
To adapt continually you must continually assess/ adjust/ repeat.
3. Purpose. Leaders connect personal meaning to a higher purpose to create belief and a sense of direction. He who knows his why can endure almost any how.
If you want higher performance, begin with a higher purpose. The more you have to play for, the better you will play.
Humans, by their nature, seek purpose. An emotional reward is more important than material compensation.
4. Responsibility. Shared responsibility means shared ownership.
Good leaders enable and empower individuals by entrusting them with responsibility for the success of the team. They set a clear goal, provide the resources, establish the timeframe and then step back.
Leaders create leaders.
5. Learn. Create a learning environment. Effective leaders are teachers.
Marginal gain can be technical, physical, operational, practical or psychological. By finding the 100 things that can be done just 1% better, you can achieve marginal gain which creates a cumulative advantage in performance and results.
6. Whanau. For collective flow to occur, organisations must be of one mind.
Who before what, we before me. Get the right people on the bus, then work out where to drive it. No Dickheads! Establish high standards and enable peer-to-peer enforcement.
7. Expectations. Embrace expectations and aim for the highest cloud.
Successful leaders have high internal benchmarks. They set their expectations high and aim to exceed them.
There is a world of difference between fear of feedback or failure and harnessing it to a positive effect.
Most people play not to lose, rather than playing to win.
Deal with expectations by developing affirmations, anchoring, and priming.
8. Preparation: Train to win, practice under pressure.
Intensified training in preparation to win will condition the brain and body to perform under pressure and make peak performance automatic.
Training and preparations should follow this structure:
Focus on the technique
Gradually increase intensity
At peak intensity, add pressure
Scale back by reducing the intensity and refocusing on technique
9. Pressure: You either enter a state of fight, flight or freeze. People who “choke” use conscious control which disrupts the smooth flow of a conditioned and prepared unconscious.
Control of attention;
Red Head - HOT (Heated, Overwhelmed, and Tense) – also described as tight-inhibited, result-oriented, anxious, aggressive, overcompensating, desperate.
Blue Head - loose, expressive, at the moment, calm, clear, accurate, on task - the ability to maintain clarity, situational awareness, and good decision making under pressure.
Achieve a Blue Head by using the acronym ACT;
Alternatives (look at our options, adapt, adjust and overcome)
Consequences (understand the risk/reward ratio)
Task Behaviours (stay on task and execute)
“Clear thought, Clear talk, Clear tasks”
10. Authenticity. Leaders need to create an environment that encourages safe-conflict, honesty, and integrity, in which people genuinely know one another.
In knowing our deepest values we can recognise what type of leader we are.
Honest allows us access to our truest vision of ourselves and when setbacks occur it gives us strong foundations. Integrity enables us to get the job done.
11. Sacrifice. Find something you would die for and give your life to it.
At the end of the game the king and the pawn go back in the same box, so play your role.
Champions do extra.
12. Language. Use values, vocabulary, mottos, mantras, and metaphors to connect a team to a greater purpose. This is best done through storytelling.
Create a change story;
Ethos – establish credibility and trust (reflect, remind, reinforce, and reinvigorate their ethos through mottos.)
Logos – demonstrate logic, reasoning, and proof
Pathos – connect to emotions and values (using stories, visuals, and vivid language)
Must be flexible and scalable - easily retold
The word made world - great stories happen to those who tell them.
13. Rituals. Ritualize to actualise.
Inspiring leaders establish rituals to connect their team to its core narrative, using them to reflect, remind, reinforce, and reignite their collective identity and purpose.
14. Whakapapa. Be a good ancestor.
A society grows great when old men plant trees whose shade they will never sit under.
You don’t own the jersey; you just play in it. It’s your job to leave things in a better place than when you arrived.
Great leaders take responsibility for developing the future and for ensuring the transfer of knowledge.
15. Legacy. This is your time. Be purposeful and leave your mark.
Legacy Best Quotes;
“Leaders create leaders by passing on responsibility, creating ownership, accountability, and trust.”
“Vision without action is a dream. Action without vision is a nightmare.”
“Marginal gain can be technical, physical, practical, operational, and even psychological."
“No one is bigger than the team and individual brilliance does not automatically lead to outstanding results. One selfish mindset will infect a collective culture.”
“Successful leaders look beyond their own field to discover new approaches, learn best practices and push the margins. Then they pass on what they have learned.”
"You are never too important to do the little things that need to be done."
"Put your hand in a glass of water, now take it out. That's how hard it is to replace you"
“No-one looks after the All Blacks, the All Blacks look after themselves”
“Success is modest improvement consistently done”
“Sometimes it only takes one teacher to change a life”
“The strength of the wolf is the pack and the strength of the pack is the wolf”
“It’s better to have a thousand enemies outside the tent, than one inside”
“Pressure is a privilege”
“Most people have the will to win, few have the will to prepare to win”
What Next:
If you are interested in this book, you may want to check out our list of reviewed Business Books.
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