Great Leaders Have No Rules: Contrarian Leadership Principles to Transform Your Team and Business

(Hardback)

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New York Times bestselling author and serial entrepreneur Kevin Kruse debunks popular leadership wisdom by advising leaders to play favorites, stay out of meetings, reveal everything (including salaries), and more. Inspired by one of Kruse's most popular articles on Forbes.com, "Why Successful Leaders Don't Have an Open Door Policy," which had more than 50,000 readers in a single week, Close Your Open Door Policy shows how a contrarian approach can be a better, faster, and easier way to succeed as a leader. Kevin Kruse has started or cofounded several multimillion-dollar companies, and his experiences as a serial entrepreneur showed him time and time again that the leadership practices that actually work are the opposite of what's commonly taught and implemented. Weaving engaging real-world stories with quantitative research to support his advice, Kruse makes the case for his ten contrarian principles. Each chapter focuses on one piece of wisdom, such as Successful Leaders Never Bring Smartphones to Meetings and Successful Leaders Have No Rules, that bucks the trend and helps leaders be more effective. He also shows how his advice applies beyond the office-at home, with kids, in sales, on the field, in the military, and in your personal relationships. Ultimately, his advice empowers you to focus on what matters at work and in life-the key to success for you, your employees, and your company.

Reviews

"Kevin Kruse has discovered gold. With his easy and entertaining writing style, Kevin will keep you amused, interested, and motivated to try new techniques that can improve both relationships and results. If youre looking for a fresh take on conventional leadership approaches, read this book."Ken Blanchard, #1New York Timesbestselling author

"Kevin Kruse gives practical advice for leading in a world that will never be the same."John C. Maxwell, author ofThe 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership

Kevin knows that trust drives everything. This book teaches leaders how to reach new levels of success through transparency, vulnerability and even love.Stephen M. R. Covey,New York Timesbestselling author

Great teams are led by positive leaders, who create positive cultures. Kevin Kruse shows us how to break free from daily distractions and negativity, so we can refocus on our mission and reconnect with our team members.Jon Gordon, Bestselling Author ofThe CarpenterandThe Power of Positive Leadership

Great Leaders Have No Rulesis a welcome reminder that you don't have to conform to age-old leadership principles in text books. Kruse proves that great leadership is about breaking rules, showing vulnerability and building genuine relationships.Dan Schawbel, author ofBack to Human,Promote Yourself, andMe 2.0

Old leadership models are failing leaders and followers alike. In this book, Kevin cleverly shows us how to overcome technology distractions, connect deeply with team members, and nurture employee engagement.Dan Pontefract, Bestselling Author ofOpen to Think, Flat Army,andThe Purpose Effect

Kevin Kruses bookGreat Leaders Have No Rulesis a must read for all entrepreneurs, executives, and career-minded professionals who are looking to take their leadership skills to the next level. With a range of useful data points, best practices and real-world examples of lessons learned, Great Leaders Have No Rules is living breathing proof that all great leaders need a contrarian mindset, a relentless spirit, and a commitment to experimentation in order to innovate rather than duplicate.Matt Rizzetta, CEO, N6A

"Kevin has created a manual that all leaders should not only consume, but reference on an on-going basis. The clarity, creativity and communication behind the ideas in this book are something we can all learn from. Highly recommended to leaders and would-be leaders everywhere!"Chris Ducker Founder, Youpreneur.com
Two chapters (8 & 9) resonate with my own experience as being critical. I believe that vulnerability is a strength because it opens the door to personal growth and also allows people to connect with you. People love underdogs. Transparency means revealing everything people might like to know even if they dont know how to ask for itor even that theyd like to know. Leaders keep sharing information so that no voids are created where people are forced to make up their own stories about what is going on.Paul Axtell


Dont forget everything you learned about leadership. Add to it by reading Great Leaders Have No Rules: Contrarian Leadership Principles to Transform Your Team and Business. Kevin Kruse has assembled some sound leadership advice that integrates humanity and humility into the leadership equation. Its a combination, complete with research and stories, that makes for compelling study and immediate implementation.John Baldoni, internationally recognized executive coach, Trust Across America Lifetime Achievement honoree, Inc.com Top 100 Leadership Speaker, author of more than a dozen books on leadership.

"In Kevins new book, he shares with us, in a very condensed yet powerful way, the ideas that no one is talking about! He ventures into the no rules arena that will invite leaders to lead with principles and intuition (insert your own words here, Kevin ) vs HIDING behind traditional rules of Leadership and Management. Throughout the book, youll find practical applications no matter what level of leadership you are in. From CEO to individual contributor, we all influence one another and have an obligation to lead one another. Im especially aligned with his Play Favorites chapter. Ive found that when we coach people to EARN their way to fair, they either shine, or get out of the way. Kevins practical advice on how to get out of the fairness trap will save you time and get you closer to your goals."Jill Young
"If you want to take your leadership to new levels, I highly recommend you start with Kevin Kruses new book, Great Leaders Have No Rules. Packed with practical advice, youll find yourself adopting new practices immediately. If you want to become a more effective leader, put down your device, close the door, and open the pages of this book to begin your leadership journey."Skip Prichard, CEO, OCLC, Inc., Leadership Blogger, WSJ Bestselling Author ofThe Book of Mistakes: 9 Secrets to Creating a Successful Future


"Managers, even great managers, care about how things are done. Great leaders care about how things can be done differently. Embrace Kevin's practical approach and youll not only become a better leader; your teams and your business will love you the difference it makes."Jeff Haden, Inc. Magazine contributing editor, author ofThe Motivation Myth: How High Achievers Really Set Themselves Up to Win

"If you want to become the boss that people are still raving about 10 years after you retire then read this book and do what it says. A refreshing and honest look at what it really takes to succeed as a leader today. In GREAT LEADERS HAVE NO RULES, Kevin's counter-intuitive leadership advice is exactly what's needed for today's busy executive."James Robbins, Bestselling Author,Nine Minutes on Monday

"Loaded with practical wisdom, research, and great real-world examples, Kevin Kruse shows us how we can lead better by practicing unconventional advice. I love the practical takeways Kevin includes at the end of each chapter for managers, sales professionals, sports coaches, military officers, parents, and individuals."Christine Porath, Bestselling Author, Mastering Civility

Fantastic book! This is the type of resource every leader needs to become a more successful executive, employee or parent. Filled with great stories and instantly applicable tools and advice, Great Leaders Have No Rules is destined to become a classic addition to the pantheon of essential leadership books.G. Riley Mills, author,The Bullseye Principle

This is the best book Ive read in years. Kevin brings fresh insight to leadership by exposing rules that no longer support top performance, and perhaps never did. Youll want to read, highlight, dog-ear and use this book until it falls apart.Shelley Row
"Kevin Kruse provides a bold and unapologetic roadmap for future leaders. He throws out the rule book on the traditional leadership methods that weve been all taught. After interviewing hundreds of experts and innovative leaders across the world, Kevin has curated the best insights, ideas and tactical examples on what it takes to be a great leader. The chapter on Reveal Everything (Even Salaries) is probably one of the most radical themes that would give an existing leader of a command-and-control organization a heart attack I love it!"Shawn Kanungo, Disruption Strategist


What a great book. Kevin delivers supremely practical and insightful leadership advice in a no-holds barred, counterintuitive frame that will make you question your limiting assumptions on the way to becoming a much more effective leader.Erika Andersen, author, business thinker and founding partner of Proteus

Great Leaders Have No Rulesis an honest and frank look at what we get wrong about leading others and what we should be doing to drive team success. This book is a must-read for every leader out there who wants a clear roadmap for how to be a better leader today and in the years to come."Tanveer Naseer, MSc., Award-winning leadership writer, Inc. 100 leadership speaker, authorLeadership Vertigo

You could and probably should spend the rest of your career working on the positive habits in this book. Leaders have no rules is full of tactical things to try, no matter who you're leading today, and is written from Kevin's deep personal experience, backed up by data, and a passion for leadership done well.Jonathan Raymond, CEO at Refound and Author ofGood Authority

It is impossible to connect intelligently at work when managers treat everyone the same, dictate arbitrary rules, and put up personal barriers. Instead, Kevin Kruse urges managers to throw out the rule book, get close to their team, and block out time for true collaboration.Erica Dhawan, Founder & CEO, Cotential and Bestselling Author ofGet Big Things Done

"Kevin Kruse does a masterful job in providing a unique blend of vibrant and sustainable leadership principles that will transform you as a person and leader!"Robb Holman, Author ofLead the Way

"These contrarian leadership principles transform your business and your life. Read this book."Dick Axelrod, co-author,Lets Stop Meeting Like This: Tools to Save TimeandGet More Done

Let's face it, there are far too many books written about leadership that aren't worth reading...but this one is. Kevin Kruse does something wonderful: He gets right to the point. By the end of the first chapter I was taking notes, by the end of the second I was already applying what I learned. This is an interesting, useful read on leadership that gives you actual, helpful advice you can immediately use, no matter where you are in business (or in life).Christie Mims, CEO The Revolutionary Club and Coach Pony

"If you want to lead so people love working with you, not just manage so they comply, and the usual instruction isn't helping, you probably need some shaking up. Kevin Kruse wrote his book to provoke you into changing and growing. It's filled with stories, research, and personal experiences that will make you think and point to how to change and grow. He specifies how each lesson applies, to work, home, family, military, and more, but most of all yourself, even when no one is looking."Joshua Spodek, Bestselling Author, Leadership Step By Step

Author Bio

KEVIN KRUSE is a New York Times bestselling author and serial entrepreneur who started or cofounded several multimillion-dollar businesses, including ACI, Kenexa, Axiom, The Kruse Group, and LEADx. Kruse's articles on leadership have appeared in BusinessWeek, Fast Company, Business Insider, and a number of other publications. He is the founder and president of The Kruse Group. He lives in Philadelphia, PA.