I love anything and everything by John Amaechi. I have heard him speak live on a few occasions and listen to his interviews as they come up. He is such an inspiration and so kind. These qualities shine through in ‘The promise of giants’.

The title is a great combination of anecdotes, practical tips as well as exercises that help guide to being a compassionate leader and encourage us to be the best versions of ourselves.

His premise that we are all leaders, regardless of our roles in our organisations, is so true as we all have the opportunity and privilege to make a difference to those around us.

I always recommend this book to people. I myself have the audiobook, printed book as well as the ebook….!

This author has had quite an interesting life, much of which you can learn about in this semi-memoir, semi-business book. A good read if you’re in a leadership position, or aspire to have one.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

This leadership book comprising 14 "Promises" (chapters) and some additional sections. It's aimed at those already in leadership roles and those who aspire to be leaders in the future. Making it a great read for anyone in the world of work, or who is part of a team (e.g. sports, scouts etc).

First off, reading this book won't automatically make you a better leader. There's more work to it than that! The advice is straightforward, motivating and insightful. There is a lot of work to do for the reader in terms of observing and assessing their current viewpoints and behaviours, but there's also plenty of guidance for how to achieve this in order to improve workplace culture and your own biases and motivations.

The scope of the promises are pretty broad, incapsulating areas such as; being present and offering feedback, countering one's own biases, caring for mind and body, promoting inclusion and viewing the organisation critically and truthfully. This gives the advice a fully rounded, holistic feel.

As challenging as it is motivating, this is a very valuable read for anyone who wants to succeed confidently and effectively, whilst improving the culture of their workplace. One I know I'll be referring back to periodically, whilst I take stock of my personal development. This book really can make you an excellent leader, if you're prepared to do the work.

The Promises of Giants is a leadership book comprising 14 chapters (each one a promise) and a few supplementary sections. It's aimed at those already in leadership roles and those who aspire to be leaders in the future. So, really it's fairly universal.

I found the advice to be straightforward and very insightful. There is a lot of work to do for the reader in terms of observing and assessing their current viewpoints and behaviours, then self development but there's also plenty of guidance for how to achieve this in order to improve themselves and their workplace culture. And any achievement worth its salt is worth working for. I loved the proactive approach of this book.

I very much liked the holistic aspect of The Promises of Giants, it takes into consideration areas like; being present and offering feedback, countering one's own biases, caring for mind and body, promoting inclusion and viewing the organisation critically and truthfully.

This book is both challenging and fascinating. It's a very valuable read for anyone who wants to succeed at work and become more confident and effective. Highly recommended!

The author of this book has a really interesting biography-- the first British person to achieve success in the NBA and later an accomplished PhD in organizational psychology. This book is part memoir part leadership manifesto. There are lots of nuggets in here-- ranging from the authors opinions on unconscious bias training to references to the sociological concept of the looking glass-self. One phrase that will stick with me is that people make choices and choices make culture. #NetGalley #ARC

Great book - provides an understanding of the importance of true leaders - not managers - in progressing organisations and society to improvements. If you're in a leadership role, or a natural leader or communicator, and you want to understand how you can use this responsibility to truly make a difference, you need to read this book. Thanks to NetGalley for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

New leadership books are always popular. ‘The Promises of Giants’ by John Amaechi OBE uses a structure of 14 promises to make to the people you work with and to yourself, and they are good sound promises for life as well as business ranging from “to view myself critically, but not cruelly”, “to tend mind and body” and “to act with vigilance against my bias”.

In many places it is a personal story, of Amaechi’s journey to where he is today. We are reminded that leadership isn’t about the leader, but those you elevate and inspire, and we are always to see people as people and not “bots on an assembly line”.

Leaders are, as Amaechi equates to his own mother, those who don’t talk about it, but actually ‘walk the walk’. A solid book, to read and reflect on and come back to again and again.
John Murray publishing