The subtitle of Maxwell’s book is “Follow Them, and People Will Follow You.” Every time I read it, I hear the answer in my head: “Don’t follow them, and people won’t follow you.” Revised and updated in 2007 for the 10th anniversary of The 21 Irrefutable Laws, this book is considered a fundamental part of the leadership literature.
As the title suggests, Maxwell presents 21 laws of leadership, all of which are independent but supported by one another. You can learn a lot just by reviewing the 21 laws with Maxwell’s brief explanation of each:
1. Close law: Leadership Ability Determines A Person’s Level Of Effectiveness
2. Law of Influence: The True Measure of Leadership Is Influence – Nothing More, Nothing Less
3. Process Law: Leadership Develops Every Day, Not Every Day
4. Navigation Law: Anyone can steer a ship, but it takes a leader to change course
5. Law of Addition: Leaders Add Value by Serving Others
6. Solid Soil Law: Trust Is the Foundation of Leadership
7. Law of Respect: People Naturally Follow Leaders Who Are Stronger Than Their Own
8. Law of Intuition: Leaders Evaluate Everything with Leadership Bias
9. Law of Magnetism: Who You Are Who You Are Attractive
10. Connection Law: Leaders Touch Hearts Before Asking for Help
11. The Law of the Inner Circle: The potential of a leader is determined by the people closest to him
12. Empowerment Law: Only Safe Leaders Give Strength to Others
13. Image Law: People Do What People See
14. Buy-In Law: People Buy Leaders, Then Vision
15. Law of Victory: Leaders Find Ways for Teams to Win
16. Great Mo Law: Momentum is a Leader’s Best Friend
17. Priority Law: Leaders Understand That Activities Don’t Have To Be Accomplished
18. Law of Sacrifice: A Leader Must Give Up To Rise
19. Law of Time: When to Lead is Just as Important as What To Do and Where To Go
20. Law of Explosive Growth: To Increase Growth Lead Followers – To Multiply Lead Leaders
21. Inheritance Law: The Lasting Value of a Leader is Measured by Succession
My favorite law, the umbrella under which all other laws lie, is the Law of Process. Leadership cannot be developed in a day or a week. Instead, it grows and becomes refined through lifelong self-management, skill acquisition, and relationships:
If you continue to invest in your leadership development, letting your ‘assets’ grow, the inevitable result is growth over time. What can you see when you look at someone’s daily agenda? Priorities, passions, abilities, relationships, attitudes, personal discipline, vision and influence. See what a person is doing every day, day after day, and you will know who that person is and what he has become.
Often, when I talk to a new attorney about leadership development, someone in the group will ask why a recent graduate or attorney in the first few years of practice should care about leadership development, because they are at the bottom of the totem pole. My answer is threefold.
First, it is very important to lead yourself and develop a strong foundation in self-management. Second, usually even the “bottom of the totem pole” attorney immediately has the opportunity to preside over something, whether it’s a document review team or a subcommittee. And third, as Maxwell wrote, “champions don’t become champions in the ring – they are only recognized there.” If an attorney waits until a leadership position is on the horizon to begin developing good leadership skills, the position may never present itself, or if it does, the attorney will lack the skills necessary to thrive in the position. (Incidentally, point 3 is well illustrated in Maxwell’s first law, the Closing Law.)
What’s in it for lawyers? While each of The 21 Irrefutable Laws is important to leadership development, perhaps none speaks of the same profession as the Law of Explosive Growth. The law states that leaders who develop leaders create organizations that can achieve explosive growth, because “for every leader they develop, they also receive value from all of that leader’s followers.” Imagine the enormous and sustainable growth potential in a law firm where leaders are developed.
Read one chapter a week and apply what you learn. Without question, you will grow as a leader, and you will see a difference in your daily life and practice, with clients, and in any leadership role you may hold.
