Decent People, Decent Company: How to Lead with Character at Work and in Life

  • 3h 37m
  • Carolyn N. Turknett, Robert L. Turknett
  • Intercultural Press
  • 2005

Inspiring people who lead with integrity move things forward, garner commitment from others, and are willing to ask the tough questions when necessary. These are the real leaders who generate and sustain cultures of character in organizations. Decent People, Decent Company puts the power to develop the core qualities of leadership character into the hands of anyone dedicated to bringing integrity, respect, and personal responsibility back to the workplace—regardless of his or her place in the organization.

Drawing on more than 25 years of experience working with hundreds of CEOs, managers, and teams, this innovative husband-and-wife team provides both the inspiration and the tools to help people move from asking "Why don’t they?" to asking "What can I?" With their original and dynamic Leadership Character Model, the Turknetts have captured the essence of what it takes to revitalize attitudes and behavior, unleash leadership integrity, and reinvigorate organizations. Decent People, Decent Company identifies the eight essential traits of leadership character: empathy, emotional mastery, lack of blame, humility, accountability, courage, self-confidence, and focus on the whole. In chapters that focus on each quality individually, dozens of leaders, in their own words, bring to life the struggles and triumphs of developing the behaviors of character and ethical leadership required to bring out the best in everyone.

About the Authors

Robert L. Turknett, Ed.D. is an executive leadership coach and licensed psychologist with 28 years of experience consulting with CEOs, executive teams, and individuals.

Carolyn N. Turknett, M.A. is an expert in organizational sociology whose work includes executive team development and ethical leadership in rapidly changing environments.

Together they are cofounders of the Turknett Leadership Group, an Atlanta-based consulting firm working with such clients as BellSouth, Kodak, American Cancer Society, and Hewlett- Packard. Noted leadership experts, they have been featured in Entrepreneur, the Wall Street Journal, HR Magazine, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, and Red Herring.

In this Book

  • Character, Culture, and Change
  • The Leadership Character Model
  • Empathy
  • Emotional Mastery
  • Lack of Blame
  • Humility
  • Accountability
  • Courage
  • Self-Confidence
  • Focus on the Whole
  • Integrity at Work, and all the Time
  • Afterword
  • Notes
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