The Classic Touch: Lessons in Leadership from Homer to Hemingway

"We all think that management is a twentieth-century, newly invented skill, but its roots go back thousands of years. This book is essential reading to learn that we cannont deal with today's problems without understanding yesterday's." -- Leonard A. Lauder, President, Estee Lauder Companies "A classic way to solve business problems." -- U.S. News & World Report In Homer's day, a hostile takeover meant blood and arrows, not mergers and layoffs. However, The Iliad is still a valuable guide for steering the right course in today's tricky business world. Shakespeare's King Lear has more to say about succession, delegation, and decentralization than do most management texts. And Thoreau's "Walden" offers astute observations on what can happen when an organization gets too big. Captivating and instructive, this book is the first to tap the collective wisdom found in the classic works of Western literature and apply it to the problems of modern managers and leaders. Drawing on sources that range from Homer's time to Arthur Miller's, this treasure trove of passages and stories offers invaluable advice for solving today's most difficult business dilemmas. It addresses such issues as building a team and keeping it together, managing an acquisition once it's in place, eliminating daily distractions, and trusting your intuition. Whether you are reading these works for the first time or are revisiting old favorites, The Classic Touch offers you a rich understanding of the art of leading. John K. Clemens, professor of management at Hartwick College, is the founder and executive director of the Hartwick Humanities in Management Institute, an organization that conducts leadership seminars for emerging leaders in Fortune 500 companies. He is also the coauthor of Movies to Manage By: Lessons in Leadership from Great Films. Douglas F. Mayer is the former chairman of the economics and management department at Hartwick College. He is the coauthor of Shakespeare and Management--Othello, Macbeth, and Lear: Lessons About Behavior in Organizations.