Learning to Lead: A Workbook on Becoming a Leader.

Learning to Lead: A Workbook on Becoming a Leader by Warren Bennis and Joan Goldsmith is a book that should be read and studied among a group of colleagues or friends.

This "how to do it" application builds on previous work by Bennis providing a sensible step-by-step approach to developing leadership by completing self-assessment, structured reflection and exercises that create a systematic approach to professional improvement. The authors cite ambition, competence and integrity as the three-legged stool upon which leadership is based.

Using these three characteristics, Bennis and Goldsmith guide the reader through a series of informative, reflective and helpful sections on planning for improvement.

Frequently, they encourage the reader to discuss topics with colleagues. If followed, the workbook becomes the basis for a fairly complete course of study.

Bennis and Goldsmith use a storytelling style that is readable and memorable. Stories about leader models exemplify each step in the leadership development process.

This is not a book to be read over the weekend and then put on the shelf. It is, indeed, a workbook that is a valuable resource for administrative teams focusing on leadership development.

(Learning to Lead: A Workbook on Becoming a Leader by Warren Bennis and Joan Goldsmith, Addison-Wesley Publishing Co., 186 pp., AASA member price $12.75 softcover. Available from AASA Distribution Center, P.O. Box 411, Annapolis Jct., Md. 20701-0411. Toll-free 888-782-2272 or 301-617-7802. Stock #171 -003SA)