The Power of Giving Away Power: How the Best Leaders Learn to Let Go

Matthew Barzun

Jun. 2021 · Verkoop deur Penguin

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“This book is a breakthrough. It’s beautifully written, perfectly timed and heralds a new way forward. I’m buying a dozen copies to share with friends and colleagues.”

-Seth Godin, Founder of altMBA and author of The Practice

If you let go of hierarchy, chaos will reign...or so many leaders believe.

But when leaders find the courage to distribute rather than hoard power, creativity multiplies, trust deepens, and inclusivity expands... and a new kind of order emerges.

A few rare leaders have learned to embrace a new organizational shape and mindset: Constellations. Organizations designed as constellations are dynamic and flexible networks of distinct yet interwoven individuals. Each member of the team feels like a singular star and is also connected to others to form something greater. That is how Visa reimagined how we pay for things, how Wikipedia beat the richest company in the world and how Barack Obama and his grassroots team revolutionized political campaigning. These leaders did what most leaders dread – they gave away power.

Barzun brilliantly layers lessons across history and industries with his own experiences as an internet entrepreneur, political organizer, and US ambassador to the United Kingdom and Sweden. The Power of Giving Away Power shows how the Constellation mindset shines in some of the most impactful organizations and innovations the world has ever known. And it encourages us all to recognize, as Barzun writes, "the power we can create by seeing the power in others" — and making the leap to lead. Together.

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Matthew Barzun has always been fascinated about how we can stand out and fit in at the same time. He helped countries do both when he served as US ambassador to the United Kingdom and to Sweden. He helped citizens do both as National Finance Chair for Barack Obama by pioneering new ways for people to have a stronger voice in politics. And he helped tech consumers do both as an entrepreneur when he helped build CNET Networks in the early 90’s. Barzun was raised on the East Coast, started his career on the West Coast, and settled in the middle in Louisville, Kentucky with his wife, Brooke, and their three children.