Being the Boss

The 3 Imperatives for Becoming a Great Leader

By: Linda A. Hill, Kent Lineback

Narrated by: Randye Kaye, Erik Synnestvedt

Are you the boss you need to be?

You never dreamed being the boss would be so hard. You're caught in a web of conflicting expectations from your subordinates, from those above you, and from your peers and customers.

You're not alone. As Harvard Business School's Linda Hill and manager and executive Kent Lineback reveal in Being the Boss, becoming an effective manager is a painful, difficult journey. It requires trial and error, endless effort, and slowly acquired personal insight. Many managers never complete the journey and instead just learn how to get by. At worst, they become terrible bosses.

This essential book, now with a new preface, explains how to avoid that fate by mastering three imperatives:

• Manage yourself: Learn that management isn't about doing all the work on your own. It's about leading others to accomplish things with you as their guide.
• Manage your network: Understand how power and influence work in your organization, and build a network of mutually beneficial relationships to navigate your company's complex political environment
• Manage your team: Create a high-performing "we" out of all the "I's" who report to you.

©2019 Linda A. Hill and Lowell Kent Lineback (P)2020 Gildan Media

Powerful Message

This book is excellent, and focuses on a very simple topic that is difficult but rewarding.
My only criticism is the narrator. He has a vocal fry and rhythm I found completely distracting to the message itself. Please update this title with a new narrator!

One of the great reads on management

This book is full of practical advice on how to become a better manager. It’s not fluff though as the ideas and concepts are very well thought out and researched.

Good guide for managers

Book was easy to follow. Gave some good guidance into handling situations and the boss.

The narrator speech pattern is a little distracting at first. Puts an upward inflection at the end of the last word in the sentence but after awhile you get use to it.

Recommend this book for new bosses.

Great listen. Encouraging and action-oriented.

A great mix of action-specific guidance and meaningful context. The narration is pretty robotic. Sounds like someone put it through an AI reader, or the whole thing was read by a Google voice. Really good content, with both long term and short term items to engage in. Really helpful in picturing my impact as a manager and figuring out where I can be in the future.

A bit slow, but overall helpful info for new managers.

A bit slow. The two last chapters included helpful information. The target audience seems to be newer managers, based on the simplicity of advice offered.