Positive Leadership: Strategies for Extraordinary Performance

Updated Edition: “Translates years of social science research into actionable guidelines for leaders who wish to make a positive difference in the world.” —Amy C. Edmondson, Novartis Professor of Leadership and Management, Harvard Business School

Positive Leadership shows how to reach beyond ordinary success to achieve extraordinary effectiveness, spectacular results, and what Kim Cameron calls “positively deviant performance”—performance far above the norm. Citing a wide range of research in organizational behavior, medical science, and psychology as well as real-world examples, Cameron shows that to achieve exceptional success, leaders must emphasize strengths rather than simply focus on weaknesses; foster virtuous actions such as compassion, gratitude, and forgiveness; encourage contribution goals in addition to achievement goals; and enable meaningfulness in work.

In this concise, inspiring, and practical guide, Cameron describes four positive leadership strategies, lays out a proven process for implementing them, and includes a self-assessment instrument. This second edition has been updated throughout with new research findings and new ideas for implementing positive leadership.

Kim Cameron is William Russell Kelly Professor of Management and Organizations at the University of Michigan and cofounder of the Center for Positive Organizational Scholarship. He is coauthor or co-editor of fourteen books, including Developing Management Skills, Positive Organizational Scholarship, and Making the Impossible Possible.