Where Does Your Personal Compass Point? RLF Suggested Reading
True North by Bill George (with Peter Sims) is an excellent book for anyone wanting to understand
more about the essence of effective leadership and what makes SIM’s Regional Leadership Forum
(RLF) program a unique and exceptional leadership development program – to get “a taste of RLF.”
Few books capture the "essence" of RLF – authentic leadership – as well as True North. Even the
title reflects the compass pointing to “true north” in the RLF graduation rock. Most of George’s key
ideas are woven into the fabric of the RLF curriculum.
George is professor of management practice at the Harvard Business School and former Chairman
and CEO of Medtronic, the world’s leading medical technology company. It was at Medtronic that he
formulated and put into practice his concept of authentic leadership; leadership based on values, understanding your true self and purpose, ethical boundaries, integrity, relationships, and empowering
others. He refined his ideas through interviews with 125 executives of major corporations and created a framework for understanding and developing authentic leaders.
The Introduction reveals one of the books’ main theses:
“Just as a compass points toward a magnetic field, your True North pulls you toward the purpose of
your leadership. When you follow your internal compass, your leadership will be authentic, and people will naturally want to associate with you. Although others may guide or influence you, your truth is
derived from your life story and only you can determine what it should be.”
George maintains that the idea of “born leaders” is a myth and that leadership is a journey with three
phases: 1) Preparing for Leadership (when character is formed and people become individual contributors or lead teams for the first time), 2) Leading (usually involves a crucible or difficult period that
tests leaders to the core, causes a transformation of understanding what leadership is all about, and
results in a rapid acceleration of development), and 3) Giving Back (instead of retiring, leaders often
realize a new purpose for their leadership: to help develop the next generation of authentic leaders).
In addressing today’s all-consuming focus on material gain and corporate profits, often at a cost of
people and relationships, George states, “Superior results over a sustained period of time are the ultimate mark of an authentic leader. At the end of the day, you can honestly say that you followed
your True North and made a difference in the world through your leadership.”
True North (by Bill George with Peter Sims): Highly Recommended Reading