No Bullsh*t Leadership Book Summary - No Bullsh*t Leadership Book explained in key points

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No Bullsh*t Leadership summary

Name: No Bullsh*t Leadership
Rating: 4.3 (242 reviews)
Author: Christ Hirst

Christ Hirst

Why the World Needs More Everyday Leaders and Why That Leader Is You

4.3 (242 ratings)

18 mins

Brief summary

No Bullsh*t Leadership by Chris Hirst is a practical guide for leaders who want to cut through the noise and get things done. The book offers actionable advice on decision-making, communication, and team management, all delivered with refreshing honesty and no-nonsense clarity.

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Teamwork Leadership Coaching

Table of Contents

No Bullsh*t Leadership
Summary of 6 key ideas

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Key idea 1 of 6

What’s in it for me? Learn the simple yet effective art of no-bullshit leadership.

“He’s a natural-born leader.” Sentences like this exemplify everything that’s wrong with our modern understanding of leadership. Despite what conventional wisdom might say, there are no specific personality traits that all leaders need to have. There’s no particular talent or aptitude that they always exhibit early on in their careers. And there are no special universities that you have to attend in order to become a leader.

Just like any skill, leadership is a muscle that can be strengthened by constant practice. Combine that practice with a bit of management theory, and you’re on the road to becoming a leader. As you’ll see in the blinks that follow, the philosophy behind effective leadership doesn’t involve any bullshit, gimmicks or mind games; instead, it involves a few basic principles that anyone can harness for the purpose of effectively leading a team. Who knows – after finishing these blinks, you might realize that you’ve been a leader this whole time without even knowing it!

In these blinks, you’ll discover

what Colin Powell’s 40/70 rule is;
how General Electric CEO Jack Welsh decided which employees he had to let go; and
why diversity helps drive highly effective teams.

Leaders are individuals who captain their ship and the people on it from one place to another.

No matter the context, being appointed to a leadership position can be daunting. Whether you’ve just been asked to coach a little league team or you’ve been promoted to an executive role at your company, leadership comes in all shapes and sizes. But no matter how big the team of people you lead is – or how high the stakes are – the challenges behind leadership remain the same.

Indeed, the biggest challenge of being a leader is, well, leading. That means steering a ship full of people all the way to its destination, no matter how rough the waters get after you depart. Luckily, there are two questions that can help guide you on the journey.

The first is: Where are you and your organization at right now? What challenges are you currently facing?

To figure this out, the best thing you can do as a leader is to listen, and the best people to listen to are front-line, customer-facing employees. After all, they’re directly aware of the issues your customers are experiencing. Whether they’re cashiers, salespeople or customer support agents, their insights will be infinitely more valuable than any expensive outside consultant coming in to diagnose your organization’s woes.

There are a number of ways you can go about gathering these insights; you could try anonymous methods such as an online survey, for example. But if you want to be effective, you need a more intimate approach, like BBC Radio 1’s “pizza meetings,” where people from all over the company come together for free pizza – and to share insights on the company’s issues.

Now that you know where your company is, you’re ready to ask the second question: Where do you want to go? At this point, don’t get stuck in vague mission statements or coming up with a “vision” – these are time-wasting, bullshit approaches to leadership.

Take the English rugby team’s loss during the first round at the 2015 Rugby World Cup. In the wake of this disastrous defeat, they hired a new head coach – Eddie Jones. Jones found himself asking the two leadership questions. He knew where his team was at – embarrassed and defeated. And where did the team want to go? They wanted to win the next World Cup in 2019. Instead of hand-wringing, Jones immediately moved the team onto working toward that goal.

And it’s as easy as that. No consultants, no visions, no mission statements and no bullshit. Just leading.

Leadership is all about execution, decision-making and not being afraid to make mistakes.

Now that you know where you are and where you want to go, it’s time to figure out how you’re going to navigate the rough seas between the start and end points of your voyage. But leadership is about doing, not talking about it. So avoid endless hours of pointless meetings where different strategies are discussed. As captain, you’re not going to be predicting the weather based on complex environmental science; you can leave that to the meteorologists. Your job is to sail the ship – in other words, to get stuff done.

Now, simply executing decisions is often easier than it sounds; deciding between different courses of action can be a daunting task, particularly when the risk of failure is high. So how do you know which decision is the right one to take?

Changing an organization’s culture empowers people to make decisions for themselves.

The cultural aspect of any organization is extremely important, as it defines the ways in which team members act both as individuals and in groups. But while many businesses define their company cultures with elaborate mission statements and lists of “values,” these don’t necessarily have anything to do with the way a company actually functions.

For your organization to avoid this fate, you’ll need to foster a cultural shift through actions, not words, and the best way to do this is by setting an example. That’s crucial, because the culture you want to create is one where decision-making thrives at all levels of your organization – and if you as a leader are a person of action, then everyone else is likely to follow suit.

Behind every great leader is a legion of ambitious yet dependable followers.

While adopting an open organizational culture may be the best way to achieve your goals as a leader, any cultural shift will be less effective if you don’t have the right people on your team. This is why it’s necessary to broach the taboo topic of removing people from your team who are getting in the way of your organization’s success.

Luckily, ex-CEO of GE Jack Welsh came up with two questions that will help you determine who is holding you back: First, does an employee fit in with the culture of your organization? And second, does he deliver results? If the answer is yes to both questions, then this person is obviously a great fit. And it’s equally clear that those who don’t get your culture and don’t deliver need to be let go.

The best leaders radiate energy and resilience, which they pass on to their whole team.

In many ways, leading is akin to hill-climbing. As a leader, it’s your job to convince your team that a hill is worth climbing; then, once you’ve reached the summit, you have to be able to point out yet another hill in the distance that the team will be climbing next. Along the way, some of the team may stumble and fall face-first into the ground, but it’s your job as a leader to get them back on their feet again.

As you plow through the peaks and troughs of the journey, times will undoubtedly get tough. But when this happens, it’s more crucial than ever that a leader keeps radiating the kind of energy and resilience that will inspire those who follow.

Even the most broken of teams can be revived with proper leadership.

Today’s world is one of constant disruptions. Whole industries are being shuttered, and ancient corporate behemoths are getting replaced by innovative competitors. But while many companies have fallen victim to the transformational changes occurring around us, some have weathered the storm and come out on top.

Such success stories hinge on successful change management, where new leaders come in to failing companies and attempt to turn things around. The author has over ten years of experience doing just this, and he has identified a number of strategies that leaders can employ when trying to fix broken businesses.

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What is No Bullsh*t Leadership about?

No Bullsh*t Leadership (2019) dispels the myths we often hear about what makes a great leader. Whether you’re managing a company, school or sports team, the principles behind effective leadership aren’t rocket science. Nor do they require impressive titles or expensive suits. In this timely volume, experienced leader Chris Hirst explains how any of us can learn the philosophy behind great leadership if we put our minds to it.

No Bullsh*t Leadership Review

No Bullsh*t Leadership (2021) by Christ Hirst is a book that provides straightforward advice on how to be an effective leader. Here's why it's worth reading:

The book offers practical strategies and tangible solutions to common leadership challenges, empowering readers to drive real change within their teams.
Hirst uses real-world examples and personal experiences to illustrate key principles, making the content relatable and applicable to different industries and contexts.
By demystifying leadership and cutting through the fluff, the book maintains a refreshing and engaging tone that keeps readers captivated from start to finish.

Best quote from No Bullsh*t Leadership

Culture eats strategy for breakfast. – Peter Drucker, pioneering management consultant

—Christ Hirst

Who should read No Bullsh*t Leadership?

Aspiring leaders looking to up their game
Experienced managers in need of refreshing ideas
Anyone interested in the science – or lack thereof – behind leadership

About the Author

Christ Hirst is Global CEO of Havas Creative, a marketing services company based in London. His contributions are featured regularly in the press, appearing in outlets such as the Financial Times, the BBC and Sky News. The Evening Standard ranked him as the third most powerful CEO in his industry.

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