Powerful ideas from top nonfiction
Try Blinkist to get the key ideas from 7,500+ bestselling nonfiction titles and podcasts. Listen or read in just 15 minutes.
Start your free trial
Blink 3 of 8 - The 5 AM Club
by Robin Sharma
Listen to the Intro
Turn the Ship Around summary
A True Story of Turning Followers into Leaders
12 mins
Brief summary
Turn the Ship Around by L. David Marquet is a leadership book that narrates the author's journey as a commanding officer and how he transformed his submarine crew into leaders who think and act for themselves.
Topics
Table of Contents
Turn the Ship Around
Summary of 5 key ideas
Audio & text in the Blinkist app
Key idea 1 of 5
The United States is facing a crisis of leadership, and this is bad news for business.
Be honest: Do you like your job? If you answered “no,” you’re not alone.
Job satisfaction in the United States is at an all-time low. From 2004 to 2012, less than half of U.S. workers considered themselves satisfied with their jobs; in 2009, a Conference Board Survey showed worker satisfaction to be at its lowest rate ever.
Dissatisfaction in the workforce isn’t the only trend that’s emerged in recent years. We’ve also witnessed a considerable drop in productivity, with up to $300 billion lost due to productivity issues in the United States alone.
Times have also been tough for those outside the workforce, as U.S. unemployment sat at 9 percent for a record 31 months, up until November 2011.
The symptoms, a doctor might say, are bad. Yet before they worsen, it’s crucial that we work out where the illness actually is. To do so, we’ve got to examine the structure of organizations themselves.
For centuries, we fashioned our organizations according to a particular style of leadership. The Egyptians harnessed it to build the pyramids; this strategy also drove the Industrial Revolution.
We’re talking about the leader-follower approach, where decisions are made by a leader (a boss) and carried out by followers (the workers).
A leader-follower system is perfectly suited for work requiring physical labor, allowing menial tasks to be delegated among many individuals to increase efficiency. However, many more jobs today are dominated by cognitive tasks and decision-making, not at all suitable for a “follower” workforce.
As a result, the leader-follower approach is ill-suited to the times. Think of it this way: it’s a great strategy for building pyramids, but not for operating a nuclear-powered submarine or even starting a technology business!
To truly empower workers, we need to overhaul our idea of leadership. Find out how we start in the next blink.
Want to see all full key ideas from Turn the Ship Around?
Key ideas in Turn the Ship Around
More knowledge in less time
Read or listen
Get the key ideas from nonfiction bestsellers in minutes, not hours.
Find your next read
Get book lists curated by experts and personalized recommendations.
Shortcasts New
We’ve teamed up with podcast creators to bring you key insights from podcasts.
What is Turn the Ship Around about?
Turn the Ship Around reveals the story of how one United States Navy captain managed to turn a dissatisfied submarine crew into a formidable and respected team. But how did he do it? By changing the way we think about leadership, this story will show you that inside, we all have the power to be leaders.
Turn the Ship Around Review
Turn the Ship Around (2013) is a captivating book that offers valuable insights into leadership and empowerment. Here's why you should read it:
- With the compelling story of the author's experiences as a submarine commander, the book provides practical lessons on how to shift from a hierarchical to a more autonomous leadership style.
- The book emphasizes the importance of creating a culture of ownership and accountability, allowing teams to think and act independently, resulting in improved performance and morale.
- Through real-world examples and actionable strategies, the book demonstrates the power of empowering individuals at all levels of an organization, making it an engaging and thought-provoking read.
Best quote from Turn the Ship Around
What do you do on board?...Whatever the hell they tell me to. – First class petty officer aboard the USS Santa Fe, in response to the author.
—L. David Marquet
Who should read Turn the Ship Around?
- Anyone interested in leadership issues in the military
- Business leaders looking for ways to improve productivity
- Anyone wondering how to break rigid hierarchy in their organization
Categories with Turn the Ship Around
Book summaries like Turn the Ship Around
People ❤️ Blinkist
Sven O.
It's highly addictive to get core insights on personally relevant topics without repetition or triviality. Added to that the apps ability to suggest kindred interests opens up a foundation of knowledge.
Thi Viet Quynh N.
Great app. Good selection of book summaries you can read or listen to while commuting. Instead of scrolling through your social media news feed, this is a much better way to spend your spare time in my opinion.
Jonathan A.
Life changing. The concept of being able to grasp a book's main point in such a short time truly opens multiple opportunities to grow every area of your life at a faster rate.
Renee D.
Great app. Addicting. Perfect for wait times, morning coffee, evening before bed. Extremely well written, thorough, easy to use.
People also liked these summaries
4.7 Stars
Average ratings on iOS and Google Play
33 Million
Downloads on all platforms
10+ years
Experience igniting personal growth
Turn the Ship Around FAQs
What is the main message of Turn the Ship Around?
The main message of Turn the Ship Around is empowering leaders to create a culture of ownership and excellence.
How long does it take to read Turn the Ship Around?
The reading time for Turn the Ship Around varies, but it generally takes a few hours. The Blinkist summary can be read in just 15 minutes.
Is Turn the Ship Around a good book? Is it worth reading?
Turn the Ship Around is worth reading because it offers valuable insights on leadership and provides actionable strategies for creating high-performance teams.
Who is the author of Turn the Ship Around?
The author of Turn the Ship Around is L. David Marquet.
What to read after Turn the Ship Around?
If you're wondering what to read next after Turn the Ship Around, here are some recommendations we suggest:
- Leadership Is Language by David Marquet
- The Wisdom of the Bullfrog by Admiral William H. McRaven
- Learning Leadership by James Kouzes and Barry Posner
- Start With Why by Simon Sinek
- Dare to Lead by Brené Brown
- Everybody Matters by Bob Chapman & Raj Sisodia
- Team of Teams by General Stanley McChrystal with Tantum Collins
- The Courage to Be Disliked by Ichiro Kishimi & Fumitake Koga
- Good to Great by Jim Collins
- Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert T. Kiyosaki