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Reviewed by Joel R. Dennstedt for Readers' Favorite
Matching the power, authenticity, and personal intimacy of Dale Carnegie’s iconic gem elucidating great leadership (friendship) qualities and values, Gary. F. Appleby’s contribution to this tremendously important subject, Leadership Values: An Introspection, is every bit as timely, perceptive, and applicable to becoming a better human being as was Carnegie’s little masterpiece. In a similar “do-as-I-do, not-as-I-say” exemplary style, Appleby invites you into a very comfortable, self-assessing, non-judgmental counseling session on how to be a much better, more effective leader. With plenty of real-life examples – both supportive and cautionary – to clarify and illuminate his points, Mr. Appleby leaves no confusion whatsoever as to his meanings and suggestions.
In the place of honor among 14 specific leadership qualities discussed by Gary F. Appleby in Leadership Values, integrity reigns supreme, though integrally connected with the rest. As a powerful statement indicating his commitment to this primary quality, the author – a lifetime firefighter promoted often to higher stations of responsibility and authority – chose to self-publish his deeply thoughtful, highly intelligent book, rather than compromise his own values for the concretized whims of a market-obsessed, mainstream publisher. The consequence for the reader is a much more accessible, intimate, and interesting treatment than is likely to be found in most other self-help books. Doing this, Appleby brings honor to the role of the independent author and provides to any professional leader a major new resource more personally rewarding and interactive than lesser examples he might encounter. Proving, as the author adjures, that “Staying true to your positive values is the rudder that steers you toward correct decisions.” Writing Leadership Values was a powerfully correct decision.