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 | | Confidence: How Winning Streaks and Losing Streaks Begin and End by Rosabeth Moss Kanter ISBN-10: 9781400052905 ISBN-10: 1-4000-5290-4 ISBN-13: 9781400052905 ISBN-13: 978-1-4000-5290-5 Hardcover 2004-08-31 Crown Business Find Lowest Price |
Editorials | ||
Product Description From the boardroom to the locker room to the living room--how winners become winners . . . and stay that way. Is success simply a matter of money and talent? Or is there another reason why some people and organizations always land on their feet, while others, equally talented, stumble again and again? There's a fundamental principle at work--the vital but previously unexamined factor called confidence--that permits unexpected people to achieve high levels of performance through routines that activate talent. Confidence explains: • Why the University of Connecticut women's basketball team continues its winning ways even though recent teams lack the talent of their predecessors • Why some companies are always positively perceived by employees, customers, Wall Street analysts, and the media while others are under a perpetual cloud • How a company like Gillette or a team like the Chicago Cubs ends a losing streak and breaks out of a circle of doom • The lessons a politician such as Nelson Mandela, who resisted the temptation to take revenge after being released from prison and assuming power, offers for leaders in both advanced democracies and trouble spots like the Middle East From the simplest ball games to the most complicated business and political situations, the common element in winning is a basic truth about people: They rise to the occasion when leaders help them gain the confidence to do it. Confidence is the new theory and practice of success, explaining why success and failure are not mere episodes but self-perpetuating trajectories. Rosabeth Moss Kanter shows why organizations of all types may be brimming with talent but not be winners, and provides people in leadership positions with a practical program for either maintaining a winning streak or turning around a downward spiral. Confidence is based on an extraordinary investigation of success and failure in companies such as Continental Airlines, Seagate, and Verizon and sports teams such as the University of North Carolina women's soccer team, New England Patriots, and Philadelphia Eagles, as well as schools, health care, and politics. Packed with brilliant, practical ideas such as "powerlessness corrupts" and the "timidity of mediocrity," Confidence provides fresh thinking for perpetuating winning streaks and ending losing streaks in all facets of life--from the factors that can make or break corporations and governments to the keys for successful relationships in the workplace or at home. | ||
Amazon.com Review Rosabeth Moss Kanter will convince you that the goal of winning is not losing two times in a row. In her view, success and failure are not events, they are self-fulfilling tendencies. "Confidence is the sweet spot between arrogance and despair--consisting of positive expectations for favorable outcomes." says Kanter, a Harvard Business School Professor and author of The Change Masters. She applies the literature of cognitive psychology (dissonance, explanatory models, learned optimism) to explore the winning and losing streaks of a diverse lineup including the BBC, Gillette, Verizon, Continental Airlines, the Chicago Cubs, and Target. The result is a brilliant anatomy lesson of the big decisions and the small gestures that build and restore confidence. Three cornerstones are clearly detailed: "Accountability," the actions that involve facing facts without humiliation; "Collaboration," the rituals of respect that create teamwork, and "Initiative/Innovation," the "kaleidoscope thinking" that unlocks energy and creativity. A standout chapter describes how Nelson Mandela created a culture of confidence in South Africa. Some readers may wish for more strategies about positive habits of mind in individuals. Others will search for a quick fix. Instead, Moss Kanter’s in-depth examples and ideas about resilient organizations will become required reading. They add up to a persuasive and informed optimism. --Barbara Mackoff | ||
Reviews | ||
Just read it! A great perspective on sustainability. Touches the human emotion and connectedness in the workplace. Very effective! | ||
Building & Maintaining Confidence In baseball, a team can dominte its foes during a 162 game schedule, cruise into the post season, and then inexplicably lose three straight games to be sent packing. How does this happen? Rosabeth Moss Kanter sheds some insight on this quandry after conducting some very exhaustive research---over 300 interviews with a wide range of business (and sports) leaders. Her findings may not seem profound, yet they deliver an accurate and most compelling conclusion: Confidence (or lack thereof) breeds a self-fulfilling prophecy; maintaining a positive mental attitude breeds long term success. Doubt, hesitation, over-analysis of a weakness (real or perceived) or any other psychological pitfall breeds substandard results. Real life examples in October 2009: The St Louis Cardinals & the Boston Red Sox; two teams that were expected to play deep into the post season were eliminated in three straight games in the first round. The secrets to building & maintaining confidence are disseminated by Kanter; gaining proficiency in these areas enhances the chances for a business to thrive, or a baseball team to keep playing longer than the first round: Accountability, collaboration & initiative/innovation. When successfully executed, all members of an organization work harmoniously (no finger-pointing or backstabbing) and take responsibility for maximizing individual performance for the betterment of the organization. This requires a willingness to sacrifice individual recognition for the "team"; focusing on the big picture is vital. In the final analysis, confidence comes from the ability to consistently perform endeavors at a superior level, for a sustained period of time. Setbacks are viewed as temporary obstacles, not interfering with long range expectations. Mastering the techniques Kanter brings out in this wonderful book may help the damaged psyches of Cardinals & Red Sox players, for the 2010 season. | ||
Seductive Promise: Fails to Deliver Alluring promise of exposing "how winning streaks and losing streaks begin and end", but fails to deliver insight or applicable information. This book is journalistically written, but self-congratulatory and lacks critical editing. It fails to cite underlying foundational research by Albert Bandura of Stanford and Robert Rosenthal of Harvard, creating questions about this book's credibility and value. Regrettably, even the Preface, Chapter One, Epilogue and busy summary diagrams on pages 378 and 379 are not worth a reader's time. Kantor offers platitudes such as "Confidence is the bridge connecting expectations and performance, investment and results," and advises readers to "face facts, reinforce responsbility, cultivate collaboration, inspire initiative and innovation", while citing somewhat engaging examples of Gillette, Nelson Mandela's South Africa, British Broadcasting Corporation, Continental Airlines, Philadelphia Eagles, Prairie View A&M University, and others. Direct your time, attention, and resources to more thought-provoking resources, including Leonard Mlodinow's The Drunkard's Walk: How Randonmess Rules Our Lives (Pantheon, 2008). | ||
Provocative perspective on winning and losing Most of us have either witnessed or been a part of a "winning streak" whether on an individual basis or part of a larger group. The funny thing about such streaks is that advantages and opportunity tend to accompany them. Conversely, losing streaks also occur and are often linked with additional setbacks, uncertainty and doubt. A professor at Harvard Business School wanted to identify what separates winners and losers so she set out to study the attributes of both types of teams and individuals. What professor Rosabeth Moss Kanter discovered is the basis of her book titled Confidence. Her research found that the most prominent difference between both study sets was the concept of confidence and its ancillary attributes of inspiration, accountability and collaboration. The author says these components are critical differentiators because they empower individuals and the team with a sense of control regarding their circumstances. Soundview recommends this book because it reinforces the idea that each of us has the ability to decide our respective response to a loss, and subsequently choose whether it will become a downward trend or a learning experience that can be leveraged in the pursuit of future wins. | ||
A waste of time and money This was an impulse buy that I now regret. In retrospect I wish I had first gone to Amazon to check the unusually high number of 1-star reviews this book has received. The core message is that winning leads to more winning by attracting resources and talent and building confidence. Likewise, losing leads to more losing by detracting resources and investment and eroding team confidence. A losing organization can turn itself around by building up the three pillars of confidence: accountabilty, collaboration, and iniative/innovation. The book's message could have been expressed in 1/3 of the space. Instead you have to wade through one repetitive story after another, mainly from high school and college football, ad nauseum. My advice is to save your money and look for something better. | ||