Great New Reads: From Smart to Wise

By: Prasad Kaipa and Navi Radjou

March

Wiley; $27.95

Intuitively, we know there’s a difference between intelligence and wisdom. We know that a person can be extremely intelligent without being particularly wise. So how does a smart leader develop his inner King Solomon? In their new book, Prasad Kaipa, a CEO adviser and coach, and Navi Radjou, a strategy consultant and fellow at Judge Business School, University of Cambridge, identify six “areas of capability” that all leaders exhibit. These areas are perspective, action orientation, role clarity, decision logic, fortitude and motivation. The difference between smart and wise leaders, the authors contend, is how they approach or exercise these capabilities. Wise men and women don’t look at the world through rose-colored glasses and aren’t “likely to be attached to any ideology,” they write. People seem to get stuck in one leadership style, especially "function leadership" and "smart leadership." Both have their downfalls. Through the pages of the book, we learn how to balance qualities to establish the most effective leadership. From Smart to Wise
lays out a path to wisdom that borrows from spiritual and secular concepts. Although the turns and twists are sometimes confusing, the authors present an intriguing approach to leadership in the 21st century.