Let Them Lead: Unexpected Lessons in Leadership from America's Worst High School Hockey Team

As a retired guidance counselor at Huron High School it was an absolute pleasure to read this book. John Bacon accurately describes the students whom I dealt with everyday, and explains how he met them with empathy and honesty. He trusted them and in turn they trusted him. He taught them to lead by letting them lead. Anyone who ever worked with high school students will laugh, nod in agreement, applaud, and cry as they read about the thoughtful and, yes I’ll say it, loving way, in which John U. Bacon helped the members of the River Rat hockey team rise from the depths of despair to the pinnacle of success. Makes me proud to be a River Rat alum.

Yes, this is John U. Bacon's best book and that is saying something! Bacon is no stranger to best selling book lists, but this is his truly his best, best seller. This book is a story of how leaders make a difference by being transparent and leading by example. John U. Bacon tells a compelling story of how leaders can change a toxic culture, get buy-in to core values, and develop leaders at all levels of an organization. This book is so easy to read that you can overlook some of the important lessons that are weaved into the fabric of this book. His strategy for late arrivals to practices and games is simple, brilliant and incredibly effective. I loved his "Captain Carry" idea, but do not recommend it for everyone. What I do recommend is that leaders take the risks and accept the challenges of building an organization that works together and supports each other. The synergy that Bacon's ideas can create in a sports team, a work group, or any kind of organization is a powerful force that will get the best out of everyone involved. I strongly recommend this book for anyone who wants to be a better leader - one who wants to succeed and make a positive difference in the lives of the people in his or her organization. Well done, John U. Bacon!

It's been a long time since I've read a book cover-to-cover the first day I opened it...but I did with this one. As a former River Rat, I was first attracted to this story through John's excellent TED Talk a few years back. Somehow, he has managed to take this instantly engaging and heart-warming story, and extract some nuggets of no-nonsense, common sense and widely applicable wisdom and knowledge on the leadership. As and educator focusing on student leadership, this is exactly the simple, blue-collar, easy-to-understand type of information I need to get my students moving. And as an ex-business manager, I also see how it applies to adult leaders in a wide variety of leadership and managerial roles. Like "The One Minute Manager", this is simultaneously a great gateway introduction to leadership, and a "touchstone" that all managers and leaders should return to from time to time to reflect on their growth and development. I could TOTALLY see this as the next "feel good" Disney movie too! Great Job John (and Go Rats!)

In 2013, as a freshman at Central Michigan University, I took part in a leadership class during the spring semester. It was something that I wasn't taking seriously, given my age and my impending transfer to Ohio State in the fall, a lifelong dream. During the final weeks of the course, my teacher invited a speaker to come give a presentation. I didn't give it much thought, until the speaker came into the room. That was Mr. Bacon, ready to give us an hour of his time. I couldn't shake the feeling that I had seen him somewhere before, until it struck me that he had filmed an interview for a segment in Michigan vs. Ohio State: The Rivalry for HBO. Being a lifelong Buckeye fan (and soon to be graduate), I thought it was funny that I had the chance to interact with this Michigan man. I walked up to him after the class and told him about my impending attendance for Ohio State and was pleasantly surprised when he met my news with congrats and best wishes. He was nothing but courteous.Clearly, I never forgot that class or Mr. Bacon's kind gesture. Starting at Ohio State, I read his books voraciously, given that we had copies at the campus library. I've been a loyal reader ever since, appreciating Mr. Bacon's fast-paced style and, especially, his ability to find a type of gruff Midwest humor in almost any situation. I think that Mr. Bacon's secret weapon as a writer is to find the angle that nobody expects him to. For example, in his book Overtime, I expected a good story about Michigan football, told by a great writer. Instead, I got an all-access look at the sheer amount of hours, resources, and people that it takes to run a major college football program. While I had been hooked on his work before, I became even more entrenched after that. Remember, I am a loyal Buckeye graduate who usually wants nothing to do with the University of Michigan (or, as we call them, That Team/School Up North).All of his traits are exemplified in his latest work, Let Them Lead. Telling the story of his four years coaching at Huron High School, bringing the worst hockey team in the country up to become one of the best, Mr. Bacon digs deep into the style of leadership that he instilled into his players. His secret angle this time was discovering invaluable lessons of leading people within something like high school sports. Unsurprisingly, the novel was wonderful. In my future work (God willing, an ordained priest within the Greek Orthodox Church), I hope to implement some of these lessons within my community, knowing that investing in people is a sure-fire way to achieve purpose, success, and a common goal. The book is full of humor, honesty, and, most importantly, humanity. That is something that we have lost in the social media age. There is timeless advice in here, especially as it relates to building relationships within organizations and, most importantly, betting on people.Again, it is not surprising that Mr. Bacon has written another stellar book. The worst part of finishing a John U. Bacon book is knowing that I have to wait until he writes another one! I cannot recommend this work highly enough, given how I finished it in one sitting. It will be a permanent fixture on my bookshelf as a testament to Mr. Bacon's kind gesture all of those years ago at Central Michigan (and his continued willingness to engage with my goofy musings on Twitter since).