Lead to Lift Up Others - by Ross Woodstock (Paperback)

About the Book

Lead to Lift up Others is a leadership book with a twist. Ross Woodstock leads you through 12 leadership insights gained from his role as a caregiver for his wife Sharen.

Your work as a leader is not about you. It is about what we as leaders should be doing to lift up others around us. Our leadership should be built around lifting up our direct reports, out peers, even our bosses. If you dedicate your leadership life to lifting up others, you will find that people will prosper and grow, teams will be stronger, more cohesive and productive and the organization will flourish. People want to work for and with leaders who focus their energy on lifting up others. Your career will be more satisfying and fulfilling when you lead to lift up others.

Throughout this book, you will find principles you can employ to help you be that kind of leader. Ross shares insights into the leadership lessons he has learned in my role as a caregiver. He shares some of my personal stories, but more importantly, he connects those lessons to your work as a leader, in whatever capacity you serve. At the end of each chapter, you will find coaching tips. These are practical, real-world ways you can apply these leadership lessons in your everyday work as a leader. If you are willing to go the extra mile, you will find these helpful tips to be difference-makers in your leadership career.

Book Synopsis

The world we live in demands more great leaders. Whether in business, education, government, healthcare, non-profits, our families or communities, the single most important ingredient for success is leadership. We need leaders who can bring diverse groups of people together to manage change, solve problems and embrace a new, better vision for the future.

As the business world has shifted from the command and control style of leadership to a coaching culture, the skills needed to thrive as a leader have shifted. If you want to evolve and grow as a leader, you must continually adapt and adjust to the new realities of today's world and anticipate and prepare for the changes coming in the coming years.

In Lead to Lift Up Others, Ross Woodstock shares 12 leadership insights from his years as a caregiver for his wife Sharen--a victim of a devastating stroke that changed both of their lives.
The compelling stories surrounding Sharen's battle to achieve a satisfactory quality of life paint a picture of the characteristics needed to build a leadership legacy that will leave a positive impact on the world.

One of the essential truths in leadership today is that being a leader is not about you. Your greatest reward as a leader will come from investing yourself into the lives of those around you. You can accomplish this by letting them know you believe in them, celebrating their success, remaining positive in the face of chronic negativity, demonstrating resilience, encouraging those around you, remaining humble, maintaining an attitude of gratitude and committing to a strong foundation of values.

Throughout this book, you will be challenged to take a closer look at your own leadership journey. At the end of each chapter, Woodstock provides coaching tips, including hands-on activities that will allow you to apply each leadership insight into your everyday work. Commit to your personal growth and experience the transformational impact in your work as a leader with Lead to Lift Up Others.

About the Author

Ross Woodstock is an Executive Coach/Leadership Consultant/Author/Speaker with Kolt Communications in Okemos, Michigan. Ross helps individuals and teams from middle management to the C-Suite achieve sustainable growth in their careers. He utilizes a variety of research and assessment tools to help clients build self-awareness and design strategies to achieve their goals.
Ross is a certified Leadership Fitness Trainer through the Fit Leader's Program(TM), which he continues to teach within several organizations including the State of Michigan, Michigan Department of Corrections, GreenStone Farm Credit Services and the Michigan Health and Hospital Association. He is a co-facilitator in the Leadership Lansing program through the Lansing Regional Chamber of Commerce. He is credentialed in the Five Behaviors of a Cohesive Team(TM) and regularly conducts team building trainings within organizations. He is also a certified DiSC instructor.

Ross is the author of Lead to Lift Up Others: Leadership Insights From a Caregiver's Journey. In the book, Ross offers 12 leadership insights gained as a result of his role as a caregiver for his wife, Sharen.

During his nearly four decades in management and consulting, Ross has become widely known as an innovative leader, creative problem solver and an inspiring communicator. His energetic style and collaborative teaching techniques have helped numerous organizations and individual employees identify goals and successfully implement change-oriented strategies.

Prior to joining Kolt Communications in 2003, Ross had a distinguished career in radio and television, including ten years as president and general manager of WLNS-TV, which is the CBS affiliate in Lansing, Michigan. The challenges of management and leadership in the media industry allowed Ross to develop his skills in strategic planning team building, conflict management, goal setting and mentoring.
Ross has a master's degree in Management and Administrative Services from the University of Texas at Dallas. He received a bachelor's degree in Management of Human Resources from Spring Arbor College. In 1995, the Spring Arbor Alumni Association honored Ross with its Professional Excellence Award, citing him for "outstanding professional and community contributions and for achieving honor and distinction for Spring Arbor College."