The Advantage-Makers: How Exceptional Leaders Win by Creating Opportunities Others Don’t

Chapter 3Wise or Otherwise: Are You Following Any of the Hidden Laws of Defeat?

Men occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of them pick themselves up and hurry off as if nothing happened.—Winston Churchill

We want our leaders to have penetrating insight and sound judgment, guard against the designs of our competitors, and turn everything to the best possible advantage. Doing so requires commanding vantage points, to get to the eighth floor and see what will create forward movement.

Although we expect our leaders to be wise, they are at times, unfortunately, otherwise. Even smart leaders fall prey to pitfalls that prevent them from reaching the eighth floor—and, worse, they produce disadvantages and need to play cleanup and catch-up.