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Leading: Learning from Life and My Years at Manchester United

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After an astonishing career-first in Scotland, and then over 27 years with Manchester United Football Club- Sir Alex Ferguson delivers Leading , in which the greatest soccer coach of all time will analyze the pivotal leadership decisions of his 38 years as a manager and, with his friend and collaborator Sir Michael Moritz, draw out lessons anyone can use in business and life to generate long-term transformational success.

From hiring practices to firing decisions, from dealing with transition to teamwork, from mastering the boardroom to responding to failure and adversity, Leading is as inspiring as it is practical, and a go-to reference for any leader in business, sports, and life.

416 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 2015

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About the author

Alex Ferguson

76 books228 followers
a former Scottish football manager and player who managed Manchester United from 1986 to 2013. His time at the club has led to Ferguson being regarded as one of the most successful, admired and respected managers in the history of the game.
Ferguson managed East Stirlingshire and St. Mirren before a highly successful period as manager of Aberdeen. After briefly managing Scotland following the death of Jock Stein, he was appointed manager of Manchester United in November 1986.

Ferguson is the longest serving manager of Manchester United, overtaking Sir Matt Busby's record on 19 December 2010, eventually completing more than 26-and-a-half years as the club's manager. He has won many awards and holds many records including winning Manager of the Year most times in British football history. In 2008, he became the third British manager to win the European Cup on more than one occasion. He was knighted in 1999 for his services to the game and also holds the Freedom of the City of Aberdeen.

On 8 May 2013, Ferguson announced his retirement as manager of Manchester United. During his 26 years at the club, he won 38 trophies, including 13 Premier League and two UEFA Champions League titles

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 524 reviews
39 reviews27 followers
December 29, 2015
Written as a collection of anecdotes, this book tries to condense Sir Alex's philosophy into a set of principles by which to live. In my opinion, this is not so much a book about management or leadership as it is about work ethic.

Sir Alex Ferguson typifies the stolid Scottish Work ethic, and more than anything else, this book succeeds in crystallizing that work ethic and shaping it into a coherent whole.

Do not expect any mind bending management philosophy here. Sir Alex does not magically reveal a trick or two that enabled him build the mammoth organization that Manchester United is today. Instead, what is offered up are pithy, timeless pieces of advice. 'Reach work early', 'Be disciplined and focus', 'Build rather than buy', these are the building blocks that populate the framework of Si Alex's thinking.

For me this book works because it goes back to the basics, and in this world of productivity apps and GTD philosophies (which are fantastic tools in their own right), this is a refreshing book that extols some timeless principles of success.
Profile Image for Eduard Kutscher.
405 reviews3 followers
November 2, 2015
Do you want to know some hot news about David Beckham? About Wayne Rooney or about Cristiano Ronaldo? Yes? Then do not read this book, because you won't find here any. In this book you will find very interesting comparison of the work of football managers and of CEOs, sales managers etc. They have quite a lot in common.
I have never read such a long epilogue as the one in this book. The epilogue is really long but you will find there interesting comparison of ManU and Sillicon Valley companies.
Well written, contains lot of great information. For someone who likes football and works as a manager I would say that this is a must-read book.
Profile Image for Ali Niazi.
227 reviews29 followers
August 2, 2018
با خوندن این کتاب پی می بریم موفقیت اتفاقی و بر اساس شانس نیست و فقط بر اساس پشتکار و تجربه و تخصص است
این کتاب را باید هرکسی ادعای مدیریت می کنید باید بخوند
Profile Image for Bita.
30 reviews7 followers
October 26, 2017
كتابي بي نظير در مورد نكته هاي مديريتي و رهبري با ترجمه عالي و روان شايان سادات.
ويژگي بسيار خوب اين كتاب مثال هاي واقعي در مورد هر نكته س كه اگر اهل فوتبال هم نباشيد به خوبي در ذهنتون حك ميشن.مطالب روانشناسي كه بينابين نكات اومدن كاملا قابل تامل هستن .موخره مايكل موريتز هم كتاب رو كامل كامل كرده.خوانش اين كتاب رو به همه دوستاني كه اندك ايده يا علاقه اي به پيشرفت دارن حتما توصيه ميكنم .
Profile Image for Amir .
586 reviews38 followers
March 10, 2024
کتاب سبک کتاب‌های مدیریتی رو داره با همون استایل‌های کشف رازهای موفقیت یک مدیر. کلا طرفدار چنین کتاب‌هایی نیستم و علت این‌که اومدم سراغ این روایت در واقع خود فرگوسن بود. کتاب پر هست از خرده خاطراتی از تکه‌های مختلف زندگی ورزشی فرگوسن که خیلی برام جذاب بود
Profile Image for داریوش مجـــد.
37 reviews10 followers
April 6, 2024
فوتبالی نیستید؟ نخوانیدش
ولی اگر مثل من طرفدار فوتبال و خصوصا فوتبال انگلیس و علاقه مند به خاطرات بزرگترین مربی دنیا هستید بخوانیدش.

واقعا موفقیت در سه دهه اتفاقی و شانسی (و همونطور که من به عنوان هوادار تیم حریف با گفتن داورا رو میخرید سعی در کوبیدن فرگوسن داشتم:) ) نیست و با فکر درست و وقت و انرژی زیاد و صد البته نظـم که مهم ترین عنصر موفقیت فرگوسن بوده به دست میاد.
نسخه صوتیش رو با لهجه اسکاتلندی شبیه به لهجه خود فرگوسن گوش دادم و خیلی لذت بردم.
۰۳/۱/۱۸
Profile Image for Mahshid.
86 reviews110 followers
April 24, 2017
کتاب در رابطه با تجارب مدیریتی الکس فرگوسن در منچستر یونایتد و چند باشگاهی است که قبل از پیوستن به منچستر در آن ها در کسوت سرمربی مشغول بوده است و شامل نکات بسیار جالبی در باب مدیریت و رهبری است که همگی حاصل تجارب شخصی فرگوسن است. خواندن این کتاب به
افرادی که علاقه مند به مباحث مدیریت ، رهبری و منابع انسانی هستند، پیشنهاد می شود.
Profile Image for Soheil.
153 reviews20 followers
September 10, 2016
The book is a second go at Sir Alex's biography, this time focusing solely on his leadership skills. A very enjoyable read indeed. But then again I found the following to be a bit annoying at times:
1. 99% of the book is dedicated at how Sir Alex has done everything right. Even sometimes criticizing his own critics and trying to defend his decisions. Perhaps a bit of modesty or sharing more anecdotes regarding the things that went wrong would have helped the tone of the book to shift sometimes.
2. The co-author knows not much about leadership. For instance he writes in the last chapter of the book (which is unnecessarily lengthy), that introverts don't make good leaders. I have read many books on leadership and can tell you that it is an absolute bull! Every contemporary MBA knows that the notion is wrong.

I enjoyed the book as I am a Manchester United fan. The mono tone of the book made it a bit tedious towards the end but I learnt a few points from it.
Profile Image for Mahdiar.
57 reviews5 followers
February 28, 2022
"من یک کارشناس مدیریت یا یک فرد کارکشته در حوزه تجارت نیستم و علاقه ای هم ندارم تا از عبارات ثقیل و شیک استفاده کنم. بنابراین انتظار یک نسخه آکادمیک و حساب شده را نداشته باشید‌.این کتاب در مورد درس ها و مشاهداتی است که در طول دوره مربی گری ام در رشته فوتبال به دست آوردم."
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بریده ای که اوردم کاملا محتوای کتاب رو مشخص میکنه؛ سرالکس از خاطرات و تجربیاتش و تکنیک هایی که در مقابل مشکلات به کار گرفته تو یه سری تقسیم بندی مشخص صحبت میکنه.
قضیه ازین قرار بوده که مایکل موریتز دنبال آدم هایی میگشته که تونسته باشن طی سالیان درازی موفقیت رو برای سازمان تحت مدیریتشون به ارمغان بیارن؛ وکی بهتر از فرگوسن؟ سرمربی ای که بیست و شش سال به صورت پیوسته تو یونایتد مربیگری کرد و کمتر رکورد و افتخاری باقی موند که بهش دست پیدا نکنه.
هیچوقت طرفدار یونایتد نبودم اما باید اعتراف کرد که انسان هایی مثل فرگوسن سهم قابل توجهی در زیبایی و اعتبار فوتبال دارن و باید ازشون تقدیر کرد.
این کتاب رو به فوتبالدوستا پیشنهاد میکنم.
ممنون از تو فرگوسن عزیز که باعث زیباتر شدن فوتبال شدی!
Profile Image for Corey.
209 reviews8 followers
July 2, 2018
Summary:
Leadership lessons aside, this book is just downright interesting. The lives of professional soccer players, their coaches and managers are just fascinating. There are quite a few nuggets of management and leadership gold layered throughout a frank assessment of Alex Ferguson's career as the manager of Manchester United. These lessons aren't on the nose at all because they're hidden among a myriad of very interesting stories about the industry. This is a great read!

I would recommend this book to anyone interested in soccer, leading and/or management.

The main message I took from this book is that soccer is huge and the lives of world class athletes, coaches and managers have a lot they can teach us!

Some notable points:
- As you get older, you temper your enthusiasm with experience.

- We are accidental victims of our parent's DNA, we are shaped by the luck of the draw, through the circumstances into which we are born and by our experiences.

- If you can connect talent and work, you can achieve so much.

- Part of the pursuit of excellence involves eliminating as many surprises as possible.

-Part of the way you develop excellence within in an organisation is in the way that you define success.

- Much of leadership is extracting that extra 5% off excellence that people don't know they have.

- As a leader, you don't need to be loved. Although it is useful on occasion to be feared. You do need to be respected though.

- Last minute instructions can shake confidence.

- Graveyards are full of indispensable men.

- It is good to let the employees around you know that you care about the little details, but it's their job to attend to them.

- The best leaders tend to be missionaries rather than mercenaries.

- To build a winning organisation, you need to be building every day.

- Successful people in business often trip upon their obsession before the rest of the world wakes up to its potential.

- No organisation ever achieved greatness by constantly reacting. You do not lead by following.

- Great leaders are competing, not with others, but with the idea of perfection itself.
Profile Image for Phuongvu.
539 reviews78 followers
October 29, 2020
Mình rất ưng quyển sách này.
Mình vốn dĩ ko thích bóng đá nhưng được 1 người bạn giới thiệu, lại được mentor tặng nên đọc.
Thực sự mình đọc thấy rất nhiều bài học mình có thể học cũng như hoàn toàn áp dụng được trong cuộc sống đặc biệt là công việc của mình.
Một tấm gương về người HLV trưởng - Sir Alex - người đã cống hiến cả cuộc đời cho bóng đá, cho MU, người làm việc ko ngừng nghỉ.
Nhớ đến 3 chữ P của ông - là sự kiên nhẫn, nhẫn nại, sự chuẩn bị vô cùng chu đáo.
Nhớ đến ông chắc chắn phải nhớ đến sự kỉ luật.
Và đặc biệt là trong mọi quyết định luôn đặt tổ chức, tập thể trước cá nhân.
Vô cùng ngưỡng mộ ông, người lèo lái cả tổ chức đạt được những thành tích vô tiền khoáng hậu.

HN, ngày 27.10.2020
Profile Image for Jakub Karda.
175 reviews
January 12, 2017
Pro toho, kdo žije fotbalem je to povinnost. Ferguson nikdy nebyl můj oblíbenec, ale zaslouží si respekt. Kniha je svižná, poutavá a přečte se jedním dechem. Spíše bych chtěl napsat proč jsem neudělil plný počet. a) Feguson je zde téměř neomylný b) některé kapitoly jsou až senilně opakující se, respektive jejich části c) nezábavný doslov spoluautora. Naopak velké plus je, že ač nemám rád druh knížek a la "učebnice jak být lepší", tak tady mi to nevadilo a i omleté pravdy v kontextu s fotbalem fungovali a neuráželi. Kdybych nebyl fanoušek fotbalu, tak bych dal lepší tři, takhle dávám hodně silné 4.
348 reviews10 followers
December 31, 2015
More or less what you'd expect if you invite a monstrously competitive person to spend 400 pages telling you why they were so successful. But it has lots of insight and you come away thinking that you'd want to be on the same team as him. There is a postscript by someone involved in finance in Silicon Valley which is preposterous, pondering the similarities with the world Sir Alex inhabited with the world of elite IT. Doesn't understand that whilst we might like to be as rich as the founder of Google or Intel, what we dream about doing is winning titles and cups.
Profile Image for Swagato Chatterjee.
5 reviews11 followers
December 30, 2022
I've been a Manchester United fan since many years now, and consequently, my opinion of the book might be somewhat biased.

This is not a quintessential football book that panders certain celebrity footballers' stats, or talk about football matches in much detail. It makes use of snippets from Sir Alex's career as a player, and as a manager, to elucidate on the different attributes that make a great leader.

Considered by many (including myself) as the greatest manager to have ever graced the sport, SAF, during his 39 years as a manager, won a not so fancied Aberdeen their maiden, and only major European trophy in 1983, and built Manchester United into what it is today, one of the greatest club in world football.

Discipline, hard work, and team before individual were the cornerstones on which he built his teams over the years. He also believed one can not simply buy one's way into instant history or legacy. Even when clubs like Chelsea, and later on Manchester City would splurge like crazy on players, United would stick to their guns, focus on innovation, invest in the academy, and it paid off handsomely year on year.

Managing a football club is very different from managing a company/start up, but in certain aspects the lines get blurred. Dealing with subordinates (players) who look up to you for guidance, and growth; bosses (club CEO/owners) to whom you are answerable; navigating through challenges, both external and internal - there's a lot one can take away from the book.
Profile Image for Efren Hernandez.
31 reviews5 followers
October 13, 2019
Excelente autobiografía, describe perfectamente las claves de su exitosa carrera como entrenador, no contiene jugadas o alineaciones, simplemente como formó su autodiciplina y hambre de exito
Profile Image for AV.
89 reviews9 followers
January 26, 2020
For a Football fan like me, this was a great read. Much has been said about how Sir Alex Ferguson transformed Manchester United and it was great to know about what went behind the curtains for that transformation to take place. My book was extremely detailed in all the aspects that it covered and I think Sir Alex was fairly transparent with every aspect of his management style.

I, however, also think that Sir Alex gets very biased towards Manchester United, whenever talks around the functioning of other clubs, sacking of managers or buying players came to the fore. And this is regardless of the facts that, after Sir Alex, David Moyes wasn't even given a full year to practice his ideologies on the team.

Yes, I greatly admire what United have achieved during Sir Alex's time. But I felt he has been overly critical of the functionalities of the other clubs, especially Manchester City & Chelsea. Now, this might be coming from the fact that I'm a life-long Chelsea fan but then, I think, the tone is starkly clear for anyone to identify. One of my Quora answers also revolves around this aspect of transfers of Manchester United - https://www.quora.com/Why-is-Chelsea-...

Lastly, I felt the Epilogue was not only very lengthy but was quite unnecessary as well. I think it was a not-so-good attempt to liken Sir Alex's tenure and workings with that of Silicon Valley's companies. While for a startups aficionado like me, it wasn't all bad, a better way of inclusion would have been in between the chapters at the relevant places. In the current format, it often turned out to be quite uninteresting. I read books on startups, management and CEOs and I really don't think there are much tangible stuff in here.

But don't get me wrong! For any football fan, if they just want to read about football, this could be a really great read. Even if you're not a United fan.
Profile Image for Pegah.
44 reviews1 follower
September 20, 2018
کتاب رهبری الکس فرگوسن شامل ۴۳۲ صفحه است که شرح کاملی از فرازو نشیب های مسیر موفقیت فرگوسن در طول دوران فوتبالی و زندگی اوست. اگر شما هم یک فوتبالی باشید جذابیت این کتاب برایتان دوچندان میشود چون در طول این کتاب از نام ها و تیم های معتبر سخن بسیار به زبان می آورد اما ندانستن این اسامی بهانه ای برای نخواندن آن نمیشود چون الکس سعی کرده تجارب و شکست ها و موفقیت هایش به اشتراک بگذارد تا دیگران بتوانند از آن استفاده کنند.این کتاب سرشار از تلاش و پشتکار وسخت کوشی است که خود الکس هم با داشتن آنها توانسته 26 سال مربی تیم شیاطین سرخ( منچستر یونایتد) شود که برآیند آن 38 جام قهرمانی برای این باشگاه است و لقب بزرگترین مربی قرن به او داده شده است وچیزی که حتی خود اوهم هرگز آن را تصور نمیکرد که لقب سِر به او داده شود و مجسمه اش در جلوی سردر باشگاه نصب شود. شخصیت الکس فرگوسن فردی سخت کوش و ثابت قدم را نشان میدهد که برای رسیدن به موفقیت و تغییرات در باشگاه بسیار تلاش کرد.
January 22, 2019
کتاب خوبی بود...
رهبری یک تیم فوتبال خیلیی شبیه رهبری یک تیم در یک سازمانه. با همون سختی ها و همون تنش ها و پیچیدگی ها...
Profile Image for Soham Chakraborty.
113 reviews30 followers
December 28, 2018
This is a superb, profoundly interesting account of the man who has reigned at the top of a sprawling footballing conglomerate for 26 years. There is something for everyone to take away from this book, even if you are not a football fan.

It spans the entire spectrum, covering Sir Alex Ferguson's childhood in Govan, a town in Glasgow, Scotland, his playing career and his managerial stints in three Scottish clubs before he landed at the club where quarter of a century later, he will have a bronze statue and a stand bearing his name in the famous red of Manchester United. This is a tale of a very successful man, who made winning a habit and inculcated that habit into this organization. Most importantly he maintained the habit till he left the club, so much so that Manchester United is synonymous with Sir Alex Ferguson.

Sir Alex writes thoughtfully and candidly. The best part that I liked about this book is that Sir Alex didn't hold back anything, he named names and is surprisingly open. Some very interesting aspects of his tenure are discussed in vivid detail and often it felt like reading the man's mind. His iron grip on the dressing room, coupled with relentless hunger of being - and staying - the best, remain unmatched in footballing world. Football is littered with examples of how great, wildly successful managers lose the dressing room. Jose Mourinho in Chelsea and Manchester United, Carlo Ancelloti in Bayern Munich, Antonio Conte in Chelsea are very recent examples of magnificent managers losing the dressing room and succumbing to player power. And this is where the title of the book is apt; it's called 'Leading', not 'Managing'. Very few football managers become leaders. Perhaps Diego Simone in Atletico Madrid can be called a leader, but he has not spent a decade at the helm of his club yet. The fact that Sir Alex was the supreme authority among his players, coaching staff and others in the football club, for more than two decades, is a testament of how he practiced control and discipline. Being able to retain that control with so many players coming from all corners of the world and translating that control into success by playing well on the pitch, is unmatched in footballing history.

Although I am not a Manchester United supporter, that doesn't stop me from appreciating how charismatic and brilliant Sir Alex was in his tenure at the club. Nobody knows whether football will have such a leader again. However I do feel that a little bit of humility, along with anecdote and explanation of why things went wrong when they did, would have made this a more 'human' read. But again, it maybe wrong to expect that in a book written by such a competitive person.
Profile Image for Ewan.
267 reviews13 followers
December 12, 2021
Didn't mind this as much as I thought I would. Some decent anecdotes about Alex Ferguson's time as Manchester United and Aberdeen manager, detailing the little ins and outs of the game well enough. There are spotty parts that could use some more detail, and the writing itself drifts through a variety of subjects without much commitment. A rehash of "My Story" and a few bells and whistles added on, but at least there are some good experience-based life lessons within.
Profile Image for EL Socratista.
57 reviews
January 3, 2023
بجز روده درازی های آخر کار که عملا تبلیغات نویسنده بود کتاب خوبی بود. بعنوان یک رقیب و طرفدار آرسنال ، برای فرگوسن احترام زیادی قائل بودم همیشه و مدیریتش رو سطح بالا میدونستم . هرچند اواخر کار ارثیه خوبی بجز تالار افتخار بجا نذاشت و عملا یه جوریایی به اصول خودش پابند نبود و تیم نرمالی نذاشت. یک تناقض دیگه ی منچستر یونایتد هم اینه که نشون داد سیستم یک نفره بود و برخلاف جمله خود فرگوسن تو کتاب که گفته بود اگه سیستمتون وابسته به یک نفر باشه ، اون سیستم مدیریتی خوب نیست . میشه گفت یونایتد هم همین بوده . حداقل تا دهه اول بعد از رفتنش
Profile Image for Nitya.
3 reviews9 followers
August 31, 2016
My introduction to the world of Premier Leagues has been very very recent(or lets say "nascent"). However, reading this book gives immense perspective towards situations and most importantly circumstances that changed during the period Alex Fergusson managed the team . His style of writing and refreshingly lucid and is not preachy at any point. It is one of those rare books that focusses on circumstances, decisions and mistakes taken in that position. It is honest and raw. I happened to make the mistake of reading reviews before picking up this book, and my advice to anyone reading this review would be to pay immense amount of attention to approach and circumstance. Do not look at it as a bible for management , but to view management decisions that Alex Fergusson took based on situation. I definitely picked up a thing or two. The mantle the manager of a football team carries is very akin to the decision of a business owner.5 stars from me.
Profile Image for Gary Allen.
118 reviews3 followers
November 23, 2015
Ferguson is a proven entity in leadership. Possessing an ability to see what others often overlook. Ferguson consistently demonstrates the importance of harnessing this skill achieving that which few dare to dream. Read every book by one of life's great thinkers and even greater listeners.
Profile Image for Zablon.
121 reviews2 followers
February 1, 2016
Excellent insight into the history of the best football club and wonderful principles about life.
Profile Image for Huong.
90 reviews46 followers
November 5, 2022
Suýt đánh giá 5 sao cho đến khi đọc chương Lời bạt @@. Có những thứ không cần người khác đúc rút ra đâu, người đọc tự cảm nhận và so sánh là được rồi.
13 reviews3 followers
June 17, 2017
It's nigh impossible to have a managerial reign like that of SAF in this modern era of the premier league that is all about short term success and quick results. But the interesting question isn't just how could SAF could win so many trophies as he did, it isn't just how he could conjure winning teams one after the other. The most difficult task Ferguson had was to eliminate any signs of complacency, which so frequently accompanies success. This book gives a glimpse of the discipline that served as the foundation of the glory the fans were accustomed to. It's the inner fortitude to relentlessly follow routine, the mental clarity to be unperturbed by the media and the glamour and the unshakable confidence to believe in one's own philosophy, especially in the hard times, that made SAF's reign legendary.

This book is a great lesson in the all conquering power of focus and discipline, the need to be ruthless with oneself to conquer the weakness that tempts us to take the easy way route. It's not hard, you just have to do it everyday.
Profile Image for Jeff Kim.
132 reviews4 followers
April 15, 2021
I was skeptical about reading this book (Afraid I'll find an egocentric man perhaps?)

Boy was I wrong.

This was an influential read. You don't have to be a football fan. Or a Manchester United fan for that matter to enjoy the book. Any person in a position of leadership (Or aspiring to be one) will find the book worthwhile.

This book is an effort by Sir Alex Ferguson to crystallize and articulate his management philosophy, drawn on lessons from his time at the helm of Manchester united (And Aberdeen at before that)

Nothing revolutionary here. He uses the traits necessary to achieve at the highest level that he observed from Manchester United legends such as Ryan Giggs, Paul Scholes, Christiano Ronaldo, Roy Kean, Eric Cantona and David Beckham.

Handwork.

And discipline.

And great attitude.

And professionalism

It is a timely reminder of going back to the basics.
Profile Image for Erik.
72 reviews
June 25, 2022
As a longtime admirer of the legendary Man U manager, I was not disappointed at all with this book and appreciated the opportunity to learn from his insights on leadership. For example, it was nice to hear that, whenever possible, it's it's better to build from within than bringing in high-priced outsiders. That's a lesson for long-term success that would benefit many companies (and also Man U, which has lost its way since Sir Alex retired). I do think it was a tad long, so I gave it 4 stars. Also, I would probably only recommend Leading to a fan of Man U or at least a football/soccer fan somewhat familiar with the team and their players during his coaching reign. It would be challenging to find his lessons and anecdotes accessible without that level of knowledge...
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