I kind of hate self-help/leadership books, but I read this in order to vet it for the book club at our local juvenile jail, and I think this is basically exactly what we're looking for! It's not a difficult read (and to be honest I suspect a lot of the prose's readability comes from Carroll's co-author, Yogi Roth), but that actually makes it great for teenagers. And it offers a coherent, followable plan for getting good at things: develop a philosophy, articulate it to yourself and others, practice for the high level of performance you want to achieve during the real deal, visualize the win, always show up confident.
I especially appreciate the emphasis on how leadership comes from gaining skills, being confident in those skills so you can direct others, and knowing yourself. A lot of the kids I meet inside are working hard to develop a masculinity that actually functions the way they need it to. They're almost never trying to hurt other people, as an end goal. Instead what I see are kids grappling with a world in which some people have power, others don't, and those who don't get hurt. They don't see a way of being powerful--being charismatic, a leader, a skilled and respected person who is safe from abuse--without being one of the ones who does the hurting.
This book is pretty powerful when you see it as offering an alternative, non-abusive masculinity. The sprinkling of anecdotes about some seriously dramatic football games is the sugar on top.
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