Navigating the Shadows: A Journey through Leadership Challenges

In the captivating world of The Shadow Side of Power: Lessons for Leaders (and Their Supporters), Patricia McLagan takes readers on a profound inner journey, exploring the intricate nuances and challenges of leadership through a compelling story about a fictional hero who grapples with the complexities, distortions, and personal dilemmas inherent in leadership roles.

The narrative skillfully unveils seven ways leaders fail to use, misuse, or even abuse their power, shedding light on the pitfalls that await those who dare to lead. From being ill-prepared and even ignorant of leadership responsibilities through to deliberate corruption, the story’s hero confronts the shadow side of power, offering readers a mirror to reflect on how they and their leaders’ deal with the power inherent in authoritative roles .

As the book’s hero navigates the Leadership Inferno with the help of a guide, he hears tales from business and government leaders who now suffer the consequences of their power breaches. Through these wayward leaders’ stories, McLagan expertly explores the costs and consequences of their actions, challenging the hero to take alternative paths that are ethical and moral, creating rather than destroying, and likely to be more effective in today’s fast changing world.

Amidst trials and tribulations, the hero learns the values he must commit to in order to responsibly hold and use power.. These values  can become an internal infrastructure to support leadership decisions and to ward off temptations to misuse or abuse the power embedded in leadership roles. .

In a world that is rapidly evolving, McLagan uses fiction and caricature to challenge leaders and their supporters to broaden awareness of and take more responsibility for the wise use of formal power in business and politics today. Abuse-prone authoritarian command and control continues to be a default framework for using leadership power in companies and public institutions today. It’s time for leaders and those who support them to visit the Leadership Inferno, to learn lessons from those incarcerated there, and to use their new knowledge to deal with the inevitable temptations they face from the shadow side of the power they hold.

In The Shadow Side of Power: Lessons for Leaders (and Their Supporters), McLagan not only narrates a compelling story but also offers a roadmap for anyone in or around people in authority – executives, managers, team members, coaches, educators — to navigate the unconscious realm of leadership power. The goal is to emerge as enlightened, principled leaders and supporters who understand and treat a leadership role as a both a choice and responsibility, and who see power as a force to use for both good or ill.

Steep yourself in The Shadow Side of Power: Lessons for Leaders (and Their Supporters). Discover, as Jim Kouzes, coauthor of The Leadership Challenge, a book that is

 “….captivating, stirring passions, sustaining interest, and imparting meaningful lessons. The allegorical journey through the Leadership Inferno serves as a guide for leaders preparing to embark on their next leadership adventure..

Patricia McLagan.  Drawing on five decades of experience working with business and government sectors, McLagan combines in-depth knowledge with ongoing research into institutional, leadership, and personal transformation. Her insights into the immense energy and promise that come with formal power are derived from witnessing leaders grapple with dilemmas, succumb to challenges, be corrupted, and ultimately grow in their roles.