The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership: Follow Them and People Will Follow You

“True leadership cannot be awarded, appointed, or assigned. It comes only from influence, and that cannot be mandated. It must be earned.”

Maxwell argues that leaders are not the same as CEOs or managers. Whereas leadership necessitates a skillset, managing is only a social or organizational position. A manager can exert influence over others through their position of power, but cannot do the same without their position. A true leader does not need power or a position to influence others; they simply do because of their character and vision.

“Becoming a leader is a lot like investing successfully in the stock market. If your hope is to make a fortune in a day, you’re not going to be successful.”

Chapter 3 highlights the idea that the best leaders continue to work on self-improvement. No leader can rest on their laurels—their effectiveness is measured not only by their number of followers, but by how much they grow on their own. In other words, lifelong leaders are also lifelong learners.

“The truth is that nearly anyone can steer the ship, but it takes a leader to chart the course.”

To highlight the difference between managers and leaders, Maxwell uses a metaphor, where something is compared to something else without using “like” or “as.” Maxwell likens managers to captains who can “steer a ship,” while leaders are the visionaries behind the voyage. Only leaders have enough foresight to identify a destination and plan the trip (“chart[ing] the course”).

“Many people view leadership the same way they view success, hoping to go as far as they can, to climb the ladder, to achieve the highest position possible for their talent. But contrary to conventional thinking, I believe the bottom line in leadership isn’t how far we advance ourselves but how far we advance others.”

Maxwell’s idea of leadership focuses on how The Greatest Leaders Add Value to Others rather than to themselves—in other words, a billionaire can be described as successful, but is not necessarily a good leader. Strong leaders understand the responsibility they must shoulder and find pleasure in helping people.

“No leader can break trust with his people and expect to keep influencing them. Trust is the foundation of leadership.”

Maxwell reinforces the idea that leaders must earn their keep—they are not simply people who hold positions of power without merit. To maintain their worth, they must continue to prove themselves to their followers so as not to break their trust. Otherwise, they will see their influence decrease over time.

“When leaders are respected and they ask for commitment, their people step up and sign up.”

True leaders earn their follower’s loyalty, which means that people buy-in to their character and vision. They can entice people to act on their behalf by being successful and maintaining an outstanding character. In contrast, people who merely have followers but are unable to influence their actions are not true leaders.

“The principles of leadership are constant, but the application changes with every leader and every situation. That’s why it requires intuition.”

Maxwell highlights the importance of possessing intangible qualities, and allows that individuals who are not naturally gifted can cultivate intuition. People can hone this skill by accumulating experience and striving for self-improvement. With enough victories, they can learn to become intuitive in time.

“Believe it or not, who you attract is not determined by what you want. It’s determined by who you are.”

This quote exemplifies the adage “birds of a feather flock together.” Maxwell firmly believes this is true of leaders as well as their followers—a leader of upstanding moral character will attract people who have similar values and work ethics. Maxwell reminds readers elsewhere that this does not mean everyone in a leader’s group is uniform. A diverse skillset is desirable in any team, though people naturally tend to stay near others who share a similar character.

“Teams cannot help being an extension of their leader’s personality.”

This quote expands on the previous one—a leader not only attracts people of similar character; they also produce teams that reflect their own personality. This is because leaders are typically in charge. A team’s success often hinges upon the leader’s ability, and the nature of that success reflects their values.

“When it comes to working with people, the heart comes before the head.”

To be an effective leader, people must first know how to connect with their audience. Connecting with others on more than just a surface level is key to establishing influence, as people are more likely to be moved by their hearts than by logic. Just as great orators rarely spew statistics and numbers without attempting to find ways to make them relevant to the audience, great leaders should not neglect communicating and connecting with their followers.

“Every person in my inner circle is a high performer and either extends my influence beyond my reach or helps me to grow and become a better leader.”

No matter how talented a leader is, they are not an island and their influence will always be limited if they act on their own. The greatest leaders seek to surround themselves with an inner circle of talented and likeminded individuals who can help them extend their influence beyond what they can achieve independently.

“If leaders want to be successful, they have to be willing to empower others.”

Leaders cannot attempt to monopolize power, a point closely tied to the previous quote. If they do not help others, they will see their success limited by their own insecurity. True leaders must focus on adding value to others; this is the best way to earn people’s trust and loyalty.

“Leading well is not about enriching yourself—it’s about empowering others.”

Maxwell’s philosophy on leadership highlights the importance of aiding others. He believes true leaders impact their world, not through improving their own lot, but by empowering people to help others in turn. Leadership is meant to improve people’s circumstances rather than enrich the leader.

“Every message that people receive is filtered through the messenger who delivers it. If you consider the messenger to be credible, then you believe the message has value.”

The Law of Buy-In dictates that followers identify with the leader’s character before they care about their cause. Before a leader attempts to sell their vision, they must focus on improving themselves and connecting with others. Otherwise, they will find it difficult to gain credibility or build trust.

“But I think that victorious leaders have one thing in common: they share an unwillingness to accept defeat.”

The best leaders are often successful—not because they never fail, but because they do not accept failure. They dedicate time and energy to finding the problem and fixing it. This discipline, honed over time, allows them to build intuition, decreases their chances of failure, and earns their follower’s trust.

“Why do I say that momentum really is a leader’s best friend? Because many times it’s the only thing that makes the difference between losing and winning.”

Maxwell posits that momentum, an intangible factor, is crucial in determining a leader’s success or failure. Good leaders harness the power of momentum to grow ever bigger, while bad ones let it go or fail to see momentum build. Gathering momentum takes hard work, but when successful, it can produce exponential growth.

“Leaders never advance to a point where they no longer need to prioritize. It’s something that good leaders keep doing, whether they’re leading a billion-dollar corporation, running a small business, pastoring a church, coaching a team, or leading a small group.”

Maxwell argues that leaders must never lose sight of the big picture. Similarly, they must be prepared to always do the most urgent tasks first, no matter how unpleasant. Throughout their careers, it is important for them to repeatedly assess their priorities—without doing so, they will be limiting both their personal growth and that of their organization.

“Leaders can’t afford to just think inside the box. Sometimes they need to reinvent the box—or blow it up.”

When there is a lull in productivity or success in an organization, it is the leader’s responsibility to “reinvent the box” and boost morale. They do so by thinking creatively and reassessing their priorities. Maxwell argues that leaders incapable of gathering enough momentum to pull the organization out of its slump should be the first to be replaced.

“The life of a leader can look glamorous to people on the outside. But the reality is that Leadership requires sacrifice. A leader must give up to go up.”

Maxwell argues that a true leader carries heavy responsibilities and makes personal sacrifices. With greater influence comes greater power. A leader’s purpose is to add value to people’s lives and train other leaders, while never forgetting to improve their own abilities. They must sacrifice some of their own comfort to accomplish this goal.

“Good leaders recognize that when to lead is as important as what to do and where to go. Timing is often the difference between success and failure in an endeavor.”

Maxwell argues that success can only be guaranteed if the leader does the right thing at the right time. If they either use the wrong method at the right time or choose to perform the right action at the wrong time, they will either see limited success or failure.

“Only the right action at the right time will bring success. Anything else exacts a high price.”

The greatest leaders, Maxwell says, develop the skill to read ahead and make the best use of the information they have to make the right decisions at the right moment. If they fail, they risk losing the trust of their followers. If they handle the problem terribly and time their actions wrong, their mistake might even cost human life.

“Becoming a leader who develops leaders requires an entirely different focus and attitude from simply attracting and leading followers.”

Maxwell believes the greatest leaders are those who train others to become leaders in turn. However, few aspiring leaders achieve this, as training other people dedicated to the craft is much more difficult than amassing followers. As a result, the greatest leaders make it their lifelong goal to continue improving themselves so they can inspire new generations of leaders to follow their footsteps.

“Good leaders lead for the sake of their followers and for what they can leave behind after their time of leadership is completed.”

Maxwell argues that good leaders should think of continuing their work even after their time is up. They should not forget to train other leaders to succeed them. Legacy is one of the most important reasons the greatest leaders in history are still remembered today.