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Today's young leaders grew up in the glow of television and computers; the leaders of their grandparents' generation in the shadow of the Depression and World War II. In a groundbreaking study of these two disparate groups-affectionately labeled "geeks" and "geezers"-legendary leadership expert Warren Bennis and leadership consultant Robert Thomas set out to find out how era and values shape those who lead. What they discovered was something far more profound: the powerful process through which leaders of any era emerge.

Geeks and Geezers is a book that will forever change how we view not just leadership-but the very way we learn and ultimately live our lives. It presents for the first time a compelling new model that predicts who is likely to become-and remain-a leader, and why.

At the heart of this model are what the authors call "crucibles"-utterly transforming periods of testing from which one can emerge either hopelessly broken, or powerfully emboldened to learn and to lead. Whether losing an election or burying a child, learning from a mentor or mastering a martial art, crucibles are turning points: defining events that force us to decide who we are and what we are capable of.

Through the candid and often deeply moving crucibles of pioneering journalist Mike Wallace to new economy entrepreneur Michael Klein, from New York Stock Exchange trailblazer Muriel Siebert to environmental crusader Tara Church, Geeks and Geezers illustrates the stunning metamorphoses of true leaders. It also reveals the critical traits they share, including adaptability, vision, integrity, unquenchable optimism, and "neoteny"-a youthful curiosity and zest for knowledge.

Highlighting the forces that enable any of us to learn and lead not for a time, but for a lifetime, this book is essential reading for geeks, geezers, and everyone in between.

AUTHORBIO: Warren Bennis is Professor and Founding Chairman of The Leadership Institute at the University of Southern California, and the author of over thirty visionary books on leadership. Robert J. Thomas is an Associate Partner and Senior Fellow with the Accenture Institute for Strategic Change and award-winning author of What Machines Can't Do .

沃倫·本尼斯(Warren G．Bennis)美國當代最傑齣的組織理論、領導理論大師。南加州大學校聘教授，哈佛大學肯尼迪政府學院公共領導力中心主席。曾任教麻省理工學院、波士頓大學，曾任紐約大學布法羅分校副校長，辛辛那提大學校長。先後擔任過四任美國總統的顧問團成員，並擔任許多《財富》500強大公司的顧問、董事。至少著有27本與領導有關的書籍，其中被《金融時報》譽為50大商業好書之一的《領導者》，和另一本《如何成為領袖》都被譯為至少21種語言。1993年及1996年兩度被《華爾街日報》譽為管理學十大發言人，並被《福布斯》雜誌稱為“領導學大師們的院長”。《金融時報》最近則稱贊他是“使領導學成為一門學科，為領導學建立學術規則的大師”。

羅伯特·托馬斯(Robert J．Thomas)埃森哲公司策略變革中心(Accenture Institute for Strategic Change)的閤夥人及高級研究員，曾為全球多傢公司在領導發展方麵進行谘詢。在加入這傢公司前曾在麻省理工學院及密歇根大學任教多年。著有《機器無法代勞的事情》一書。