The Leadership Genius of Julius Caesar: Modern Lessons from the Man Who Built an Empire

By Phillip Barlag

“Brilliantly crafted to draw leadership lessons from history, this is one of the finest leadership books I have read” (Doris Kearns Goodwin, author of Team of Rivals).

Leaders are always trying to get better, but sometimes the best way to move forward is to look back. Philip Barlag shows us that Julius Caesar is one of the most compelling leaders of the past to study—a man whose approach was surprisingly modern and extraordinarily effective. Caesar proved by his words and deeds that he never considered himself above the average Roman citizen. He had an amazing ability to generate loyalty, to turn enemies into allies and allies into devoted followers.

Barlag uses dramatic and colorful incidents from Caesar's career—being held hostage by pirates, charging alone into enemy lines, pardoning people he knew wanted him dead—to illustrate what Caesar can teach leaders today. Central to Barlag's argument is the distinction between force and power. Caesar avoided using brute force on his followers. Instead, he won their loyalty through personal integrity and understanding his people's needs and motivations. Thousands of years after Caesar's death, this is still the kind of loyalty every leader wants to inspire.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Open Road Integrated Media
• Release date: Oct 17, 2016
• ISBN: 9781626566958

Book preview

THE LEADERSHIP GENIUS OF JULIUS CAESAR

THE LEADERSHIP GENIUS OF JULIUS CÆSAR

Modern Lessons from the Man Who Built an Empire

PHILLIP BARLAG

The Leadership Genius of Julius Caesar

Copyright © 2016 by Phillip Barlag

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First Edition

Hardcover print edition ISBN 978-1-62656-693-4

PDF e-book ISBN 978-1-62656-694-1

IDPF e-book ISBN 978-1-62656-695-8

2016-1

Interior design: VJB/Scribe. Edit: Elissa Rabellino. Cover design: Wilsted & Taylor. Index: Paula C. Durbin-Westby. Production service: Linda Jupiter Productions. Proofread: Henrietta Bensussen.

For my father, Bruce, who is always in my corner, above all else

CONTENTS

Timeline of Key Events in Caesar’s Life and Career

Preface

Introduction

1 Lead with Power, Not Force

2 Lead from the Front

3 Defy Convention

4 Bet on Yourself

5 Keep the Lines of Communication Open

6 Co-Opt the Power of Others

7 Preempt Your Enemies

8 Invest in Your Power Base

Epilogue

Appendix: Cast of Characters

Bibliography

Acknowledgments

Index

About the Author

TIMELINE OF KEY EVENTS IN CAESAR’S LIFE AND CAREER

PREFACE

In my professional life, I have the extraordinary honor and privilege to be witness to some of the most fascinating business conversations in the world. For almost a decade, I’ve had the chance to sit and listen to some of the world’s most accomplished, C-level executives from top-tier companies share their perspective on what they’ve done right as well as that with which they struggle. To me, these executives who run large, complex corporate functions of global companies are luminaries. I often joke that I am the one person who doesn’t belong in every room I’m in because I’m not at that level and don’t claim to be. I simply help facilitate the discussions.

After nearly a decade of listening to these discussions, something struck me: The challenges that executives address are always the same things, over and over. When I look back, a clear pattern emerges. Whether the markets are thriving or near collapse, at the heart of the executive agenda is leadership effectiveness. More specifically, executives are always seeking ways to build better teams and be better leaders.

A funny thing happened to me a few years ago. Following nothing more than general interest, I began reading a lot about ancient Rome, in general, and Julius Caesar, in particular. I didn’t know much about the guy at first. I knew he was ruthless, ambitious, a dictator, and he died a bloody death on the Ides of March. But with each page I read, I discovered that he was so much more interesting than what my cursory knowledge of history suggested. What is more, it struck me that Caesar uncovered truths about leadership that shed genuine light on the very modern, here-and-now business discussions I come across on a daily basis. Imagine my surprise when I realized that the one person who could answer some of the seemingly unanswerable leadership questions of today’s top-performing executives had been dead for over two thousand years.

Caesar was truly a genius, and he packed several lifetimes of adventure, intrigue, drama, and daring into his fifty-five years. What was most surprising to me about him was that his leadership style was modern, so much so that the insights into leadership that propelled him to glory are just as spot-on relevant today.

The more I learned about Julius Caesar, the more I came to appreciate the depth of his humanity. At each stage of his career, he used his understanding of human nature masterfully to grow his power base.

Human nature doesn’t change all that much. We have basically the same operating system as the people in Caesar’s day. The only thing that has changed between then and now is the social context. Simply by reading up on the life and career of Caesar, I have gained priceless insights into leadership. With this book, I hope to pass on some of those timeless lessons by applying them to a modern social context. Oh, and there are pirates, and who doesn’t love pirates?

INTRODUCTION

This is a book about Julius Caesar and what he means to modern leaders. It is not a biography, and it is not intended to be a history book in the traditional sense. There are plenty of such works out there, and for me to try to recreate them would be a waste of my time—and yours. Besides, I’m not a historian. I just like history.

It struck me that for as many great books on Caesar as there are, they all explore Caesar in his own time. There is very little written to help us answer the questions So what? What does any of this mean to me all these years later?

Historians and academics certainly spend considerable energy discussing—and often arguing about—the true nature of Caesar’s character. But one thing about the great man never comes up for debate: he was an exceptionally effective leader. There is a wonderful historiography for Caesar, a wealth of great books and articles, each adding its own color to the canvas that makes up the picture of his life. But there’s nothing quite like this out there: a look at Caesar as a leader through modern eyes. This book explores not just who Caesar was but how we can take the blueprint of leadership he gave us to be better leaders in our own time. Caesar was a lot of things: politician, statesman, general. Now let us add teacher to that list.

As we explore the leadership genius of Caesar, it is worth noting the violence that hung in the air like a putrid fog, permeating every aspect of Roman life. One of the best ways to seal your fate in ancient Rome was to try to cut into the advantages that the oligarchy held tightly. Caesar entered the political landscape with a controversial reform agenda, one that was sure to be brutally suppressed by the senatorial order. It was a violent time, and it would take someone of extraordinary talent to get anything visionary accomplished. That he succeeded in implementing his agenda and consolidating all the power in Rome for himself proves his mettle as