Forward : The Leadership Principles Of Ulysses S. Grant

Author Eric Metaxas has given Craig von Buseck’s previous work glowing commendations: “Hats off to Craig von Buseck for his tremendous research and work!” Through quality research, Forward! offers wonderfully practical principles gleaned from modern leadership theory and from one of American history’s most misunderstood yet resilient figures.

Today’s leaders face intense pressure, not only to perform by exceeding goals, but to adapt quickly to a changing culture. While this may happen at a faster pace now, history is filled with leaders who were forced to perform in extremely challenging circumstances, to adapt to a changing culture, all while fighting personal battles.

One of those who continually rose above expectations to meet the demands of the day was the great American general, Ulysses S. Grant.

Many in the 21st Century forget that in his time, Grant was nearly as popular as Abraham Lincoln. His 1885 funeral in Manhattan saw 1.5 million mourners – still the largest in American history. In 1900, Vice President Theodore Roosevelt made a remarkable statement regarding the place of Ulysses S. Grant in the American political pantheon: “…mightiest among the mighty dead loom the three great figures of Washington, Lincoln, and Grant. …these three greatest men have taken their place among the great men of all nations, the great men of all time.”

Walt Whitman agreed. “Out of the hubbub of the war Lincoln and Grant emerge, the towering majestic figures. … I think this is the greatest lesson of our national existence so far.”

Whitman referred to the fact that both Grant and Lincoln emerged not from the eastern establishment, but from humble beginnings in the western frontier. The question we must ask is, what latent character traits in Grant during his early years emerged during the Civil War, enabling him to rise so high so fast? What can we learn from this titan of the 19th Century that could possibly be relevant to leadership in the 21st Century?

In Forward! Dr. Craig von Buseck presents some of today’s foremost principles of leadership discovered by experts in academia, industry, and the military and shows how Ulysses S. Grant successfully employed these concepts in the middle of the Nineteenth Century. Citing such leadership experts as Jim Collins, James M. Kouzes, Barry Z. Posner, Stephen R. Covey, Thomas J. Stanley, John C. Maxwell, and others, Dr. von Buseck demonstrates how the principles these people have discovered through res