Summer reading recommendations for every leader
What are you reading this summer? Have you picked your list for the summer? Following last week's article on summer reading, I reached out to a couple of leaders to share their recommendations for books that have significantly impacted their careers and leadership.
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Today, I am sharing two great suggestions from Dr Letitia Adelaide Appiah with her reflections and encounter with the author of one of the books she recommends.
I am thrilled about her recommendations because the selected books discuss the dynamics in her leadership context, how to safeguard the general well-being of our world, and a critical skill needed by leaders as they seek to leverage the diversity of voices and interests in our communities. Enjoy reading her reflections below and get the books as well.
Dr Letitia Adelaide Appiah, Executive Director of the National Population Council
My journey
Between 2011 and 2012, I was privileged to be awarded a US Department of State Scholarship under the Fulbright Fellowship Programme as a Hubert Humphrey Fellow at the Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University in Atlanta.
There, I met many influential people who shaped and continue to shape global health.
They also shaped my thoughts and actions. Dr Brachman, the Coordinator of the Fulbright Programme at Emory University in Atlanta, gifted a book entitled The Fears of the Rich, The Needs of the Poor, My Years at CDC by William H Foege.
Dr Brachman, of blessed memory, and Dr William H Foege, physicians and epidemiologists, were former directors of the Centre for Disease Control in Atlanta.
On the international stage, they succeeded in broadening public awareness of issues on population, preventive medicine and public health leadership, particularly in the developing world.
They were very instrumental in smallpox eradication.
In this book, Dr Foege brings his knowledge and wisdom derived from a long and accomplished career to the attention of all.
The account of his career offers many lessons for those interested in public health, especially for governments who control the public purse.
The book is a must-read for all who wish to excel in public health. Although public health can be a thankless profession, people like William H Foege and Phil Brachman remind us how indispensable the field is for our well-being, safety, development and world. This book made a strong impression on me.
Common sense
I had the opportunity to interact with Dr Foege. During one such interaction, one leader asked Dr Foege what he thought was our most significant challenge to our world; he emphatically identified that, based on the science, its global health inequalities.
He reiterated what Thomas Henry Huxley 1825 to 1895 said and quoted science as simply "common sense at its best".
According to Dr Foege, all other inequalities were like health inequalities. This profound statement from such an astute personality in Public Health informed my professional thoughts and actions.
My example of "science is common sense at its best" finds expression in teen pregnancies and their outcomes.
Science demonstrates that teen pregnancies have negative consequences on health, education and well-being at a minimum.
Common sense, at its best, dictates that nations and citizens should thus reduce its occurrence.
Another example is the severity of casualties in road traffic accidents without seat belts. Science and research show that mortalities and morbidities are high, so common sense dictates that drivers and passengers must wear seat belts irrespective of the speed limit.
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Learn to listen
The second book that made a significant impression on me is ‘The Lost Art of Listening’ by Michael Nichols. Nichols said listening was an art that all must learn, especially leadership at all levels.
Also, the essence of good listening is empathy, which translates into witnessing another person's experience rather than judging the experience.
He said humans were primarily reactive to what we secretly accused ourselves of.
This book also made a big impression on me because I realised that active listening is a sign of respect for the person talking and a demonstration of emotional intelligence by the listener.
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We must listen to both the poor and rich:
As the Executive Director of the National Population Council, reflecting on the wisdom of Dr Willam H. Foege, I dare say that the root of all health inequalities in developing countries is ineffective population management – indifference to teen pregnancy, child marriage and unmet need for family planning.
Science shows that health and educational outcomes are not desirable when child marriage, teen pregnancy and unmet need pregnancy persist.
Science/common sense demands that stakeholders come together to reduce these occurrences to reduce our expenditure, improve health and accelerate economic development. Seven years ago, on June 7, Dr Phil Brachman died. He continues to live on through his vision and selflessness and his light shines brighter on the professions.
Again, following recommendations from Michael Nichols in his book, we must be good listeners and empathetic enough to take bold decisions in tackling the root cause of health inequalities and, as a result, tackle inequality in education, skill, wealth and life expectancy.
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I highly recommend these two books to leaders and all stakeholders who seek lasting change in Ghana beyond AID.
Dr Appiah with The Humphrey Fellows 2011 – 2012
Brief Profile:
Dr Letitia Adelaide Appiah was appointed Director of the National Population Council in November 2016. Before this role, she served in various capacities with the Ghana Health Service as a Medical Officer, Senior Medical Officer and Specialist in Public Health for over two decades from 1994 to 2007.
Then became the first Municipal Director of Health Services for Ledzokuku Krowor Municipality from 2008 to 2016. She has an undying commitment to see Ghana with the right population size and living healthily.
She has dedicated her professional life to serving to raise the health standards of our dear nation.
The writer is a Leadership Development Facilitator, Executive Coach and Strategy Consultant, Founder of the CEO Accelerator Program, and Chief Learning Strategist at TEMPLE Advisory.
The mission of The Leadership Project is to harvest highly effective leadership practices and share them in a manner that other leaders can easily incorporate into their leadership practice.
If you have an idea or leadership practice to share, kindly write to programs@thelearningtemple.com. Until you read from us again, keep leading…..from leader to leader, one practice at a time.