Leadership in the Social Media Age

Amanda Litman is co-founder of the organization Run for Something, which “recruits and supports young, diverse progressives to run for down-ballot races in order to build sustainable power for Democrats in all 50 states” (to quote their webpage). The organization was founded the day of Trump’s first inauguration in 2017 and takes credit for helping 637 candidates successfully reach office since then. Litman had previously served as a staffer on Hilary Clinton’s presidential campaign. Born in 1990, Litman is squarely in the Millennial generation.

According to LinkedIn Run for Something has between 50 and 200 employees. Not a large organization to be sure, but one that has so far seen good success, and which appears to be ready to assist young progressive candidates for the long haul.

Given that background you’d be forgiven for thinking that Litman’s new book would lean into politics, but it does not. While she doesn’t shy away from her personal story and her background, the focus of the book is on helping young entrepreneurial leaders understand and deal with the challenges of leadership in the 21st century.

The book is divided into three parts. “You, the Leader” focuses on the book’s target audience. “Your Team” talks about how you as a leader should think about, interact with, and offer direction for your employees. Finally, “Your Life” dives into the things a leader needs to think of outside of work that can contribute to successful leadership.

Two main themes that emerge from the book are how to deal with social media, and the importance of promoting a healthy work-life balance in the work-from-home era.

It has been a while since I read and reviewed a business book, let alone a self-help book on leadership. I am not a young entrepreneurial leader. I am a retired former IT professional with many years in low and midlevel management, and I have my own ideas on how to lead and what makes for an effective leader in a business setting. I picked up this book because I’m curious about how someone at the start of their career would view both leadership challenges and what changes to the status quo they perceive as important to young leaders.

When We’re in Charge is a title that promises to answer those questions. Generally it does.

On the plus side, she tells a pretty strong story about recent changes in our society and has solid advice, based on her own experience, for what a leader has to consider in response to those changes — the increasing importance of social media, the rising lack of trust across American society, and the increasing prevalence of work-from-home since the pandemic among them.

On the minus side, Litman has an unfortunate tendency to set up straw men by make generic statements about what leadership looked like “in the past”. Given her age, it’s not surprising that many of those statements are stereotypical and limited. And they aren’t even necessary for advancing the points she is making.

Worse, by indulging in those stereotypes she gives short shrift to her immediate leadership predecessors. That includes me, an early Gen Xer, who spent years in leadership roles until rather recently. Along with peers across companies, we challenged many of the leadership styles and traditions she uses as rhetorical straw men and helped our organizations overcome them, thank you very much. And we didn’t always have it as easy as she imagines. Best to just skip over her “leaders in the past….” statements.

That quibble aside, the book is a quick and effective read. It’s not meant to be a complete guide to leadership. But it would make a worthwhile companion piece for young leaders alongside other tried and true leadership guides like Stephen R. Covey’s The Seven Habits of Highly Successful People, Bill George’s True North, or one of a dozen or so others you could find through a Google search of “best books on leadership development”.

RATING: Three Stars ⭐⭐⭐

RATING COMMENTS: A worthwhile companion piece for young leaders alongside the classic leadership development books, with a focus on leading in today’s changing American society.

WHERE I GOT MY COPY: I read an advance reviewer’s copy of the ebook, provided courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, Zando - Crooked Media Reads. The book was published this Tuesday, May 13th.