The Leader of the Band: Leadership Lessons From the Kids Who Made Me a Better CEO

Business leaders always surprise us. We think we know someone based off the teams they lead, the company they run, the sales they make. But the best stories come from the years it took to build those teams and that company. That’s where the wisdom sings. Scott Lawrence is the CEO of Lawrence & Schiller, a progressive advertising agency in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, but he’s a bass player, the leader of the band, and a former band director, too—Mr. L, as the kids referred to him—and he learned a lot about leadership in those years. He runs a successful business today, but this book shares with fellow ad agencies the great insight that came from the many band competitions, the marches along Main Street, the band room, and the kids. As it turns out, you can learn a lot about leadership when you simply listen to the music, and Mr. L plays us a good song.