Seeing David in the Stone

James B. Swartz & Joseph E. Swartz
Leading Books Press (2006)
ISBN 0977945650
Reviewed by Paige Lovitt for Reader Views (10/06)

For twenty years, the authors, Swartz and Swartz, had sought out answers to three timeless questions.  “How did some people find and seize the great opportunities of their time?”  “What can we learn from them to help us find and seize great opportunities?” The third question was “How did great leaders help others (and organizations) to find and seize great opportunities?”  To find the answers to these questions, they studied the successes and failures of seventy great leaders.  Their lives, works, and writings were well-researched.  They all had something in common.  It was the action that they took to grab the great opportunities when presented that helped them to succeed.  This action had more influence on their successes than heredity, traits, intelligence, environment, or their work habits.

This book was written to share the knowledge created from these findings so that we can achieve success.  For success to occur, there are twelve actions that need to be taken.   The first part is covered in “Four Actions to find Great Opportunities.”  The second part is addressed in “Four Actions to Mobilize Support.”  The third part is discussed in “Four Actions to Seize Great Opportunities.”

This book could easily be used as a college textbook, however, it is written in a manner that makes the information easy to absorb and is incredibly interesting.  There are graphs and charts that help to further illustrate their points.   I did learn about some of these great leaders that are discussed in college.  But I don’t recall finding the information presented on them as interesting as it is in “Seeing David in the Stone.” 

I plan on rereading this book in the future because I think that there is more knowledge that I will need at other points in my life.   I would recommend “Seeing David in the Stone” as a gift to a graduating college student or someone that is getting ready to get launched into the real world.  The wisdom that can be gained from studying how these seventy great leaders succeeded is invaluable.

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