Kenneth Blanchard and Sheldon Bowles, High Five! The Magic of Working Together. William Morrow, 2000.
Referenced in: Ministry Teams, General Resources
LifeandLeadership.com Summary
This is an inspirational parable about teamwork based on a fictional character who loses his job because he is not a team player. He starts coaching his son’s hockey team, and learns the lessons of team building from a retired school teacher/coach. Interlaced in the story are four main principles of teamwork. This book is a quick, easy read and a good motivational story.
From the Publisher
High Five! combines the spellbinding charm of a timeless parable with cutting-edge information about why teams are important and what individuals and organizations can do to build successful ones.
Through the story of Alan Foster, a workplace one-man band, High Five! identifies the four key ingredients of winning teams. Although Alan is an effective producer, he is unwilling to share the spotlight by partnering on projects and is fired because, as his boss puts it, “Alan, we need good producers who are good team players, too.” It is a bitter pill for him to swallow.
While mulling over his disappointment, he takes his son to his grade-five hockey practice, where it is clear that his son’s team, the Riverbend Warriors, knows nothing about teamwork, either. When the team’s two overworked coaches learn of Alan’s plight, they persuade him to join their ranks, and he finds himself charged with teaching himself and the players the meaning of teamwork. With the help of a woman friend-a former girls’ basketball coach who has “won more high school basketball championships than anyone”-Alan and the Warriors learn the magic of teamwork and that “none of us is as smart as all of us.” With its simple style and easy-to-follow techniques, High Five! is a must-read for anyone seeking to learn the value and power of teamwork.
About the Author
Few people have influenced the day-to-day management of people and companies more than Ken Blanchard. A prominent, sought-after author, speaker, and business consultant, Dr. Blanchard is universally characterized by his friends, colleagues, and clients as one of the most insightful, powerful, and compassionate individuals in business today. Ken is one of the most influential leadership experts in the world and is respected for his years of groundbreaking work in the fields of leadership and management.
Dr. Ken Blanchard is the cofounder and Chief Spiritual Officer of The Ken Blanchard Companies, an international management training and consulting firm that he and his wife, Margie Blanchard, began in 1979 in San Diego, California. In addition to being a renowned speaker and consultant, Ken also spends time as a visiting lecturer at his alma mater, Cornell University, where he is a trustee emeritus of the Board of Trustees.
Ken has received many awards and honors for his contributions in the fields of management, leadership, and speaking. The National Speakers Association awarded him its highest honor, the “Council of Peers Award of Excellence.” He was inducted into the HRD Hall of Fame by Training magazine and Lakewood Conferences, and he received the Golden Gavel Award from Toastmasters International. Ken also received The Thought Leadership Award for continued support of work-related learning and performance by ISA—The Association of Learning Providers. Ken has been inducted into Amazon’s Hall of Fame as one of the top 25 best-selling authors of all time. The business school at Grand Canyon University bears his name. In addition, Ken teaches students in the Master of Science in Executive Leadership Program at the University of San Diego.
Born in New Jersey and raised in New York, Ken received a master’s degree from Colgate University, and a bachelor’s and PhD from Cornell University. An avid golfer, Ken belongs to the Loch Lomond Golf Club in Scotland.
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