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Lead from the Outside: How to Build Your Future and Make Real Change

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A previously published edition of this ISBN can be found here.

Leadership is hard. Convincing others—and yourself—that you are capable of taking charge and achieving more requires insight and courage. Lead from the Outside is the handbook for outsiders, written with an eye toward the challenges that hinder women, people of color, members of the LGBTQ community, and millennials ready to make change. Stacey uses her hard-won insights to break down how ambition, fear, money, and failure function in leadership, and she includes practical exercises to help you realize your own ambition and hone your skills. Lead from the Outside discusses candidly what Stacey has learned over the course of her impressive career in politics, business and the nonprofit world: that differences in race, gender, and class provide vital strength, which we can employ to rise to the top and create real and lasting change.

226 pages, Paperback

First published April 24, 2018

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About the author

Stacey Abrams

23 books2,204 followers
Stacey Abrams is an American politician, lawyer, author, and businesswoman who was the house minority leader for the Georgia General Assembly and state representative for the 89th House District. She is a Democrat. Abrams is a candidate in the 2018 Georgia gubernatorial election.

If elected, Abrams will be Georgia's first female governor and the first black female governor in the United States.

Abrams, one of six siblings, was born to Robert and Carolyn Abrams in Madison, Wisconsin and raised in Gulfport, Mississippi. The family moved to Atlanta where her parents pursued graduate school and later became Methodist ministers. She attended Avondale High School and was the school's first African-American valedictorian. While in high school, she was hired as a typist for a congressional campaign and was later hired as a speechwriter at age 17 based on the edits she made while typing.

In 1995, Abrams earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Interdisciplinary Studies (Political Science, Economics and Sociology) from Spelman College, magna cum laude. While in college, Abrams worked in the youth services department in the office of Atlanta mayor Maynard Jackson. She later interned at the Environmental Protection Agency. As a Harry S. Truman Scholar, she studied public policy at the University of Texas at Austin's LBJ School of Public Affairs and went on to earn her J.D. from Yale Law School.

Abrams worked as a tax attorney at the Sutherland Asbill & Brennan law firm in Atlanta, with a focus on tax-exempt organizations, health care and public finance. She was appointed the Deputy City Attorney for Atlanta at age 29.

Abrams co-founded and served as the senior vice president of NOW Corp. (formerly NOWaccount Network Corporation), a financial services firm. She co-founded Nourish, Inc., a beverage company with a focus on infants and toddlers, and is CEO of Sage Works, a legal consulting firm, that has represented clients including the Atlanta Dream of the WNBA.

Abrams has had an extensive writing career, penning several best-selling novels under the nom de plume of Selina Montgomery. Abrams is also the author of 'Minority Leader', a book of leadership advice to be published by Henry Holt & Co. in April 2018.

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5 stars
2,792 (42%)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 883 reviews
Profile Image for Jean.
1,745 reviews761 followers
February 3, 2019
This book is primarily a statement of policy and philosophy and less of a memoir. I was impressed how highly educated Stacey Abrams is. She went to Spelman College and obtained a law degree from Yale University. She was a Harry S. Truman Scholar studying public policy at the University of Texas at Austen’s LBJ School of Public Affairs and earned a Master Degree in Public Policy in 1998. In 2012 she was the recipient of the John F. Kennedy New Frontier Award. I noted she also worked as a City Attorney as did Kamala Harris. This job allows for good experience in the workings of government. Sorry for spending time on her education, but I feel it is very important for politicians be educated in the workings of government.

The book is well written and Abrams gets right to her point and does not wander from her point. I recently became aware of Stacey Abrams when she ran for Governor of Georgia in 2018. I hope she runs again for Governor. I think the recent problems with the Federal government emphasize the need to elect politicians with experience in working their way up from local politics to State and then Federal positions to fully understand the working of government. A good education in various public or foreign affairs fields along with a law degree is also beneficial. I enjoyed the book and the helpful guidelines to help one achieve their goals. Abrams main point of the book was to encourage woman and other minorities to run for office and to attempt to rise higher than they think they can go.

I read this as an audiobook downloaded from Audible. The book is seven hours long. Abrams does a good job narrating her own book.
Profile Image for Trish.
1,373 reviews2,612 followers
June 12, 2019
Stacey Abrams learned not always to kick right at her goal. Watching her stand back and assess a situation can be a fearsome thing. You know she is going to do something oh-so-effective and she is going to use her team to get there, those who mentored her and those she mentored herself. I just love that teamwork.

This memoir is unlike any other presidential-hopeful memoir out there. Abrams has not declared herself for the 2020 race, but running for president is on her to-do list. I read the library edition of her book quickly and wondered why she’d write it this way; she’s a writer and this is written in a workbook self-help style. But something she’d said about ambition was so clarifying and electrifying that I ended up buying the book to study what she was doing.
“Ambition should be an animation of soul…a disquiet that requires you to take action…Ambition means being proactive…If you can walk away [from your ambition] for days, weeks, or years at a time, it is not an ambition—it’s a wish.”
Ambition is not something you can be passive about. You feel you must act on it or you will regret it all your days. Ambition should not a job title but something that helps you to answer “why”.

Now I know why Abrams wrote her book like this. After all, she’s a writer; she could write whatever kind of book she wanted. Her ambition is to have readers feel strong and capable enough to do whatever they put their minds to, whether it is to aid someone in office or be that person in office. She learned a lot on her path to this place and she doesn’t necessarily want to get to the top of the mountain without her cohort. Her ambition is not an office, it is a result.

What Abrams relates about her failures is most instructive. After all, none of us achieve all we set our minds to, at least on the first try. But Abrams shows that one has to be relentlessly honest with oneself about one’s advantages and deficiencies, even asking others in case one’s own interpretations are skewed by fear or previous failure. By writing her book this way, Abrams is unapologetic about some areas she could have handled better, personal finances for instance, that could have been used as a weapon against her. She explains her situation at the time and recommends better pathways for those who follow.

A former member of the Georgia State Legislature, Abrams found herself a different breed of politician than most who had achieved that rank. She was less attuned to social sway than she was to marshaling her intellect to overcome roadblocks to effective legislation. This undoubtedly had some genesis in the reactions she’d gotten her entire life as a black woman. She wasn’t going to wait for folks to accept her; she planned to take her earned seat at the table but she was going to be prepared.

She found that she needed both skills to succeed in business and in politics. She needed the support of a base and she needed an understanding of what would move the ball forward. And she learned what real power means.
“Access to real power also acknowledges that sometimes we need to collaborate rather than compete. We have to work with our least favorite colleague or with folks whose ideologies differ greatly from our own…But working together for a common end, if not for the same reason, means that more can be accomplished.”
Abrams discusses strategies and tactics for acquiring and wielding power and reminds us that “sometimes winning takes longer than we hope” and leaders facing long odds on worthy goals best be prepared for the “slow-burn” where victory doesn’t arrive quickly. But every small victory or single act of defiance can inspire someone else to take action.

If defeat is inevitable, reevaluate. Abrams suggests that one may need to change the rules of engagement so that instead of a ‘win’ one may be happy to ‘stay alive’ to fight another day.

The last fifty pages of the book put words to things we may know but haven’t articulated before. Abrams acknowledges that beliefs are anchors which help to direct us in decision-making but should never be used to block critical thinking, reasonable compromise, and thoughtful engagement.
“Collaboration and compromise are necessary tools in gaining and holding power.”
The GOP also believes this, but I think they use the notion within their coalition: they use discipline to keep their team in order and members may need to compromise their values to stay in the power group. Democrats must hold onto the notion of compromise within and without their coalition to succeed, while never compromising values.

It is difficult to believe there is anyone out there who doesn’t admire Stacey Abrams’ guts and perseverance. Her friends stood by her in times of stress because Abrams made efforts to acknowledge her weaknesses while not allowing them to break down her spirit. She built every pillar of the leadership role she talks about and can stand before us, challenging us to do the same. She is a powerhouse.
Profile Image for Gabrielle.
263 reviews11 followers
August 8, 2018
4.5 stars. Disclaimer: I am a supporter of Stacey Abrams and am honored that I will be able to cast my vote for her (again!) in November. But my political views have nothing to do with my perceptions about this book. I honestly was expecting this to be the traditional celebrity memoir that talks about their life from start to present moment, clearing up misconceptions, and making the reader feel closer or more familiar with them. This book was all and none of that - it read more like a really, really good motivation or self-help book. I could tell that Abrams wrote this book not to promote herself, but to really help her readers become minority leaders. Reading this, I believe that Abrams wanted to use her own experiences as a catalyst to help the reader discover more about themselves. I am sucker for a book with activities (well, good activities!) and this one had some great prompt for being introspective and thinking about how one might change their own life. This is a great book for women of color, college students, or anyone seeking to make a change in their life. Stacey Abrams is truly an inspiration and role model. I would definitely recommend this book to a friend.
Profile Image for Mehrsa.
2,235 reviews3,634 followers
May 5, 2018
I read this not because I wanted the advice, but because I wanted to get to know Stacey Abrams better as she's running for Governor of my state. So I think I will vote for her. She seems smart and ambitious (in a good way) and hardworking. The one fatal flaw of this book is that she cites to that BS Harriet Tubman quote about how she would have freed more slaves but for their mindset. The same one Kanye West recently cited to say that slavery was a choice. Abrams does not say that, but she should have cite checked that quote. I mean, think for a second about slavery and then think about Harriet Tubman. I mean, there is no way she would have said that.
Profile Image for Kelley.
472 reviews12 followers
February 15, 2019
I was not expecting this book to be good. I picked it up because I voted for Abrams. Then she lost to that shameful cheat who rigged the election (no seriously - google it. Georgia should hang its head in shame until they fix the crazy loophole that allows someone to run in an election while also supervising it). So I wanted to read more about what she was about and hopefully help her win a Senate seat or vice president role?

This book is amazing. I read Michelle Obama's book earlier, and this is kinda like the book Michelle would have written before she became the First Lady. Or heck, more likely the book Barak would have written while he was still community organizing in Chicago.

This is part memoir, part self help for minorities and part how to. I listened to the audiobook which was great to Abrams' voice, but I think I would love to get it and mark it up because there are so many jewels in here. If you like the Obamas, you should definitely read this book. I'm confused as to why there isn't a wider readership honestly. My local Georgia library had it, but not the larger national one I also subscribe to. But they seem to be re-releasing it with a new title (I read it when it was called Minority Leader - a fun pun!) so that may get it into the hands of more Americans.

Hope to be calling her President Abrams one day!
Profile Image for alex.
152 reviews35 followers
November 17, 2018
as i write this review, stacey abrams has recently announced that she is ending her race for governor of georgia and that brian kemp will become governor. for the past six months i've worked on stacey abrams' campaign as an intern, and it was an incredible experience.

this book was deeply insightful, encouraging, and less of a memoir and more of a self-improvement book. it even has worksheets and exercises you can fill out at the end of each chapter. it was also written as eloquently as i expected it to, and some of the anecdotes were really charming and amusing, like when she uses an episode of star trek to explain a strategy of winning.

i really enjoyed learning more about abrams' life, especially the professional inner workings of politics and entrepreneurship, and learning more about her worldview.

of course i wish she had won the governorship, and i'm going to miss hearing her inspiring words every day on the campaign. but i think she has an amazing political future ahead of her. i honestly believe stacey abrams will be president one day.
Profile Image for Kaethe.
6,477 reviews497 followers
March 28, 2021
February 20, 2021

Politicians make lousy writers: the innocuous platitudes of motivational speakers made more vacuous by a reluctance to say anything that might ever be controversial. If you're a good writer without anything in particular to say you become a lawyer, which appears to be advanced training in not saying much. Not always, of course, some great writers become lawyers in order to make a reasonable income or to improve the world

Abrams has already accomplished more than most and she's done a specific thing that I want to do: turned her state blue, so I am making myself listen in hopes that I will learn and possibly also do. Because I am tired of this shit

1 what is the problem 2 why is it a problem 3 how do you solve it, page 5
Primed to jump to the third question, page 6 busted I pick the country i want to live in, but same

Because I normally skip the exercises: minorityleaderbook.com/exercises

***

March 25, 2021

I finally did the exercises. And you know what? I have a clear and consistent vision of what I want from life and what I want to do and what I want for others. I want to read books. I want to post reviews and clean up my database. If I came into a lot of money I would give most of it away to people who have very good ideas for what to do with it, and I would hire someone to clean my house, possibly daily, and I would eat nothing but take-out. Canvassing for registering voters is something I would probably enjoy, but that is as close as I wish to come to politics.

***

28 March, 2021

I walk away knowing that Abrams is a very good writer, insightful, thoughtful, and a brilliant strategist as well as brilliant tactician. I am happy to have her lead the way on damn near everything, because she's good at considering stuff I don't want to think about. And somebody has to be looking out for that.

Library copy
Profile Image for Agla.
660 reviews57 followers
Read
September 24, 2022
No rating because this book was not written for me. I enjoyed it but I can't apply most of the tips in this book because it is VERY american. It's not a bad thing but it can't be transferred to a European context. The book is not about the life of Stacey Abrams (as I thought) it's a collection of tips for members of minorities who want to become leaders. She uses examples from her life and other people's lives but it's not in chronological order and not really in depth of the situation. The life events are only used to illustrate a point. The most starking example of foreignness to me was the chapter on money, the way Americans think about and handle finance is very complicated and foreign to me. The credit score system does not exist here and we don't take that many loans (yes even poor people because you can't be more than 33% in debt which means that the money you give back each month can't exceed 33% of your income so poor people don't get loans). Credit cards arrived here a few years back and my bank has stopped issuing them automatically because people didn't want/use them. I digress, I would still recommend this book.
Profile Image for Casey.
729 reviews36 followers
January 23, 2023
I really admire Stacey and have donated to her campaigns, and was looking forward to learning more about her personal life. This ebook turned out to be primarily a motivation and strategy guide for those outside the power structure (due to race, gender, youth, or other) to have an impact on the world in politics or in other ways. So I was not the target of this book.

However, I really enjoyed her personal story that weaved in and out of the book, stories of her parents, her siblings, her education, and her struggles. I do feel I know her better, and admire her even more. And I was also intrigued that, in addition to all the other things she's accomplished, she's also written several novels. I will look for those, as well as "Our Time is Now" published in 2020.

Recommended to those interested in the topic.
Profile Image for Kurt.
590 reviews66 followers
August 22, 2020
Well, as a retired, upper-middle-class, Anglo, straight, non-disabled, Christian, white male I am definitely not a member of this book's intended audience. But as someone who cares deeply about all people and who especially wants to understand and, if possible, help those within the human community who are different from me — including those who experience a different set of social problems than I do — I have read numerous books about and by minorities. Georgia state lawmaker Stacey Abrams' book is just the latest.

I very much enjoyed hearing Abrams' stories about her life and her rise to success. She faced many challenges, as all of us do throughout our lives, including some that are fairly unique to being a woman of color in the predominantly white man's fields of politics, law, and business in the very Southern state of Georgia. The experiences she shares are all part of her goal to advise young minorities on how to be successful and to be leaders – especially by not giving in to the many discouraging voices (real and figurative) that are telling them that they can't, that it's too hard, and that they are just not good enough.

While listening to the Abrams' advice I became aware that I actually am a minority in a sense. By dissenting from some of the overwhelmingly predominant ideological and political views of the vast majority of the people with whom I interact daily, I too am a minority. Maybe all of us are minorities in some way or another.

So, I believe that Stacey Abrams' advice is good for everyone. She seems to be an amazing woman, and I wish her the best of luck in the pursuit of her goals.
Profile Image for Darcy.
13.1k reviews507 followers
March 3, 2020
I didn’t know much about Stacy Abrams, just that she ran for GA governor, lost and was a romance author. I did like what little I knew about her, so when this book showed up on my library’s website I grabbed it. I liked how Stacy laid things out, it made them seem easy, but the biggest thing I took from this was you have to try, it starts there. If you don’t try or ask nothing will happen, but if you try or ask the worst that happens is a no. You will find many obstacles in your life, but you shouldn’t be one of them. I also find myself disappointed that Stacy didn’t win the Governor’s race because I think she would have been great for the people in Georgia. On the upside, it sounds like Stacy isn’t going to that let that loss stop her, a good thing for the rest of us.
Profile Image for T. Rose.
525 reviews23 followers
March 4, 2019
I, too, grew up in Gulfport and I found Ms. Adams's book to be accurate as well as inspirational. The book is very well written. I am the daughter of a Harrison County educator. Stacey Abrams is a gifted writer. I want to read her other books for sure. I follow her political career closely. Very informative book on leadership! Everyone should read it!
Profile Image for Hannah Givens.
1,792 reviews33 followers
July 14, 2020
I have mixed feelings about this book. Firstly, Abrams is an extremely impressive person, and I'm glad to know more about a politician I have supported and will continue to support.

The content itself is what I have mixed feelings about. On one hand, this book would be useful and inspirational for anyone who wants to follow in her footsteps, either in politics or in business. I especially appreciated that she addressed the mentorship problem -- everyone says minorities need mentors to be able to break into any field, but this is the first time I've seen anyone go further and acknowledge that for minorities, those mentors are much more difficult to find. Having read a decent number of management/self-help books, most of the rest of the advice is fairly typical -- be bold! own your mistakes! be authentic! -- but I think that's kind of unavoidable. Each situation is so different that when you boil down advice for a general audience, it ends up pretty much the same. So, the book was at its best when she was describing real events she experienced and her strategies for dealing with them.

My problem with the book is more on a macro or meta level. It really feels like it boils down to "you too can become part of the establishment, if you only try hard enough!" and not only is that not the case, I'm increasingly aware that it's not an establishment I even want to continue. I don't want to be allowed to play with people who want to hurt me. I don't want to force them to play with me either. I want them to stop having the power to hurt me. I want to stop playing games that are designed for me to lose. I want a better structure. But even within that structure, in one breath she's acknowledging how someone might have unavoidable financial, family, or health situations that make traditional advancement impossible, but in the next breath she's advocating that those same people take unpaid internships to help get their feet in the door. That's the exact thing we can't afford to do because we're trying to survive. At one point she says something like "no number of side jobs could make up the difference" for a person she was talking about, without acknowledging that people who have any kind of disability at all have much less ability to get side jobs in the first place. We're dying here, and becoming a leader in the system that's killing us is not something I'm willing to do, even if I were able, which I'm not.

That said, I hope less-cynical people turn out to be right, and that by becoming establishment leaders they can change the system, and that this book helps them do that. I don't begrudge anyone the effort. But this book is only for the people who are trying to do that.
Profile Image for Kat.
282 reviews41 followers
July 1, 2020
This book has a lot of great advice for how to thrive in the work place and life in general when you're a woman and/or a minority.
Profile Image for Ericka Clou.
2,308 reviews198 followers
September 30, 2022
This is really good. Much like Stacey Abrams is a jack-of-all-trades this book cannot be fit into one neat category: it's part political memoir, of course, part self-help business book, part antiracism book, part you-should-just-read-it-okay? As I learned more and more about Abrams I was reminded of Benjamin Franklin. She's a renaissance woman! We're too often discouraged from this wide approach to knowledge and career to the detriment of current society, I think.

As much as I like this book, I like her book Our Time is Now even better.
Profile Image for Maggie Hess.
120 reviews2 followers
March 5, 2021
Wow. Stacey Abrams is absolutely a force to be reckoned with. I strive to be as brave and charismatic as she is. She is the personification of doing anything you put your mind to. This book found me at the right time. I was feeling nervous about making a change and feeling stuck. Her rhetoric on empowering yourself by pushing yourself into uncomfortable positions has put me into a completely different mindset. Stacey Abrams for president 2028!!!!
Profile Image for Leanna Pohevitz.
183 reviews9 followers
May 14, 2018
I really enjoyed this book. I believe Stacey Abrams is exactly the type of leadership out country needs to continue to move forward. I appreciate that she speaks to women and minorities about how they are welcome in all leadership roles they just also have to believe and admit that they belong there. I will be using her website and digging into my own self-confidence and intentions.

Her book encouraged me to pitch a priorities workshop for my fellow scholarship recipients in Fulbright. Though I don't know yet if I will be chosen to give the workshop, I have applied, which is a step in the right direction. I look forward to hearing more about her work in the future, and reading any other non-fiction works she produces.

Profile Image for Robert.
204 reviews3 followers
March 25, 2019
Stacey Abrams writes with fluidity and clarity about the difficulties of leadership in the shoes of a black woman. "Minority Leader" is like a manual for successfully navigating a leadership role as a woman, person of color, as a member of the LBGTQ+ community or any other minority group. I don't really know much about Abrams, but I came away feeling the utmost respect for her with everything she had done in her life. The thing I sense and I like most about her is that she's unapologetic about who she is, and at the same time, she comes across as respectful to other people around her.
Profile Image for Aly.
108 reviews6 followers
December 21, 2018
I truly enjoy memoirs that are candid and thoughtful. Stacey Abrams has written one that fits the bill. Not only does she speak about her lived experience as a minority leader, she provides tools to others. She is adding to the collective knowledge for those who may not be formally taught how to succeed in this white hetero-patriarchal society. A must read for anyone who dreams of dreaming big, but is unsure if they should...
Profile Image for Buffy.
61 reviews5 followers
August 27, 2019
Highly recommend this book! So many gems, some I was able to use real time as I navigated the wealth of info pack in the small book! Stacey Abrams is truly brilliant and I know this will be a re-read for me! The transparency is greatly appreciated!
Profile Image for Phyllis Goode.
155 reviews1 follower
May 6, 2020
I had high hopes for this one but it read more like a self-help book. I was expecting memoir/political book. There's great advice for women and minorities looking for advice to get ahead in their careers. Otherwise, it's not the most engaging story.
Profile Image for Keturah.
28 reviews1 follower
November 21, 2018
The advice in this book is amazing!! Took so many notes. This is a must read for those go getters hoping to make the most out of their careers.
Profile Image for Annie.
268 reviews26 followers
November 25, 2018
Everyone should read this book, but in particular, people from non-traditional backgrounds (ie not rich/white/cis man) who are interested in leadership. So much good advice.
Profile Image for Kelsey.
90 reviews15 followers
May 1, 2019
There is some really good practical advice in this book, but I most enjoyed the more autobiographical parts are hearing about her journey.

Read for the Read Harder Challenge #17: A business book.
Profile Image for Marlys Weaver.
41 reviews3 followers
May 29, 2020
Can she be our next vice president? If she wants it, then, yes, please.
Profile Image for N.D..
Author 44 books416 followers
January 25, 2021
I wish Ms. Abrams the best of luck in her future political endeavors--hopefully Governor of Georgia.
2 reviews
January 19, 2021
When I started this book I expected a memoir, inspiring and interesting. As I read through it I found it to be much more akin to an inspiring goal oriented workbook.

I’ve read more than my share of books that purport to guide a person through the process of identifying and achieving their goals. This book does the best job I’ve seen of providing helpful concrete tips coupled with worksheets and prompts that put the tips into practice.
Profile Image for Amy.
844 reviews48 followers
May 21, 2018
Senator Abrams calls this book “part memoir, part advice, and part alchemy.” She’s the coolest politician-alchemist I can think of: business owner, entrepreneur, lawyer, State Senate minority leader, annnnnd romance novelist. (Name: Selena Montgomery.)

This book comes across as honest and appropriately confident advice for anybody seeking a leadership position while facing adversity. For those that don’t face the specific race, class, or gender barriers that Senator Abrams faces, there’s much to learn and think about in the ways she describes how she overcame challenges, how she makes high-impact decisions, and how she learned from her mistakes. Each chapter ends with some do-now exercises aimed towards young, ambitious readers.

I’ll be recommending this book to my politically interested book club and I’ll keep it in mind as a graduation present (though I don’t think I know anybody graduating this year!) I also want to give some copies to my local elected officials for them to have and pass on as they see appropriate.
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