Hugh Hewitt, a popular radio host and professor of law, offers advice for getting ahead in this compact volume aimed at conservative up-and-comers determined to become people of influence.
The need for Christians of influence today is critical: "In a very practical way, Christians seem to be losing the ability to penetrate the culture … the church is running out of talent or steam or both," writes Hewitt.
His own successes—he's a Harvard graduate, three-time Emmy winner, and served six years in the Reagan administration—are reflected in his advice. Hewitt's rules for getting ahead are fairly simple, including: earn credentials from a prestigious university, stay out of debt, work long hours, and don't get a tattoo.
He balances these with the mandate to become involved in a ministry and join a church.
Occasionally he repeats material, and some readers may dislike his comments against environmentalism and gender studies. But it's difficult to disagree with his challenge: "The world is in trouble," he writes, "and it needs your help. The church is in trouble, and it needs your help … All of us have the abilities to change the directions of individual lives. And we are accountable to do so."
Cindy Crosby is a frequent contributor to Publishers Weekly.