• In search of Warren Buffett 2.0
  Berkshire Hathaway's reinsurance division chief, Ajit Jain, is believed by some to be the company's CEO-in-waiting. While Warren Buffett could keep the corner office for several more years, Jain is seen as a strong, no-nonsense manager with a Buffett-like ability to quickly grasp the fundamentals of complex industries. "The expertise that he brings to the table is the ability to size up substantial deals on fragmentary information very, very quickly," says Bob Hamman, president of SCA Promotions. "That's not a common commodity." The Wall Street Journal (5/4)      

• Don't make your workers want to vomit
  Bosses need to be bold and forthright, not weak and lily-livered, Autodesk CEO Carl Bass says. Wavering and vacillating only confuses your workers and makes life worse for everyone, Bass explains. "As CEO, you’re the one who’s driving the bus. And if you’re erratic while you’re driving, everyone gets pretty nauseous," he says. The New York Times (tiered subscription model) (5/5)      

• It's better to hunt than to farm, says Microworkz founder
  Business leaders should surround themselves with hunters, not farmers, says Microworkz founder Richard Keith Latman. That means finding people who gather only the information they need to execute a plan, rather than people who endlessly gather data but never take real action. "It takes a lot longer to grow food than to shoot it," Latman says. Bloomberg Businessweek (5/4)      

• How to cook up better client relationships
  Companies should hold their most important client meetings in gourmet kitchens, say Robert and Joshua Barone, principals at Universal Value Advisors. Having top executives chat while eating gourmet lunches is a great way to break the ice and build trust, the Barones explain. "What we found is that our clients told us a lot more in the kitchen than they did in the conference room and it wasn't just about finance, it was personal," says Joshua. Fast Company online (5/4)      

• The guide to being productively irrational
  All good innovators are a little irrational, writes Scott Anthony. It takes blind faith and even a touch of hubris to bring edgy new products to market, so it's important to find ways to foster productive irrationality without veering off into destructive fanaticism. "[I]rrationality -- if it's properly contained -- might just help launch a world-changing business," Anthony writes. Harvard Business Review online/HBR Blog Network (5/4)      

Top five news stories selected by SmartBrief on Leadership readers in the past week.

• 12 lessons learned by the age of 60 (Harvard Business Review online)

• Lessons from the Secret Service scandal (Inc. online)

• Jack Welch is behind the times, say female leaders (The Wall Street Journal)

• A guide to conflict resolution (CBS MoneyWatch)

• How to mentor people without being a mama bear (The New York Times (tiered subscription model))

• Results based on number of times each story was clicked by readers.

• Investing in China? Expect the unexpected
  Political turbulence in China -- including the flight last week of dissident lawyer Chen Guangcheng -- could mean big problems for companies in the region, writes Bill Powell. If nothing else, the disruption shows that China's political and economic system is far less stable than many people believe. "Despite the massive bets placed on this place by companies across the globe, we can't assume anything about China," Powell warns. CNNMoney/Fortune/Term Sheet blog (5/4)      

• Why "Danger" is an innovator's middle name
  Good innovators are risk-takers, writes David Burkus. Coming up with creative new solutions requires companies to give their workers permission to try out dangerous ideas, and even to fail spectacularly from time to time. "If you want to increase innovation, you must first consider what your organization is doing to encourage creative risks," Burkus writes. SmartBrief/SmartBlog on Leadership (5/4)      

• Why dictators shouldn't build Death Stars
  It would cost about $852 quadrillion to build a real-life version of the Death Star -- too steep a price to pay for the ultimate weapon, writes Gregory Koger. Political theory suggests that a "Star Wars"-style emperor would do better to invest in training conventional troops and upgrading his internal security apparatus. "[A] rational dictator could make better use of the resources that would be used to build Death Stars," Koger argues. The Monkey Cage blog (5/4)      

Position Title Company Name Location Chief Innovation Executive City of Phoenix Phoenix, AZ Click here to view more job listings.

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You fell down a thousand times when you were learning to walk and you kept trying." --Richard Keith Latman, founder of Microworkz, as quoted in Bloomberg Businessweek