I think that one of the best ways to learn leadership isn’t studying “leadership” at all. Instead, study individual leaders in their natural habitat and decide what they do that you want to try. Articles by and about leaders and interviews with them are mini-case studies that show you an actual leader in a real situation.

That’s why, every week, I bring you a selection of post about individual leaders. This week I’m pointing you to pieces by and about Mark Hurd, Pam Flaherty, Charyl Galpin, Andrew Filev, and Chester J. Pipkin

From Julie Bort: Inside The Mind Of Oracle CEO Mark Hurd

“We were meeting at Oracle’s upscale executive offices on the top floor of the main building at its Redwood City, California, headquarters, accompanied by two members of his personal PR team and Oracle’s chief marketing officer, Judith Sim. They weren’t there as handlers. Hurd was in full control of the conversation, his answers, what he was and wasn’t willing to say.”

From Hilary Burns: Words of wisdom from Citigroup’s Pam Flaherty

“Pam Flaherty entered the banking industry in the 1960s before women were even hired in some areas of the bank. She was a trailblazer in the industry, setting the stage for other female bankers to follow her path.”

From Jacqueline Nelson: Banking’s in her blood: From teller to the top at BMO Nesbitt Burns

“The daughter of a lifelong BMO banker, Ms. Galpin started her own career as a teller more than 35 years ago, and recently took over as sole head of full-service investment business BMO Nesbitt Burns.”

From Adam Bryant: Andrew Filev of Wrike: Check Your Ego at the Door

“Another thing that influenced me was that she gave me both independence and support. When I was growing up in Russia, I picked my own magnet school, and I commuted for two hours a day on public transportation. As long as I brought home good grades, I was given the freedom and flexibility to manage my own day. That had a big influence on my management style.”

From Javier Panzar: For wealthy tech entrepreneur, a timely connection

“Chester J. Pipkin is the founder, chief executive and chairman of Belkin International. He started the Playa Vista company in his parents’ Hawthorne garage in the early 1980s. The company capitalized on the early explosion in personal computing, selling devices that connected computers to printers. Through the years the company has kept pace if not stayed ahead of the changing tech landscape. In 2014, Fast Co. named Belkin one of the 10 most innovative companies specializing in the ‘Internet of things’ thanks to its Wemo line of Internet-connected home accessories.”