Regularly we post What We Are Reading and share that with our clients and colleagues (our most recent one was posted on 12-13-11). It occurred to us that while we constantly strive to have the latest and greatest leadership and business books and periodicals on our bookshelves (or our electronic readers), some of the books we refer to regularly are several years old; and, they have stood the test of time. Their concepts and principles are solid; their theories and practices transcend industries, economic conditions, and decades. While a few things may have changed, a few companies may have come and gone, the core principles have remained.
What We Are Reading
12/13/2011Business Books
The Coming Jobs War
The Coming Jobs War
Jim Clifton
Gallup Press, 2011
From the Book: Drawing on 75 years of Gallup studies, the author explains why jobs are the new global currency for leaders. More than peace or money or any other good, the business, government, military, city, and village leaders who can create good jobs will own the future. The problem is that leaders don’t know how to create jobs – especially in America. What they should do is recognize that the world is in a war for jobs.
18 Minutes
18 Minutes: Find Your Focus, Master Distraction, and Get the Right Things Done
Peter Bregman
Business Plus, 2011
From the Book: Based upon the author’s weekly Harvard Business Review columns, 18 MINUTES clearly shows how busy people can cut through all the daily clutter and distractions and find a way to focus on those key items which are truly the top priorities in our lives. The author works from the premise that the best way to combat constant and distracting interruptions is to create productive distractions of one’s own.
StandOut
StandOut: The Groundbreaking New Strengths Assessment from the Leader of the Strengths Revolution
Marcus Buckingham
Thomas Nelson, 2011
From the Book: The product of a massive data set and rigorous statistical testing, the StandOut assessment unveils your two key strength roles and shows you how find your edge and win at work. Where other assessments stop at description, StandOut takes the next step and provides practical advice on what to do to make the most of the strengths you have.
What We Are Reading
11/8/2011Business Books
Little Bets
Little Bets: How Breakthrough Ideas Emerge From Small Discoveries
Peter Sims
Free Press, 2011
From the Book: What do Apple CEO Steve Jobs, comedian Chris Rock, prize-winning architect Frank Gehry, the story developers at Pixar films, and the Army Chief of Strategic Plans all have in common? Bestselling author Peter Sims found that all of them have achieved breakthrough results by methodically taking small, experimental steps in order to discover and develop new ideas. Rather than believing they have to start with a big idea or plan a whole project out in advance, trying to foresee the final outcome, they make a series of little bets about what might be a good direction.
Corner Office
The Corner Office: Indispensable and Unexpected Lessons from CEOs on How to Lead and Succeed
Adam Bryant
Times Books, 2011
From the Book: With interviews with more than 75 CEOs and other top executives at companies of all sizes, the author compiles insights on such questions as what does it take to lead an organization? What are the keys to achieving the highest levels of success? Business luminaries speak thoughtfully about team creation, keeping the mission on target, management, employee relationships, the importance of feedback, and the creation of an efficient corporate culture.
Emotionally Intelligent Team
The Emotionally Intelligent Team: Understanding and Developing the Behaviors of Success
Marcia Hughes, James Bradford Terrell
Jossey-Bass, 2007
From the Book: As the fields of neurology and organizational development continue to evolve, there is a growing body of evidence that clearly demonstrates that particular emotional and social intelligent behaviors have a direct correlation with organizational success. The authors offer practical information and a guide for businesses that want to draw on the power of the emotional competencies of their teams. They reveal how individuals, team members, and leaders can take the steps to become more emotionally intelligent team members and show how to put in place the practices and exercises that will help any team grow in emotional intelligence.
What We Are Reading
10/6/2011Business Books
The Anywhere Leader
The Anywhere Leader: How to Lead and Succeed in Any Business Environment
Mike Thompson
Jossey-Bass, 2011
From the Book: The world is rapidly changing AND unpredictable, necessitating leaders who adjust quickly to changing priorities and unfamiliar terrain. Anyone in business today must be able to lead through uncertainty and disruption. The Anywhere Leader offers a blueprint for developing today’s leaders who can handle surprising challenges—from mergers to global relocation—and who thrive in turbulent times by being open to new concepts, passionate about progress, and resourceful with the tools available.
Change Anything
Change Anything: The New Science of Personal Success
Kerry Patterson et al
Business Plus, 2011
From the Book: A stunning new approach to how individuals can not only change their lives for the better in the workplace, but also their lives away from the office, including (but not limited to) finding ways to improve one’s working relationship with others, one’s overall health, outlook on life, and so on.
5 Levels of Leadership
The 5 Levels of Leadership: Proven Steps to Maximize Your Potential
John C. Maxwell
Center Street, 2011
From the Book: True leadership isn’t a matter of having a certain job or title. In fact, being chosen for a position is only the first of the five levels every effective leader achieves. To become more than “the boss” people follow only because they are required to, you have to master the ability to invest in people and inspire them. To grow further in your role, you must achieve results and build a team that produces. You need to help people to develop their skills to become leaders in their own right. And if you have the skill and dedication, you can reach the pinnacle of leadership-where experience will allow you to extend your influence beyond your immediate reach and time for the benefit of others.
What We Are Reading
9/1/2011Business Books
Ignore Everybody
Ignore Everybody: and 39 Other Keys to Creativity
Hugh MacLeod
Portfolio Hardcover, 2009
From the Book: Hugh MacLeod’s acclaimed blog Gaping Void draws 1.5 million visitors a month, and his ebook, How to Be Creative, has been downloaded more than a million times. In Ignore Everybody, he expands his thoughts about unleashing creativity in a world that often thwarts it.
Getting to Yes
Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In
Roger Fisher, William L. Ury, Bruce Patton
Penguin, 2011
From the Book: Since its original publication nearly thirty years ago, Getting to Yes has helped millions of people learn a better way to negotiate. One of the primary business texts of the modern era, it is based on the work of the Harvard Negotiation Project, a group that deals with all levels of negotiation and conflict resolution. Getting to Yes offers a proven, step-by-step strategy for coming to mutually acceptable agreements in every sort of conflict. Thoroughly updated and revised, it offers readers a straight-forward, universally applicable method for negotiating personal and professional disputes without getting angry-or getting taken.
The Progress Principle
The Progress Principle: Using Small Wins to Ignite Joy, Engagement, and Creativity at Work
Teresa Amabile, Steven Kramer
Harvard Business Press, 2011
From the Book: What really sets the best managers above the rest? It’s their power to build a cadre of employees who have great inner work lives—consistently positive emotions; strong motivation; and favorable perceptions of the organization, their work, and their colleagues. The worst managers undermine inner work life, often unwittingly. Brimming with honest examples from the companies studied, The Progress Principle equips aspiring and seasoned leaders alike with the insights they need to maximize their people’s performance.
