Like most travelers, I've plundered airport bookstores for reading material, and that usually means three or four business/self-help books.
There are many I have left in seat pockets because they were pretty much 'meh' category. Then there are those tomes that despite being hard bound weight-adding bricks I have lugged them from city to city, and then back home.
They're dog-eared, highlighted, scribbled on. They end up beside my bed and the corgi sleeps on them (dog-eared seems apt). They are that good.
At the very least each book has challenged or altered my thinking and helped me grow professionally. Each one continues to be relevant no matter how many times I've read it.
So here, in no particular order, is my all-time hit list (disclosure: these are all Amazon affiliate links).
Instead of writing a review for each book, I'll lift a sentence or passage that when I read it the first time, I thought: Damn, everyone should read this.
'Real Leaders Don't Do PowerPoint
' by Christopher Witt with Dale Fetherling. "Don't tell your listeners how happy you are to be speaking to them. Don't tell them what a great group they appear to be. Don't acknowledge dignitaries in the audience. That's all hooey that squanders the force of your opening. In other words, don't introduce your introduction."
' by Christopher Witt with Dale Fetherling. "Don't tell your listeners how happy you are to be speaking to them. Don't tell them what a great group they appear to be. Don't acknowledge dignitaries in the audience. That's all hooey that squanders the force of your opening. In other words, don't introduce your introduction."'Brilliant NLP
' by David Molden & Pat Hutchinson. "Have you ever been in a position where you have done something you didn't want to do? Perhaps you did it to please someone and then felt you had done yourself a disservice.
' by David Molden & Pat Hutchinson. "Have you ever been in a position where you have done something you didn't want to do? Perhaps you did it to please someone and then felt you had done yourself a disservice."In NLP this state of misalignment resulting in a behaviour that doesn't fit with the other levels is called 'incongruence'. Deep inside you want to act a certain way, but, when the time comes, you resist the inner urge and maybe tell yourself 'not this time, maybe next time'. That is incongruence and it is not something success thrives on.
'Success requires congruence, which means an alignment of all the levels, from purpose all the way through to behaviour. Only then can you affect your environment in the way that you really want."
'Make Your Contacts Count
' by Anne Baber & Lynne Waymon. "You've got to be prepared to be spontaneous."
' by Anne Baber & Lynne Waymon. "You've got to be prepared to be spontaneous."'Beyond Bullsh*t: Straight Talk At Work
' by Samuel A. Culbert. "If you're one of the many, you probably don't realize the essential and surprisingly constructive role bullsh*t plays. Many times the authenticity of relationships and veracity of spoken content gets subordinated to mere cosmetics at work. Under those circumstances bullsh*t becomes the salve that eases myriad frictions. It's surprising but true: bullsh*t is essential for workplace harmony."
' by Samuel A. Culbert. "If you're one of the many, you probably don't realize the essential and surprisingly constructive role bullsh*t plays. Many times the authenticity of relationships and veracity of spoken content gets subordinated to mere cosmetics at work. Under those circumstances bullsh*t becomes the salve that eases myriad frictions. It's surprising but true: bullsh*t is essential for workplace harmony."(Note: Asterisks are the author's own.)
'Nudge
' by Thaler & Sunstein. "Never underestimate the power of inertia. Second, that power can be harnessed."
' by Thaler & Sunstein. "Never underestimate the power of inertia. Second, that power can be harnessed."'Tribes
' by Seth Godin. "I've encountered thousands (it might be tens of thousands) of people walking around with great ideas. Some of the ideas really are great; some are merely pretty good. There doesn't seem to be a shortage of ideas. Ordinary folks can dream up remarkable stuff fairly easily.
' by Seth Godin. "I've encountered thousands (it might be tens of thousands) of people walking around with great ideas. Some of the ideas really are great; some are merely pretty good. There doesn't seem to be a shortage of ideas. Ordinary folks can dream up remarkable stuff fairly easily."What's missing is the will to make the ideas happen.
"In a battle between two ideas, the best one doesn't necessarily win. No, the idea that wins is the one with the most fearless heretic behind it."
'Confessions of an Advertising Man
' by David Ogilvy. "In the modern world of business, it is useless to be a creative, original thinker unless you can also sell what you create. Management cannot be expected to recognize a good idea unless it is presented to them by a good salesman."
' by David Ogilvy. "In the modern world of business, it is useless to be a creative, original thinker unless you can also sell what you create. Management cannot be expected to recognize a good idea unless it is presented to them by a good salesman."'Reality Check
' by Guy Kawasaki. "Here are four things a CEO should say:
' by Guy Kawasaki. "Here are four things a CEO should say: "1. 'I don't know.'
"2. 'Thank you.'
"3. Do what's right.'
"4. It's my fault.'
"However, in all my interactions with CEOs, I can't remember many instances of any of them uttering such wisdom."
'The First 90 Days
' by Michael Watkins. "In the first 90 days, a key goal is to build personal credibility and create organizational momentum. You do this by securing some early wins. Early wins leverage your energy and expand the potential scope of your subsequent actions.
' by Michael Watkins. "In the first 90 days, a key goal is to build personal credibility and create organizational momentum. You do this by securing some early wins. Early wins leverage your energy and expand the potential scope of your subsequent actions."As you look for ways to create momentum, keep in mind that the actions you take to get early wins should do double duty. Plan your early wins so they help you build credibility in the short run and lay a foundation for your longer-term goals."
'Life's A Pitch
: How to Sell Yourself and Your Brilliant Ideas' by Stephen Bayley & Roger Mavity. "If you want to complete a tax return or repair a dishwasher, go for logic every time. But if you want to overthrow a tyrant or write a sonnet, to solve a great problem or to get people to think in an entirely new way, then go for passion."
: How to Sell Yourself and Your Brilliant Ideas' by Stephen Bayley & Roger Mavity. "If you want to complete a tax return or repair a dishwasher, go for logic every time. But if you want to overthrow a tyrant or write a sonnet, to solve a great problem or to get people to think in an entirely new way, then go for passion."
0 comments:
Post a Comment