Sunday, November 02, 2014

On my reading list: Autumn 2014

Still reading about 50% on Kindle and 50% in paper. Might change if I upgraded to a newer Kindle (I'm still using the original one with the full keyboard, no touch screen, no backlight, etc.)...

The Purpose Economy, by Hurst. Seems a bit culture-bound, but discusses the desire for many of today's workers in America to do more than make a great salary. Instead they want to see their impact and, ideally, how they are helping their community to change the world.

The Advantage, by Lencioni. Best 'management book" I've read in a long time. Probably because the USA's top leadership consultant has summarized the principles from his top selling "business fables". Love his chapter on efficient meetings in particular! His thesis is that companies which hire brilliant people will rarely succeed over companies that hire people who practice true team work. (And, frankly, many times this is easier to find in graduates from lesser known schools...or perhaps no school at all.) Not much data on this yet, but I think he's right.

Leading Change, by Kotter. A friend who built a multi-billion dollar business told me about this author. Lots of great common sense in his books based on case studies and consulting experience. Just started this so can't wait to see how it turns out! The book was originally published in 1996 and re-released in 2012, so it must be good.