Recent non-fiction reads
HBR’s 10 Must Reads The Essentials – This complilation collects 10 articles that business leaders should readily consider–strategies for broad aspects of business. Â Each article is summarized in a side bar with the key points. This is handy as the articles are 20-30 pages in length. Â Drucker, Porter, Christensen are all present with topics covering leadership, innovation, strategy, analytics and more. Â Standout articles: Michael Porter’s “What is Strategy?” and John P. Kotter’s “Leading Change: Why Transformation Efforts Fail”. Â If you have access to a good library, you should be able to find these articles, and with some effort, Google Scholar can dig them up.
Click by Ori and Rom Brafman – Ever wonder what causes people to click? Ori and Rom divulge five factors: vulnerability, proximity, resonance, similarity and shared adversity. Also, there are individuals who can adjust their temperament to their circumstance, which they call high self monitors. The book is a quick read, under 200 pages, and illustrates each point with well told stories.
Personal MBA by Josh Kaufman – Ever wonder what MBAs learn? Josh Kaufman distills key, critical and essential concepts and principles across all facets of business. Â From the hard numbers of accounting, fuzziness of marketing and organizational development to fluidity of strategy, each concept is summarized and provided an example. Â It’s not meant to be read straight through, it’s meant to be read as a reference, or perhaps a means to translate business lingo into something concrete and meaningful.
Art of Possibility by Rosamund and Benjamin Zander – Across 12 points, uplifting and inspirational stories are used to tell the power of being inclusive, constructive, positive and seeking understanding. Â Definitely worth a reread to focus on doing good things and keeping a good mindset.