Book recommendations for business leaders: 4/12/18

Apr 12, 2018 | Reading Lists

Stephen King says that if you want to be a writer, there are two things you must do: read a lot and write a lot. This is about the “read a lot” part. I include reading lists and book reviews that will help you do business more effectively and write better for business.

In this post, I point you to reviews of The Blue Zones of Happiness: Lessons From the World’s Happiest People, Dying for a Paycheck, The End of Average: Unlocking Our Potential by Embracing What Makes Us Different, Clarity: How Smart Leaders Achieve Outstanding Performance, and The Mind of the Leader.

From Wharton: What Can We Learn from the World’s Happiest People?

“With 15 years at National Geographic, journalist Dan Buettner developed an unusual expertise in finding the most extraordinary populations on earth, then doing a bit of reverse-engineering to figure out what made them so special. His work led him to explore the secrets of happiness, which scientists measure in terms of life satisfaction. His new book, The Blue Zones of Happiness: Lessons From the World’s Happiest People, offers a blueprint for what makes life more fulfilling, less stressful and just plain better.”

From Dylan Walsh: “The Workplace Is Killing People and Nobody Cares”

“Dying for a Paycheck, published by HarperBusiness and released on March 20, maps a range of ills in the modern workplace — from the disappearance of good health insurance to the psychological effects of long hours and work-family conflict — and how these are killing people.”

From Kevin Eikenberry: The End of Average: Unlocking Our Potential by Embracing What Makes Us Different

“The End of Average by Todd Rose falls into the latter category. The main premise? The idea of someone being average is scientifically wrong, and the actions that we take based on that assumption are dangerous to the development of our potential.”

From Skip Prichard: Clarity: How Smart Leaders Achieve Outstanding Performance

“Lean management expert Karen Martin tackles the problem so many organizations and leaders face: a lack of clarity. In her new book, Clarity First: How Smart Leaders and Organizations Achieve Outstanding Performance, she gives specific recommendations on how to improve clarity and thus your overall performance.”

From Michael McKinney: The 3 Mental Qualities of Great Leaders

“In The Mind of the Leader, authors Rasmus Hougaard and Jaqueline Carter of the Potential Project, report that there are three mental qualities that stand out as being foundational for leaders today: Mindfulness, Selflessness, and Compassion. They call it MSC Leadership. All three work together and enrich the others.”

Reading recommendations are a regular feature of this blog. Want more recommendations about what to read? Check out my Three Star Leadership blog, Michael McKinney’s LeadingBlog, and Skip Prichard’s Leadership Insights.