Book Recommendations
Please note that some of the links below are affilate links, and at no additional cost to you, I will earn a commision if you decide to make a purchase.
There are 55 million meetings a day in the United States. Yes, really! And yet many of these meetings don't yield the return we expect as leaders. Steven Rogelberg's "The Surprising Science of Meetings: How You Can Lead Your Team to Peak Performance" shares his research findings to give leaders immediate direction, guidance, and relief with more effective meetings.
In 'Head & Heart: The Art of Modern Leadership,' Kristin Ferguson masterfully combines emotional intelligence with strategic insight, providing me with a roadmap for contemporary leadership. Its practical advice and real-world examples have guided me toward more compassionate, effective leadership. This book has become an indispensable resource in my journey to inspire and lead with confidence and empathy. It's a must-read for anyone in a leadership role.
Diving into 'Crucial Conversations' has equipped me with powerful skills for navigating challenging dialogues professionally. This engaging guide teaches persuasion over abrasiveness, getting conversations back on track, and mastering high-stakes discussions. A must-read for enhancing communication proficiency.
Just finished reading "Change Your Questions, Change Your Life" by Marilee Adams, and I can't recommend it enough!
Questions are the powerhouse behind our actions, thoughts, and connections—both in our personal and professional lives. This book provides tools to shift your mindset from “judger” (or being critical of yourself and others) to that of a “learner” which enables you to remain curious and approach a given situation productively.
I just picked up "Reimagine Inclusion" by Mita Mallick, and wholeheartedly agree that when we show up as more inclusive leaders, we have the power to change our organizations.
This book boldly confronts 13 DEI myths and shares actionable strategies to become a more inclusive leader.
Here are some key takeaways that resonated with me so far:
✅ Understanding and confronting our own biases is crucial to making a real impact.
✅ Coaching the next generation of leaders and leading with intentionality can truly transform organizations.
✅ Being an active participant in shaping our workplace culture is vital.
I’m excited to dive into “Power to the Middle” by Bill Schaninger, Bryan Hancock, and Emily Field as I think about how I can support senior leaders to more effectively support their people. This thought-provoking book asks us to revisit our idea of “middle managers'“ and why it is critical to give managers investment and support.
The Tools: 5 Tools to Help You Find Courage, Creativity, and Willpower--and Inspire You to Live Life in Forward Motion was recommended to me by Jaclyn Darvas to help me manage some difficult personal circumstances in life. Important food for thought: Are you attempting to control what you can't control?
I hope The Tools is as helpful to you as it has been to me. Authors Phil Stutz and Barry Michels have nailed it!
Is your business in a rut? After years of predictable and profitable growth, it's not unusual to find yourself in a place where you're working harder than ever but with less impact. Get A Grip, by Gino Wickman and Mike Paton, tells the fable of Swan Services, a company that resolves its issues by implementing the Entrepreneurial Operating System®. Swan Services masters a set of managerial tools that allow them to get traction on their business, grow the business, and deliver better results for clients.
What does it mean to be an exceptional leader? I'm currently reading Indra Nooyi's memoir, My Life in Full: Work, Family, and Our Future. As the PepsiCo former CEO is one of the world's most admired leaders, she shares a glimpse into her career and life.
It's easier to grow a lot than it is to grow a little. That's the premise behind Dan Sullivan and Benjamin Hardy, PhD's book, 10x Is Easier Than 2X. To make 10X possible, you must focus on expanding what the authors define as your four most important freedoms—time, money, relationship, and purpose. As leaders, it's important for us to leverage our "freedoms" to find the growth we want.
I'm currently reading "The Art of the Gathering," by Priya Parker, as it was recommended to me by several people. I love connecting people, and this book is all about creating meaningful, memorable experiences. This book shares a new approach to how we gather, share experiences, and connect. And it was highly recommended by Chris Anderson, the founder of TED!
Most of us grapple with some level of invisible resistance, those little unconscious behaviors that hold us back and allow us to self-sabotage. Hendricks argues that these are not "gut instinct" or something nebulous, rather, they are informed by beliefs that we acquired in life and can limit our ability to grow.
I love Angela Duckworth's book, Grit. It's not talent that determines success. Grit, or a combination of passion and perseverance for a singularly important goal—is the hallmark of high achievers in every domain. In her research, she found that grit is a skill that you can cultivate and grow, which is why I think everyone needs this book.
Sukhinder Singh Cassidy is the CEO of Xero, and the author of Choose Possibility. Her book is all about taking risks in your career, and thriving even when you fail.
You're missing out if you hold yourself back from risks. I believe that - so much that I wrote a LinkedIn Newsletter inspired by Sukhinder's book: https://lnkd.in/eejGbcjH
The actions you take in the first few months of a leadership role dictate whether you will succeed or fail. Most leaders fail for two reasons: 1) they misunderstand the situation or 2) they fail to adapt to it.
I'm coaching several leaders that are taking on new roles, and the concepts in The First 90 Days by Michael Watkins serve as a valuable playbook/thought starters, particularly as you become more senior and along with it, steeper expectations once you step into your new job.
Good, effective teams are not formed out of thin air. They can not be willed into existence.
If you're finding yourself in a struggle to lead a team that is disorganized and lacking cohesion, I want to recommend a book to you. Lloyd Fickett and Jason Fickett's The Collaborative Way: A Story About Engaging the Mind and Spirit of a Company.
The Collaborative Way is about the competitive advantage a team can gain by incorporating five principles that directly correlate with resilience, change management and leadership fundamentals, including Listening to your team, speaking straight to them, supporting one another, honoring commitments, and acknowledging and appreciating the contributions of your team.
The principles in this book are simple to understand, and are a great guide to changing your workplace's culture to something that is meaningful, cohesive, and successful!
How do you define success for yourself? In The Go-Giver by Bob Burg and John David Mann, you’re reminded that one way is through the act of serving others. It also makes you feel better! I had a chance to read this book over the weekend and could not recommend it enough!
Developing the Leader Within You by John C. Maxwell
This semester, at NYU School of Professional Studies, I'm teaching a course that prepares students for the C-Suite. The syllabus I've just created pulls lots of wisdom from The Leader Within You 2.0 by John C. Maxwell. I recommend it for every leader!
Building an inclusive organization is one of the key ways to make employees feel like they matter. In Leading Inclusion, Dr. Gena Cox Inclusive organizations offers not a 'how to' book but a "how to be" book—one that educates, challenges, and empowers you and your colleagues to lead a diverse workforce effectively.
Growing pains are natural for any business yet with careful consideration, many heartaches felt by founders can be avoided. Noam Wasserman's book The Founder's Dilemmas will help you mitigate many growth stunts business owners grapple with when not addressed proactively. I recommend this resource to many clients as they navigate their business’s early years.
I'm so glad I got to hear Dorie Clark, author of The Long Game, talk at the Fast Company Innovation Festival. The talk was called "The Painless Way to Network" and was moderated by Kathleen Davis, Deputy Editor of Fast Co. Dorie presented 5 ways to make networking painless and I thought I'd pay it forward and share it here!
1) Get a wing person to introduce you and share all your accolades so you don't have to feel awkward saying it yourself
2) Find commonality with the other person, and keep fishing until you find something
3) Be prepared to answer the question "what are you working on" as it will undoubtedly be asked
4) No asks for a year, so focus on the long game to build a relationship vs what you can get from this person in the near term
5) Host a gathering, as folks are craving interaction as we're coming out of the pandemic
I've sold payroll, coupons and credit cards... but nothing prepared me to scale my coaching business like Dorie Clark's Entrepreneurial You. If you're looking for the courage to monetize your passion, I highly recommend this book.
Are the demands on you as a leader outpacing the capabilities of any one person? Senior Leadership Teams, by Ruth Wageman, et. al., speaks to ways executives can surround themselves with a leadership team comprised with the right people, structure and organizational support to move their companies forward in today's rapidly changing environment.
This is a book is a fantastic reference for anyone who cares deeply about creating a better future of work.
