What do you do during a pandemic in a city under lockdown? You are allowed to leave your home for a radius of 5km? You read. It is not completely true though: I have always read. The only real difference is that I started to read more…
It all really changed with the Netflix documentary on Bill Gates late in 2019. During one of the episodes, Bill talks about ‘Think Week’. One of the wealthiest men on the planet decides to lock himself away to read. I have to admit that I have been inspired to increase my reading after watching it. I have been reading from book to book. Today, I try to read multiple books on a topic simultaneously.
Why write a blog about it? I have been following my former colleague Dev Mookerjee who continuously has been sharing his reading list. A great source to expand your own reading list! Following Dev’s great articles, I figured it is time I sit down and write my own.
16 books. 1 audio book. I hope you enjoy the list!
In no particular order:
- The Founder’s Mentality – Zook Allen
- The Infinite Game – Simon Sinek
- Cracking The Sales Management Code – Jordan and Vazzana
- The Intelligence Trap – David Robson
- Measure What Matters – John Doerr
- The Power Of Simplity – Jack Trout
- Zone To Win – Geoffrey Moore
- The Making Of A Manager – Julie Zhou
- The Great Influenza – John Barry
- Barbarian Days A Surfing Life – William Finnegan
- Factfulness – Hans, Ola & Anna Rosling
- The Simplicity Principle – Julia Hobsbawm
- Radical Candor – Kim Scott
- Mindset – Dr Carol Dweck
- Never Split The Difference – Chris Voss
- The Coaching Habit – Michael Bungay Stanier
- Talking To Strangers – Malcolm Gladwell (listen to the Audiobook!)
How do you write a nice, but yet brief blog about your essential reading? Without turning it into a long list of book summaries? Below, I have chosen to provide you some insight from the authors directly. I hope you will find time to watch…
The Founder’s Mentality – Zook Allen
Why do some companies grow and others fail? According to research done by the authors, 85% of the challenges to growth are internal.
A great book and hard to summarise any better than the author does in the brief video above. My favourite takeaway from the book is the Monday Meeting. We have even introduced this in the leadership team I am part of. What the meeting is for? Fast decision making. A weekly checkpoint to bring blockers to the forefront and remove them. Sounds simple? It is not. Regardless, this book has been a great guide towards ongoing change in my current role and I can recommend it to anyone in any business setting.
Bain & Company have even created a dedicated website for it here: https://www.bain.com/founders-mentality
The Infinite Game – Simon Sinek
Finite vs infinite games. A great story about how to lead and win in today’s business environment.
Again, impossible to deliver it any better than the author. My take away from the book? Aim higher. Aim to play longer. Short-term gains vs a long-term game/goal. Simon Sinek delivers a great book, although listening to him present still beats the reading.
Cracking The Sales Management Code
Going into sales management from a single contributor role is not easy. It is not easy to manage people. Manage them to drive sales? Lacking a handbook and some great insight can be daunting. Jason Jordan and Michelle Vazzana provide a great reminder on how to focus on the things that matter and how to manage through what really matters in sales. Very business centric book, but it has been a great companion through my recent career changes.
The Intelligence Trap – David Robson
How many animals of each species did Moses take on the ark? Are you prone to cognitive miserliness?
I loved this book. It is humbling. It can be dangerous to believe you know all kinds of answers, instead of being careful and mindful of decision making. Treat yourself with this book to make sure that your expertise does not backfire on you.
Measure What Matters – John Doerr
This book left a huge impact on how I try to measure improvements in a business context. OKRs warrant a separate blog in the near future. John Doerr’s impact on companies like Google is one example.
The Power Of Simplity – Jack Trout
3 key takeaways:
- Get your ego out of the situation. Good judgment is based on reality. The more you screen things through your ego, the farther you get from reality.
- Avoid wishful thinking. We all want things to go a certain way, but in many cases we can’t control the outcome. Good common sense tends to be in tune with the way things are really going.
- Get better at listening. By definition, common sense is based on what others think: It’s thinking that is common to many people. If you don’t pay attention to others, you shut yourself off from common sense.
Zone To Win – Geoffrey Moore
Are you playing offence or defence? This book comes with 2 great examples from Salesforce and Microsoft. Again, best summarised by Geoffrey Moore himself:
The Making Of A Manager – Julie Zhou
Regardless of how long you have been a manager – this book has a lot of amazing insight. It is a great reminder on how to lead (not just manage).
The Great Influenza – John Barry
When you are going through a pandemic, it may be a great idea to look back. Did this ever happen before? If so, what did we do? I have been very impressed by this book and have learnt a ton. The more frightening part though is the repetition of our very human errors when dealing with a very dangerous illness. John Barry’s book does not have a great reveal or an amazing find. In the end we never really solved the big puzzle of the Great Influenza. A sober reminder on what lies ahead.
Barbarian Days A Surfing Life – William Finnegan
A writer at the New Yorker tells the story of his surfing life. Wave riding has never been written about so well.
Factfulness – Hans, Ola & Anna Rosling
I have written about this book before (here) and to be honest: it has been a while since I have read it. What made me wonder was: what would Hans Rosling have to say about the current pandemic? I am sure he would look at data – just in a different way…
The Simplicity Principle – Julia Hobsbawm
Be like a bee: keep it simple and if possible: Do less…
I have read this book from start to finish in record time. Hobsbawm has a way of getting your focus back on the really important things in life.
Radical Candor – Kim Scott
What a dog can teach you about the importance of candor?
A great suggestion to read from a very good friend. For anybody working in a business environment a great guide to be more candid, but also show the right level of empathy.
Mindset – Dr Carol Dweck
Dweck gives great insight into how your mindset sets you up for success (or failure).
Never Split The Difference – Chris Voss
Going through a lot of negotiations in my day to day job, this book comes with a lot of insight into how to walk in to them and how to get what you want.
The Coaching Habit – Michael Bungay Stanier
7 questions from this book have changed a lot for me. My favourite quote: your advice is not as good as you think it is… Instead of knowing answers, I have worked hard and tried to start to listen more. This book is a must read, if you want to find a better way of how to connect with people you work with.
Talking To Strangers – Malcolm Gladwell (listen to the Audiobook!)
Malcolm Gladwell has outdone himself with his latest audiobook. A book about the importance to have an open mind when talking to strangers. A story about the importance of keeping an open mind…
And for my next essential reading list? I will have an update from Sapiens to Good Economics for Hard Times.
Last, but not least: if you have any great suggestions for my reading list – please let me know!
