Amazon link Book site n.b. I read and reviewed this book as part of my coaching program, hence the references to coaching throughout this post. Soul Without Shame deeply explores the inner judge (or inner critic), that voice in your head that says that you need to be better or different in order to earn […]
Category: nonfiction
You Are What You Say, by Matthew Budd and Larry Rothstein
Amazon link n.b. I read and reviewed this book as part of my coaching program, hence the references to coaching throughout this post. Budd, a medical doctor, had been convinced by a friend to attend an est seminar, even though he thought it was hokey. He went because he felt he was ineffective as a […]
The Fifth Discipline, by Peter Senge
Amazon link n.b. I read and reviewed this book as part of my coaching program, hence the references to coaching throughout this post. The titular Fifth Discipline is systems thinking, the ability to look beyond the linear cause-effect thinking that is embedded in our language and our culture, and see the larger forces acting to […]
The Culture Code, by Daniel Coyle
Amazon link I really enjoyed Daniel Coyle’s book The Talent Code, so when I saw he had written a follow-up book on organizational culture, I picked it up from the library. Subtitled “The Secrets of Highly Successful Groups”, Coyle investigates successful groups from the Navy SEALs to the San Antonio Spurs to a band of […]
Give and Take, by Adam Grant
Amazon link Book website Adam Grant’s TED talk on the subject Vince Lombardi, the famous football coach for whom the Super Bowl trophy is named, once said that “Nice guys finish last”. Adam Grant did a study to see how successful people were who habitually sacrificed themselves for others…and confirmed that a disproportionate number of […]
Peak, by Anders Ericsson
Amazon link Deliberate practice is an ongoing theme for me these days, as that growth mindset drives much of my belief in my ability to improve at things I used to think were genetic and unchangeable. Deliberate practice is mentioned in several books I have read, like The Talent Code and So Good They Can’t […]
So Good They Can’t Ignore You, by Cal Newport
Amazon link “Follow your passion!” is common career advice. Cal Newport thinks that is a terrible idea, and explains why in this book. He observes that following your passion will not succeed as a career move unless you have something that will differentiate you from everybody else following their passion. As he puts it, The […]
Leadership and Self-Deception, by The Arbinger Institute
Amazon link Book site A friend loaned me this book after it was recommended to them by their manager, and I think it’s a great resource for illustrating how we contribute to the negative relationships in our lives. It’s a fictionalized story of how a business executive and father is coached into seeing how his […]
The Advantage, by Patrick Lencioni
Amazon link Book site Patrick Lencioni is a well-known management consultant and author, known for books like The Five Dysfunctions of a Team. I haven’t gotten around to reading his books, but somebody recently recommended The Advantage, subtitled Why organizational health trumps everything else in business, so I picked it up. Lencioni views this book […]
The New Jim Crow, by Michelle Alexander
Amazon link In honor of MLK Day (a day late), I wrote up my summary of The New Jim Crow, by Michelle Alexander, a book that makes the case that King’s dream of racial equality in the United States is still very far away. The thesis of the book is that after Jim Crow laws […]
