Category: book

The Open Organization by Jim Whitehurst

Naturally, the community feels adamantly the best way to work is the the open way, a manner of working that emphasizes values and principles like transparency, inclusivity, adaptability, collaboration, and community. If you’re swimming with sharks, your fear might be legitimate. But fearing what people might think of you, especially during times of transformation, is […]

Meditations by Marcus Aurelius

  Unique book – as it was never meant to be read by anyone. NATO commander General James “Mad Dog” Mattis, carried this book with him on deployments in the Persian Gulf, Afghanistan, and Iraq. Bill Clinton is said to be reading it every year… First pusblished in 1909, Meditations by Marcus Aurelius is a […]

Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert T. Kiyosaki

One of those books that forever change your way of looking at things – in this case it’s personal finance. It explains why people struggle with financial problems – because they spend years in school but learn nothing about money and inestments. As a result –  people follow the path of least resistance (eg. instant […]

The Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement by Eliyahu Goldratt

A classic book by Israeli business management guru Eliyahu Goldratt, who invented  the Optimized Production Technique, the Theory of Constraints, the Thinking Processes and many other productivity methodologies. In The Goal, Elihayu defines productivity as getting closer to the goal – every action that brings you closer to the goal is productive. Every action that […]

The Power of Full Engagement: Managing Energy, Not Time, Is the Key to High Performance and Personal Renewal by Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz

    Memorable quotes What makes o ur intervention with athletes unique is that we spend no time focusing on the ir technical or tactical skills. Conventional wisdom holds t h at if you find talented people and equip them with the right skills for the challenge at hand, they will perform at their best. […]

Freakonomics: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything by Steven Levitt & Stephen Dubner

  Memorable quotes “The conventional wisdom is often wrong.” “An incentive is a bullet, a key: an often tiny object with astonishing power to change a situation” …Feldman’s presence had deterred theft. Not only that, but those bagel eaters knew the provider and had feelings (presumably good ones) about him. A broad swath of psychological […]

Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson

  Memorable quotes   But his more important goal, he said, was to do what Hewlett and his friend David Packard had done, which was create a company that was so imbued with innovative creativity that it would outlive them. “Then I read something that one of my heroes, Edwin Land of Polaroid, said about […]

Getting Things Done by David Allen

Memorable quotes Almost every project could be done better, and an infinite quantity of information is now available that could make that happen.  We (1) collect things that command our attention; (2) process what they mean and what to do about them; and (3) organize the results, which we (4) review as options for what […]

Extreme Ownership: How U.S. Navy SEALs Lead and Win by Jocko Willink & Leif Babin

Written by two former and  hardcore U.S. Navy SEALS, Jocko Willink and Leif Babin, Extreme Ownership is an eye opening read on leadership. It includes many military stories from the battlefield with learnings that can be transferred into everyday business. With today’s trend towards self-organising team, it was a timely read on how to balance […]

The $100 Startup: Reinvent the Way You Make a Living, Do What You Love, and Create a New Future by Chris Guillebeau

An interesting read by Chris Guillebeau, an entrepreneur, writer, and avid world-traveler who also runs the blog The Art of Non-Conformity.  I like the emphasis Chris puts on taking action – a key principle in any entrepeneurial work – focusing on action rather than over analysis/perfection. The book  introduces clear steps to start a side […]

Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell

Intersting, thought-provoking book by Malcolm Gladwell about what makes high-achievers different. The factors include opportunity (right place), 10,000 hours (yes, the time needed to become an expert within a subject was coined in this book), timing (Rockefeller & Co were riding an industrial wave), upbringing (involved parents), meaningful work (with real purpose, work that is […]