“I do believe something very magical can happen when you read a book”

-J.K. Rowling

With as many commitments we each have across domains of life, I know firsthand how scarce discretionary time can be.  To that end, I have curated a list of books and articles in this blog category that I would wholeheartedly recommend as being both worth the time investment, as well as full of business principles you can apply tomorrow with your work and your team – and honestly in other domains of your life.  Amazon has terrific synopses of each book, and I’ve included a few thoughts of my own on each.

Happy perusing!

“TouchPoints” by Douglas Conant and Mette Norgaard

TouchPoints was the first book I read as I embarked on a transformational two-year intensive leadership journey.  Co-written by two of my now mentors, Doug Conant and Mette Norgaard, if there is one book on this list you consider – this is it.  It’s a very quick read and focused on applying leadership in the smallest of moments. It changes the lens on a life of constant interruption as a leader to hundreds of opportunities a day to connect with those you are entrusted to lead and to create energy and momentum around something that matters.  I couldn’t recommend this book more highly! 

“Good to Great” by Jim Collins

The first and most impactful leadership book I read in graduate school was “Good to Great” by Jim Collins.  His articulation of “Level 5 Leadership”, the powerful mixture of personal humility and indomitable will, inspired me to “want to be like that.”  It also made leadership feel a lot more accessible to me. I will never be a larger-than-life, authoritative, extroverted male – representative of the stereotypical “leader”.  But I can show up as authentically me, full of grit, resilience and fierce resolve. Couple that with a complete refusal to quit, a touch of grace and a bit of gratitude and it’s a winning combination.

“7 Habits of Highly Effective People” by Stephen R. Covey

An absolutely seminal work, Stephen R. Covey’s “7 Habits of Highly Effective People” is an essential read for anyone looking to take on higher levels of leadership in their career.  I read this early in my career and found so much of it to be intuitive and gave affirmation to keep doing some of the things I was already doing, and also gave my insights into a few really important things I needed to start doing.  If you haven’t read this book yet, it’s a wonderful foundation.

“The Speed of Trust” by Stephen M.R. Covey

This title and subtitle essentially say it all.  I think we all would agree that trust changes everything in any relationship, whether with a co-worker, a direct report, a boss, a partner, family member or child.  Still, do we do enough to continually cultivate it? And like a sand castle when big waves start to come in – trust can be eroded very quickly if you are careless and don’t intentionally protect it.

“Thinking Fast and Slow” by Daniel Kahneman

Earlier this year I had the privilege to hear “Danny” Kahneman speak about his book and the concepts outlined therein.  Mr. Kahneman shared that he writes merely a paragraph a day. Each word matters to him and it’s critical he “get it right”.  With this perspective, I feel less badly about my pace in working my way through this profound and thoughtful book.

What are some of the leadership books that have most influenced your thinking? Please be generous in sharing your recommendations with the community!