RECOMMENDED SUMMER READS FOR LEADERSHIP FREAKS

The thing I love about good books is they help me think my own thoughts.

Dan Rockwell

Leadership Freak

Thinking, Fast and Slow, by Daniel Kahneman

If you read one book this summer, read Thinking, Fast and Slow.

My favorite part of the book is about false confidence – the way we ‘know’ the right answer when we actually know very little. The material on intuition is the best I’ve ever read.

Kahneman explains that two systems drive the way we think and make choices. System One is fast, intuitive, and emotional. System Two is slower, more deliberative, and more logical.

Kahneman exposes the capabilities and biases of fast thinking. He shows where we can trust our intuitions and how we can tap into the benefits of slow thinking.

Barking up the Wrong Tree: The Surprising Science Behind Why Everything You Know About Success Is (Mostly) Wrong, by Eric Barker

I love all the documentation in this book. Apart from being insightful, I’ll pull this book off my shelf for the references.

The research and stories are insightful and entertaining.

Obliquity: Why our goals are best achieved indirectly, by John Kay

I totally enjoyed Obliquity, perhaps because it explains many of the tipping points in my own life. Frankly, it explains the way I hope to live everyday.  

We rarely know enough about important problems to tackle them head-on. The path forward is discovered through a gradual process of risk taking and discovery – obliquity.

Option B: Facing Adversity, Building Resilience, and Finding Joy, by Sheryl Sandberg and Adam Grant

This is a tender book about grit. Sheryl Sandberg, the COO of Facebook, shares the story of working through the loss of her husband. It’s personal and practical. It’s the ‘softest’ most human book I’ve read about resilience.