"...Pema Chödrön offers new wisdom, heartfelt reflections, and humor and insight...In an increasingly polarized world, this spiritual resource provides us with tools for finding common ground, even when we disagree, in order to build a stronger, broader sense of community. With never-before-told personal stories, simple daily practices, and powerful advice, Pema guides us on our journey to become compassionate beings even in times of hardship."
Read More"Spanning four decades of storytelling, World Class collects for the first time the finest work of Grant Wahl, from his college thesis to his twenty-five years of reporting at Sports Illustrated to his deeply personal work for Fútbol with Grant Wahl for Substack. Grant was the multi-tool modern clear and direct; able to write long, short, or in between; cosmopolitan; socially aware. He never talked down to the reader but at the same time refused to sell them short. He was keen to shed light and unafraid of the heat his work might generate."
[KJ: I used to read Sports Illustrated cover-to-cover, including Wahl. He is a fantastic writer and keen observer of the human condition. The best piece, IMHO, has nothing to do with sports; it was his Princeton senior thesis written about his mentor and never before published until now.]
Read More"On his 68th birthday, Kevin Kelly began to write down for his young adult children some things he had learned about life that he wished he had known earlier. To his surprise, Kelly had more to say than he thought, and kept adding to the advice over the years, compiling a life’s wisdom into these pages.
Kelly’s timeless advice covers an astonishing range, from right living to setting ambitious goals, optimizing generosity, and cultivating compassion. He has wisdom for career, relationships, parenting, and finances, and gives guidance for practical matters ranging from travel to troubleshooting...This is the ideal companion for anyone seeking to navigate life with grace and creativity."
[KJ: A slender gem of a book, packed with thoughtful goodies.]
Read More"Through a series of riveting stories, Gladwell traces the rise of a new and troubling form of social engineering. He takes us to the streets of Los Angeles to meet the world’s most successful bank robbers, rediscovers a forgotten television show from the 1970s that changed the world, visits the site of a historic experiment on a tiny cul-de-sac in northern California, and offers an alternate history of two of the biggest epidemics of our day: COVID and the opioid crisis. Revenge of the Tipping Point is Gladwell’s most personal book yet. With his characteristic mix of storytelling and social science, he offers a guide to making sense of the contagions of modern world. It’s time we took tipping points seriously."
Read More"In this groundbreaking book, Charles Duhigg unravels the secrets of the supercommunicators to reveal the art - and the science - of successful communication. He unpicks the different types of everyday conversation and pinpoints why some go smoothly while others swiftly fall apart. He reveals the conversational questions and gambits that bring people together. And he shows how even the most tricky of encounters can be turned around. In the process, he shows why a CIA operative was able to win over a reluctant spy, how a member of a jury got his fellow jurors to view an open-and-shut case differently, and what a doctor found they needed to do to engage with a vaccine sceptic.
Above all, he reveals the techniques we can all master to successfully connect with others, however tricky the circumstances. Packed with fascinating case studies and drawing on cutting-edge research, this book will change the way you think about what you say, and how you say it." [KJ: Great, pragmatic, research-backed ideas and frameworks.]
"Will Guidara was twenty-six when he took the helm of Eleven Madison Park, a struggling two-star brasserie that had never quite lived up to its majestic room. Eleven years later, EMP was named the best restaurant in the world.
How did Guidara pull off this unprecedented transformation? Radical reinvention, a true partnership between the kitchen and the dining room—and memorable, over-the-top, bespoke hospitality. Guidara’s team surprised a family who had never seen snow with a magical sledding trip to Central Park after their dinner; they filled a private dining room with sand, complete with mai-tais and beach chairs, to console a couple with a cancelled vacation. And his hospitality extended beyond those dining at the restaurant to his own team, who learned to deliver praise and criticism with intention; why the answer to some of the most pernicious business dilemmas is to give more—not less; and the magic that can happen when a busser starts thinking like an owner...Guidara urges us all to find the magic in what we do—for ourselves, the people we work with, and the people we serve." [KJ: For foodies and fans of the FX show Bear, Will is a producer and writer. This is an excellent ode to providing superlative service in any industry.]
Read More"Hidden Potential offers a new framework for raising aspirations and exceeding expectations. Adam Grant weaves together groundbreaking evidence, surprising insights, and vivid storytelling that takes us from the classroom to the boardroom, the playground to the Olympics, and underground to outer space. He shows that progress depends less on how hard you work than how well you learn. Growth is not about the genius you possess—it’s about the character you develop. Grant explores how to build the character skills and motivational structures to realize our own potential, and how to design systems that create opportunities for those who have been underrated and overlooked."
Read More"Originals is one of the most important and captivating books I have ever read, full of surprising and powerful ideas. It will not only change the way you see the world; it might just change the way you live your life. And it could very well inspire you to change your world." --Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook and author of Lean In
Read More#1 New York Times Bestseller
“The bestselling author of Give and Take and Originals examines the critical art of rethinking: learning to question your opinions and open other people's minds, which can position you for excellence at work and wisdom in life”
Read More“The New York Times, BusinessWeek, and Wall Street Journal Bestseller that redefined what it means to be a leader.
Since it was first published almost a decade ago, Seth Godin's visionary book has helped tens of thousands of leaders turn a scattering of followers into a loyal tribe. If you need to rally fellow employees, customers, investors, believers, hobbyists, or readers around an idea, this book will demystify the process.”
Read More"With Godin's trademark clarity and insight, This is Strategy provides a framework for effective and elegant strategic thinking, offering essential building blocks to turn vision into reality. It’s a rallying cry for doing work that matters."
Read More"...Through 144 provocative stanzas, legendary business author Seth Godin gets to the heart of what ails us; he shows what’s really at the root of these trends, and challenges us to do better in ways that matter. The choice is simple. We can endure the hangover of industrial capitalism, keep treating people as disposable, and join in the AI-fueled race to the bottom. Or we come together to build a significant organization that enrolls, empowers, and trusts everyone to deliver their best work, no matter where they are."
Read MoreJonah Berger's book, Magic Words: What to Say to Get Your Way, is rich in research, analysis and insights on how to increase our communication effectiveness in both our professional and personal lives. He distills his "magic words" into 6 types:
1) Activate Identity and Agency
2) Convey Confidence
3) Ask the Right Questions
4) Leverage Concreteness
5) Employ Emotion
6) Harness Similarity (and Difference)
Within this framework, he offers an array of practical, actionable advice and tools to increase the impact of not just what we say, but how we say it. Ultimately, we have the opportunity to forge stronger connections, meaningfully persuade and tell our stories in ways that resonate more deeply with others. "...Words have an amazing impact, and by understanding when, why, and how they work, we can use them to increase ours."
“In an irresistible invitation to lighten up, look around, and live an unscripted life, a master of the art of improvisation explains how...to apply the maxims of improvisational theater to real-life challenges—whether it’s dealing with a demanding boss, a tired child, or one of life’s never-ending surprises.”
Read More“In this practical, accessible guide to having more powerful conversations, leading evidence-based coaching expert Haesun Moon offers a set of powerful words or phrases—one for every letter of the alphabet—to help you move others toward greater purpose and accomplishment. Based on her extensive research with the University of Toronto and Harvard Medical School, Moon shows you how to apply each of these concepts to transform the way you relate to others and empower them to strive for and achieve better outcomes. Each entry includes an inspiring real-life example, and reflection questions to help you put it into action in your own life and in the lives of people around you.”
Read More"The Creative Act is a beautiful and generous course of study that illuminates the path of the artist as a road we all can follow. It distills the wisdom gleaned from a lifetime's work into a luminous reading experience that puts the power to create moments--and lifetimes--of exhilaration and transcendence within closer reach for all of us."
Read More"The people of Japan believe that everyone has an ikigai – a reason to jump out of bed each morning. And according to the residents of the Japanese island of Okinawa – the world’s longest-living people – finding it is the key to a longer and more fulfilled life. Inspiring and comforting, this book will give you the life-changing tools to uncover your personal ikigai. It will show you how to leave urgency behind, find your purpose, nurture friendships and throw yourself into your passions."
Read More"Ganbatte (gan-ba-tay) is a Japanese philosophy focused on doing the best you can with what you have. Though there is no direct translation, 'Keep Going,' and 'Give it your all,' embody the sentiments behind the word. Just as wabi sabi shows the beauty of imperfection in life, ganbatte teaches you how to get past obstacles and be motivated to keep moving forward.”
In Ganbatte! author Albert Liebermann provides an inspirational, yet practical guide to becoming more resilient the Japanese way. In 50 short chapters, some deeper and some more playful, Liebermann guides you through ways you can adopt the ganbatte approach to achieve a happier, more fulfilling life--and a happier, more fulfilled self."
Read More"As David Brooks observes, “There is one skill that lies at the heart of any healthy person, family, school, community organization, or the ability to see someone else deeply and make them feel seen—to accurately know another person, to let them feel valued, heard, and understood.”...In How to Know a Person, Brooks sets out to help us do better, posing questions that are essential for all of If you want to know a person, what kind of attention should you cast on them? What kind of conversations should you have? What parts of a person’s story should you pay attention to?
Driven by his trademark sense of curiosity and his determination to grow as a person, Brooks draws from the fields of psychology and neuroscience and from the worlds of theater, philosophy, history, and education to present a welcoming, hopeful, integrated approach to human connection. How to Know a Person helps readers become more understanding and considerate toward others, and to find the joy that comes from being seen. Along the way it offers a possible remedy for a society that is riven by fragmentation, hostility, and misperception."
Read More"...These fifteen commitments are a distillation of decades of work with CEOs and other leaders. They are radical or provocative for many. They have been game changers for us and for our clients...Our experience is that unconscious leadership is not sustainable. It won’t work for you, your team or your organization in the long term. Unconscious leadership can deliver short term results, but the costs of living and leading unconsciously are great. Fear drives most leaders to make choices that are at odds with healthy relationships, vitality and balance. This fear leaves a toxic residue that won’t be as easily tolerated in an increasingly complex business environment. Conscious leadership offers the antidote to fear. These pages contain a comprehensive road map to guide you to shift from fear-based to trust-based leadership. Once you learn and start practicing conscious leadership you’ll get results in the form of more energy, clarity, focus and healthier relationships. You’ll do more and more of what you are passionate about, and less of what you do out of obligation. You’ll have more fun, be happier, experience less drama and be more on purpose. Your team will get results as well."
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