Recommended Reads
Performance Management: Changing Behavior that Drives Organizational Effectiveness
By Aubrey Daniels and James Daniels
Summary (from amazon): The definitive text on Performance Management (PM) will always be a work in progress because science is a work in progress. Performance Management offers strategies gained through ongoing research and successful PM applications in businesses and industries around the world.
Brian’s take: This book has a soft spot in my heart. I learned from this book in graduate school and also used it to teach undergrads. It’s a very friendly book to non-behaviorists - any manager can pick it up and find useful ways to enhance their management and leadership style, as well as think about how to influence performance in the workplace.
Decisive
By Dan and Chip Heath
Summary (from heathbrothers.com) : In Decisive, the Heaths, based on an exhaustive study of the decision-making literature, introduce a four-step process designed to counteract these biases. Decisive takes readers on an unforgettable journey, from a rock star’s ingenious decision-making trick to a CEO’s disastrous acquisition, to a single question that can often resolve thorny personal decisions.
Brian’s take: I listened to this audio book while traveling to and from client sites and found it to be a helpful way to assess decisions and an effective and pragmatic way to navigate the decision making process. The authors do a good job of making the content memorable and developing devices and strategies to remember and use the content. I still run through their 4-step method in my head when pondering upcoming decisions. They even have downloadable material, for free, on their website. If you listen to an audiobook do you still tell people you read the book? Or do you need to qualify it?
An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth
By Chris Hadfield
Summary (from goodreads.com): In An Astronaut's Guide to Life on Earth, Col. Hadfield takes readers deep into his years of training and space exploration to show how to make the impossible possible. Through eye-opening, entertaining stories filled with the adrenaline of launch, the mesmerizing wonder of spacewalks, and the measured, calm responses mandated by crises, he explains how conventional wisdom can get in the way of achievement-and happiness. His own extraordinary education in space has taught him some counterintuitive lessons: don't visualize success, do care what others think, and always sweat the small stuff.
Brian’s take: Ever since I saw Chris Hadfield cover “Space Oddity” in the cupola on the ISS I have been a huge fan. Astronauts are arguably the most competent professionals in the world and to read about their work from an inside
perspective is eye-opening. At its core, this book is about being the best you can be to accomplish extraordinary feats. Commander Hadfield discusses training, competition, pressure, and interpersonal relationships. The chapter "Aim to be a Zero" changed my life and has been influential with my coaching clients. if you don’t think this book will help you, or at least get you to think about other perspectives, then I would like to debate you. Speaking of perspectives… is there a better perspective on life than being on a spaceship orbiting the only place we know life exists?
The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right
By Atul Gawande
Summary (from goodreads.com): We live in a world of great and increasing complexity, where even the most expert professionals struggle to master the tasks they face. Longer training, ever more advanced technologies‚neither seems to prevent grievous errors. But in a hopeful turn, acclaimed surgeon and writer Atul Gawande finds a remedy in the humblest and simplest of techniques: the checklist.
Brian’s take: The most disciplined industries in the world rely on continuous improvement through performance checklists. Gawande makes an excellent case for the use of checklists in several different industries where performance and safety are critical. One of the most interesting aspects of the book, to me, was the pushback he and others received from top medical professionals when trying to implement and perfect checklists - the notion that because they were professionals they didn’t need checklists… this is a good segway for my next recommendation.
Ego is the Enemy
By Ryan Holiday
Summary (from goodreads.com): Many of us insist the main impediment to a full, successful life is the outside world. In fact, the most common enemy lies within: our ego. Early in our careers, it impedes learning and the cultivation of talent. With success, it can blind us to our faults and sow future problems. In failure, it magnifies each blow and makes recovery more difficult. At every stage, ego holds us back… Ego is the Enemy draws on a vast array of stories and examples, from literature to philosophy to history. We meet fascinating figures from the past and present, all of whom reached the highest levels of power and success by conquering their own egos. Their strategies and tactics can be ours as well.
Brian’s take: Aren’t egotistical people the worst? They are hard to be friends with, hard to work with, and hard to work for. Do you think that you’re immune to ego because you don’t like egotistical people? Read this book and you may find that ego creeping about in unsuspecting ways. With roots in stoicism throughout, the author finds compelling stories, from ancient history to modern day, to paint many pictures of how the ego can be the biggest barrier to personal success. It’s a good reminder of how easy it is to get derailed by your own thoughts and perceptions of yourself. I highly recommend this book and am considering putting into an annual rotation just to keep myself in check.