O Great One!: A Little Story About the Awesome Power of Recognition


David C. Novak - 2016
    He was about to stand in front of the employees of the Happy Face Toy Company’s faltering Cleveland factory. As the new CEO, he’d been advised to close this factory as soon as possible, but he wanted to see it first. “How hard could this be?” he wondered, gathering the courage to ask them about their jobs.  He had no idea what he was in for. When was the last time you told your colleagues how much you value them? It sounds like a trivial thing in the middle of a busy work day. But as David Novak discovered during his years as a hard charging executive, there’s nothing trivial about recognition. It can make a life-or-death difference to any organization, when people see that someone important really notices and appreciates their contributions.  Rather than explain the power of recognition in a typical business book, Novak decided to write a fun story that draws on his real-world experiences at Pepsi and Yum! Brands, as well as his personal life. The story opens when Jeff Johnson becomes the third-generation CEO of his family business, after the sudden death of his father. The Happy Face Toy Company had many hits in the 1950s and 60s, including Crazy Paste, but its results have been declining for more than a decade. The board has given Jeff just one year to turn the business around, or else they’ll have to sell it to the highest bidder.  As Jeff races to save his family’s legacy by getting the company back on track, he meets downtrodden factory workers and an uninspired executive team. Then a birthday gift from his own grandson gives Jeff an important insight into why Happy Face lost its old culture of innovation and excitement, along with its profitability.  Jeff comes up with an idea that seems crazy… But is it crazy enough to work?  Whether you’re trying to lead a small department, a Fortune 500 company, a non-profit, or your own family, the lessons at the heart of O Great One! can help you make everyone around you happier and more effective.

Put Your Mindset to Work: The One Asset You Really Need to Win and Keep the Job You Love


James Reed - 2011
     What does it take to get and keep the job you want? Ninety-six percent of employers argue that it's not just about having the right skills for the position- it's all about the right mindset. As two leading experts on the subject, Reed and Stoltz know what employers really want from the people they hire and keep. According to their extensive and globally acclaimed research, there is a specific set of mental traits that will make you exponentially more desirable to potential employers, and more likely to succeed and enjoy your job once you're hired. This "3G Mindset" is: ? Global-the openness and big-picture perspective to compete on a global scale in any job ? Good-a positive force with an unwavering moral compass ? Grit-the tenacity and resilience to thrive on adversity The authors reveal why employers are three times more likely to hire people with the right mindset over those who are more qualified on paper. This book provides an actionable approach for both assessing and developing these essential traits.

Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose


Tony Hsieh - 2010
    You want to learn about the path I took that eventually led me to Zappos, and the lessons I learned along the way. You want to learn from all the mistakes we made at Zappos over the years so that your business can avoid making some of the same ones. You want to figure out the right balance of profits, passion, and purpose in business and in life. You want to build a long-term, enduring business and brand. You want to create a stronger company culture, which will make your employees and coworkers happier and create more employee engagement, leading to higher productivity. You want to deliver a better customer experience, which will make your customers happier and create more customer loyalty, leading to increased profits. You want to build something special. You want to find inspiration and happiness in work and in life. You ran out of firewood for your fireplace. This book makes an excellent fire-starter.

Paul Graham: The Art of Funding a Startup


Andrew Warner - 2011
    Thank you for your feedback and patience.From Andrew Warner:I first interviewed Paul Graham after I heard something shocking from Alexis Ohanian, a founder whose company was funded by Graham's Y Combinator. Alexis came to Mixergy to tell the story of how he launched and sold Reddit.If you're a founder, you know the kind of problems that founders have, right? Figuring out what product to create, how to build it, how to get users to try it, etc.Well Alexis didn't seem to have those problems, or at least they weren't as challenging for him as they were for most of the other 600 entrepreneurs I interviewed on Mixergy.Why? Because Paul Graham helped him launch his business.How did Graham make Reddit's launch easier and more successful than other companies' founding? How did he do the same for hundreds of other startups? And, more importantly, what can you learn from his experiences to grow your business?The book you're holding has those answers.Use what you're about to learn to build your successful startup. After you do, I hope you'll let me interview you so other founders can learn from your experience, the way you're about to benefit from Graham's.About Hyperink, the publisher:Hyperink is the easiest way for anyone to publish a beautiful, high-quality book.We work closely with subject matter experts to create each eBook. We cover topics ranging from higher education to job recruiting, from Android apps marketing to barefoot running.If you have interesting knowledge that people are willing to pay for, especially if you've already produced content on the topic, please reach out to us! There's no writing required and it's a unique opportunity to build your own brand and earn royalties.

Fearless Leadership: High-Performance Lessons from the Flight Deck


Carey D. Lohrenz - 2014
    Lohrenz learned what fearless leadership means in some of the most demanding and extreme environments imaginable: the cockpit of an F-14 and the flight deck of an aircraft carrier. Here, her teams had to perform at their peak—or lives were on the line. Faltering leadership was simply unacceptable. Through these experiences, Lohrenz identified a fundamental truth: high-performing teams require fearless leaders.Since leaving the Navy, she’s translated that lesson into a new field, helping top business leaders, from Fortune 500 executives to middle managers, supercharge performance in today’s competitive business environments. In Fearless Leadership, Lohrenz walks you through the three fundamentals of real fearlessness—courage, tenacity, and integrity—and then reveals fearless leadership in action, offering advice on how to set a bold vision, bring the team together (as wingmen, not Top Gun mavericks), execute effectively, and stay resilient through hard times.Whether you’re stepping into your first leadership role or looking to get out of a longstanding rut, Fearless Leadership will act like your afterburner—rocketing you to ever-higher levels of performance.

How to Break Up with Your Phone: The 30-Day Plan to Take Back Your Life


Catherine Price - 2018
     Is your phone the first thing you reach for in the morning and the last thing you touch before bed? Do you frequently pick it up "just to check," only to look up forty-five minutes later wondering where the time has gone? Do you say you want to spend less time on your phone--but have no idea how to do so without giving it up completely? If so, this book is your solution.Award-winning journalist Catherine Price presents a practical, hands-on plan to break up--and then make up--with your phone. The goal? A long-term relationship that actually feels good. You'll discover how phones and apps are designed to be addictive, and learn how the time we spend on them damages our abilities to focus, think deeply, and form new memories. You'll then make customized changes to your settings, apps, environment, and mindset that will ultimately enable you to take back control of your life.

HBR's 10 Must Reads on Managing Yourself (with bonus article "How Will You Measure Your Life?")


Clayton M. ChristensenPeter F. Drucker - 2010
    Christensen). We've combed through hundreds of Harvard Business Review articles to select the most important ones to help you maximize yourself.HBR's 10 Must Reads on Managing Yourself will inspire you to:Stay engaged throughout your 50+-year work lifeTap into your deepest valuesSolicit candid feedbackReplenish physical and mental energyBalance work, home, community, and selfSpread positive energy throughout your organizationRebound from tough timesDecrease distractibility and frenzyDelegate and develop employees' initiativeThis collection of best-selling articles includes: bonus article “How Will You Measure Your Life?” by Clayton M. Christensen, "Managing Oneself," "Management Time: Who's Got the Monkey?" "How Resilience Works," "Manage Your Energy, Not Your Time," "Overloaded Circuits: Why Smart People Underperform," "Be a Better Leader, Have a Richer Life," "Reclaim Your Job," "Moments of Greatness: Entering the Fundamental State of Leadership," "What to Ask the Person in the Mirror," and "Primal Leadership: The Hidden Driver of Great Performance."

How Will You Measure Your Life?


Clayton M. Christensen - 2012
    Christensen gave a powerful speech to the Harvard Business School's graduating class. Drawing upon his business research, he offered a series of guidelines for finding meaning and happiness in life. He used examples from his own experiences to explain how high achievers can all too often fall into traps that lead to unhappiness.The speech was memorable not only because it was deeply revealing but also because it came at a time of intense personal reflection: Christensen had just overcome the same type of cancer that had taken his father's life. As Christensen struggled with the disease, the question "How do you measure your life?" became more urgent and poignant, and he began to share his insights more widely with family, friends, and students.In this groundbreaking book, Christensen puts forth a series of questions: How can I be sure that I'll find satisfaction in my career? How can I be sure that my personal relationships become enduring sources of happiness? How can I avoid compromising my integrity—and stay out of jail? Using lessons from some of the world's greatest businesses, he provides incredible insights into these challenging questions.How Will You Measure Your Life? is full of inspiration and wisdom, and will help students, midcareer professionals, and parents alike forge their own paths to fulfillment.

The End of Average: How We Succeed in a World That Values Sameness


Todd Rose - 2016
    We’re a little taller or shorter than the average, our salary is a bit higher or lower than the average, and we wonder about who it is that is buying the average-priced home. All around us, we think, are the average people—with the average height, the average salary and the average house.But the average doesn’t just influence how we see ourselves—our entire social system has been built around this average-size-fits-all model. Schools are designed for the average student. Healthcare is designed for the average patient. Employers try to fill average job descriptions with employees on an average career trajectory. Our government implements programs and initiatives to serve the average person. For more than a century, we’ve believed that the best way to run our institutions is by focusing on the average person. But when you actually drill down into the numbers, you find an amazing fact: no one is average—which means that our society built for everyone is actually serving no one.In the 1950s, the American Air Force found itself with a massive problem—performance in expensive, custom-made planes was suffering terribly, with crashes peaking at seventeen in a single day. Since the state-of-the-art planes they were flying had been meticulously crafted to fit the average pilot, pilot error was assumed to be at fault. Until, that is, the Air Force investigated just how many of their pilots were actually average. The shocking answer: out of thousands of active-duty pilots, exactly zero were average. Not one. This discovery led to simple solutions (like adjustable seats) that dramatically reduced accidents, improved performance, and expanded the pool of potential pilots. It also led to a huge change in thinking: planes didn’t need to be designed for everyone—they needed to be designed so they could adapt to suit the individual flying them.The End of Average shows how success lies in customizing to our individual needs in all aspects of our lives, from the way we mark tests to the medical treatment we receive. Using principles from The Science of the Individual, it shows how we can break down the average to create individualized success that benefits everyone in the long run. It's time we stopped settling for average, and in The End of Average, Todd Rose will show you how.

Time Management in 20 Minutes a Day: Simple Strategies to Increase Productivity, Enhance Creativity, and Make Your Time Your Own


Holly Reisem Hanna - 2019
    Filled with practical advice for everybody, Time Management in 20 Minutes a Day makes increasing your productivity and getting the most out of every day a snap.Sprinkled with bite-sized lessons and personal anecdotes, Time Management in 20 Minutes a Day introduces strategic changes geared to help you improve your daily life. From obsessing over emails to hunting through clutter to mismanaging meetings—learn how to stop doing all the little things you didn’t even realize were wasting so much of your time.Time Management in 20 Minutes a Day includes: Learn time management, fast—Straightforward suggestions focus on simple and proven strategies that you can do in 20 minutes or less. Advice for home and office—It doesn’t matter if you’re a busy CEO or a stay-at-home parent—discover dozens of ways to do more with your day. Modern techniques for current times—Learn to take advantage of all the time saving potential of tech—productivity apps, digital planners, and more. Discover how fast and simple mastering time management can be.

Learned Optimism: How to Change Your Mind and Your Life


Martin E.P. Seligman - 1990
    Seligman draws on more than twenty years of clinical research to demonstrate how optimism enchances the quality of life, and how anyone can learn to practice it. Offering many simple techniques, Dr. Seligman explains how to break an “I—give-up” habit, develop a more constructive explanatory style for interpreting your behavior, and experience the benefits of a more positive interior dialogue. These skills can help break up depression, boost your immune system, better develop your potential, and make you happier.. With generous additional advice on how to encourage optimistic behavior at school, at work and in children, Learned Optimism is both profound and practical–and valuable for every phase of life.

The 100/0 Principle: The Secret of Great Relationships


Al Ritter - 2010
    • If you like "212, the Extra Degree," you are going to love this book! Brian Tracy said..."Eighty percent of life's satisfaction comes from meaningful relationships." Think about it...when you look back at the end of your life what will really matter? Five words...the quality of your relationships. So here's the question: If your relationships are the most important part of your life, what are you doing to make them all they can be? The 100/0 Principle...The Secret of Great Relationships, may be the most important book you'll ever read. The message is truly life-changing. Author Al Ritter is a management consultant who works with CEO's, other leaders and teams, who are committed to achieving breakthrough results. Also, as a professional speaker, Al has delivered over 500 speeches, workshops and seminars. Simply put, The 100/0 Principle is a book that can benefit anyone. It can make your marriage better and greatly improve your relationships with family members, friends, co-workers...even your boss.

How to Talk to Anyone: 92 Little Tricks for Big Success in Relationships


Leil Lowndes - 1998
    What is their "Midas touch?"What it boils down to is a more skillful way of dealing with people.The author has spent her career teaching people how to communicate for success. In her book How to Talk to Anyone (Contemporary Books, October 2003) Lowndes offers 92 easy and effective sure-fire success techniques-- she takes the reader from first meeting all the way up to sophisticated techniques used by the big winners in life. In this information-packed book you'll find:9 ways to make a dynamite first impression 14 ways to master small talk, "big talk," and body language 14 ways to walk and talk like a VIP or celebrity 6 ways to sound like an insider in any crowd 7 ways to establish deep subliminal rapport with anyone 9 ways to feed someone's ego (and know when NOT to!) 11 ways to make your phone a powerful communications tool 15 ways to work a party like a politician works a room 7 ways to talk with tigers and not get eaten aliveIn her trademark entertaining and straight-shooting style, Leil gives the techniques catchy names so you'll remember them when you really need them, including: "Rubberneck the Room," "Be a Copyclass," "Come Hither Hands," "Bare Their Hot Button," "The Great Scorecard in the Sky," and "Play the Tombstone Game," for big success in your social life, romance, and business.How to Talk to Anyone, which is an update of her popular book, Talking the Winner's Way (see the 5-star reviews of the latter) is based on solid research about techniques that work!By the way, don't confuse How to Talk to Anyone with one of Leil's previous books, How to Talk to Anybody About Anything. This one is completely different!

Being the STARfish: 7 Steps to Sharing so People Want to Buy


Neal Anderson - 2014
    You will discover that the path to financial freedom lies not in selling but in sharing, and that living your dream begins when you start helping other people live theirs. You will trade the mindset of a SELLfish(TM) for the lifestyle of a STARfish(TM)-and for you and many, many others, that transformation will have an impact beyond anything you can imagine.The road to success is mapped out for you clearly in these pages. It's no secret-not anymore. You're about to discover-The vital link between action and purpose-How to "control the controllables"-How you can remove the pressure so that people love buying from you-The all-important Share Cycle(TM) and how to master its 10 indispensable steps-Proven, no-pressure ways to defuse customer challenges-And much more

Move Your Bus: An Extraordinary New Approach to Accelerating Success in Work and Life


Ron Clark - 2015
    Includes a foreword by bestselling author and FranklinCovey executive Sean Covey.Teamwork is crucial to the success of any business, and as acclaimed author and speaker Ron Clark illustrates, the members of any team are the key to unlocking success. Imagine a company as a bus filled with people who either help or hinder a team's ability to move it forward: drivers (who steer the organization), runners (who consistently go above and beyond for the good of the organization), joggers (who do their jobs without pushing themselves), walkers (who are just getting pulled along), and riders (who hinder success and drag the team down). It's the team leader's job to recognize how members fall into these categories, encourage them to keep the "bus" moving by working together, and know when it's time to kick the riders off.In the tradition of Who Moved My Cheese? and Fish!, Move Your Bus is an accessible and uplifting business parable that illustrates Clark's expert strategies to maximize the performance of each member of a team. These easy to implement techniques will inspire employees and team leaders alike to work harder and smarter and drive the organization to succeed.