Ready for a holiday? If you are, why not catch up on some reading? Reading opens new doors: also to great questions that can help you shape your future! Here’s my business books holiday reading list with some questions.
Business books holiday reading list
Let me share my favorite business books list on Goodreads with you. This list doesn’t contain the most recent books, but books that I have enjoyed very much and that stood out to me at the time I read them.
But there are so many more great books! I love reading books (and writing about them :). I’m planning to update my list with favorites (Brené Brown’s Daring Greatly should be on this list!) and publish more book reviews, but in the meantime, I have another holiday reading tip for you: the Positive Leadership, Culture & Change Collections for Kindle.
Positive Leadership, Culture & Change Collections for Kindle
The Kindle collections make for easy reading during the holidays because they contain magazine articles just like the ones you read on this blog. That means you can secure quality reading and learn in small bits between travel, dinners, parties, shopping, family visits and whatnot. You don’t need long hours of focus and concentration, but you will get the right questions and great ideas to develop your future…
Each collection offers ten articles with journaling questions – to stimulate the reflection that will make your new year awesome. Let me share a couple of the book summaries that I included in collection 1, 2 and 3:
Humble Inquiry
Read the article about Edgar Schein’s must-read book “Humble Inquiry” and you can answer these questions to ask more at work and create a learning organization:
- How can I ask more?
- How can I help myself to listen instead to talk? As of now?
- When can I make the time to connect with my team this week?
- How can I humbly inquire what they need, want and think…?
- What would they not like to tell me? What would be vital to know?
- How can we practice sharing and transparency before we need it (in a crisis)?
- How can we practice the behaviors of asking and listening to learn something new?
The Power of Less and Essentialism
Do sit down for the summaries of Leo Babauta’s book “The Power of Less” and Greg McKeown’s “Essentialism – the Disciplined Pursuit of Less” and then challenge yourself with these important questions:
- What will you set limits on – as of now?
- What will you choose as essential?
- Check on your values, your goals, your projects?
- What do you love?
- What has the biggest impact? What has the longest-term impact?
- What and how can you simplify?
- How will you help yourself focus? Create that habit of discipline?
- Are you majoring in minor things?
- If you weren’t already involved in this commitment, how much effort would you make to get onboard?
Give and Take
Don’t forget Adam Grant’s “Give and Take” to practice that positive attitude at work that helps create a company culture of kindness and generosity:
- What’s your favorite style at work? Giving, matching, taking?
- How can you enhance giving in your workplace?
- How can you give more while protecting yourself from takers?
Do!
Reading books is great, but if you stay seated in your chair thinking and talking about them nothing will ever change. We need to do something to create positive change in the workplace and the world. That’s why I’ve added the book summary of Kevin Kelly’s “Do!” It’s short, sweet and simple:
- How do you deal with the idea killer in your head?
- How do you help yourself to “do”?
- Which of Kelly’s tips appeals to you most? How will you apply this in the next week? (That’s right: no more procrastinating! Just do it!)
Business Secrets of the Trappist Monks
How’s that for reflection: “Business Secrets of the Trappist Monks” by August Turak. Read what this entrepreneur learned from his retreats in the cloister and how he modeled his transformational organization. Inspirational for your workplace, too.
- How can you let go and let God?
- How can you balance your work and your Work?
What’s Your Body Telling You?
Steve Sisgold’s book “What’s Your Body Telling You?” could be an eye-opener for many of you. Are you working too hard? Have you been crazy busy last year? Then make sure to check this out.
- What is your body telling you? If it could speak, what would it advise?
- How can you help yourself by breathing consciously, several times during the day?
- How will you help yourself stay fit over the year?
Leading from the Emerging Future
If you want to do more to create positive change in the workplace and the world, consider “Leading from the Emerging Future” by Otto Scharmer and Katrin Kaufer. After reading this summary, ponder questions like:
- How could you contribute to the well-being of the whole?
- How can you help yourself see beyond your personal point of view? How to keep the whole in mind?
- What is trying to emerge in your work and life? How can you amplify that in the new year?
Business books holiday reading offer
You can find the overview of the three collections’ content here – so you can choose collection 1, 2 or 3 – or buy them all.
You can read them anywhere anytime, without wifi, even without a Kindle if you install the free Kindle app on any other device.
Buy them today – I offer them at $ 1.99 to help you amplify your positive impact. Please find the Amazon.com US store links below:
Buy Collection 1 of Positive Leadership, Culture & Change.
Buy Collection 2 of Positive Leadership, Culture & Change.
Buy Collection 3 of Positive Leadership, Culture & Change.
Make your unique, positive difference!
All the best, Marcella
Marcella Bremer is an author and culture & change consultant. She co-founded this blog and ocai-online.com.