Holiday Books for Boomers

Here is a recommended list of books for personal or corporate gift giving to and from Baby Boomers:

 Glenn Beck: The Christmas Sweater

The Christmas sweater sat on the top shelf of the author's closet for many years.  No matter how much time passed, the mere sight of the sweater always invoked a powerful reaction.  Captured in its yarn were fragments of childhood innocence--his greatest regrets, fears, hopes, disappointments--and, in time, his greatest joy.  In the spirit of this blessed season, the author shares this story as a gift to the reader.

 

 Malcolm Gladwell: Outliers: The Story of Success

To achieve success intrinsic qualities are required, but a lot of things also need to break just right, and a prodigious amount of luck is necessary.  Cultivating great minds might be  limited by their circumstances or environment.  Cultural legacies can allow people to learn and work hard to make sense of the world in ways others cannot.

 

 Travis Bradberry: Squawk!: How to Stop Making Noise and Start Getting Results
A holiday gift for the narcissistic boss?

A few weeks ago, I had a short conversation with an HR manager who had been receiving my weekly leadership tips.  She said she 'loved' the leadership tips but didn't send them on to her narcissistic executives because their egos blinded them from improving their leadership capability.  Since few HR managers have the power or guts to take the action necessary to improve the leadership ability of those in management, they need outside help in fostering leadership development within their organizations. 

There is an old Yiddish proverb that applies to every organizational leader: "The fish always sinks at the head."   The leader with CEO Disease doesn't know the smell that he or she is spreading throughout the organization.  The personally coached CEO discovers what smell he or she is spreading across the corporate culture and works to make it a productive and positive scent.

Today’s CEOs attempt to emulate superstars like Bill Gates, Andy Grove, Steve Jobs and Jack Welch.  They hire their own publicists, write books, give interviews and actively promote their personal philosophies.  Their faces appear on magazine covers.  They strive to become shapers of their unique brands of leadership style.

Continue reading "Holiday Gift for the Narcissistic Boss" »

 Mike Bonacorsi: Retirement Readiness: A Guide to Creating Your Vision, Knowing Your Position, and Preparing for Your Future

 

 Marc Freedman: Encore: Finding Work that Matters in the Second Half of Life

 

 John Gray: Why Mars and Venus Collide: Improving Relationships by Understanding How Men and Women Cope Differently with Stress

 

 Lee Eisenberg: The Number : A Completely Different Way to Think About the Rest of Your Life

There is an old Yiddish proverb that applies to every organizational leader: "The fish always sinks at the head."   The leader with CEO Disease doesn't know the smell that he or she is spreading throughout the organization.  The personally coached CEO discovers what smell he or she is spreading across the corporate culture and works to make it a productive and positive scent.

Today’s CEOs attempt to emulate superstars like Bill Gates, Andy Grove, Steve Jobs and Jack Welch.  They hire their own publicists, write books, give interviews and actively promote their personal philosophies.  Their faces appear on magazine covers.  They strive to become shapers of their unique brands of leadership style.