Books

What?Who?Why?
Dare to Lead  Brené BrownA typically fun, open, thought-provoking Brené Brown book about how to develop your own leadership effectiveness and how to help other leaders grow. “A leader is anyone who takes responsibility for finding the potential in people and processes and has the courage to develop that potential.”  
The Trillion Dollar CoachEric Schmidt, et al.The “Coach”, as people referred to Bill Campbell, coached Steve Jobs, Eric Schmidt, Sheryl Sandberg, Marissa Mayer, Larry Page and others. Maybe this book (written by Eric Schmidt and two other Google executives Campbell coached) has something to say to the rest of us who want to help by coaching.  
Creative Confidence  David and Tom KelleyThe founder and initial leaders of IDEO. Need I say more? Shows how to understand and use “design thinking” or “user-centered design” principles to make things better.  
The Five Dysfunctions of a TeamPatrick LencioniA classic. Why teams don’t work together better. Hint: it starts with a lack of trust and goes downhill from there!  
Seven Habits of Highly Effective People  Stephen CoveyA classic. Examples: Habit 2: Begin with the End in Mind. Habit 3: Put First Things First. Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw.  
MindsetCarol DweckDo you have a growth mindset or a fixed mindset? What’s the difference and why does it make a difference?  
Strengths FinderTom RathThe classic work in the “strengths” leadership area. The book include access to an assessment tool to identify your top strengths. With a team, this can lead to interesting and life-changing insights into the strengths of all members of the team.  
The Happiness AdvantageShawn AchorHappiness doesn’t flow out of success – happiness leads to success.  
Work + Life  Marcus BuckinghamA brand new book by one of the key thinkers behind the strengths-based leadership approach. What do work and love have to do with each other?  
Extreme Ownership  Jocko Willink and Leif BabinWritten by two US military veterans, but the book isn’t just about military leadership. It is about taking ownership of tasks and not giving in to easy excuses.  
Hero on a Mission: A Path to a Meaningful Life  Donald MillerA recent book about how to think about your personal goals and translate that thinking into action that helps you accomplish what is most important to you.  
The AdvantagePatrick LencioniBuilt on the foundation of the Five Dysfunctions, but then makes the claim that organizational health is the most important characteristic of any business. Organizational health trumps strategy, technology, products, and everything else in business.  
Servant LeadershipRobert GreenleafGreenleaf is one of the founders of the servant-leadership model. His book isn’t a page-turner, but it’s worth the investment.  
Brain Rules  John MedinaWhat does brain science teach us about leadership? Examples: “Each brain is wired differently”, “We are designed to never stop learning and exploring”, and “Stress changes the way we learn”.  
DriveDaniel PinkPeople are looking for autonomy, mastery, and purpose. That’s what drives people (more than money).  
Leading ChangeJohn KotterKotter is one of the leading thinkers about change leadership. His eight-part framework is laid out in this book.  
Quiet LeadershipDavid RockIt explores a brain-friendly leadership performance improvement approach by helping people improve how they think.