DAVID GUERRA’s MUST READ BOOK LIST
The MUST READ Book List is a list of the books I consider a must read for any up and coming Leader.
The books on this list will range the gamut from Leadership to Followership and from a wide variety of backgrounds and genres. The order the books are entered into this page are in no way to indicate order of preference. They are all equally important and essential to leadership development no matter where you are on your path to becoming a Great Leader.
A new book will be added to the list every week. If you have a recommendation drop me a message on the contact page telling the title of the book and why it should be on the MUST READ list. Thank you.
• FISH! A Proven Way to Boost Morale and Improve Results by Stephen C. Lundin, Harry Paul, John Christensen, Kenneth H. Blanchard
This leadership, motivational and inspirational book takes a look at how one individual found change in one of the most unlikely places; a fish market. Where every day the leadership and the employees: CHOOSE THEIR ATTITUDE, THEY ARE THERE, MAKE EVERYONE’S DAY, and most importantly they PLAY. According to a review on Amazon dot com “This is one fish story that doesn’t exaggerate. It shows you how changing your attitude lets you enjoy your work and your life. Hook into it, it’s quite a catch!”
Fish! Is published by Hatchette Books and published March 2000. However, don’t let the date fool you, this book is relevant today as it was the first day of publication.
• TRIBES: We Need You To Lead Us by Seth Godin
This is not the book that put Seth Godin on the map but this book certainly solidified his place on the map of extraordinary leaders and “outside the box” thinkers. In TRIBES, Godin offers us a collection of a great group of people and ideas that help us understand that while the Internet has “eliminated the barriers of geography, cost, and time” it is up to us to take advantage of the opportunity the Internet has given all of us to build a TRIBE. A tribe that helps everyone within that tribe move to the next level. Leaders and their followers are “greenlighted” to do what it takes to make change happen. The individuals mentioned in this book serve as guides on how to create and lead a tribe based on doing more and being better. It may be “short on pages” (at 151) but it definitely long on good, old fashion, rock solid information.
• RE-IMAGINE! Business Excellence in a Disruptive Age by Tom Peters
For most people there is one book that comes along at the right place, at the right time. RE-IMAGINE! by Tom Peters is the one that came at the right place and right time for me. The content in this book is the one that got me to start questioning everything. I questioned everything, from the way the Postman delivers the mail to the way the Dentist makes me wait and why.
From the first page to the last, this book will leave you scratching your head as two why has it “always been done this way”?
From the book publisher:
“More than just a how-to book for the 21st Century, Re-imagine! is a call to arms — a passionate wake-up call for the business world, educators, and society as a whole. Focusing on how the business climate has changed, this inspirational book outlines how the new world of business works, explores radical ways of overcoming outdated, traditional company values, and embraces an aggressive strategy that empowers talent and brand-driven organizations where everyone has a voice.”
• THINK AND GROW RICH by Napoleon Hill
This book is the one book that anyone of any age should read. Written in when the United States was starting to come out of the Great Depression and just before the start of World War II, Think and Grow Rich is a classic in that the examples and situations Hill describes can actually be applied to the 21st Century. Hill uses the example of radio and its ability to instantly deliver information across the planet in a matter of minutes (sound familiar?). The book covers topics that may have been a bit risque in the 1930s but today are just a bit all too commonplace.
Think and Grow Rich has long been considered one of the greatest motivational books ever written. This book delivers where so many others have tried. This book has certainly stood the test of time (almost 80 years) and with good reason. It delivers. It makes you think. It does motivate you to take action. Action for yourself! If you haven’t read it, you should. It’s worth it.