I enjoy reading. More important, I enjoy applying what I learn through reading, listening, experiencing, and experimenting. This list of 10 books will undoubtedly change over time, but I find that these are the ones that continue to prove most valuable from a personal application standpoint. Click on the cover for a link to Amazon where you can purchase a copy for yourself.
“All The Shah’s Men” by Kinzer. About the ’53 coup in Iran, but also provides perspective on the world as it was then (Korean War, Iron Curtain concerns, strategic issue of oil supplies) and the arc of history to today’s Islamist radicals that may have roots with this event.
“Quiet Strength” by Tony Dungy.
v/r, Riggo
“A Whole New Mind” by Daniel Pink
Ben Lovejoy
“A Whole New Mind” by Daniel Pink
Sean need to update simons 2nd book “leaders eat last.” another great book is by Tom Rath called Strengths Finder 2.0- Noh
Smarter Than You Think: How Technology is Changing Our Minds for the Better” by Clive Thompson
Looks like a great read. Thank you for the recommendation…Just ordered it!
The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership By John C. Maxwell, http://www.u-leadership.com/the_21_irrefutable_laws_of_leadership-w.pdf, The 360 Degree Leader, http://www.johnmaxwell.com/store/products/The-360-Degree-Leader.html, and many others…
Team of Teams by Stanley McChrystal, http://www.amazon.com/Team-Teams-Rules-Engagement-Complex/dp/1591847486.
Thanks, Ed. Love it! Read it twice already and use pieces of it daily ever since. A must read for all leaders.
Cyber War by Richard A. Clarke
Make It So: Leadership Lessons from Star Trek, the Next Generation
IMHO, Dale Carnegie has been one of the most influential writers of the last century and many of his discussions/principles wind up in many of the books you listed. I think his ideas were groundbreaking. There are a few in your list I have not read and I look forward to jumping into them. Thanks for the taking the time to share your thoughts. Excellent choices all!
Great list of books Sean. Thank you. I look forward to digging in to them. Two books that you might be interested in are Rory Vaden’s “Take the Stairs” and his second book “Procrastinate on Purpose: 5 Permissions to Multiply Your Time.” Both are fairly quick reads but offer some very good, practical thoughts on success and time management.
Thanks, Matt. I will check those out.
Hi Sean,
I have a few recommendations:
1. Hannibal & Me (What History’s Greatest Military Strategist Can Teach Us About Success and Failure)- by Andreas Kluth – one of my personal favorites
2. Human Intelligence, Counterterrorism, and National Leadership: A Practical Guide (2008), Gary Berntsen https://www.amazon.com/Human-Intelligence-Counterterrorism-National-Leadership/dp/1597972541/
3. Red Teams and Counterterrorism Training (2011), Stephen Sloan and Robert J. Bunker https://www.amazon.com/Counterterrorism-Training-International-Security-Affairs/dp/0806141832/
4. The Art of Deception: Controlling the Human Element of Security (2003), Kevin Mitnick https://www.amazon.com/Art-Deception-Controlling-Element-Security/dp/076454280X/
5. The Art and Science of Military Deception (2013), Hal Rothstein and Barton Whaley https://www.amazon.com/Military-Deception-Intelligence-Information-Operations/dp/1608075516 /
6.Practise to Deceive: Learning Curves of Military Deception Planners (2016), Barton Whaley https://www.amazon.com/Practise-Deceive-Learning-Military-Deception/dp/1612519822/
7. The Art of Intelligence: Lessons from a Life in the CIA’s Clandestine Service (2013), Henry A. Crumpton https://www.amazon.com/Art-Intelligence-Lessons-Clandestine-Service/dp/0143123378/
8. Man in the Shadows: Inside the Middle East Crisis with a Director of Israel’s Mossad (2006), Efraim Halevy https://www.amazon.com/Man-Shadows-Inside-Director-Israels/dp/B001G8W71U/
9.Open Source Intelligence Techniques, 5th edition (2016), Michael Bazzell. https://www.amazon.com/Open-Source-Intelligence-Techniques-Information/dp/1530508908/
10.Left of Bang: How the Marine Corps’ Combat Hunter Program Can Save Your Life (2014), Patrick Van Horne https://www.amazon.com/Left-Bang-Marine-Combat-Program/dp/1936891301/
I have more on the list. I can send to you by email if you would like the lists
While it does not stand out in the genre of the book titles listed, I recently read “Crucial Conversations” and found it extremely helpful for tackling a relationship problem at work that was holding the entire team back.
“Hope Is Not A Method.” General Gordon Sullivan. This is the user’s manual for 5th Wave High Performance. The Harvard Business model, which is the default paradigm for Silicon Valley, employ 3rd Wave High Performance, which the leading edge in 1907. I noticed at the relief of Bob Sprigg, a high school buddy, as skipper of the George Washinton that he was utilizing Total Quality Leadership as a performance force multiplier. This is an upgrade of the pure Harvard model, but if Peter Drucker is at the leading edge of your performance model, you are using performance technology which was state of the art when women began to play half-court basket ball. TQL has all the bells and whistles of 5th Wave High Performance, but, in the corporate milieu, lacks the experiential component of military command. It’s like riding in the Tour de France on a Formula One bike with training wheels. Connect to my linkedin profile for my ebook, The Leadership Secrets of 5th Wave High Performance: it shares the same basic processes as Frank “Be All You Can Be” Burns’ Task Force Delta. Take DIUx off of jet fuel and put it on pulse-fusion Warp Factor Propulsion.
Sean,
Great list!
two more to consider:
Antifragile
Book by NASSIM TALEB
Thinking, Fast and Slow
Book by Daniel Kahneman
Sean,
Thanks for the great conversation this week, hope you enjoy “Leadership and Self Deception” by the Arbinger Institute. This is area that if we get it right can help us come together as a tribe.
Skunk Works. Ben R. Rich and Leo Janos
Great book about the Lockheed Skunk Works, Kelly Johnson and the history of their many great programs, leadership and philosophy.