Fa la la la la! It’s that time of year! We asked some of our Forge Members to share what books they have enjoyed in 2022 that the business person in your life may enjoy!
Use this gift guide to purchase a book for yourself or for someone else!
Books 1 and 2: Recommended by: Dave Gray, CEO of Stoneybrook Venture
The Advantage: Why Organizational Health Trumps Everything Else in Business by Patrick Lencioni
“An organization is healthy when it is whole, consistent and complete, when its management, operations and culture are unified. Healthy organizations outperform their counterparts, are free of politics and confusion and provide an environment where star performers never want to leave. Lencioni’s first non-fiction book provides leaders with a groundbreaking, approachable model for achieving organizational health–complete with stories, tips and anecdotes from his experiences consulting to some of the nation’s leading organizations. In this age of informational ubiquity and nano-second change, it is no longer enough to build a competitive advantage based on intelligence alone.”
Making Vision Stick by Andy Stanley
“There are lots of books about discovering or developing a vision for your organization, but this one is about making that vision endure the corrosion of time and complexity–how to make your vision stick. Influential author and pastor Andy Stanley reveals the reasons why leaders’ visions often falter, and he delivers 5 in-depth strategies so that you can dodge the pitfalls:
- How to state your vision simply.
- How to cast your vision convincingly.
- How to repeat your vision regularly.
- How to celebrate your vision systematically.
- How to embrace your vision personally.
Many of us have good ideas, even great ones. The difficult part is putting them into practice and keeping that vision clear and visible to your organization–whether that’s a business or a church–when there are so many things in the day-to-day living of that vision that can distract from it. Making Vision Stick offers valuable, practical tips and case studies. This is a book you’ll want to highlight and dog-ear and pass around as you learn how to propel your organization toward the vision God has granted you. Vision is about what could be and should be, but life is about right this minute. The test of a true leader is in keeping that vision on track, day in and day out.”
Book 3: Recommended by Drew Kirk, VP of Finance at AMZ Atlas
7 habits of highly effective people By Stephen Covey
“With Sean Covey’s added takeaways on how the habits can be used in our modern age, the wisdom of the 7 Habits will be refreshed for a new generation of leaders. They include:
Habit 1: Be Proactive
Habit 2: Begin with the End in Mind
Habit 3: Put First Things First
Habit 4: Think Win/Win
Habit 5: Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood
Habit 6: Synergize
Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw.”
Book 4: Recommended by Deon Gordon, CEO of Tech Birmingham
The Doodle Revolution: Unlock the Power to Think Differently by Sunni Brown
“Sunni Brown was named one of the 100 Most Creative People in Business and one of the 10 Most Creative People on Twitter by Fast Company. She is founder of a creative consultancy, an international speaker, the co-author of Gamestorming, and the leader of a global campaign for visual literacy called The Doodle Revolution. Her TED Talk on doodling has drawn more than a million views on TED.com. Her work on visual literacy and gaming has been featured in over 35 nationally-syndicated news programs and reported on in The Wall Street Journal, CNN.com, the BBC, Fast Company, Inc. Magazine, etc. She lives in Keep Austin Weird, Texas.”
Book 5: Recommended by Jeremy Adams owner & CEO of Southern Heritage Consulting
It Take the Stairs: 7 Steps to Achieving True Success by Rory Vaden
“How do successful people achieve results? In short, they do it the old-fashioned way, with focus and self-discipline. Popular speaker and strategist Rory Vaden presents a simple program for “taking the stairs”—that is, resisting the temptations of “quick fixes,” eliminating distractions, and transcending personal setbacks in order to reach your goals.”
Books 6 and 7: Recommended by Kim Lee, Founder and CEO of Forge
Excellence Wins by Horst Shulze
“Horst Schulze knows what it takes to win. In Excellence Wins, the cofounder and former president of the Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company lays out a blueprint for becoming the very best in a world of compromise. In his characteristic no-nonsense approach, Schulze shares the visionary and disruptive principles that have led to immense global success over the course of his still-prolific fifty-year career in the hospitality industry.”
Extreme Ownership by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin
“Combat, the most intense and dynamic environment imaginable, teaches the toughest leadership lessons, with absolutely everything at stake. Jocko Willink and Leif Babin learned this reality first-hand on the most violent and dangerous battlefield in Iraq. As leaders of SEAL Team Three’s Task Unit Bruiser, their mission was one many thought impossible: help U.S. forces secure Ramadi, a violent, insurgent-held city deemed “all but lost.” In gripping, firsthand accounts of heroism, tragic loss, and hard-won victories, they learned that leadership–at every level–is the most important factor in whether a team succeeds or fails.”