Cannonball Read 17

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time

Trust the Process

Tanking to the Top: The Philadelphia 76ers and the Most Audacious Process in the History of Professional Sports by Yaron Weitzman

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As I said a few weeks ago in my review of Ethan Sherwood Strauss’ superb The Victory Machine: thank the living Lord for sports books written by people my age. What a balm. No Michael Jordan narratives. No “back in my day, them fellas didn’t have the interwebs.” It’s simply inconceivable to boomers that people my age remember a world before its wide web, a time before social media, and can in fact conceive of a history that predated our existence. Anyway, enough of that. There’s […]

“I do not like that man. I must get to know him better.” – Abraham Lincoln

How to Win Friends and Influence People in the Digital Age by Dale Carnegie & Associates

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“Every man is entitled to be valued for his best moments.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson Emerson’s quote above sums up this book quite nicely. How to Win Friends and Influence People in the Digital Age is a lesson on effective relationship building, which can be applied to anyone in your life – personally or professionally. The authors write, “Which relationship is most strained in your life right now? What would it look like if you began focusing on that person’s best moments and sought to affirm […]

Not dead, just tired

The Tyranny of Dead Ideas by Matt Miller

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I have a hard time explaining the type of business and economics books that I’m interested in; I really enjoy explanations for the unpredictability of human behavior and science-based thinking about the irrationality of people on an individual and group scale. I’m not opposed to hard data, but prefer the quirkier parts.  I just keep thinking about this comic: I may not love economics, but I definitely look at its butt when it walks by. Since I’m a dilettante in the field, it’s hard to […]

… and Others Don’t – A Cautionary Tale

Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap... and Others Don't by Jim Collins

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This book is widely recommended in my circles. In the Army, we LOVE books that focus on leadership and culture and building successful teams. Good to Great is about how good companies become great companies. More than that, it required the companies studied to have prolonged (at least 15 years) of good performance, followed by at least 15 years of great performance.  Performance was generally measured as a comparison between the stock performance of the Fortune 500.  Collins and his team of 21 researchers determined […]

Purpose vs Vocation vs Career vs What Am I Doing?

The Purpose Path: A Guide to Pursuing Your Authentic Life's Work by Nicholas Pearce

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I presently work at Kellogg School of Management which is the business school at Northwestern University. As such, we have access to top rated faculty and have opportunities to see them present their work at lunch events and the like. It’s a pretty neat built-in professional development opportunity. As such, Dr. Pearce presented an event for staff the other day. Though I wasn’t able to attend, I did find out from colleagues that they received free books and I was like WHAT. FREE BOOK?! Luckily, […]

Principled Negotiation

Getting to Yes by Roger Fisher

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This one was pretty technical. The authors really break down the thought process of having a principled negotiation instead of trying to negotiate either “soft” or “hard.” They provide a variety of examples/case studies that emphasize the point. Not going to lie, this was a bit dry, but very good book if you want to read more about different leadership styles. “Getting to Yes” breaks down key concepts from the authors such as “Don’t Bargain Over Positions,” “Separate the People from the Problem” and “Focus […]



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