Executive Coaching Books

Mastery: The Keys to Success and Long-Term Fulfillment by George Leonard

A client urged me to read Mastery immediately, and I urge you to do the same. A long-term practitioner of the marshal art Aikido, Leonard unveils the five keys to mastery of any skill or subject:

Key 1: Instruction
Key 2: Practice
Key 3: Surrender
Key 4: Intentionality
Key 5: The Edge

In this quick read, the author helps readers apply Aikido concepts to their everyday lives. He offers advice on how to handle change and homeostasis without resistance, and he provides suggestions for how to produce more energy. He also alerts the reader to pitfalls along the path to mastery.

A number of years ago, Dr. Mel Levine (author of many best selling books, including All Kinds of Minds) spoke with me about the value of becoming an expert. When you become an expert in any subject, he said, you know what it takes to become an expert in another subject. Mastery is built on a similar premise. People of all ages (including kids) reap tremendous value from dedicating themselves to a particular subject or skill. Once mastery occurs, self-confidence soars.

Mastery is a journey that only begins and never ends.

An innovative view at marketing and building products

Marketing in today's world is much like the cows in the field. Cows in the field are interesting, but after you see these a number of times they become less interesting and then eventually you really do not notice them anymore. As a matter of fact they all just look the same. Traditional marketing methods are like the cows in the field, they just are not sufficient to get your product noticed. The Purple Cow, and its concepts, serves as a great way to re-energize the process of remarkable marketing.

The purple cow concepts engage you in taking your product, service or company from ordinary to remarkable in the consumer's eye. It is not a marketing initiative that you insert into the company, but rather it is a concept that becomes inherently built into the product. The goal is to create something remarkable by putting a purple cow into everything that you do. Understanding the reason companies do things out of Fear or Safety really allows new incite into strategies that target customers. Do you have the email address for 20% of your best customers? What could you with this list to show these customers that you truly are something amazing? This book is full of examples of this kind of purple cow thinking.

The Purple Cow is a great read, easy and fun. It is full of stories that ring true and really get you thinking about how much control and flexibility today's entrepreneur has to compete against the big guy in an amazing way.

Review by John LeTourneau, CO2 Partners 2/08

Topgrading: How Leading Companies Win by Hiring, Coaching, and Keeping the Best People, Revised and Updated Edition (Hardcover)

I discovered this book on my wife's night stand one Saturday morning, at a period when our organization was in the midst of another growth spurt. I literally spent the rest of the day reading it. It was undeniably a page turner. If you or your organization have consistent issues involving hiring, selecting, retaining, or performance then this book is one of, if not the definitive book, on human resources in action. Author Brad Smart provides you with a step-by-step guide on how to build a team of "A" players and helps you define what an "A" player is for your unique organization. If you are ready for instructions on how to select your "A" player and establish approaches for maintaining their performance then this book is a must read.

Traditional advertising and public relations are based on the art of persuasion. 

While persuasion certainly has its place in marketing, long-term relationships are built on a shared values. In his new book Balanced Brand, John Foley has developed an innovative new model for helping companies align their corporate values with key stakeholder values. 

This groundbreaking work is a must read for any senior manager who has the responsibility of long-term relationships, brands and reputations.  

This is a great book if you are interested in the development of human intimacy—be it raising children, finding the love of your life, or connecting with people in the workplace. As a leader, you will learn valuable information about how to anticipate and handle emotional responses (both yours and team members’) when complicated situations arise.

The book reveals how we communicate and how we develop silent rhythms with other people. After reading it, you will be far more attuned to patterns of intimacy. You’ll also be more apt to recognize when intimacy is absent.

“A General Theory of Love” is a short read, but thick with content. It is not one of those books that after the first three chapters, you know all there is to know about the subject. Every chapter is fresh and builds on the previous ones, so you will really want to read to the end.

Book Description
Jim Collins Answers the Social Sector with a Monograph to Accompany Good to Great. 30-50% of those who bought Good to Great work in the Social Sector.

• This monograph is a response to questions raised by readers in the social sector. It is not a new book.
• Jim Collins wants to avoid any confusion about the monograph being a book by limiting its distribution to online retailers.
• Based on interviews and workshops with over 100 social sector leaders.
• The difference between successful organizations is not between the business and the social sector, the difference is between good organizations and great ones.
  

Difficult Conversations is a little gem I discovered many years ago and it has since become an often referenced book in my business library. The New York Times Business Bestseller, written by a group from the Harvard Negotiation Team, helps readers understand that when confronting a difficult conversation there are actually three conversations going on at once:  the circumstances that occurred; the feelings each party is experiencing; and the perceived identities of each party.

The premise is that during a difficult conversation most people can agree on the situation at hand. However, the two underlying or unspoken exchanges create insurmountable barriers for the parties to bridge until one of these parties become extremely curious and discerning of the other parties' feelings and identities. Those identities can be roles that one plays in life, president, CEO husband, wife, or daughter and how these roles may be impacted by the conversation. Becoming curious does not mean giving up your point of view, you may remain unyielding on you position.

I remember putting this concept to work at our neighborhood board meeting regarding a 10 year old unresolved issue. Within 30 minutes the neighborhood put the conflict to rest. Since that time, I have incorporated this technique many times with equal success. I feel so strongly about this book, my business partner and I have given it to every manager. It is a fast read.

If you have ever played sports and time just stood still you have experienced FLOW. When you are at work and have the right amount of challenges and it takes a high degree of skill you have experienced FLOW. Flow is found when there is a focus on goals that are clear and compatible; when the heart, will and mind are all in alignment all the while you must also be getting immediate feedback on the actions.

Csikszentmihalyi, does a fabulous job of helping the reader understand flow but more importantly show the reader how to obtain it. There are many areas in our environment that prevent us from obtaining FLOW and Csikszentmihalyi also provides the reader an understanding of what they are and how to navigate around them.

This is a short read - pick it up in NY and have it finished by the time you hit LAX if not sooner.

The Wisdom of Crowds

Harvard Business School professors Lawrence and Nohria present a sociobiological theory of motivation directed to the business environment. They claim that humans possess four basic drives to acquire, to bond, to learn, and to defend. The unique approach in their book is the manner in which they apply their theory specifically to the workplace. Historical case studies are used to show that successful organizations are those that give their employees opportunities to fulfill all four of these drives. There are of course a number of competing drive theories from Freud's sexual drive to Steven Reiss's 16-drive theory. The authors, well versed in sociobiology, openly acknowledge that the numbers and exact nature of our drives need further exploration and provide suggestions for research projects. Irregardless of how many more drives one human may or may not posses their theory is enlightening for any reader. While being academic in its approach and presentation it is written with the lay reader in mind so any undergraduate will comfortably assimilate the information provided. This is ideal for any business leader that would like to better understand what not only drives them but also those around them.

Your Perfect Business Match

This book is a vital resource for corporate executives and entrepreneurs. Why wander ineffectively with the wrong approach to the market in which your organization exists when you can become empowered with the knowledge that you may just be a Pioneer with new Frontiers ahead of you.

Stoic Warriors

Authentic Happiness

Life Launch

If you are ready to stop being reactive and become proactive in your life then this is a must read. Life Launch is a powerful guide to creating purposeful meaningful lives. Dr. Hudson uses conceptual maps to break life transitions into comprehensible visual models. These maps increase personal awareness of our individual resources and opportunities.

Dr. Hudson characterizes life as a balance of "being" and "doing" with a progression of transitions. We have all heard of the midlife crisis but few of us truly understand the dynamics of natural life transitions. Dr. Hudson translates research in adult development into understandable layman's language and presents them as "The Grand Adventure: from 20 to 90."

This book is a valuable read for every person who wants to take their life's dreams and put them into reality. Hudson's proposition is, "If one's destiny is shaped from within, then one has to act more freely as the creator. One has to be at once the subject, author, and creator."

How to be Organized in spite of yourself

Getting things Done

Ready to get organized? Then throw all those scraps of paper into a giant "in-basket" and read Getting things Done. You will learn the Two-Minute Rule and more helpful hints on how to free your mind and become more productive. The backbone of this system is captured on a straightforward, one-page flowchart that you can pin over your desk and repeatedly consult without having to refer back to the book.

Author David Allen provides commonsense advice that most have unfortunately overlooked to their own detriment. Do not be surprised when you hear yourself say, "well of course that makes sense!" This book is a great resource for everyone. Even the most organized individuals will benefit from these tips and tricks. Whether you are the least organized of CEOs or most organized of soccer Moms you will find this book helpful and insightful.

Leadership on the Line

Ackoff's Best

Driven to Distraction

This valuable book dispels a variety of myths about attention deficit disorder (ADD). Since both authors have ADD themselves, and both are successful medical professionals they attack two key myths which are: (a) that ADD is an issue only for children; and (b) that ADD corresponds simply to limited intelligence or limited self-discipline. Although ADD can generate a host of well documented problems their position emphasized that there are also advantages to having it. Mozart and Einstein are cited as examples of probable ADD sufferers and prime examples that individuals with ADD are also attributed as having high energy, intuitiveness, creativity, and enthusiasm. Qualities that are completely overlooked by the 'disorder' model.

Using numerous case studies and a discussion of the way ADD intersects with other conditions like depression, substance abuse, and obsessive-compulsive disorder, they provide a more well rounded reality of the syndrome. This a great read not only for those with ADD but also their family members, thanks to its helpful lists of tips for dealing with ADD in a child, a partner, or a family member.

Power vs Force

Based on thousands of studies and scientific methods Dr. Hawkins explains many aspects of human experience including a Scale of Consciousness. Based on a logarithmic scale of 1 to 1000, all ideas, emotions, concepts, thoughts, works of art, literature and science, resonate at some level. Above the level of 200 these energies are considered nurturing, positive and "good" (Power). Below 200 are energies that are destructive, negative and "evil" (Force).

Dr. Hawkins explores how "attractor" energies influence art, science, medicine and sports and examines the specific mechanisms leading to health and disease. He examines the quality of our institutions and discusses the nature of Consciousness and the path to Enlightenment. This book provides a scientific analysis of the difference between Power and Force within the spirituality of these concepts. This book is an absolute must for anyone searching for a better understanding of "how reality works".

The E Myth

Spin Selling

Spin Selling is a great handbook for providing large-sale sales tactics. It is not about gimmicks to trick or pressure the customer into buying but rather just the opposite. Author Rackham shows how the "closing techniques" used in smaller sales not only do not work but can severely damage relations. The suggested approach provided in detail is the SPIN model which covers: Situation, Problem, Implication, and Need-payoff.

If your desire is to sell large-value goods or services to sophisticated and intelligent buyers then Spin Selling is the tactical handbook you need. The benefits of this book are not merely attributed to the stead-fast sales professional. Although many do not believe themselves to be involved in sales. Each day we may be selling anything from a product, our work or even ourselves as a person or prospective employee. In the arena of large-scale sales it is all about obtaining another person's commitment. Commitments are equally important in our personal and professional lives so these techniques are extremely useful when applied there as well.