The old saying by Sir Francis Bacon goes, “knowledge itself is power.” Tim Sanders, New York Times Bestselling author of the book, “Love is the Killer App: How to Win Business and Influence Friends” would agree and believes in sharing knowledge in his workplace by keeping a small library of extras of his favorite business books to lend or even give to clients and coworkers. In this way (and others) Sanders has become a source of information and inspiration to those with whom he works. A generous “go-to guy” people count on and don’t want to do with out. "It adds value to your personal brand in these uncertain times," says, Sanders. Sanders contends in his book that we should all be lifelong learners, readers are leaders and that we learn best when we teach.
Burton M. Goldfield, a past contributor to Forbes.com writes, “Our [employee] book club provides each employee an opportunity to learn new concepts from those outside of our company, but also provides an opportunity to learn from within. Each day we interact tactically with our colleagues, but it’s not very often we get to share ideas outside of normal business context. Reading an interesting [business] book helps to spur conversations and allows us to see fellow employees in a different light.” At the time, his club was voluntary and each book was provided free to participants. They met regularly, read each book on his curated list then reviewed and discussed each book and it’s takeaways for the company. It’s great way to encourage (and possibly begin implementing) new ideas as well as bond with a team. Business book clubs can be a great part of your company's team building programs.
If you don’t know how to choose books for your book club, try this: Go to the nearest bookstore and into the business book section. Use words or phrases that are pertinent to your job to find books i.e. if you are in sales you might use words such as sales, negotiation, closing (closer), deal, or client for life. You can also Google those words and add the word book to the search (like negotiation books). Don’t discount books that have been out for a while as not being relevant to today’s business. There are some great ones that have been around for a very long time - and with good reason. You can always check reviews online before committing to buy.
Here are a few good ones:
“How to Win Friends & Influence People” by Dale Carnegie
“Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead” by Sheryl Sandberg
“Work Rules!: Insights from Inside Google That Will Transform How You Live and Lead” by Laszlo Bock
“Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us” by Daniel H. Pink
“Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action” by Simon Sinek
“The Outsiders: Eight Unconventional CEOs and Their Radically Rational Blueprint for Success” by William N. Thorndike
“Blink: the Poser of Thinking Without Thinking” by Malcolm Gladwell
“Business Adventures” by John Brooks (This is Bill Gates favorite book and reportedly, he has Warren Buffet’s copy.)
“The 5 Second Rule: Transform your Life, Work, and Confidence with Everyday Courage” by Mel Robbins
“The Power of Habit and Why we do What we do in Life and in Business” by Charles Duhigg
Which books would you add to the list?
__________________________________________________________________
Salty Red Dog Marketing, LLC is a marketing agency in Darien, CT & NYC. We service businesses with marketing strategies, social media and consultations.
Contact: info@saltyreddogmarketing.com
