There are no born leaders. Leadership is not a talent, but a forged discipline born from consistent personal development. A true leader cannot fully lead until they have learned to lead themselves. The challenge here is simple: how can you learn to lead yourself? We’ve got you covered. Here’s our top 11 books on the topic of leadership from 2018: our curated selection that inspired our year and further developed our leadership.
To Read is to Lead
One of the best ways to lead yourself is through reading. You’re not doing yourself any favors if you’re in the 26 percent of American adults who haven’t read even part of a book within the past year. First of all, reading creates cognitive engagement that improves vocabulary, thinking skills, and concentration. But also, reading affects empathy, social perception, and emotional intelligence.
New Year, Who ‘Dis?
With a new year comes new resolutions. As you zero in on your objectives, challenge yourself to read. Strive to develop knowledge that improves you, your company, and the people around you. Declare 2019 as the year of the reader; the year of you, as a leader.
Powerful
Powerful will change how you think about work and the way a business should be run. McCord advocates practicing radical honesty in the workplace. Say good-bye to employees who don’t fit the company’s emerging needs. Motivate with challenging work, not promises, perks, and bonus plans. Her road-tested advice, offered with humor and irreverence, provides readers a different path for creating a culture of high performance and profitability.
Lost and Founder
Everyone knows how a startup story is supposed to go. A young, brilliant entrepreneur has a cool idea. He drops out of college and defies the doubters. The entrepreneur overcomes all odds, makes billions, and becomes the envy of the technology world.
This is not that particular story. Up or down the chain of command, this book can help you solve your problems. Whether you are an early-stage startup or leading a mature company, this book can help solve your problems. And, subsequently, makes you feel less alone for having them.
The Messy Middle
Creating something from nothing is an unpredictable journey. Broken into three sections with 100+ lessons, this no-nonsense book will help you endure, optimize, and finish strong.
How to Fight a Hydra
Do you have a hydra in your life? For example, do you have a grand, ambitious project you’ve always wanted to tackle that feels overwhelming, unconquerable? A beast of a project that has many heads. Chop off one of a hydra’s heads, and two more grow in its place. How will you ever defeat such a terrifying monstrosity – and live to tell the tale? In this fable, productivity expert Josh Kaufman explores the uncertainty and fear inherent in facing down any ambitious challenge.
Make Time
A fun manifesto and practical do-it-yourself guide to building smart habits that stick!
Chief Joy Officer
Chief Joy Officer offers sage, hard-won advice to any manager or leader who yearns to make more of an impact on the lives of others.
The Business Book
Another great book, The Business Book will be your new go-to guide that’s packed with innovative graphics and simple explanations of business concepts, In fact, The Business Book is the field guide you maybe didn’t even know you needed. From managing risk and alternative business models to effective leadership and thinking outside the box, In summary, The Business Book covers every facet of business management.
Great Mondays
In Great Mondays, brand strategist Josh Levine introduces a proven formula for building and managing a workplace culture that maximizes employee engagement, performance, and retention for long-term business success.
Responsible Abandon
Bring back recess! (And still get work done, too!) Responsible Abandon is a call to embrace play by seeing the world as a playground. The playground principles presented in this book will help you unlock creativity, enjoy and seek learning opportunities, and create authentic connections with people and ideas. Consequently, you will lead by staying young, fun, and creative!
Quantum Success
Through her accessible, empowering writing, Christy Whitman shares the fundamental principles that she’s discovered after more than 20 years of studying universal forces—such as polarity, alignment, resonance, momentum, and magnetism—and explains how to harness these forces to optimize your wealth and career.
The Power of Visual Storytelling
Attention is the new commodity. Visual storytelling is the new currency. Filled with full-color images and thought-provoking examples from leading companies, The Power of Visual Storytelling explains how to grow your business and strengthen your brand by leveraging photos, videos, infographics, presentations, and other rich media. In summary, the book delivers a powerful road map for getting started while inspiring new levels of creativity within organizations of all types and sizes.