55 Must-Read Books + 2
August 23rd, 2003 by Hal
I'd love to share the Business 2.0 list The Books that Matter, but it won't be published online for another 8 days. The editors listed 55 books for all business people to read. There were a number of surprises (for me). Seize the Day (1956), Saul Bellow& Fire in the Valley (1984), Paul Freilberger and Michael Swaine& and Moby Dick (1851), Herman Melville, are three surprising examples. (You'll have to wait for the rest.)
Who am I to take exception to Business 2.0's choices, so let me add two books to the list. The editors didn't include any books on design. For me, business is all about design. We design products, services, environments, projects, systems, and organizations. I can't see how a company can succeed without a proficiency in design. My choice to learn about design is The Timeless Way of Building (1979), Christopher Alexander. The book is part of a trilogy. He claims that design is a social phenomenon that requires a facility with language. Alexander introduces the notion of a pattern language for design. His setting is the design of buildings, but the parallels abound in many areas of design.
The second area that the editors missed is what I'll call pragmatics. (I know…here I go again introducing funny words and giving them my own meaning. Bear with me.) To say we live in uncertain times is hackneyed. We can read another story or book about that on almost any day. The truth is we've always lived in uncertain times. We can't know what will happen in just a few moments, let alone tomorrow, next week, next month, or next year. Those of us who thought we were smart with our 401k investments in the '90s hang or heads today. Not only is the future uncertain, but it is unknowable. But we continue to live and manage otherwise. So let's get pragmatic.
We can't do anything about the uncertainty and unknowability. So, let's start operating differently. Embracing Uncertainty: The Essence of Leadership (2001), Phillip Clampitt and Robert DeKoch offers a different orientation to being in the present with the uncertainty of the future. Embrace it, they say. How? They propose three steps: cultivate awareness, communicate, and catalyze action. Don't be misled by the simplicity of the actions. The book changed the way I think about the project environment.
I'll link to the Business 2.0 list as soon as it's published.
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August 23rd, 2003 at 8:25 pm
I heard that Fortune (sister to Business 2.0) was allowing bloggers to link. I’ll check it out.
Thanks!