Have been reading Robert Greene’s ‘Mastery’. It’s a very interesting and insightful book. Uses a system to categorise the steps involved in becoming a master of anything.
Definitely goes onto the ‘highly recommended’ list.
The tycoons at the heads of the modern and historic media empires the world over are a story in themselves. This is that story.
From William Randolph Hearst to Elon Musk, this book demonstrates the power these people wield. For those who tried to get in their way it was never, or will never be, easy.
The Murdoch family takes up a lot of the pages with good reason. The havoc they are causing the world continues as the family navigates legal battles and infighting over ownership, whilst also trying to squeeze every last drop from the press titles it still owns.
I wouldn’t normally go for a book like this but it was great. Well written and interesting from start to finish. Highly recommend.
“… you will not catch either one.”
This is a Russian proverb from the front cover of ‘The One Thing’ by Keller and Papasan.
Read it, think about it, read it again, and use it. There’s great power inside its pages.
I picked up a book on Sunday that had been on the shelf for a few months. I had started to read it but something else took my attention. I put it to one side.
I couldn’t remember much about the contents. It was a book about writing by a writer so there wasn’t much of a mystery to solve.
I read it for a few minutes on Sunday night. It wasn’t pulling me in. I picked up again last night for another go, but the reason I put it down instantly became clear.
I didn’t like it. I couldn’t get on with it. The way it’s written, the types of examples the author uses (all about himself), even the font size left me feeling empty.
Something I find time to do because I enjoy it wasn’t enjoyable.
The minute this happens, it’s worth stepping away. The book will be removed from the shelves, taken to the charity store. I don’t want it anywhere in the house.
Life’s to short to spend time doing something for fun, like reading, using your precious free time, and not enjoying it.
Put it down, find another book from the pile, and take a different journey.
Placed an order yesterday for some new insights:
Daniel Kahneman – Thinking, Fast and Slow: I’m aware of economic theory but it’s a long time since I took steps to go a little deeper. This will be my jumping off point on that one.
Scott Galloway – The Algebra of Wealth: Personal finance strategy affects us all but most of us spend hardly any time thinking about what we are doing, let alone taking action.
The First 90 Days – Michael Watkins: I’m starting a new job in a couple of weeks. I like to go into anything with some kind of plan, however rudimentary. Similar books of this kind are on my shelves and this one could add a new angle.
(I don’t do affiliate marketing and don’t want to automatically send anyone to Amazon so this is why there are no links.)
Reading book two of the Robert Caro series on Lyndon Baines Johnson at the moment. These are four epic pieces of non fiction, researched over many years, rightly winning all the plaudits.
I started with little knowledge of the guy other than the fact that he made it to the White House; details of his upbringing were unknown. The way he made it into politics was also unclear.
The thing that’s standing out to me as I near the end of book two – Means of Ascent – is how low this guy was prepared to go to make his political dreams come true.
I won’t spoil the plot. The usual antics of the power hungry are clear throughout, but there’s a deeper urgency to ‘make it’ on his part. A true desperation. The pages reek of it.
His wife, ‘Lady Bird’ Johnson, survived him by a number of years, hopefully to enjoy a life that would never have been possible with him still alive, sucking up all of the glory.
The lies, endlessly cultivating a false impression, wrapped up and sold to hapless voters in all parts, are a theme all of their own.
And the voters bought it. His supporters got what they wanted and their man got the top job he craved, no matter what it took to get there.
There are so many lessons in this story. I’ll let on more when I work through the series.
Came across this excellent learning resource for all things AI, focussed on busy professionals looking to get ahead of the crowd quickly and efficiently.
Section – the business behind the training – is backed by best-selling author, NYU Professor of Marketing and podcaster Scott Galloway.
His work stands out in the world we live in today as forward thinking, a challenge to the status quo, and a call to action for people glued to their screens looking forward to little more than minimum wage work (and lots of it) for years to come.
Upskilling and lifelong learning are more than just buzzwords. They’re the way to stand out, get better opportunities and earn more over time.
Get involved. It’s never too late to start.
STFU: The Power Of Keeping Your Mouth Shut In An Endlessly Noisy World, Dan Lyons – Common sense advice for anyone who has a lot to say and no idea what that can do to relationships. 7.5/10.
Release The Bats: Writing Your Way Out Of It, DBC Pierre – Wanna be a writer? Wanna know the steps to take, the real blood-and-guts stuff that’s needed to make it a success? This is the one for you. Forget the rest. 9.5/10.
The First Minute: How To Start Conversations That Get Results, Chris Fenning – Framing concersations from A-Z. A great primer on a skillset to add to your toolbox. Your boss will love you for using it. 8/10.
The Practice: Shipping Creative Work, Seth Godin – His latest motivation manual. The type of book to read if you’re halfway there in terms of doing something creative in your life. 8/10.
Turn The Ship Around!: A True Story Of Turning Followers Into Leaders, L. David Marquet – Captain of a struggling submarine crew in the US Navy puts his leadership ideology to work and creates a blueprint for teamworking success. 9/10.
Ever heard of Robert Caro? I thought not. Look him up and get your hands on his work. If you have, you’ll know why I reckon he’s The Man in terms of writing and journalism. He’s still working, well into his 80’s. It’s a job that he’s filled full of passion through the years.
His life’s work has been telling the stories of only a couple of men who changed society in their own ways. His first book, The Power Broker, describes the rise and fall of the most powerful unelected official ever to hold office inside a democracy, Robert Moses. The guy built the infrastructure of modern New York City – parkways, public parks, bridges, beaches, and tunnels – but ruined numerous lives – those of everyday politicians brave enough to vote against his projects, anyone in a property on a route he wanted to develop, and anyone else who got under his feet – along the way.
The Power Broker won the Pulitzer Prize in the 70s when it came out after a few years in the making. The title sums it up but the combination of great investigative journalism, sound non-fiction wordsmithing and a killer story underpin why Obama credits it as the book that got him into politics.
I’m biased – I admire the man. His work shines as a beacon of hope in today’s world of influencers and fakery. He’s a brilliant writer. He calls in his lunch order to the same cafe, the Cosmic Diner, at the same time every day. Talk about consistency. Give his work a try if you’re into biographies and non-fiction.
(These are in no particular order of favouritism.)
What would be top of your list?
Tom Peters wrote this seminal article for Fast Company magazine a long time ago but it remains relevant, share-worthy and full of important justification for putting the effort into developing your own brand, whoever you are and whatever you do.
Read it here: https://www.fastcompany.com/28905/brand-called-you
The quick-read:
It’s been a few weeks since I have written anything here because it’s been a time of big change. I’m now writing this from Sydney, Australia after moving here one week ago and the lead up to this change has been very hectic. House rented, belongings packed, plane tickets bought and accommodation secured does make it all sound very simple but I can assure you it isn’t!
Anyway, this time of change is also a big opportunity for growth in many ways. A new country – well, I was here 20 years ago and it has changed a lot since then – that is so far from the culture, weather and lifestyle that we had when in the UK will take some getting used to but that is part of its attraction.
I’m looking at getting back into employment so doing lots of research and adapting my mindset to being part of team again, even leading one if the opportunity presents itself. I’ve also got some time to think about doing some fresh learning in a new area and I haven’t drawn any conclusions from this yet.
Basically, every option is still open and this time of change is going to give some amazing opportunities for growth that will be fabulous as time goes by. There’s a lot to be very grateful for.
As a sidenote – current reading:
Chaos Monkeys – inside the Silicon Valley money machine, Antonio Garcia Martinez
The Inner Game of Golf – W. Timothy Gallwey
Homicide, David Simon
Race schedule for running:
Bay Run 7km this Sunday
City2Surf (CBD to Bondi Beach) on 14 August
Western Sydney half marathon on 1 October
This book is a real shot in the arm when you are down in the dumps or lacking the will to get things done. It tackles resistance and rightly positions it as the main thing that’s stopping all of us from achieving our goals, whatever they are.
Pressfield is a writer by trade so a lot of what he says in this book is based on how you would approach the task of writing a book yourself, but this shouldn’t put you off picking it up if you’re not a writer. There is some real gold in here and you can use the book like a coach in your ear, guiding you through a project of any kind.
A couple of points from the book that ring around my head a lot of the time:
Highly recommend getting your hands on a copy. You won’t regret it.
Shoot The Messenger, Shane Kuhn – follow up to Kill Your Boss, fast moving fiction involving a hitman on the run.
The Establishment, Owen Jones – dissects the make-up of the British ruling classes in great detail.
Essays of Warren Buffett, Lawrence A. Cunningham – extracts of the famous annual letters to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders.
Billionaire, Peter James – a stockbroker gets greedy and pays the price.
“The vitality of our network will determine our professional fate.” From The Little Big Things: 163 Ways To Pursue Excellence (2010)
The work of Tom Peters is well worth getting to know if you are interested in learning how to improve your work life and, if you are a manager, get the most from your team.
Mr Peters learned the basics in the US Navy, collecting his postgrad qualifications following active service in the Vietnam War. He also spent some time in the White House in the 70’s as a senior advisor to the Nixon administration. But the experience for which he is most renowned is his time with McKinsey & Co in the late 70’s/early 80’s – with his co-writer Bob Waterman he wrote ‘In Search of Excellence’, one of the most popular books on organisational effectiveness there has ever been.
Nowadays, Mr Peters writes and speaks extensively on getting the most out of yourself and those around you in the workplace. The quote above is taken from one of my favourite books and it’s one I highly recommend for some true pearls of wisdom on how to achieve excellence at every level and in everything you do.
It’s all about being helpful, caring about people, doing a great job no matter what and about delivering excellence in the face of whatever you are confronted by. Reading this book also makes you immediately get off your backside and take some action which is one of the main reasons I love reading his work so much.
If you’re someone that loves to learn and finds that taking action is the best way to effect some kind of change, make sure you add this one to your shopping list.
Every now and again I come across a book and as soon as I’m no more than a handful of pages in, I know it’s going to be a really useful one for a long time to come. The Talent Code by Daniel Coyle is one of those books and I would highly recommend it for Coyle’s work on this very grey area and deep research into talent hotbeds and methods of practice that debunk the myth that talent is simply something you are born with.
The top performers in a variety of sectors, not just sport or music, across the world are using a “neurological mechanism” to aid their practice where “certain patterns of targeted practice build skill”. This creates a neural insulator called myelin which wraps itself around electrical circuits travelling from your brain as you practice and the more you practice, the more myelin insulation you create. As the myelin increases in thickness and wraps itself around the circuits building speed and skill, the better you perform in the long run. Apologies for the amateur science lesson but hopefully you get the point.
Coyle takes us on a journey around the world visiting talent hotbeds – a tennis academy in Russia and Brazilian football schools among others – and analyses the coaching methods employed to build the maximum amount of myelin, even in cases where the coaches themselves don’t even know why they are getting such amazing results with their pupils. His insights are easy to understand and the book contains very few scientific references with the ‘code’ broken down into three key parts:
Get hold of a copy if you’re even a tiny bit interested in talent and understanding how people reach levels of performance that seem a long way away from the common man. Lots of great learning points and a book I’ll be referring back to for years.
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Ian Mountford is a Strategy Coach providing motivation and guidance to entrepreneurs, wannabe or fully-fledged. He draws from his own experience of building businesses from the ground up and spending many years helping clients to consistently achieve their goals and aspirations. Ian works with clients face-to-face and internationally.
A quick list for you from the King of Madison Avenue:
“The qualifications I look for in our leaders are these:
1 – High standards of personal ethics.
2 – Big people, without prettiness.
3 – Guts under pressure, resilience in defeat.
4 – Brilliant brains – not safe plodders.
5 – A capacity for hard work and midnight oil.
6 – Charisma – charm and persuasiveness.
7 – A streak of unorthodoxy – creative innovators.
8 – The courage to make tough decisions.
9 – Inspiring enthusiasts – with thrust and guts.
10 – A sense of humour.”
All of these are highly prized commodities in the workplace and something I spend a lot of time looking for in people. Sadly the package is not found in all that many but those that do possess it are rare birds who fly very, very high.
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Ian Mountford is a Strategy Coach providing motivation and guidance to entrepreneurs, wannabe or fully-fledged. He draws from his own experience of building businesses from the ground up and spending many years helping clients to consistently achieve their goals and aspirations. Ian works with clients face-to-face and internationally.
I’ve made list of a number of business books that I’ve read over the years, some of which are commonly-known classics and a few of which I revisit fairly frequently. They are all of great value to me and I can recommend them all for different reasons or purposes. They are listed in no particular order so take a look and let me know what I’m missing from the list as I get a lot of pleasure adding to it.
Tom Peters – The Little Big Things
Tom Peters and Robert Waterman – In Search of Excellence
Daniel Pink – To Sell Is Human
Daniel Pink – Drive
Dale Carnegie – How to Win Friends and Influence People
Gary Vaynerchuk – Crush It
Gary Vaynerchuk – The Thank You Economy
Chris Brogan – Social Media 101
Chris Brogan and Julien Smith – Trust Agents
David Ogilvy – Confessions of an Advertising Man
Stephen Covey – 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
Sun Tzu – The Art of War
Machiavelli – The Prince
Carlos Ruiz – The Voice of Knowledge
Tim Ferris – The 4 Hour Work Week
Fisher et al – Getting to Yes
Steve Gates – The Negotiation Book
Paul Arden – its not how good you are, its how good you want to be
Alan Webber – Rules of Thumb
Daniel Goleman – Social Intelligence
David Ogilvy – The Unpublished David Ogilvy
Chris Guillebeau – The $100 startup
Seth Godin – Free Prize Inside
Seth Godin – Tribes
Seth Godin – The Dip
Stephen Bull – The Mental Game Plan
Edward De Bono – Tactics
Tom Rath – Strengthsfiner 2.0
Michael Bungay Stainer – Do More Great Work
Felix Dennis – How To Make Money
Felix Dennis – How To Get Rich
Philip Delves Broughton – What they teach you at HBS,
Philip Delves Broughton – Life’s A Pitch
Sahara & Bobby Hashemi – Anyone Can Do It
Stephen Pressfield – The Warrior Ethos
Stephen Pressfield – Do the Work
Stephen Pressfield – Gates of Fire
The Mind Gym
Nicholas Christakis and James Fowler – Connected
Twyla Tharp – The Creative Habit
Christian Lander – Stuff White People Like
Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi – Flow
Phil Jackson – Eleven Rings
Steven Levy – In The Plex
Dom Sagolla – 140 Characters
Steve Peters – The Chimp Paradox
Struck and White – The Elements of Style
Stephen King – On Writing
Nicholas Naeem Taleb – Fooled by Randomness
Keith Ferrazzi and Tahl Raz – Never Eat Alone
David Heinemeier and Jason Fried – ReWork
Emma Wimhurst – Boom!
Matthew Syed – Bounce
Shel Israel – Twitterville
Viktor Frankl – Man’s Search For Meaning
Richard Branson – Losing My Virginity
Richard Bolles – What Color is My Parachute 2013
Spencer Johnson – Who Moved My Cheese?
A comfortable life may not be the most significant one.
This is how you get things done.
Ian Mountford 