WHAT GOT YOU HERE WON’T GET YOU THERE: HOW SUCCESSFUL PEOPLE BECOME EVEN MORE SUCCESSFUL
Marshall Goldsmith, Hyperion Books, US$24.95
Winner of the Harold Longman award for “Best Business Book of the Year”, a New York Times bestseller and Wall Street Journal’s number one business book, this book by corporate executive coach Marshall Goldsmith points out 20 bad habits preventing successful careers from going to the next level. The bad habits that Goldsmith cited may surprise you, such as winning too much, adding too much value into a conversation, withholding information and even an excessive need to be yourself while contributing to a team hampers further success.
The book also suggests remedies and tackles more personal ambitions such as establishing a successful marriage and succeeding as a parent.
WHATEVER YOU THINK, THINK THE OPPOSITE
Paul Arden, Portfolio Trade, US$13.95
The second of Paul Arden’s books after It’s Not How Good You Are, It’s How Good You Want To Be challenges one’s ideas and methods of doing things in a personal and witty way, injecting anecdotes and stories to make an impact.
While most motivational books tend to instruct, Whatever You Think, Think The Opposite chooses to challenge you and provoke thought on the way you believe things ought to be done. Packaged in a snappy 160-page, the book is logical and concise, and offers unconventional perspectives to some very common issues.
A PERFECT MESS: THE HIDDEN BENEFITS OF DISORDER – HOW CRAMMED CLOSETS, CLUTTERED OFFICES, AND ON-THE-FLY PLANNING MAKE THE WORLD A BETTER PLACE
Eric Abrahamson and David H Freedman, Back Bay Books, US$14.99
We are often led into believing that a structured and organised working environment leads to success, while choosing to be messy leads in the opposite direction. This book challenges that idea with true stories showing that absolute control is overrated and how a little chaos can actually do more good than harm, and in no small way assures the disorganised creature inside many of us that sometimes a little mess in just the right place is exactly what we need.
THE MONK AND THE RIDDLE: THE ART OF CREATING A LIFE WHILE MAKING A LIVING
Randy Komisar, Harvard Business School Press, US$20
At one point or other in our lives, all of us have pondered on what we would want to do. More often than not, these ambitions change based on the circumstances around us and we move on to something else.
This book addresses that question very seriously, encouraging the belief that work is not only what pays the bills but something that gives satisfaction and experience. The author gives his own take on how passions and career come together based on his personal experiences.
THE NOTICER: SOMETIMES, ALL A PERSON NEEDS IS A LITTLE PERSPECTIVE
Andy Andrews, Thorndike Press, US$17.99
In The Noticer, Andy Andrews (author of bestseller The Traveller’s Gift) tells the story of Jones, a mysterious sage who appears to offer a little perspective when someone is in trouble.
Andrews combines story telling, real-life advice and a touch of autobiography (all in 213 pages), in a relatable and personal way, and shows how looking at a situation in a different way really can change it for the better.
AMAZON KINDLE
US$299
At under 1cm in thickness and weighing 289g, the Amazon Kindle is an e-book reader and makes a perfect gift. It holds up to 1,500 books in its 2GB capacity drive and gives you access to more than 300,000 books, newspapers, magazines and blogs, all of which can be downloaded in less than one minute via a 3G connection.
Joshua Tan
