My Top 5 Recent Reads

Happy Friday!

I wanted to share my ‘top 5 recent reads’ today. Some of the books on this list, I’ve re-read over the recent months to remind myself of how brilliant they are – they’ve helped to inform many client sessions as well as navigating the first half term of having 3 at secondary school! 

Here is my ‘WHY READ’ for each of them. 

⭐️ Chris Hoy – All that matters

Full of hope, inspiration, positivity and gratitude despite his stage 4 cancer diagnosis - the most powerful part for me was the importance of living and being in the moment, given life can change in a split second for anyone of us.

⭐️ Thomas Erikson – Surrounded by Idiots

Packed full of great examples and short accounts to help us understand different human behaviour, improve how we communicate and engage with others. I often focus on ‘hilltops’ in my work and this book illustrates it beautifully. A great book to read if you are considering using DISC in your business/team. I’ve recently re-read this and I always take away something new!

 ⭐️ Nir Eyal – Indistractable

I love this book, back to basics and helps us to understand what distracts us and what we can do about it. It helps us to employ strategies to cope with both internal and external distraction – it helped me to also hold a mirror up to myself in terms of how I can help manage distraction with my children and technology (particularly phones)!

 ⭐️Michael Bungay Stainer – The Coaching Habit

It provides a practical framework to develop leadership coaching techniques to empower others to find and own their solutions. A great book to help you ask more questions, listen more and step back from giving advice. It links well to the coaching spectrum of PUSH versus PULL where we can coach and lead by listening, empowering, questioning and respectfully challenging. 

⭐️Daniel Coyle – The Culture Code

I have revisited this book a number of times over the years. I love the different stories from many different businesses and individuals (PIXAR, SEAL as examples). Some will really surprise you, including a group of jewel thieves! I use this book a lot in my work to help clients build safety, share vulnerability and establish purpose – it also links closely to core values. The clear message is - culture is not something you are, it is something you do.

If you’ve read any of these I’d love to hear your feedback on them. If not, I’d encourage you to read one of the above - so many lessons for life! 

 Have a great weekend ahead!