Now, Discover Your Strengths
by Marcus Buckingham and Donald Clifton, Ph.D.

From the coauthor of the national bestseller First, Break All The Rules comes the revolutionary program that shows you how to develop your unique talents and strengths—and those of the people you manage. It’s based on the Gallup study of more than two million people.

At the heart of the book is the Internet-based StrengthsFinder Profile, the product of a 25-year, multimillion-dollar effort to identify the most prevalent human strengths. This book contains a unique identification number that allows you to access the profile on the Internet. This Web-based interview analyzes your instinctive reactions and immediately presents you with your five most powerful signature themes. Once you know which of the 34 themes you lead with, the book will show you how to leverage them for powerful results. With profound insights on how to turn talents into strengths, and with the immediate online feedback at its core, this is one of the most ground-breaking and useful business books ever written.

(This book review was originally published in 2001 as one of the Top 10 Books – Edition 6.)

Learning Journeys: Top Management Experts Share Hard-Earned Lessons on Becoming Great Mentors and Leaders
by Marshall Goldsmith, Beverly L. Kaye, and Ken Shelton

Here’s another masterpiece that belongs in your library and should be shared with everyone in your organization. This book brings together a “who’s who” of today’s most successful leadership experts and consultants, who share personal lessons—many learned the hard way—about what it takes to attain success. These intimate stories—about childhood experiences, school life, friendship and marriage, sports, and, of course, careers and business—reveal a compelling truth about what enables individuals to stand out as great mentors and leaders: They seize opportunities to learn wherever they find them.

Each essay includes questions for reflection to help readers apply the lessons learned to their own lives and careers. You’ll learn a great deal from such notable world-class thought leaders as: Joel Barker, Wally Amos, Elizabeth Pinchot, Warren Bennis, Peter Block, Stephen Covey, Nancy Adler, Charles Garfield, Beverly Kaye, Spencer Johnson, Lou Tice, and many others.

(This book review was originally published in 2001 as one of the Top 10 Books – Edition 6.)

Control Your Destiny or Someone Else Will
by Noel M. Tichy and Stratford Sherman

This runaway national bestseller was originally published in 1993. In a recent cross-country trip on behalf of a client, I was fascinated to find this classic prominently displayed on the bookshelves of every major airport I passed through. There’s a good reason for this well-deserved longevity. In short, the content of this masterpiece is as relevant today as it was the day it was written. Maybe even more so. 

This is an inside story written by two men who observed General Electric from very different vantage points—one as a deeply involved participant and the other as a skeptical outsider. The result—an in-depth, honest, revealing rendition of the Welch Revolution. Noel Tichy is a professor at the University of Michigan School of Business and director of the School’s Global Leadership Program. He also ran GE’s executive training center for two years. Stratford Sherman is a management specialist on Fortune Magazine‘s board of editors and has been covering the world of business since 1977. He’s been writing about GE for more than a decade. 

This is the first scholarly attempt to pin down the secrets of GE’s phenomenal success. Its straightforward, riveting content is sprinkled with eye-opening case studies. This is a must-read for every student of business regardless of your current position, product, service, company or industry. Here’s a sample of what you’ll find in this totally involving read:

The Six Rules Jack Welch Lives by:

• Control your destiny or someone else will.
• Face reality as it is, not as it was or as you wish it were.
• Be candid with everyone.
• Don’t manage, lead.
• Change before you have to.
• If you don’t have a competitive advantage, don’t compete.

(This book review was originally published in 2001 as one of the Top 10 Books – Edition 6.)