Books to inspire you this World Book Day
On World Book Day this year, we wanted to share some of the team’s top books for business owners.
Delivering Happiness by Tony Hsieh
The central theme of the book is literally delivering happiness as a business by living a life of passion and purpose.
Delivering Happiness details the story of Tony Hsieh and his company Zappos, an example of how thinking long term and following your passions first can lead to not just profits, but a happy life for you, your employees, and customers.
The book provides an alternative approach to traditional corporate culture. It focuses on the simple concept of making people around you happy, and by doing so, increasing your own happiness.
HR Disrupted: It’s time for something different by Lucy Adams
The central question this book sets out to answer is: if we are to survive and thrive in this new, volatile business world, how do we lead, manage, engage and support our employees in a radically different way?
HR departments and companies need to transform their approach. This entails not merely tinkering with the process or the mechanics but taking a completely fresh look at the entire scenario. Reading this book, you’ll be able to evaluate your own behaviour and see what it means for you and your business. There are lots of practical tools, ideas and techniques shared so you can start making changes immediately.
If I Could Tell You Just One Thing: Encounters with Remarkable People and Their Most Valuable Advice, by Richard Reed
Richard Reed built Innocent Drinks from a smoothie stall on a street corner to one of the biggest brands in Britain. He credits his success to four brilliant pieces of advice, each given to him just when he needed them most. Ever since, it has been Richard’s habit, whenever he meets somebody he admires, to ask them for their best piece of advice. If they could tell him just one thing, what would it be?
Richard has collected pearls of wisdom from some of the most remarkable, inspiring and game-changing people in the world – in business, tech, philanthropy, politics, sport, art, spirituality, medicine, film, and design. Richard has picked some of the world’s most interesting brains to give you lessons in how to live, love, create and succeed.
Why we sleep, by Matthew Walker
Sleep is one of the most critical aspects of our life, health and longevity. Yet, it is increasingly neglected in twenty-first-century society, with devastating consequences: every major disease in the developed world – Alzheimer’s, cancer, obesity, diabetes – has solid causal links to inadequate sleep.
In this book, the first of its kind written by a scientific expert, Professor Matthew Walker explores twenty years of cutting-edge research to solve the mystery of why sleep matters. Why We Sleep delves into everything from what really happens during REM sleep to how caffeine and alcohol affect sleep and why our sleep patterns change across a lifetime.
Key Person of Influence by Daniel Priestley
Every industry revolves around Key People of Influence. Their names come up in conversation. They attract opportunity. They earn more money.
Many people think it takes decades of hard work, academic qualifications and a generous measure of good luck to become a Key Person of Influence. This book shows that there is a strategy for fast-tracking your way to the inner circle of the industry you love.
Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of NIKE by Phil Knight
In 1962, fresh out of business school, Phil Knight borrowed $50 from his father and created a company with a simple mission: import high-quality, low-cost athletic shoes from Japan. Today, Nike’s annual sales top $30 billion.
Phil details the many risks and daunting setbacks that stood between him and his dream – along with his early triumphs. Above all, he recalls how his first band of partners and employees soon became a tight-knit band of brothers. Together, harnessing the transcendent power of a shared mission, and a deep belief in the spirit of sport, they built a brand that changed everything.
How we learn by Benedict Carey
What if almost everything we were told about learning is wrong? And what if there was a way to achieve more with less effort? How We Learn shakes up everything we thought we knew about how the brain absorbs and retains information.
Filled with compelling stories and practical tips, it gets to the very heart of the learning process; and gives us the keys to reach our very fullest potential.
