Tag Archives: Success

Motivation and Success: Two Books from Daniel H. Pink

Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us

81puh8q8gklCall Number: BF503 .P475 2011
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Most people believe that the best way to motivate is with rewards like money– the carrot-and-stick approach. That’s a mistake, says Daniel H. Pink. In this provocative and persuasive book, Pink asserts that the secret to high performance and satisfaction–at work, at school, and at home–is the deeply human need to direct our own lives, to learn and create new things, and to do better by ourselves and our world. Drawing on four decades of scientific research on human motivation, Pink exposes the mismatch between what science knows and what business does– and how that affects every aspect of life. He examines the three elements of true motivation– autonomy, mastery, and purpose– and offers smart and surprising techniques for putting these into action in a unique book that will change how we think and transform how we live.

When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing

71pjsvmp0xlCall Number: BF468 .P57 2018
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Everyone knows that timing is everything. But we don’t know much about timing itself. Our lives are a never-ending stream of “when” decisions: when to start a business, schedule a class, get serious about a person. Yet we make those decisions based on intuition and guesswork. Drawing on a rich trove of research from psychology, biology, and economics, Daniel Pink reveals how best to live, work, and succeed. How can we use the hidden patterns of the day to build the ideal schedule? Why do certain breaks dramatically improve student test scores? How can we turn a stumbling beginning into a fresh start? Why should we avoid going to the hospital in the afternoon? Why is singing in time with other people as good for you as exercise? And what is the ideal time to quit a job, switch careers, or get married? Pink distills cutting-edge research and data on timing and synthesizes them into a readable narrative packed with irresistible stories and practical takeaways that give readers compelling insights into how we can live richer, more engaged lives.

The Book of Joy

Lasting Happiness in a Changing World

51zclmrv8nlBy His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, with Douglas Abrams
Call Number: BL 65 .H36 B78 2016
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Two leading spiritual masters share their wisdom about living with joy even in the face of adversity, sharing personal stories and teachings about the science of profound happiness and the daily practices that anchor their emotional and spiritual lives.

The Second Decade

Raising Kids to be Happy, Self-Sufficient Adults through Work

51-qdc7qial-_sx331_bo1204203200_By Eugene M. Helveston
Call Number: HQ799.15 .H45 2016
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“The Second Decade” offers a game plan for navigating two of the most important challenges facing today’s youth: gaining academic skills through a quality education at school, and acquiring practical skills learned by working at a job. Exposing youth to the benefits of work — earning money and gaining independence while taking on responsibility and embracing accountability — adds valuable lessons to what is already being offered at home and in school, and will lead them to happiness and self-sufficiency.

High Performance Habits

How Extraordinary People Become That Way

9781401952853By Brendon Burchard
Call Number: BF637.S4 B867 2017
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Twenty years ago, author Brendon Burchard became obsessed with answering three questions:

  1. Why do some individuals and teams succeed more quickly than others and sustain that success over the long term?
  2. Of those who pull it off, why are some miserable and others consistently happy on their journey?
  3. What motivates people to reach for higher levels of success in the first place, and what practices help them improve the most?

After extensive original research and a decade as the world’s leading high performance coach, Burchard found the answers. It turns out that just six deliberate habits give you the edge. Anyone can practice these habits and, when they do, extraordinary things happen in their lives, relationships, and careers. Which habits can help you achieve long-term success and vibrant well-being no matter your age, career, strengths, or personality? To become a high performer, you must seek clarity, generate energy, raise necessity, increase productivity, develop influence, and demonstrate courage. This book is about the art and science of how to cultivate and practice these proven habits. Whether you want to get more done, lead others better, develop skill faster, or dramatically increase your sense of joy and confidence, the habits in this book will help you achieve it faster. Each of the six habits is illustrated by powerful vignettes, cutting-edge science, thought-provoking exercises, and real-world daily practices you can implement right now. If you’ve ever wanted a science-backed, heart-centered plan to living a better quality of life, it’s in your hands. Best of all, you can measure your progress. A link to a free professional assessment is included in the book.

The Art of Leading Collectively

Co-Creating a Sustainable, Socially Just Future

9781603586269By Petra Kuenkel
Call Number: HD2961 .K76 2016
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A guide to collaborative impact for leaders in industry, government, and social change networks

Our world is facing unsustainable global trends–from climate change and water scarcity to energy insecurity, unfair labor practices, and growing inequality. Tackling these crises effectively requires a new form of leadership–a collective one. But, in a world of many silos, how do we get people to work together toward a common goal? That is one of the most important questions facing sustainability and social-change professionals around the world, and it is a question that Petra Kuenkel answers in The Art of Leading Collectively.

Readers learn how to tackle system change for sustainable development, reimagine leadership as a collaborative endeavor, retrain leaders to work collectively, and manage diverse groups through a change process that has sustainability as a guiding focus. Drawing upon two decades of pioneering, internationally recognized work orchestrating multi-stakeholder initiatives, Kuenkel presents her chief tool, the Collective Leadership Compass, and shows others how to use it with large groups of diverse stakeholders to solve complex, urgent problems–particularly those that enmesh business activities, governance, human needs, and environmental impacts.

The book offers many examples of collective leadership efforts involving corporate, public, and nonprofit sectors around the world. Readers learn about the processes that led to a sustainable textile alliance and set standards for sustainable cocoa and coffee production and trade, as well as those that helped nations rebound from war, develop sustainable infrastructure, and tackle resource conflicts with global businesses, to name a few.

Kuenkel provides a clear roadmap for leaders from multinational companies involved in partnerships, international organizations engaged in cooperative development, public agencies, and interest groups–as well as for citizens seeking solutions to social and sustainability challenge

The 15 Commitments of Conscious Leadership

A New Paradigm for Sustainable Success

51o91lt6ejl-_sx322_bo1204203200_By Jim Dethmer, Diana Chapman & Kaley Warner Klemp.
Call Number: HD57.7 .D494 2015
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You’ll never see leadership the same way again after reading this book. These fifteen commitments are a distillation of decades of work with CEOs and other leaders. They are radical or provocative for many. They have been game changers for us and for our clients. We trust that they will be for you too. Our experience is that unconscious leadership is not sustainable. It won’t work for you, your team or your organization in the long term. Unconscious leadership can deliver short term results, but the costs of living and leading unconsciously are great. Fear drives most leaders to make choices that are at odds with healthy relationships, vitality and balance. This fear leaves a toxic residue that won’t be as easily tolerated in an increasingly complex business environment. Conscious leadership offers the antidote to fear. These pages contain a comprehensive road map to guide you to shift from fear-based to trust-based leadership. Once you learn and start practicing conscious leadership you’ll get results in the form of more energy, clarity, focus and healthier relationships. You’ll do more and more of what you are passionate about, and less of what you do out of obligation. You’ll have more fun, be happier, experience less drama and be more on purpose. Your team will get results as well. They’ll be more collaborative, creative, energized and engaged. They’ll solve issues faster, and once resolved the issues won’t resurface. Drama and gossip will all but disappear, and the energy and resources that fueled them will be redirected towards innovation and creativity. Any one of these commitments will change your life. All of them together are revolutionary. Leaders who practice the 15 commitments: – End blame and criticism – Speak candidly, openly and honestly, in a way that invites others to do the same – Find their unique genius – Let go of taking everything-especially themselves and their problems-so seriously – Create win for all solutions – Experience a new relationship to time and money where there is always enough What do you need to bring to the table? Be curious. Sounds so simple, and yet in our experience it’s a skill few have mastered. Most of us are far more interested in being right and proving it, than we are in learning, growing and shifting out of our old patterns. By default we gravitate towards the familiar. We’re asking you to take a chance and explore the unfamiliar. You’ll get scared and reactive. We all do. So what? Just stay curious and let us introduce you to a whole new world of leadership.