If you want to keep growing as an individual and as a professional, then you must keep learning. While technical skills, new knowledge and awareness of all contextual facts are the hallmarks of an effective leader, learning from life and the lessons imparted by others make one a great leader. Leaders should continuously seek more knowledge – therefore a convenient way to accomplish this is by reading books. There are hundreds of books authored by successful people that you can consider.
Here are four business books that will improve your leadership abilities this year we believe are worth a read:
Turn the Ship Around!
A True Story of Turning Followers into Leaders
Authored by formal Naval officer David Marquet, this book is a must-read for anyone who is in either an entry level management position or dreams about becoming an executive leader. He details his experience with manning a USS Santa Fe, a nuclear-powered submarine and was responsible for transforming the military culture of followers to a culture of future leaders.
The Hard Thing About Hard Things:
Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers
Written by Ben Horowitz, the co-founder of Andreessen Horowitz, a Venture Capital firm, this book addresses the challenges that a business owner faces. There are many people talking about how great it is to launch a startup or how rewarding it is to start your own business, but very few people talk about the real life problems of running a business. Ben Horowitz takes the tough route of explaining the kind of hardships you would have to deal with as a leader. A good book if you are struggling in any area of leadership.
Strengths Based Leadership:
Great Leaders, Teams, and Why People Follow
Written by Tom Rath and Barry Conchie, this book dives into Gallup’s StrengthsFinder assessment that has been used by more than three million people till date. The lessons shared in this book are derived from studies involving more than one million work teams and what they want in their leaders. You’ll identify yourself in the pages of this book.
Start with Why:
How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action
Written by Simon Sinek, a self-proclaimed optimist and teacher, this leadership book is a must for those who are seeking to bring out the best in their people. Sinek has worked with major corporations like Microsoft and 3M, and government agencies, to teach people about the power of why. His theory is that the greatest leaders of the world have one thing in common – they address the why in their actions.
