Category: Books
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Book: The Manager’s Path
I loved my friend Camille‘s book The Manager’s Path (Amazon). When I became a manger, I assembled myself a little course – some books, blogs, newsletters, and made my way through them. I wish I’d had this book to start off with – it’s the overview I needed, but never found until now. I plan…
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Book: Devotion
Someone replied to a Where the Hell is Cate letter recommending I read Devotion (Amazon). Some of it seemed like trite nothings, and the “my love” irritated me. But some pieces of it seemed like profound ideas to meditate on. About love, and acts of love, being present, and showing up doing the work. It’s a short…
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Book: Demystifying Public Speaking
I got to read an early draft of Demystifying Public Speaking (Amazon) and it was exciting to revisit it and read the published version. It’s the perfect, to the point, read for those who are wondering how to get started public speaking, or facing their first talk unsure of how to prepare. The chapter on feedback is…
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Book: Thinking Fast and Slow
Thinking Fast and Slow (Amazon) is about two modes of information – superficial and quick (system 1), and in depth and slow (system 2). It’s interesting to be reading this book after Brexit, amidst the US election, because what occurs to me is that the slogans of Brexit (now demonstrably false) and the nonsense of…
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Book: Why Him? Why Her?
I’ve no recollection of buying Why Him? Why Her?: How to Find and Keep Lasting Love and no idea why I did. Some random mood 1-2 years ago, most likely – and carried around on my Kindle ever since. One chapter in I hated it. It was explaining personality traits by hormones, something that was debunked…
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Book: The Year Without Pants
I found The Year Without Pants super bro, and despite the subtitle containing “the future of work” didn’t really feel like it said anything about the future of work. It’s a memoir of a year spent working remotely and a snapshot of a point in time at a particular company, and I found it a bit…
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Book: The Laws of Simplicity
I read The Laws of Simplicity (Amazon) on a recommendation, and really appreciated it. Both as a look back to where design seemed to be going when it was written (it was published in 2006), and for the laws themselves. Reduce. The simplest way to achieve simplicity is through thoughtful reduction. Organize. Organization makes a system…
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Book: What Got You Here Won’t Get You There
What Got You Here Won’t Get You There (Amazon) initially irked me because it fell under a class of book that I call “Advice for White Men” (my blog post on this topic). It’s about how you can be oblivious to certain characteristics, and never receive feedback on them – and of course all but…
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Book: Taming Your Gremlin
Taming Your Gremlin (Amazon) is basically Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) – and I much preferred The Happiness Trap because I found the cutesy “gremlin” metaphor really annoying. Basically: the voice in your head that tells you what’s wrong with you and what you need to do, that’s your “gremlin”. And you don’t have to pay attention…