Top-10 Books of 2015

Issue No. 336 of Your Weekly Staff Meeting (Dec. 31, 2015) delivers my Top-10 book picks from 2015 and three master lists of books I’ve reviewed since 2006. And check out my Management Buckets website with dozens of resources and downloadable worksheets for your staff meetings.  Top-10 Books for 2015 Woody Allen once said, “I took a speed-reading course where you run your finger down the middle of the page and was able to read War and Peace in 20 minutes. It’s about Russia.”  I don’t speed-read my book picks—and I was blessed with a full client load again this year, so I averaged an eNews about twice a month—but who’s counting? This last issue of 2015 features my annual recap of the books and resources I reviewed in 2015 (Issues No. 316 to 336). To download a PDF of the chronological list of book reviews from 2006 through today (all 336 issues), visit the Book Bucket on my Management Buckets website. A second book review list, with all books categorized within my 20 buckets, is also available. Last year I updated my personal list (not prescriptive for you) of my Top-100 books. In 2015, I published 21 issues with reviews of 29 books/resources, including a governance toolbox and a nonprofit financial management survey from ECFA, and a Harvard Business Review article.   It's a tough assignment to narrow it down to 10 books that all have popular appeal, because all of us are at different levels of competency across the 20 management buckets. What were your top 10 books in 2015? 2015 Book-of-the-Year [   ] Leadership Briefs: Shaping Organizational Culture to Stretch Leadership Capacity, by Dick Daniels. (Read my review.) In Chapter 11, Dick Daniels notes six “Graceful Reminders” and he warns about “the danger of the 15%. Some people can be right 85% of the time. It is a powerful gift. The danger is when they assume they are right 100% of the time. They become relationally dangerous 15% of the time when they are wrong but think they are correct.” I could have used this book 30 years ago—and saved myself and my team members from unnecessary leadership pain! Every chapter begs to be discussed and implemented in a weekly staff meeting. The chapter on delegation is worth the price of the book. I’ve used this book frequently in 2015 to engage leaders and managers in all-day team training sessions. Trust me, it’s a homerun! (Order from Amazon.) The Other 9 on My 2015 Top-10 Book List (With brief excerpts from my reviews, these nine are listed in alphabetical order by author’s last name.) [  ] TRUST: The Firm Foundation for Kingdom Fruitfulness, by Dan Busby (Read my review.) The quotations on trust are numerous and memorable—over 100 for your PowerPoints, speaking notes, coffee break conversations, and tweets (download all 100 here):    • “Our problem as leaders is we do everything we know to do. That’s not enough. We need to do everything God wants us to do.”(Richard Blackaby)    • “A Christ-centered ministry that lacks trust is like a teenager running through a fireworks factory with a lit blowtorch. It isn’t whether something is going to blow up—it’s just a matter of when.” (Busby)    • “Leadership is an achievement of trust.” (Peter F. Drucker) [  ] The Attacker’s Advantage: Turning Uncertainty Into Breakthrough Opportunities, by Ram Charan (Read my review.) In his chapter, “Tools to Build Perceptual Acuity,” the author highlights a mid-forties CEO, “Clare,” who meets with four other CEOs four times a year for dinner. “Their meetings, and informal conversations between get-togethers, serve as a sounding board for each to cross-check thinking and provide a foundation for superb foresight." [  ] Peter Drucker’s Five Most Important Questions: Enduring Wisdom for Today’s Leaders, by Peter F. Drucker, Frances Hesselbein, and Joan Snyder Kuhl (Read my review.) On abandonment Drucker preaches, “Ask of any program, system, or customer group, ‘If we were not committed to this today, would we go into it?’ If the answer is no, say ‘How can we get out—fast?’” [  ] Broken and Whole: A Leader’s Path to Spiritual Transformation, by Stephen Macchia (Read my review.) Macchia admits: “But I also make mistakes. I blunder. I think horrible thoughts. I’m an internal quagmire more often than I desire and in continual need of God’s grace. I know what it feels like to be a manipulator, and when not kept in check I can drive myself and others crazy with my perfectionistic tendencies. I’ve been deeply hurt by past failures. I’ve been disappointed by the attitudes and actions of others. And I see these same things in many others who are in leadership positions in the body of Christ.” [  ] A Year With Peter Drucker: 52 Weeks of Coaching for Leadership Effectiveness, by Joseph A. Maciariello (Read my review.) The author of this 52-week coaching gem asks in his “Practicum-Prompts” for Week 1, “Are you developing leaders in your organization, or are you developing bureaucratic, rule-following functionaries?” How would you answer that? Start Mondays with Drucker in 2016! Visit the “Drucker Mondays” blog posts of the 52 guest writers I invited to share their color commentaries on all 52 chapters. Email the link to your team members each Monday. (You’ll delegate this, right?) [2026 Update: Watch for these to be reposted in 2026.] [  ] Soul Keeping: Caring for the Most Important Part of You, by John Ortberg (Read my review.) Along with the humor—and it oozes with Ortberg’s special brand of clergy comedy—the pastoral pokes are memorable and needed. He quotes Dallas Willard: “You must arrange your days so that you are experiencing deep contentment, joy, and confidence in your everyday life with God.” [  ] Breakthrough: Unleashing the Power of a Proven Plan, by Randon A. Samelson (Read my review.) Grab your pen (or request help online)—and answer this brilliant question in 15 words or less (his rules!): Key Log Question: “Other than money, what one opportunity (or obstacle) if captured (or removed) would most advance your mission/vision?” Using the six-step plan in 1 Chronicles 28-29, Samelson shares his commentary on King David’s baton pass to his son, Solomon. This is one succession plan that actually worked! The temple was completed. Solomon thrived. Outgoing CEO David did not whine in the background. [  ] Leaders Eat Last: Why Some Teams Pull Together and Others Don’t, by Simon Sinek (Read my review.) You can blame Jerry White for this one. When Jerry and Mary White speak, I listen. I write it down. They are the real deal—and they don’t speak, write or recommend lightly. Jerry emailed me on the last day of 2014: “One of my bell-ringers this year was Leaders Eat Last, by Simon Sinek. Secular, but with such strong biblical ideas. Gen. [4 star] Kevin Chilton put me on to that book.” [  ] Connection Culture: The Competitive Advantage of Shared Identity, Empathy, and Understanding at Work, by Michael Lee Stallard, Jason Pankau, and Katharine P. Stallard (Read my review.) The London church that launched Alpha, a no-pressure course exploring the Christian faith (now taught in 169 countries in 112 languages), described themselves as “a sailboat where everyone on board had an active role to play, versus a cruise ship where passengers were served but never served others.” Don’t skip this one! The authors deliver well-researched and reasoned insights in their highly readable book with just 93 pages, not counting 25 more pages of robust resources, such as the descriptions of 24 character strengths developed by the VIA Institute on Character (my two favorite: hope and humor). P.S. Master List of Book Reviews: Click here to download these lists: • List #1: Books by Management Buckets Category • List #2: Chronological list of issues of Your Weekly Staff Meetingfrom 2006 through today • List #3: John Pearson’s Top-100 Book List  Delegate Your Reading in 2016! C.S. Lewis said, "It is a good rule after reading a new book, never to allow yourself another new one till you have read an old one in between." And by the way, back in 2013, several readers submitted photos for “My Ideal Bookshelf.” (Thanks to Jeff Lilley, David Curry, Jason Pearson, Paul Thompson, Greg Anderson, and Ken Sutterfield for submitting their Top-10 lists—of all time! My Top-10 are pictured above.) Ideas for 2016: 1) Delegate your reading. Assign books to other team members and ask for mini-reports at staff meetings. 2) Read relevant chapters only. Don't feel guilty for not finishing a book. 3) Hold high the value of sharpening the saw and model it yourself and reward others who read. 4) Budget for books. Invest in your people by investing in books. 5) Discover whether your people are readers or listeners. Audio books might be helpful to some. I have some fantastic book reviews coming in 2016! MORE RESOURCES: • Blog: Pails in Comparison • Subscribe: Your Weekly Staff Meeting eNews • John's book reviews: on Amazon  • Website: Management Buckets • Blog: Governance of Christ-Centered Organizations