Management decision making Books

Book SynopsisTrade Review"More than any other business book released this year, "Hard Things" gives an insider's perspective on what it's like to lead and scale a startup." -- --Business Insider's Best Business Books of 2014 "This is easily one of the essential books every business leader should read if they're looking for proven and honest management advice." -- --Entrepreneur's 25 Amazing Business Books from 2014 "The most valuable book on startup management hands down" -- PandoDaily "There is more than enough substance in Mr. Horowitz's impressive tome to turn it into a leadership classic." -- The Economist

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Book SynopsisDecline can be avoided.Decline can be detected.Decline can be reversed.Amidst the desolate landscape of fallen great companies, Jim Collins began to wonder: How do the mighty fall? Can decline be detected early and avoided? How far can a company fall before the path toward doom becomes inevitable and unshakable? How can companies reverse course?In How the Mighty Fall, Collins confronts these questions, offering leaders the well-founded hope that they can learn how to stave off decline and, if they find themselves falling, reverse their course. Collins' research project-more than four years in duration-uncovered five step-wise stages of decline: Stage 1: Hubris Born of SuccessStage 2: Undisciplined Pursuit of MoreStage 3: Denial of Risk and PerilStage 4: Grasping for SalvationStage 5: Capitulation to Irrelevance or DeathBy understanding these stages of decline, leaders can substantially reduce their chances of falling all the way to the bottom.Great companies can stumble, badly, and recover.Every institution, no matter how great, is vulnerable to decline. There is no law of nature that the most powerful will inevitably remain at the top. Anyone can fall and most eventually do. But, as Collins' research emphasizes, some companies do indeed recover-in some cases, coming back even stronger-even after having crashed into the depths of Stage 4.Decline, it turns out, is largely self-inflicted, and the path to recovery lies largely within our own hands. We are not imprisoned by our circumstances, our history, or even our staggering defeats along the way. As long as we never get entirely knocked out of the game, hope always remains. The mighty can fall, but they can often rise again.

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Book SynopsisAdam Grant is an organizational psychologist at Wharton, where he has been the top-rated professor for seven straight years. His books have sold millions of copies, his TED talks have been viewed more than 30 million times, and he hosts the hit podcast Re:Thinking. His pioneering research on motivation and meaning has enabled people to reach their aspirations and exceed others' expectations. His viral piece on languishing was the most-read New York Times article of 2021 and the most-saved article across platforms. He has been recognized as one of the world's ten most influential management thinkers and Fortune's 40 Under 40, and has received distinguished scientific achievement awards from the American Psychological Association and the National Science Foundation. Grant received his B.A. from Harvard University and his Ph.D. from the University of Michigan, and he is a former Junior Olympic springboard diver. He lives in Philadelphia with his wife and their Trade ReviewIn a world of aggressive certitude, Adam Grant's latest book is a refreshing mandate for humble open-mindedness ... not just a useful lesson; it could be a vital one * Financial Times *Wise, frank, and funny; a fabulous book about how to think more clearly and more kindly. Think Again offers a spellbinding mix of storytelling and groundbreaking research -- we urgently need this book right now * Tim Harford, bestselling author of How To Make The World Add Up *Adam Grant believes that keeping an open mind is a teachable skill. And no one could teach this hugely valuable skill better than he does in this wonderful read. The striking insights of this brilliant book are guaranteed to make you rethink your opinions and your most important decisions * Daniel Kahneman, Nobel Prize winner in economics and author of THINKING, FAST AND SLOW *Rule number one: never miss a new Adam Grant book! I loved this one! * Malcolm Gladwell *THIS. This is the right book for right now. Yes, learning requires focus. But, unlearning and relearning requires much more -- it requires choosing courage over comfort. In THINK AGAIN, Adam Grant weaves together research and storytelling to help us build the intellectual and emotional muscle we need to stay curious enough about the world to actually change it. I've never felt so hopeful about what I don't know * Brené Brown, Ph.D., #1 New York Times bestselling author of DARE TO LEAD *

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Book SynopsisJust making a decision can be hard enough, but how do you begin to judge whether it's the right one? Chip and Dan Heath, authors of #1 New York Times best-seller Switch, show you how to overcome your brain's natural shortcomings. In Decisive, Chip and Dan Heath draw on decades of psychological research to explain why we so often get it very badly wrong - why our supposedly rational brains are frequently tripped up by powerful biases and wishful thinking. At the same time they demonstrate how relatively easy it is to avoid the pitfalls and find the best answers, offering four simple principles that we can all learn and follow. In the process, they show why it is that experts frequently make mistakes. They demonstrate the perils of getting trapped in a narrow decision frame. And they explore people's tendency to be over-confident about how their choices will unfold. Drawing on case studies as diverse as the downfall of Kodak and the inspiring account of a cancer survivor, they offer both a fascinating tour through the workings of our minds and an invaluable guide to making smarter decisions.Winner in the Practical Manager category of the CMI Management Book of the Year awards 2014.Trade ReviewA well-written, thought-provoking book. * Management Today *A leader's most important job is to make good decisions, which - minus perfect knowledge of the future - is tough to do consistently . . . The Heath brothers explain how to navigate the land mines laid by our irrational brains and improve our chances of good outcomes. * Inc. *The writing is humorous and often surprising . . . coupled with their insightful analyses, the book proves particularly insightful. * Publishers Weekly *

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Book SynopsisTHE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER THAT WILL HELP YOU FIND THE ONE THING YOU NEED TO DO THAT WILL MAKE EVERYTHING ELSE EASIER - OR UNNECESSARYYOU WANT LESSYou want fewer distractions and less on your plate. The daily barrage of e-mails, texts, tweets, messages, and meetings distract you and stress you out. The simultaneous demands of work and family are taking a toll. And what's the cost? Second-rate work, missed deadlines, smaller pay cheques, fewer promotions - and lots of stress. AND YOU WANT MOREYou want more productivity from your work. More income for a better lifestyle. You want more satisfaction from life, and more time for yourself, your family, and your friends.NOW YOU CAN HAVE BOTH - LESS AND MORE.In The ONE Thing, you'll learn to* Cut through the clutter* Achieve better results in less time* Build momentum toward your goal* Dial down the stress* Overcome that overwhelmed feeling * Revive your energy * Stay on track* Master what matters to youThe ONE Thing is the New York Times bestseller that delivers extraordinary results in every area of your life - work, personal, family, and spiritual.WHAT'S YOUR ONE THING?Table of Contents : 1. The ONE Thing 6 : 2. The Domino Effect 12 : 3. Success Leaves Clues 17 : The Lies : They Mislead and Derail Us 26 : 4. Everything Matters Equally 32 : 5. Multitasking 43 : 6. A Disciplined Life 54 : 7. Willpower Is Always on Will-Call 61 : 8. A Balanced Life 72 : 9. Big Is Bad 84 : CONTENTS : 1 : TheONEThing_PMS200+Blk.indd 4 1/17/13 2:18 PM : 2 : PART : The Truth : The Simple Path to Productivity 96 : 10. The Focusing Question 102 : 11. The Success Habit 112 : 12. The Path to Great Answers 119 : Extraordinary Results : Unlocking the Possibilities within you 130 : 13. Live with Purpose 135 : 14. Live by Priority 146 : 15. Live for Productivity 156 : 16. The Three Commitments 175 : 17. The Four Thieves 190 : 18. The Journey 208 : Putting The ONE Thing to Work 218 : On the Research 224 : Index 226 : Acknowledgments 232 : About the Authors 236 : Resources 239 : Copyright 240

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Book Synopsis30 challenges faciles à mettre en place pour développer vos compétences managériales et devenir un leader performantVos compétences managériales sont sur le point d’évoluer. Être un manager performant n’est pas toujours évident et Scott Jeffrey Miller en a fait les frais. Du chaos au succès, il nous partage ses clés pour devenir un leader inspirant et efficace.Vous pouvez devenir un grand Team leader. Ce guide changera définitivement votre façon de manager et vous permettra d’instaurer un management opérationnel et stratégique. Devenez le manager que vous auriez aimé avoir, inspirez vos collaborateurs, instaurez le bien-être au travail et développez une vraie culture d’entreprise grâce à ce guide au ton décontracté et à ses 30 challenges applicables au quotidien!Ces 30 défis vous permettront: De devenir un vrai leader inspirant D’améliorer la performance au travail De créer une vision d’équipe De développer la culture d’entreprise Et d’obtenir des résultats concrets Si vous êtes à la recherche d’un livre sur le management ou le leadership tels que Dream Team ou Manager+ et si vous avez été séduit par l’ouvrage incontournable de Stephen Covey, Les 7 habitudes, alors laissez-vous inspirer par Management Mess!Trade Review« Pourquoi devrait-on vous suivre ? C’est la question au cœur du nouveau livre de Scott Miller, percutant de vérité. Il y expose 30 principes puissants qui vous aideront à répondre à cette question afin d’incarner le leader que vous êtes destiné à devenir. Il s’y livre avec une authenticité et une vulnérabilité qui forceront votre respect. »—Daniel H. Pink, auteur de When To Sell Is Human et Drive « Avec l’esprit et l’honnêteté qui le caractérisent, Scott Miller assume ses propres errements en matière de leadership et illustre combien il est facile de se laisser prendre au piège d’un management centré sur soi. Non seulement ce livre est bourré d’humour à chaque page, mais il regorge de conseils concrets – exercés par tous ceux qui réussissent en management dans le monde entier – et qui vous aideront à abandonner vos anciennes pratiques pour devenir un leader que tout le monde a envie de suivre. » —Liz Wiseman, auteure de Multipliers: How the Best Leaders Make Everyone Smarter « Honnête, sincère et généreux, voici le nouvel incontournable pour un leadership authentique. » —Seth Godin, auteur de This Is Marketing

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Book SynopsisDecision-making has been one of the principal victims of 'modern' thinking. The 'analytical' approach has, of course, brought us vaccines, electricity and the internal combustion engine. But, in seeking to break things down into their component parts and improve the parts, governments and businesses continue to make some astonishingly bad decisions. What's more, many enterprises still pay close attention to 'decisions' whilst overlooking the bigger picture: the organizational system within which those decisions get made. The book sets out to change our 'analytical' habit and invites enterprises to consider the bigger picture. Author Vince Barabba explains an elegantly simple approach to making better decisions. He calls this approach 'The Decision Loom' and bases it on Systems Thinking, Design Thinking and Complexity Theory. Drawing on a lifetime of experience, Vince Barabba sets out, in The Decision Loom, the four core capabilities that any organization needs to put in place to make his proposed approach to decision-making work. They cover 1) having an 'Enterprise Mindset that is open to change', 2) thinking and acting holistically, 3) having an adaptable business design and 4) using the right combination of problem-solving and decision-making methods. Part 1 of the book - The Journey - chronicles the author's professional life, focusing on more than 30 'Lessons Learned'. To name just one: 'Surface and make explicit the underlying assumptions that would have to be true for your particular problem-solving approach to prevail.' Each lesson is derived from - and illustrated by - his professional experience in major political campaigns and at Xerox, Kodak, GM, the U.S. Census Bureau and elsewhere. Part 2 describes an 'Interactive Decision Loom', sets out the capabilities required to make it work, and sketches an 'idealized design' for creating a Decision Loom in your own organization. It focuses on the process of inquiry (which must underpin decision-making), anticipating problems, and the four core organizational (not individual) capabilities needed in a dynamically complex organization (that is to say, all organizations). The four capabilities all draw on the lessons learned in Part 1 of the book and are illustrated by brief case studies from: LEGO, Xynteo, Patagonia Clothing, Nintendo, Cisco, and McDonald's. If you choose to create a Decision Loom yourself in your own organization, the outcome will be: Greater interaction across the enterprise leading to an enterprise that is greater than the sum of its parts.Trade Review"A person could write a good book about two tours as head of the Bureau of Census, under both Republican and Democratic administrations. Or about co-founding a political polling company with Richard Wirthlin and being appointed to important government positions by four U.S. Presidents. Or about heading market research for earlier era technology companies like Kodak and Xerox. Or about research for industry giant General Motors. But Vince Barabba's experience spans all of these! Better yet, he managed to accomplish it while remaining a genuinely humble man. Rather than acting like he is teaching us, he has clearly focused on what he has learned from others in business, in government, and even what he learned personally from academic thought leaders including Peter Drucker and Russ Ackoff." Bill Moult: President, Media & Advertising Analytics, The Nielsen CompanyTable of ContentsForeword: John Pourdehnad Introduction Part 1: The Journey Episode 1: Planting the Seed Episode 2: Political Campaigns Episode 3: An Introduction to Public Life Episode 4: Finally - A Marketing Job in the Private Sector Episode 5: The Conduct of the 1980 Census Episode 6: Back to the Private Sector with Eastman Kodak Episode 7: Getting Started at General Motors Episode 8: Learning How to Learn Episode 9: Because the Future is Uncertain GM Epilogue: An Opportunity Missed Summary of Lessons Learned Part 2. The Design of an Interactive Decision Loom Background: Why a 'Sketch'? The Decision Loom - an interactive decision-making process Capability 1: Having an Enterprise Mindset that is Open to Change Capability 2: Thinking and Acting Holistically Capability 3: Being Able to Adapt the Business Design to Changing Conditions Capability 4: Making Decisions Interactively Using a Variety of Methods Conclusion Appendices Bibliography Index

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Book SynopsisCompanies have more data at their fingertips than ever before. Yet, studies show that many executives and organizations fail to extract real value from it.Challenging the conventional wisdom of data-driven decision-making, marketing professors and behavioral scientists Bart De Langhe and Stefano Puntoni argue that many analytics efforts flounder because data analyses are disconnected from the decisions to be made. In their important book, they offer a new approach they call decision-driven analytics. Counterintuitively, they argue that the key to making good decisions with data is to start by putting data in the background.Drawing from their own research and teaching, as well as real-world business cases, De Langhe and Puntoni offer four pillars of decision-driven analytics and guide you around common mistakes that have held back many organizations from using data for impact.In Decision-Driven Analytics, you will learn how to:+ Avoid comm

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Book SynopsisTable of ContentsForeword ix Introduction: Problem Solving for the Challenges of the Twenty-First Century xiii Chapter 1 Learn the Bulletproof Problem Solving Approach 1A straightforward seven-step process is the key to bulletproof problem solving. Chapter 2 Define the Problem 31Take time upfront to fully understand the problem and its context. Chapter 3 Problem Disaggregation and Prioritization 49Cleave the problem into manageable parts. Chapter 4 Build a Great Workplan and Team Processes 87Drive your workplans from hypotheses to action for efficient problem solving. Chapter 5 Conduct Analyses 111Start with summary statistics and heuristics to find simple answers to complex problems. Chapter 6 Big Guns of Analysis 135Employ sophisticated tools of analysis with confidence when they are needed. Chapter 7 Synthesize Results and Tell a Great Story 179Synthesize your analysis and turn it into a compelling narrative. Chapter 8 Problem Solving with Long Time Frames and High Uncertainty 195Add tools to address issues of long time frames and uncertainty. Chapter 9 Wicked Problems 235Unpick wicked problems to yield surprising insights. Chapter 10 Becoming a Great Problem Solver 253The magic of the bulletproof process is now yours. Appendix: Blank Worksheets for You to Try 259 About the Authors 265 Acknowledgments 267 Index 271

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Book SynopsisA world-renowned hostage negotiator explains how to manage your emotions, think clearly and make informed, effective decisions no matter how stressful or challenging the situation.

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewLeaders rexamines old notions of leadership - especially the outdated view that history is shaped by great men going it alone. General McChrystal shows us that leadership can take many forms, leaders often have different strengths, and great leaders can come from anywhere -- SHERYL SANDBERG * COO of Facebook and founder of LeanIn.Org *Leaders is a superb, thought-provoking challenge to conventional understanding of the nature of leadership. An enlightening, entertaining must-read about why we revere so many leaders who are often deeply flawed and even unsuccessful, and the lessons for thinking about and teaching leadership in the future -- ROBERT M. GATES * former US Secretary of Defense *Leadership, we learn, is complex. At a time when Americans yearn for leaders we can admire and respect, this book... will help you think differently about both leadership and our history -- WALTER ISAACSON * author of Steve Jobs and Leonardo da Vinci *No living American has more convincingly combined the practice and teaching of leadership than General Stanley McChrystal: that's why Yale students flock to his classes. Now, in Leaders, he invites us to join them, with Plutarch as his teaching assistant. No current or aspiring leader can afford to miss this shrewd and surprising book -- JOHN LEWIS GADDIS * Yale University *Leaders is a must-read for all leaders - whether they're just beginning their careers or whether they're already leading an entire organization -- KEN LANGONE * author of I Love Capitalism! *Whenever Stanley McChrystal talks, I take notes. I am so drawn to his ability to cut through pop-culture theories about leadership to get to the core of what actually makes a leader. Leaders takes us deeper than most other leadership books into the true and often messy mechanics of leadership. Anyone who considers themselves a student of leadership must read this book -- SIMON SINEK * optimist and author of Start With Why and Leader Eat Last *

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Book SynopsisTHE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER''Compelling, haunting, tragic stories . . . resonate long after you put the book down'' James McConnachie, Sunday Times Book of the Year The routine traffic stop that ends in tragedy. The spy who spends years undetected at the highest levels of the Pentagon. The false conviction of Amanda Knox. Why do we so often get other people wrong? Why is it so hard to detect a lie, read a face or judge a stranger''s motives?Using stories of deceit and fatal errors to cast doubt on our strategies for dealing with the unknown, Malcolm Gladwell takes us on an intellectual adventure into the darker side of human nature, where strangers are never simple and misreading them can have disastrous consequences.Trade ReviewI love this book . . . reading it will actually change not just how you see strangers, but how you look at yourself, the news - the world. Reading this book changed me. * Oprah Winfrey *Fascinating . . . you should read the book . . . He's tackling the dark side of human nature - what do we ever know about other people? -- Sathnam Sanghera * The Times Magazine *Now that practically everybody seems to be spoiling for a fight, I have found Malcolm Gladwell's Talking to Strangers invaluable . . . His moral - to approach new people with caution and humility - has become my motto. * Evening Standard *Taut, provocative, smart . . . Gladwell's cool, playful intelligence has made him one of our leading public thinkers * New Statesman *A book examining the ways we misinterpret or fail to communicate with one another could not feel more necessary . . . the page-turning urgency of a thriller -- Chris Barton * Los Angeles Times *Superb writing. Masterful . . . bears all the marks that have made Gladwell one of the most successful non-fiction authors of his generation. -- Pilita Clark * Financial Times *A dazzling book . . . Gladwell is a rock star of nonfiction . . . ideas are slowly revealed until the reader arrives at a conclusion they didn't expect. Gladwell is advancing ideas and, sure, they are all open to challenge . . . but they are stimulating and convincing - and you won't regret a minute you spend mastering them * The Times *A wonderful provocation which Gladwell delivers like no other, an awakening to just one of the fascinations that lie in ordinary human experience . . . as ever, Gladwell's genius is in the telling. * Spectator *Malcolm Gladwell made his name bringing intellectual sparkle to everyday subjects, and his new book - about how strangers talk to each other - is no exception. -- Sean O’Hagan * Observer *

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Book Synopsis''Original, thought-provoking and a joy to read'' Tim HarfordWinner of best smart thinking book (Business Book Awards) and a Guardian best books of 2021When it comes to what we believe, humans see what they want to see. In other words, we have what Julia Galef calls a ''soldier'' mindset. From tribalism and wishful thinking, to rationalising in our personal lives and everything in between, we are driven to defend the ideas we most want to believe - and shoot down those we don''t.But if we want to get things right more often we should train ourselves to think more like a scout. Unlike the soldier, a scout''s goal isn''t to defend one side over the other. It''s to go out, survey the territory, and come back with as accurate a map as possible. Regardless of what they hope to be the case, above all, the scout wants to know what''s actually true.In The Scout Mindset, Galef shows that what makes scouts better at getting things right isn''t that they''re smarter or more knowledgeable than everyone else. It''s a handful of emotional skills, habits, and ways of looking at the world - which anyone can learn.With fascinating examples ranging from how to survive being stranded in the middle of the ocean, to how Jeff Bezos avoids overconfidence, to how superforecasters outperform CIA operatives, to Reddit threads and modern partisan politics, Galef explores why our brains deceive us and what we can do to change the way we think.''Highly recommended. It''s not easy to become (more of) a scout, but it''s hard not to be inspired by this book'' Rutger Bregman''With insights that are both sharp and actionable, The Scout Mindset picks up where Predictably Irrational left off. Reading it will teach you to think more clearly, see yourself more accurately, and be wrong a little less often'' Adam GrantTrade ReviewJulia Galef doesn't simply harangue us for not thinking clearly; she diagnoses why we do it, and suggests concrete ways to improve our rationality. This is a book that will make a real difference in how you think -- Sean Carroll, author of Something Deeply HiddenJulia Galef is an intellectual leader of the rationalist community, and in The Scout Mindset you will find an engaging, clearly written distillation of her very important accumulated wisdom on these topics -- Tyler Cowen, author of Big Business and The Great StagnationDrawing on her extensive knowledge of the scientific literature and of popular culture, Julia Galef explores the remarkable human capacity for self-deception - and shows us how we can catch ourselves in the act of fooling ourselves -- Philip Tetlock, author of SuperforecastingThe Scout Mindset offers an insightful, entertaining and genuinely useful guide to thinking more clearly -- Don Moore, author of Perfectly ConfidentAn engaging and enlightening account from which we all can benefit * Wall Street Journal *Highly recommended. It's not easy to become (more of) a scout, but it's hard not to be inspired by this book -- Rutger Bregman, bestselling author of Humankind and Utopia for RealistsWe know a lot about how flawed human reasoning is, but surprisingly little about how to repair it in our daily lives. Thankfully, Julia Galef is here to change that. With insights that are both sharp and actionable, her book picks up where Predictably Irrational left off. Reading it will teach you to think more clearly, see yourself more accurately, and be wrong a little less often -- Adam Grant, author of Originals and Give and Take, host of WorkLife podcastJulia understands human thinking with incredible clarity and she's a master at communicating that clarity to others through her writing and metaphors. I haven't stopped thinking about the scout mindset ever since I first heard Julia explain it -- Tim Urban, writer and creator of Wait But WhyJulia Galef is one of the smartest, most exciting voices not just in American rationalism, but in American writing period. She is consistently fascinating -- Johann Hari, international bestselling author of Stolen Focus and Lost ConnectionsJulia Galef, one of our foremost experts on identifying the problem of motivated reasoning and cognitive biases, has produced the best work to date on what to do about it, both personally to improve our lives and socially to make the world a more rational and reasonable place for all. A must-read for all who have trouble saying "I was wrong" and "I change my mind", which is all of us -- Michael Shermer, writer, founder of Skeptic, and New York Times bestselling author of The Moral ArcThe Scout Mindset is essential reading for understanding how the stories we tell ourselves sacrifice better decision-making in the long-term for a short-term boost to our egos . . . A must-read for anyone looking be more rational in their choices -- Annie Duke, author of Thinking in BetsMost books tell you what to think. This is something rarer, and more valuable: A book about how to think and how to learn, without the fear or favour that so often holds us back from inching closer to the truth. The beauty of The Scout Mindset demonstration is it is, itself, an example of the ethos it teaches. The delight it takes in questioning its own premises, and understanding the alternative arguments, will make you want to be a scout, too -- Ezra Klein, cofounder of Vox, author of Why We Are Polarized, and host of The Ezra Klein Show podcastI've learned more about how to think and reason well from Julia Galef than from almost anyone -- Dylan Matthews, senior correspondent at Vox

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Book SynopsisStart With Why has led millions of readers to rethink everything they do, in their personal lives, their careers and their organisations. Now Find Your Why picks up where Start With Why left off. It shows you how to apply Simon Sinek''s powerful insights so that you can find more inspiration at work and in turn inspire those around you. This hands-on, step-by-step guide will help you to find your WHY. With detailed exercises, illustrations and action steps for every stage of the process, Find Your Why can help you address many important concerns including:-What if my WHY sounds like my competitors?-Can I have more than one WHY?-If my work doesn''t match my WHY, what should I do?-What if my team can''t agree on our WHY?Whether you''ve just started your first job, are leading a team or are CEO of your own company, the exercises in this book will help guide you on a path to long-term success and fulfilment, both for you and your colleagues.

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Book SynopsisWith a new foreword by Ken BlanchardHow management can effectively rid themselves of monkeys' other people's responsibilities that cling to them and prevent them managing efficiently.This book explains in simple-minded if abstract terms how to achieve a balance between supervision and delegation for reduced tension and improved productivity in the workplace.There is a high correlation between self-reliance and morale,' stress the authors. With humour and logic they describe the delicate business of assigning monkeys to the right masters and keeping them healthy, i.e., fed and cared for: if monkeys are managed properly, you don''t have to manage people so much.'

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Book Synopsis'Brilliant and entertaining' Daniel Kahneman 'Quit what you are doing right now and read this' Richard Thaler 'Engrossing, important, and grounded in science' Katy MilkmanWhat if the secret to success is not just hard work, but knowing when to change track?In this game-changing guide, decision-making expert Annie Duke shows why quitting what holds you back is essential for success. Drawing on new research and fascinating examples, this book offers practical strategies and explains:Why it's so hard to walk awayHow to identify when it's best to persevere or pivotHow quitting on time often feels like quitting too earlyPacked with insights from athletes, start-up founders and entertainers, Quit breaks down the mental model that keeps us from walking away and provides a toolkit for quitting anything - a career, a marriage, an investment - at the perfect time.Trade ReviewThis brilliant and entertaining book documents a major flaw in human actions and decisions: the bias against quitting. I learned a lot from its compelling tales of failures and sound recommendations. You will too * Daniel Kahneman, author of THINKING, FAST AND SLOW *Every business school has a course in starting new businesses, but few have a course in shutting them down at the right time. This book fills that gap with brilliant new insights and fantastic stories. Quit what you are doing right now and start reading this book * Richard Thaler, coauthor of NUDGE *Illuminating, easily digestible... she neatly summarizes social-science research from psychologist Daniel Kahneman, economist Richard Thaler and others that helps explain our seemingly irrational behavior when it comes to persisting and even escalating our commitment in the face of losing propositions * Wall Street Journal *Engrossing, important, and grounded in science, Quit is a gem that will allow you to navigate the world more effectively * Katy Milkman, author of HOW TO CHANGE *A game-changing book of strategy from a world-class thinker on risk and decision-making * Shane Parrish, host of The Knowledge Project podcast *Offers a wealth of knowledge to help you figure out when to persist and when to pull the plug * Adam Grant, #1 bestselling author of THINK AGAIN *Quit is the rare book that is both a page-turner and a legitimately important contribution. If you've never thought of quitting as a competitive advantage before, prepare to be enlightened * David Epstein, bestselling author of RANGE *There aren't many times you will say, "this book changed my life." This is one of them * Seth Godin *Only a poker player could write this classic book on when--and more importantly how--to fold a bad hand in business, investing, relationships and life * Ryan Holiday, author of COURAGE IS CALLING *The opposite of a great virtue is also a virtue. And Quit is the perfect dialectical complement to Grit. Weave these two virtues into your character and live a much more fulfilling life * Philip Tetlock, author of SUPERFORCASTING *Quitting is not just an art; it's also a science - and there is no one so uniquely suited to teach us both as Annie Duke * Brian Christian, coauthor of ALGORITHMS TO LIVE BY *You won't want to quit reading this book, both because it is such a rewarding read and also because its lessons are so important, useful, and memorable. * Don Moore, author of PERFECTLY CONFIDENT *Not since Kenny Rogers has an expert storyteller so clearly demonstrated the importance of knowing when to hold 'em and when to fold 'em, nor presented a clearer strategy to determine when, instead of merely walking away, it's time to run * David McRaney, author of HOW MINDS CHANGE *

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Book SynopsisTrade Review“Brown writes with a winning combination of thoughtfulness, pragmatism and enthusiasm... He avoids the trap of presenting design thinking as a panacea. Mr. Brown charts its failures as well as successes…” — New York Times “It’s like getting golf tips from Tiger Wood’s coach. Tim Brown’s firm IDEO has won more medals for innovative design than anyone in the world. If you want to be more innovative at work or in life, study with the coach of champions.” — Chip Heath, co-author of Made to Stick “In his new book, the CEO of design shop IDEO shows how even hospitals can transform the way they work by tapping frontline staff to engineer change.” — BusinessWeek “This should be mandatory reading for marketers and engineers who can’t understand why a product as cool as the Segway wasn’t a breakout hit.” — Inc. “Tim Brown has written the definitive book on design thinking. Brown’s wit, experience, and compelling stories create a delightful journey. His masterpiece captures the emotions, mindset, and methods required for designing everything from a product, to an experience, to a strategy in entirely different ways.” — Robert I. Sutton, author of The No Asshole Rule “With people like Brown codifying design thinking, the tools are out there to solve our problems if a few people are willing to attack them with that sort of tenacity.” — Core77 “Tim Brown’s vision, intellect, empathy and humility shine through every page of this book. Change by Design is for dreamers and doers, for corporate executives and NGO leaders, for teachers, students and those interested in the art of innovation.” — Jacqueline Novogratz, founder, Acumen Fund and author, The Blue Sweater “Design thinking... is a way of seeing the world and approaching constraints that is holistic, interdisciplinary, and inspiring.” — Ivy Ross, executive vice president of marketing, The Gap “Brown is clear, persuasive, and often funny... Even for those of us without our own sovereign nation or blue-chip corporation, design thinking offers a guide for rethinking and organizing our everyday creative processes.” — SEED “Brown makes a potent case for employing this creative collaboration in a variety of settings.” — Miami Herald “With clarity and crispness, Tim Brown, CEO of the honored, global design consultancy IDEO, demonstrates through noteworthy examples how the principles of design found in a studio can be applied to many of the most urgent challenges facing society, business and government today.” — Peter F. Eder, World Future Review “In his highly readable and compelling new book, Change by Design, Tim argues that “design thinking” needs to permeate every organization—and shape all of its interactions with its constituents.” — Gary Hamel, writer of Management 2.0

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Book SynopsisWhen we are baffled by the insanity of the “other side”—in our politics, at work, or at home—it’s because we aren’t seeing how the conflict itself has taken over. That’s what “high conflict” does. It’s the invisible hand of our time. And it’s different from the useful friction of healthy conflict. That’s good conflict, and it’s a necessary force that pushes us to be better people. High conflict is what happens when discord distills into a good-versus-evil kind of feud, the kind with an us and a them. In this state, the brain behaves differently. We feel increasingly certain of our own superiority, and everything we do to try to end the conflict, usually makes it worse. Eventually, we can start to mimic the behavior of our adversaries, harming what we hold most dear. In this “compulsively readable” (Evan Osnos, National Book Award-winning author) book, New York Times bestselling author and award-winning journalist Amanda Ripley investigates how good people get captured by high conflict—and how they break free. Our journey begins in California, where a world-renowned conflict expert struggles to extract himself from a political feud. Then we meet a Chicago gang leader who dedicates his life to a vendetta—only to realize, years later, that the story he’d told himself about the conflict was not quite true. Next, we travel to Colombia, to find out whether thousands of people can be nudged out of high conflict at scale. Finally, we return to America to see what happens when a group of liberal Manhattan Jews and conservative Michigan corrections officers choose to stay in each other’s homes in order to understand one another better, even as they continue to disagree. All these people, in dramatically different situations, were drawn into high conflict by similar forces, including conflict entrepreneurs, humiliation, and false binaries. But ultimately, all of them found ways to transform high conflict into good conflict, the kind that made them better people. They rehumanized and recatego­rized their opponents, and they revived curiosity and wonder, even as they continued to fight for what they knew was right. People do escape high conflict. Individuals—even entire communities—can short-circuit the feedback loops of outrage and blame, if they want to. This is an “insightful and enthralling” (The New York Times Book Review) book—and a mind-opening new way to think about conflict that will transform how we move through the world.Trade Review"Insightful and enthralling...with a scrupulous eye for scientific evidence that is rare in a book this entertaining, Ripley also explains how it is possible for hardened combatants to leave behind the conflicts that once defined the core of their identity." — New York Times Book Review"Amanda Ripley has combined skilled reporting, deep research, and riveting storytelling into a stellar work about an urgent topic. At a moment when too many Americans are at each other’s throats, this is the book our country needs." – Daniel H. Pink, author of When, Drive, and To Sell is Human "Rarely have I read a book as downright clairvoyant as High Conflict. While most of us were raging at the rage in our culture, Amanda Ripley composed a lucid, compulsively readable roadmap to a world in which we can live with one another again. Honestly, I’ll never argue the same way again." – Evan Osnos, National Book Award winning author of Joe Biden “Ripley brilliantly illuminates the forces driving us to build impenetrable walls between ourselves and differing others, as well as the forces empowering us to build bridges over those walls. The lessons couldn’t be more captivating or timely.” — Robert Cialdini, author of Influence and Pre-Suasion “This is one of the most important books that will be published in 2021. The COVID vaccine will soon free humanity from a biological pandemic, and this book, if widely read, could free humanity from an equally deadly scourge— high conflict.” – Jonathan Haidt, Thomas Cooley Professor of Ethical Leadership, NYU-Stern School of Business, author of The Righteous Mind, co-author of The Coddling of the American Mind “The unforgettable stories in this book show how even people who disagree profoundly can still connect with one another and make progress. A book to give you confidence in the future.” – Omar Epps “A brilliant book that reveals how poisonous showdowns work. But more than just highlighting the problems, Ripley's book also provides solutions. Equally valuable in our personal lives, as in navigating the polarized time we’re living in.” – Jonah Berger, New York Times bestselling author of The Catalyst and Contagious "Amanda Ripley shows that the same minds that get us into bitter tribal battles can get us out of them. Via riveting stories in diverse settings—urban gangland, a war-torn central American nation, fractious municipal politics—Ripley proves that happy endings can happen in real life." – Robert Wright, New York Times bestselling author of Why Buddhism is True "The fascinating stories, global history, and dialogue from local politics Ripley includes keep the book moving at a brisk pace... Readers interested in conflict management and negotiation and the decision-making process will be intrigued as Ripley thoughtfully explains the intensities and nuances of conflict, and the crux of high conflict in any setting." — Booklist "A revealing study of 'high conflict,' the intractable sort that seems to be running like a virus through American society... Ripley’s observations are provocative, and she introduces us to ideas of mediation and problem-solving that would make many people less miserable if put into practice... Students of mediation, social psychology, and conflict resolution will find much of value here."— Kirkus Reviews "Illuminating. Amanda takes us around the world to understand how people learn to stop demonizing the other side and start agreeing to disagree productively. I think it should be required reading for everyone in politics and the media—and for anyone who’s had a squabble with a colleague or a blowup at a family gathering." — Adam Grant (LinkedIn)

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Book SynopsisForeword by Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell WilsonFrom a top mental conditioning coach—the world’s best brain trainer” (Sports Illustrated)—who has transformed the lives and careers of elite athletes, business leaders, and military personnel, battle-tested strategies that will give you tools to manage and overcome negativity and achieve any goal.He knows how to win. More, he knows the many ways-subtle, brutal, often self-inflicted-we lose. As the most trusted mental coach in the world of sports, Trevor Moawad has worked with many of the most dominant athletes and the savviest coaches. From Nick Saban and Kirby Smart to Russell Wilson, they all look to Moawad for help finding or keeping or regaining their competitive edge. (As do countless business leaders and members of special forces.) Now, at last, Moawad shares his unique philosophy with the general public. He lays out lessons he''s derived from his greatest career successes as well as personal setbacks, the game-changing wisdom he''s earned as the go-to whisperer for elite performers on fields of play and among men and women headed to the battlefield. Moawad''s motivational approach is elegant but refreshingly simple: He replaces hardwired negativity, the kind of defeatist mindset that''s nearly everybody''s default, with what he calls neutral thinking. His own special innovation, it''s a nonjudgmental, nonreactive way of coolly assessing problems and analyzing crises, a mode of attack that offers luminous clarity and supreme calm in the critical moments before taking decisive action. Not only can neutral thinking raise your performance level-it can transform your overall life. And it all starts, Moawad says, with letting go. Past failures, past losses-let them go. The past isn''t predictive. If you can absorb and embrace that belief, everything changes. You''ll instantly feel more calm. And the athlete-or employee or parent or spouse-who''s more calm is also more aware, and more times than not ... will win.Trade Review“ In this book, you’ll learn how to use the same concepts I employ on the field in your life.” — Russell Wilson, Seattle Seahawks quarterback and Super Bowl champion “ Everyone must check out my dear friend, legend, and mental coach Trevor Moawad’s new book It Takes What It Takes. The Daily Vitamin you need.” — Ciara “To be a champion on and off the field, it takes not only being in peak physical condition but being in top mental condition as well. I have had the good fortune to work with Trevor for a number of years and he is very trustworthy and one of the top individuals in this space. This book will give you a front-row seat to some of the powerful concepts our coaches and players have had unique access to.” — Jimbo Fisher, head football coach, Texas A&M University “I have had the pleasure of working with Trevor for the past eighteen years, and if gold medals were awarded for commitment, honesty, and integrity, Trevor would certainly be a triple gold medalist. His tireless dedication to the athletes he works with is without equal. I have learned from Trevor and I depend on him for valuable advice in my own work.” — Michael Johnson, four-time Olympic gold medalist and president of Michael Johnson Performance “The field of sport psychology and its discipline of mental conditioning has grown dramatically within the past fifteen years, and Trevor Moawad has been at the center of its impact. I have been a colleague of his for eighteen years, and Trevor has not only navigated this field with some of the best college football programs, elite athletes, military, and top corporations, but he has dominated it. This book is a must read for players, coaches, CEOs, and everyone else wanting to improve their mindset!” — Chad Bohling, New York Yankees director of mental conditioning and Dallas Cowboys mental conditioning consultant “Trevor Moawad has a unique understanding of the truth about human behavior, and this book provides the tools needed to acquire the outcomes that we desire. He has the gift of making incredibly complicated realities simple so that as a head coach in an NCAA Power 5 Conference, I can take decisive action today that will help me get what I want. There are no shortcuts...This book gives you a front seat into what he has done for me, Nick Saban, Jimbo Fisher, Kirby Smart, and countless others for the last eighteen years.” — Mel Tucker, head football coach, University of Colorado “I train my body relentlessly in order to be prepared for competition. Working with Trevor on having a neutral mind has given me the same tools mentally and allowed me to build an invincible mind.” — Marcus Stroman, pitcher, New York Mets “The mind is so incredibly powerful, and Trevor does a great job of teaching how we can apply his lessons about neutral thinking to improve our performance in our everyday lives. It’s not only critical to understand what you need to do to achieve your personal and professional goals but also what behaviors you need to eliminate. Regardless of your vocation, Trevor can help you change the way you think, talk, and live.” — Lawrence Frank, president of basketball operations, LA Clippers “Trevor has had the unique ability to establish relevance with some of the most powerful sport leaders, athletes, and programs in the world. He not only built these relationships, but has sustained them, and continually found ways to add value.” — George Pyne, founder and CEO of Bruin Sports Capital “Trevor is at the top of his game when it comes to mental conditioning. His advice is invaluable on and off the field, in the classroom as well as in the boardroom. This book is a must read for anyone looking to step up their game and realize their true potential.” — Christopher Brearton, chief operating officer of MGM Studios and board member of USA Swimming

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Book SynopsisTable of Contents1 Tool The Portfolio Map p. 10 Explore Portfolio p. 14 Exploit Portfolio p. 27 Explore and Exploit p. 37 2 Manage Strategic Guidance p. 50 Explore Portfolio Management p. 70 Exploit Portfolio Management p. 109 3 Invent Pattern Library Frontstage Disruption p. 142 Backstage Disruption p. 162 Profit formula Disruption p. 188 Assessment Questions for Leaders p. 212 4 Improve Pattern Library Value Proposition Shifts p. 230 Frontstage Driven Shifts p. 242 Backstage Driven Shifts p. 254 Profit Formula Driven Shifts p. 266 Questions for Leaders p. 280 5 Culture The Culture Map p. 296 Designing an Exploration Culture p. 308 Innovation Culture Readiness Assessment p. 314

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Book SynopsisA Business Week, New York Times Business, and USA Today Bestseller "Ambitious and readable... an engaging introduction to the oddsmakers, whom Bernstein regards as true humanists helping to release mankind from the choke holds of superstition and fatalism. " -The New York Times "An extraordinarily entertaining and informative book.Trade ReviewAGAINST THE GODS appeared in the "Washington Is Also Reading..." section of The Washington Post Book World. The book is described as, "A comprehensive history of man's efforts to understand risk and probability, from ancient gamblers in Greece to modern chaos theory."-The Washington Post Book World, September 20, 1998Table of ContentsAcknowledgments ix Introduction 1 TO 1200: BEGINNINGS 1. The Winds of the Greeks and the Roleof the Dice 11 2. As Easy as I, II, III 23 1200–1700: A THOUSAND OUTSTANDING FACTS 3. The Renaissance Gambler 39 4. The French Connection 57 5. The Remarkable Notions of the Remarkable Notions Man 73 1700–1900: MEASUREMENT UNLIMITED 6. Considering the Nature of Man 99 7. The Search for Moral Certainty 116 8. The Supreme Law of Unreason 135 9. The Man with the Sprained Brain 152 10. Peapods and Perils 172 11. The Fabric of Felicity 187 1900–1960: CLOUDS OF VAGUENESS AND THE DEMAND FOR PRECISION 12. The Measure of Our Ignorance 197 13. The Radically Distinct Notion 215 14. The Man Who Counted Everything Except Calories 231 15. The Strange Case of the Anonymous Stockbroker 247 DEGREES OF BELIEF:EXPLORING UNCERTAINTY 16. The Failure of Invariance 269 17. The Theory Police 284 18. The Fantastic System of Side Bets 304 19. Awaiting the Wildness 329 Notes 339 Bibliography 353 Name Index 365 Subject Index 369

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Book SynopsisTHE classic work about improving creativity from world-renowned writer and philosopher Edward de BonoIn schools we are taught to meet problems head-on: what Edward de Bono calls ''vertical thinking''. This works well in simple situations - but we are at a loss when this approach fails. What then?Lateral thinking is all about freeing up your imagination. Through a series of special techniques, in groups or working alone, Edward de Bono shows how to stimulate the mind in new and exciting ways. Soon you will be looking at problems from a variety of angles and offering up solutions that are as ingenious as they are effective. You will become much more productive and a formidable thinker in your own right.Trade ReviewIf more bankers and traders had read Lateral Thinking and applied the ideas of Edward de Bono to their own narrow definitions of risk, reward and human expectations, I suspect we would be in much better shape than we are. Sir Richard Branson

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Book SynopsisIn the midst of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, your organisation must harness technology, artificial intelligence and digital tools to stay ahead in your field. Fail to do so, and you won't survive. Culture Coding provides five keys to building a digitally focused, constructive culture that engages staff, delivers for clients and ensures success. It shows you how to take advantage of technology, AI and behavioural science to enable a culture for digital and sustainable business growth, whether you lead a startup, an SME or a multinational enterprise. Read this book to: Understand why open-sourced technology and AI are central to streamlining business services Identify where and how AI can make the most difference to your organisation Use gamification to maintain consistent staff and client engagement and keep making marginal gains in the new relationship economy Apply behavioural science and digital strategies to become an emotionally intelligent business Ensure your organisation is cyber-resilient

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Book SynopsisTim Ferriss, the #1 New York Times best-selling author of The 4-Hour Workweek, shares the ultimate choose-your-own-adventure book—a compilation of tools, tactics, and habits from 130+ of the world's top performers. From iconic entrepreneurs to elite athletes, from artists to billionaire investors, their short profiles can help you answer life's most challenging questions, achieve extraordinary results, and transform your life.From the author:In 2017, several of my close friends died in rapid succession. It was a very hard year, as it was for many people.It was also a stark reminder that time is our scarcest, non-renewable resource.With a renewed sense of urgency, I began asking myself many questions:Were my goals my own, or simply what I thought I should want?How much of life had I missed from underplanning or overplanning?How could I be kinder to myself?How could I better say “no” to the trivial many to better say “yes” to the critical few?How could I best reassess my priorities and my purpose in this world?To find answers, I reached out to the most impressive world-class performers in the world, ranging from wunderkinds in their 20s to icons in their 70s and 80s. No stone was left unturned.This book contains their answers—practical and tactical advice from mentors who have found solutions. Whether you want to 10x your results, get unstuck, or reinvent yourself, someone else has traveled a similar path and taken notes.This book, Tribe of Mentors, includes many of the people I grew up viewing as idols or demi-gods. Less than 10% have been on my podcast (The Tim Ferriss Show, more than 200 million downloads), making this a brand-new playbook of playbooks.No matter your challenge or opportunity, something in these pages can help.Among other things, you will learn:More than 50 morning routines—both for the early riser and those who struggle to get out of bed.How TED curator Chris Anderson realized that the best way to get things done is to let go.The best purchases of $100 or less (you'll never have to think about the right gift again).How to overcome failure and bounce back towards success.Why Humans of New York creator Brandon Stanton believes that the best art will always be the riskiest.How to meditate and be more mindful (and not just for those that find it easy).Why tennis champion Maria Sharapova believe that “losing makes you think in ways victories can’t.”How to truly achieve work-life balance (and why most people tell you it isn’t realistic).How billionaire Facebook co-founder Dustin Moskovitz transformed the way he engages with difficult situations to reduce suffering.Ways to thrive (and survive) the overwhelming amount of information you process every day.How to achieve clarity on your purpose and assess your priorities.And much more.This reference book, which I wrote for myself, has already changed my life. I certainly hope the same for you.I wish you luck as you forge your own path.All the best,Tim FerrissTrade ReviewIf you read one self-help book this year, let this be it. If you have always hated self-help books, this one will change your mind. * Viv Groskop, The Pool *Tools of Titans... is the perfect read for obsessives wanting to boost their new year productivity. * Financial Times *

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Following The Little Book of Hygge, The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning and other bestsellers, Shikake introduces the latest example of practical wisdom from abroad: shikakeology, a phenomenon sweeping Japan. Naohiro Matsumura—renowned as the founder of the study of shikake, the Japanese word for “device”—has devised a new approach to design as astonishingly simple in its logic as it is sophisticated in its psychology. For example: • a staircase painted like piano keys prompts people to exercise • a symbol of a shrine placed in a public square discourages vandalism Combining traditional Japanese aesthetics with the lessons of behavioural economics, Matsumura presents a tool kit for literally anyone who wants to create their own mindful designs—and reveals how shikakes can help us address big challenges, including even climate change. Mind-bending yet elegant, Shikake will inspire readers to appreciate—and transform—the analogue world around them.

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Book SynopsisCrisis Leadership examines the challenges faced by leaders at each stage of the crisis lifecycle', and offers a unique insight into the lessons learned by people in the most challenging of situations.Anyone in a leadership position is only too aware that we live in uncertain times: disaster can strike any business, at any time, and usually without warning. Public institutions, too, face a range of threats from global recession, resurgent terrorism and a stream of appalling natural disasters. For leaders in such organisations, these crisis situations can present both opportunities and threats. How they lead through such challenging times will propel their careers to new heights or destroy them completely.Crisis Leadership examines the challenges faced by leaders at each stage of the crisis lifecycle', from the instant they learn of the crisis, through to moments of critical decision-making and the final tumultuous days. Tim Johnson offers a unique insight into theTable of ContentsIntroduction Part One 1. What is a crisis? And what is effective crisis leadership? 2. Giving ourselves a fighting chance of succeeding Part Two 3. Commencing crisis leadership 4. The challenges of making decision and setting (early) strategy 5. Crisis team leadership 6. Crisis leadership in public 7. Crisis leadership in private 8. When crisis leadership ends Part Three 9. Preparing crisis leaders Notes Index

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Book SynopsisIn today's workplace, employees are routinely expected to coordinate and manage projects. Yet, chances are, you aren't formally trained in managing projects - you're an unofficial project manager. FranklinCovey experts Kory Kogon, Suzette Blakemore, and James Wood understand the importance of leadership in project completion and explain that people are crucial in the formula for success. This updated and revised edition of Project Management for the Unofficial Project Manager offers practical, real-world insights for effective project management and guides you through the essentials of the people and project management process: Initiate, Plan, Execute, Monitor/Control, Close Unofficial project managers in any arena will benefit from the accessible, engaging real-life anecdotes, memorable “Project Management Proverbs,' and quick reviews at the end of each chapter. If you're struggling to keep your projects organised, this book is for you. If you manage projects without the benefit of a team, this book is also for you. Change the way you think about project management - 'project manager' may not be your official title or necessarily your dream job, but with the right strategies, you can excel.

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Book SynopsisTHE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER''A parable written for the age of technological disruption . . . brilliantly told'' Sunday TimesThe international bestselling author returns with an exploration of one of the grandest obsessions of the twentieth century''The Bomber Mafia is a case study in how dreams go awry. When some shiny new idea drops from the heavens, it does not land softly in our laps. It lands hard, on the ground, and shatters.''In the years before the Second World War, in a sleepy air force base in central Alabama, a small group of renegade pilots put forth a radical idea. What if we made bombing so accurate that wars could be fought entirely from the air? What if we could make the brutal clashes between armies on the ground a thing of the past?This book tells the story of what happened when that dream was put to the test. The Bomber Mafia follows the stories of a reclusive Dutch genius aTrade ReviewA parable written for the age of technological disruption . . . brilliantly told -- James McConnachie * Sunday Times *Remarkable . . . a work of art . . . one puts this book down shaking one's head at the folly and human cost of it all -- Paul Kennedy * Wall Street Journal *Gripping . . . in Gladwell's deft hands, the Air Force generals of World War II come back to life as the stirring 20th-century equivalent of Adm. Horatio Nelson and his band of audacious captains from the age of fighting sail . . . Gladwell is a wonderful storyteller -- Thomas E. Ricks * The New York Times *Impassioned . . . engagingly written -- Saul David * Telegraph *Riveting . . .The Bomber Mafia looks at one of the greatest moral challenges of the Second World War -- Michael Lewis * author of The Fifth Risk *Told with the muscular, driving narrative and fizzingly charismatic (real-life) characters of a movie -- Ed Grenby * Radio Times *A thought-provoking, accessible account of how people respond to difficult choices in difficult times . . . Gladwell's easy conversational style works well . . . his portraits of individuals are compelling -- Diana Preston * Washington Post *Unexpected empathy . . . fabulistic energy * Esquire *Lively, engaging . . . a fascinating story -- Gerard DeGroot * The Times *Important and characteristically readable . . . Gladwell is possibly the most confident storyteller in non-fiction. He always knows exactly where he is going, and he takes you with him in pleasure and comfort. -- Simon Kuper * New Statesman *Gladwell's eloquence and flair for lateral thinking make for a compelling read -- Simon Griffith * Mail on Sunday *

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Book SynopsisBusinesses that operate across borders need clear, impactful cross-cultural communication to foster collaboration, avoid misunderstandings and gain a competitive edge in today's globalised world.Global Influence is the business leader's guide to navigating culturally diverse teams and expanding into new markets while promoting personal growth. It equips you with practical strategies to forge authentic connections, propel your leadership prowess and amplify your global impact. Read this book to: Claim your identity as a leader with a truly global outlook Overcome communication fear and express yourself confidently Develop the skills to bridge cultural divides and build meaningful connections across nations Embrace authentic global influence to foster trust, relatability and understanding Stand out in crowded markets and drive business results through positive influence that transcends borders

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Book SynopsisCUT 50% OF YOUR MEETINGS AND IMPROVE THE ONES THAT REMAINMeetings are essential to collaboration and decision making, but they are often irrelevant, time consuming and badly run. People spend an average of 2 days per week in meetings and 50% of it is wasted. This book will help you win back that wasted day a week by cutting out the half of face to face and virtual meetings that do not need to happen and radically improving the ones that remain.The two authors, one an experienced CEO and consultant to major multinationals, the other a millennial line manager working within one of the world''s largest companies, find common ground, and occasional disagreements on creating new ways of meeting both face to face and through technology that are far more engaging and effective for everyone.The book focuses on three main areas: Dealing with the business and corporate cultural challenges in changing the way we meet Cutting out the unnecessary Trade ReviewKevan and Alan Hall are telling it like it is. This kind of refusenik behaviour could change the world. -- Viv Groskop * The Pool *In an increasingly time pressured and resource constrained world this book offers practical tips for freeing up time wasted in meetings and making the ones you have more productive. These no-nonsense ideas and tools are helping our highly collaborative organization make a step change in meeting effectiveness and have given me 10% of my valuable time back! -- Gillian Enevoldsen, Global P&O Vice-President, Mars PetcareBoth thought provoking and actionable. In just a few hours [we] identified opportunities to reduce the number of meetings and the number of people in meetings. Within 24 hours we had reduced complexity, increased efficiency, and lifted engagement. -- Sally Cairns, Chief People Officer, Paddy Power BetfairA systematic approach to cutting out unneccesary meetings. * FM Magazine, Chartered Institute of Management Accountants *

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Book SynopsisWinner of best smart thinking book 2022 (Business Book Awards)Guardian best books of 2021''Original, thought-provoking and a joy to read'' Tim Harford''Highly recommended. It''s not easy to become (more of) a scout, but it''s hard not to be inspired by this book'' Rutger BregmanWhen it comes to what we believe, humans see what they want to see. In other words, we have what Julia Galef calls a ''soldier'' mindset. From tribalism and wishful thinking, to rationalising in our personal lives and everything in between, we are driven to defend the ideas we most want to believe - and shoot down those we don''t.But if we want to get things right more often we should train ourselves to think more like a scout. Unlike the soldier, a scout''s goal isn''t to defend one side over the other. It''s to go out, survey the territory, and come back with as accurate a map as possible. Regardless of what they hope to be the case, aboTrade ReviewJulia Galef doesn't simply harangue us for not thinking clearly; she diagnoses why we do it, and suggests concrete ways to improve our rationality. This is a book that will make a real difference in how you think -- Sean Carroll, author of Something Deeply HiddenJulia Galef is an intellectual leader of the rationalist community, and in The Scout Mindset you will find an engaging, clearly written distillation of her very important accumulated wisdom on these topics -- Tyler Cowen, author of Big Business and The Great StagnationDrawing on her extensive knowledge of the scientific literature and of popular culture, Julia Galef explores the remarkable human capacity for self-deception - and shows us how we can catch ourselves in the act of fooling ourselves -- Philip Tetlock, author of SuperforecastingThe Scout Mindset offers an insightful, entertaining and genuinely useful guide to thinking more clearly -- Don Moore, author of Perfectly ConfidentAn engaging and enlightening account from which we all can benefit * Wall Street Journal *Highly recommended. It's not easy to become (more of) a scout, but it's hard not to be inspired by this book -- Rutger Bregman, bestselling author of Humankind and Utopia for RealistsWe know a lot about how flawed human reasoning is, but surprisingly little about how to repair it in our daily lives. Thankfully, Julia Galef is here to change that. With insights that are both sharp and actionable, her book picks up where Predictably Irrational left off. Reading it will teach you to think more clearly, see yourself more accurately, and be wrong a little less often -- Adam Grant, author of Originals and Give and Take, host of WorkLife podcastJulia understands human thinking with incredible clarity and she's a master at communicating that clarity to others through her writing and metaphors. I haven't stopped thinking about the scout mindset ever since I first heard Julia explain it -- Tim Urban, writer and creator of Wait But WhyJulia Galef is one of the smartest, most exciting voices not just in American rationalism, but in American writing period. She is consistently fascinating -- Johann Hari, international bestselling author of Stolen Focus and Lost ConnectionsJulia Galef, one of our foremost experts on identifying the problem of motivated reasoning and cognitive biases, has produced the best work to date on what to do about it, both personally to improve our lives and socially to make the world a more rational and reasonable place for all. A must-read for all who have trouble saying "I was wrong" and "I change my mind", which is all of us -- Michael Shermer, writer, founder of Skeptic, and New York Times bestselling author of The Moral ArcThe Scout Mindset is essential reading for understanding how the stories we tell ourselves sacrifice better decision-making in the long-term for a short-term boost to our egos . . . A must-read for anyone looking be more rational in their choices -- Annie Duke, author of Thinking in BetsMost books tell you what to think. This is something rarer, and more valuable: A book about how to think and how to learn, without the fear or favour that so often holds us back from inching closer to the truth. The beauty of The Scout Mindset demonstration is it is, itself, an example of the ethos it teaches. The delight it takes in questioning its own premises, and understanding the alternative arguments, will make you want to be a scout, too -- Ezra Klein, cofounder of Vox, author of Why We Are Polarized, and host of The Ezra Klein Show podcastI've learned more about how to think and reason well from Julia Galef than from almost anyone -- Dylan Matthews, senior correspondent at VoxAn engaging and enlightening account from which we all can benefit * Wall Street Journal *Highly recommended. It's not easy to become (more of) a scout, but it's hard not to be inspired by this book * Rutger Bregman, bestselling author of Humankind and Utopia for Realists *

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Book SynopsisAdd value with every decision using a simple yet powerful framework Few things are as valuable in business, and in life, as the ability to make good decisions.Table of ContentsAcknowledgments xiii Preface xv Part I The Decision Quality Framework 1 1 The Power of Decisions 3 Decision Quality: A Framework for Better Decisions 4 Decision Skills Can Be Learned 5 Decisions versus Outcomes 6 Key Points to Remember 8 Endnotes 9 2 The Requirements for Decision Quality 11 The Appropriate Frame 13 Creative Alternatives 13 Relevant and Reliable Information 14 Clear Values and Tradeoffs 15 Sound Reasoning 16 Commitment to Action 16 Judging the Quality of a Decision 17 Key Points to Remember 19 Endnotes 19 3 Getting to Decision Quality 21 Declaring the Need for a Decision 21 Setting the Decision Agenda 23 Understanding the Destination of Decision Quality 23 Avoiding Decision Traps and Biases 24 Designing the Decision Process through Diagnosis 25 Tailoring to Fit the Decision 30 Key Points to Remember 32 Endnotes 33 Part II The Six Requirements for DQ 35 4 The Appropriate Frame 37 A Friday Afternoon Dilemma 37 The Key Components of a Frame 39 Framing the Friday Afternoon Dilemma 41 An Extended Example: The House Decision 42 Developing an Appropriate Frame 43 The Decision Hierarchy: A Tool for Framing 44 Things That Can Go Wrong 46 Judging the Quality of a Decision Frame 47 Key Points to Remember 49 Endnotes 49 5 Creative Alternatives 51 Characteristics of Good Alternatives 53 The Strategy Table: A Tool for Defining Alternatives 56 Things That Can Go Wrong 57 Judging the Quality of Alternatives 60 Key Points to Remember 63 Endnotes 64 6 Relevant and Reliable Information 65 Information from a Decision Perspective 65 An Extended Example: Michael’s Job Choice 67 Structuring the Relevant Information in a Decision 68 The Decision Tree: A Tool for Structuring a Decision 68 What is Reliable? 72 Things That Can Go Wrong 74 Judging the Quality of Information 75 Key Points to Remember 78 Endnotes 79 7 Clear Values and Tradeoffs 81 Values and Tradeoffs for Decisions 82 Michael’s Values and Tradeoffs 82 Values in a Business Context 85 Making Tradeoffs in Business Decisions 86 Things That Can Go Wrong 88 Judging the Quality of Values 89 Key Points to Remember 91 Endnotes 91 8 Sound Reasoning 93 Reasoning for Michael’s Job Decision 94 Reasoning in More Complex Decisions 97 The Relevance Diagram: A Tool for Structuring Complex Decisions 97 The Decision Model: A Tool for Analyzing Complex Decisions 98 The Tornado Diagram: A Tool for Displaying the Relevance of Information 99 Flying Bars: A Tool for Displaying Overall Uncertainty 102 Things That Can Go Wrong 103 When to Get Help with Reasoning 104 The Power of Iterating from a Simple Start 105 Judging the Quality of Reasoning 105 Key Points to Remember 109 Endnotes 110 9 Commitment to Action 111 Two Mindsets: Decision and Action 111 Commitment through Participation and Ownership 113 Conscious Commitment 115 Things That Can Go Wrong 115 Judging the Quality of Commitment to Action 117 Key Points to Remember 119 Part III How to Achieve DQ 121 10 Biases and Traps in Decision Making 123 Mechanisms of the Mind 123 Protection of Mindset 126 Personality and Habits 128 Faulty Reasoning 130 Automatic Associations and Relative Thinking 133 Social Influences 137 Summing Up 138 Endnotes 139 11 Megabiases that Undermine DQ 143 DQ and Megabiases 144 Megabias #1: Narrow Framing 144 Megabias #2: The Illusion of DQ 147 Megabias #3: The Agreement Trap 149 Megabias #4: The Comfort Zone Megabias 150 Megabias #5: The Advocacy/Approval Myth 152 General Guidelines for Avoiding Megabiases 154 Endnotes 154 12 Achieving Quality in Strategic Decisions 157 The Dialogue Decision Process 158 Four Phases of Dialogue 161 Every Decision Situation is Different 163 Advantages of the DDP 164 13 Achieving Quality in Significant Decisions 169 The DQ Appraisal Cycle: Iterating Our Way to DQ 170 The DQ Appraisal Cycle in Action: Robin’s Career Crossroads 176 Summing Up 187 Part IV The Journey to DQ 189 14 The Amoco Unleaded Gasoline Decision 191 Getting Started on the Unleaded Decision 194 Seeking Greater Clarity on the Key Uncertainty 196 Competing Reports 198 The Bottom Line 201 Decades of Experience in Improving Value 202 Endnote 203 15 Building Organizational Decision Quality 205 Organizational DQ 207 The Components of ODQ 207 Reaching ODQ 209 Chevron’s Journey to ODQ 212 Taking the First Step 213 Endnote 214 16 Embarking on the DQ Journey 215 What Next? 216 References 219 About the Authors 223 Index 225

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Book SynopsisSuccessful managers lead others to achieve the goals and objectives of the organization where they strive to produce sustainable growth, financial strength, and high job satisfaction. They also simultaneously meet the needs of all stakeholders. Those management consultants who are in high demand are champions for developing the leadership skills needed to make this happen. Each chapter in Becoming a Management Consultant focuses on a different aspect of being a successful management consultant – from effective listening to leadership styles, self-employment, attracting prospective clients, and everything else in between. There are also exercises to be completed to help the reader hone their skills. James D. Spina draws on over forty years first-hand experience as a consultant to equip the reader with this handy guide which appeals to a wide-ranging audience.Table of ContentsIntroduction Chapter 1. What Do Management Consultants Do? Chapter 2. What Do You Need to Know About Management Consulting Tools? Chapter 3. Let’s Roll! Chapter 4. How To Write a Consulting Proposal Chapter 5. How to Enhance Your Consulting Sales Skills Chapter 6. Key Instructional Skills for Adult Seminar Presentations Chapter 7. Effective Way to Attract New Clients Chapter 8. Two High Demand Consulting Areas Chapter 9. Instructional Models for Training Chapter 10. Future Trends for Management Consulting

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Book SynopsisA human-centric guide to solving complex problems in engineering management, from sizing teams to handling technical debt. There’s a saying that people don’t leave companies, they leave managers. Management is a key part of any organization, yet the discipline is often self-taught and unstructured. Getting to the good solutions for complex management challenges can make the difference between fulfillment and frustration for teams—and, ultimately, between the success and failure of companies. Will Larson’s An Elegant Puzzle focuses on the particular challenges of engineering management—from sizing teams to handling technical debt to performing succession planning—and provides a path to the good solutions. Drawing from his experience at Digg, Uber, and Stripe, Larson has developed a thoughtful approach to engineering management for leaders of all levels at companies of all sizes. An Elegant Puzzle balances structured principles and human-centric thinking to help any leader create more effective and rewarding organizations for engineers to thrive in.Table of Contents1 Introduction2 Organizations2.1 Sizing teams2.2 Staying on the path to high-performing teams2.3 A case against top-down global optimization2.4 Productivity in the age of hypergrowth2.5 Where to stash your organizational risk?2.6 Succession planning3 Tools3.1 Introduction to systems thinking3.2 Product management: exploration, selection, validation3.3 Visions and strategies3.4 Metrics and baselines3.5 Guiding broad organizational change with metrics3.6 Migrations: the sole scalable fix to tech debt3.7 Running an engineering reorg3.8 Identify your controls3.9 Career narratives3.10 The briefest of media trainings3.11 Model, document, and share3.12 Scaling consistency: designing centralized decision-making groups3.13 Presenting to senior leadership3.14 Time management3.15 Communities of learning4 Approaches4.1 Work the policy, not the exceptions4.2 Saying no4.3 Your philosophy of management4.4 Managing in the growth plates4.5 Ways engineering managers get stuck4.6 Partnering with your manager4.7 Finding managerial scope4.8 Setting organizational direction4.9 Close out, solve, or delegate5 Culture5.1 Opportunity and membership5.2 Select project leads5.3 Make your peers your first team5.4 Consider the team you have for senior positions5.5 Company culture and managing freedoms5.6 Kill your heroes, stop doing it harder6 Careers6.1 Roles over rocket ships, and why hypergrowth is a weak6.2 Running a humane interview process6.3 Cold sourcing: hire someone you don’t know6.4 Hiring funnel6.5 Performance management systems6.6 Career levels, designation momentum, level splits, etc.6.7 Creating specialized roles, like SRE or TPM6.8 Designing an interview loop7 Appendix7.1 Tools for operating a growing organization7.2 Books I’ve found very useful7.3 Papers I’ve found very useful

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Book Synopsis''An invaluable resource for making sense of the world, making good decisions, and placing smart bets. A fast-paced and fun read jam-packed with useful information on every page.'' Annie Duke, author of Thinking in Bets ________________ Turn yourself into a superthinker and make the right decisions every time. You want to make better decisions. You want to be right more of the time professionally and personally. However, being more right consistently is a hard problem because the world is such a complex, evolving place. How do you navigate this complexity? Mental models are decision-making tools that guide our perception of the world and our behaviour in it. They help us understand life, make decisions and solve problems. The best models help us make intelligent investments, develop ground-breaking technologies and even travel to outer space. - Note your frame of reference before debating someone with different pTrade ReviewYou can't really know anything if you just remember isolated facts. If the facts don't hang together on a latticework of theory, you don't have them in a usable form. You've got to have models in your head -- Charlie Munger * investor, vice chairman of Berkshire Hathaway *An intellectual playground that will have your brain doing mental reps and seeing the world differently -- Shane Parrish * creator of the Farnam Street blog and host of The Knowledge Project podcast *An invaluable resource for making sense of the world, making good decisions, and placing smart bets. A fast-paced and fun read jam-packed with useful information on every page. I wish I'd had this book ages ago! -- Annie Duke * author of Thinking in Bets *Internalizing these mental models will help you understand the world around you. Once you can spot them, you can change your own behavior to avoid common traps, adjust how you interact with people to get better results, and maybe even articulate new mental models of the world that have yet to be discovered -- Brian Armstrong * Cofounder & CEO of Coinbase *Internalizing these mental models will help you understand the world around you. Once you can spot them, you can change your own behavior to avoid common traps, adjust how you interact with people to get better results, and maybe even articulate new mental models of the world that have yet to be discovered -- Brian Armstrong * Co-founder and CEO of Coinbase *

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Book Synopsis''A feel-good extravaganza, nourishing both heart and mind ... What unites the stories are the twin ideas that an advantage can sometimes be a disadvantage and that a disadvantage can sometimes be an advantage. Yet there is something more powerful and more uplifting that links them'' Kate Kellaway, Financial Times''I devoured in a single reading'' Richard E. Grant''When you read it, you feel like you can topple giants'' Jon Ronson''An energetic, counterintuitive exploration of why (and how) underdogs succeed'' Lisa Appignanesi, Guardian, Books of the Year''Breathtaking'' The New York Times''Truly intriguing and inspiring'' Los Angeles TimesTrade ReviewBreath-taking and thought-provoking * The New York Times *Truly intriguing and inspiring * Los Angeles Times *Gladwell's most enjoyable book so far. It is a feel-good extravaganza, nourishing both heart and mind. Each of its stories ... has an ending that is both happy and surprising. What ostensibly unites the stories are the twin ideas that an advantage can sometimes be a disadvantage and that a disadvantage can sometimes be an advantage. Yet there is something more powerful and more uplifting that also links them. It is that good beats bad - just when you least expected it * Financial Times *When you read it, you feel like you can topple giants -- Jon Ronson

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Book Synopsis Greg Orme is a globally-acclaimed thought leader, author and keynote speaker who has delivered more than 350 talks to executive audiences around the world. His work focuses on how leaders and organisations thrive in a world of accelerating change through developing behaviours, processes and culture which support creativity, innovation and entrepreneurial spirit.   He is a lecturer and programme director at the London Business School where he founded the Centre for Creative Business. He leads transformational change programmes with global clients in banking, automotive, MCG, manufacturing and technology in Europe, Russia and China. He also directs the international Grow Your Business' Programme with the Young Presidents' Organization (YPO). Table of Contents 1 Become a more human human 2 Say hello to Frankenstein 3 Who stole your imagination? 4 The power of purpose 5 Fire up your laser 6 Incuriosity killed the cat 7 Find exciting problems 8 Luck is a skill 9 Sharpen your edge 10 Raising ugly babies 11 Think big, start small, learn fast Epilogue: What’s next?

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Book Synopsis#1 New York Times BestsellerThe latest groundbreaking tome from Tim Ferriss, the best-selling author of The 4-Hour Workweek.From the author: “For the last two years, I’ve interviewed nearly two hundred world-class performers for my podcast,The Tim Ferriss Show. The guests range from super celebs (Jamie Foxx, Arnold Schwarzenegger, etc.) and athletes (icons of powerlifting, gymnastics, surfing, etc.) to legendary Special Operations commanders and black-market biochemists. For most of my guests, it’s the first time they’ve agreed to a two-to-three-hour interview, and the show is on the cusp of passing 100 million downloads.“This book contains the distilled tools, tactics, and ‘inside baseball’ you won’t find anywhere else. It also includes new tips from past guests, and life lessons from new ‘guests’ you haven’t met.“What makes the show different is a relentless focus on actionable details. This is reflected in the questions. For example: What do these people do in the first sixty minutes of each morning? What do their workout routines look like, and why? What books have they gifted most to other people? What are the biggest wastes of time for novices in their field? What supplements do they take on a daily basis?“I don’t view myself as an interviewer. I view myself as an experimenter. If I can’t test something and replicate results in the messy reality of everyday life, I’m not interested.“Everything within these pages has been vetted, explored, and applied to my own life in some fashion. I’ve used dozens of the tactics and philosophies in high-stakes negotiations, high-risk environments, or large business dealings. The lessons have made me millions of dollars and saved me years of wasted effort and frustration.“I created this book, my ultimate notebook of high-leverage tools, for myself. It’s changed my life, and I hope the same for you.”

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Book SynopsisAs a manager or executive, you don't want to make mistakes. You want to make the right decisions that will help your career and business progress. However, no one is free from making mistakes, especially as the world and business becomes ever more complex. In fact, most managers and executives make their decisions without being aware of the clues that separate the right decisions from the wrong ones. This book unravels the mystery that lies between success and failure, focusing on management mistakes. It uncovers the reasons behind most decision errors and shows how to deal with them successfully. It proposes a better approach to goal setting, risk assessment, context analysis, information processing, number crunching and personnel management. It also gives the keys to overcoming the long list of cognitive biases that managers suffer from (whether they know it or not). The book is written from the diverse and rich experience of the author and is based on the examples of dozens of real business mistakes.

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