Showing posts with label books. Show all posts
Showing posts with label books. Show all posts

Wednesday, December 3, 2008

currently reading

i just picked a new book, emotional intelligence by daniel goleman. just reading the introduction and the challenge at the beginning of the book have gotten me amped about reading this book.

this is the quote from aristotle that goleman shares that has really challenged me:
"anyone can become angry-that is easy. but to be angry with the right person, to the right degree, at the right time, for the right purpose, and in the right way-that is not easy."

the first 30 pages are interesting. they uncover the anatomy of the brain and look at where these emotions that we have actually come from. goleman also explains what the body does when different emotions are expressed.

the next section on the nature of emotional intelligence begins with a chapter titled when smart is dumb. sounds thought provoking, i'll keep you posted on some excerpts that i find helpful throughout my reading.

i'm also currently reading through the end of the old testament and i've placed a large emphasis on the book of jonah. he is such an interesting prophet because his emotions and life are still so transparent to today's reader. it is a bit scary how much of ourselves we can see in a jonah. all we have to do is look.

Saturday, November 22, 2008

tribes

this idea of a tribe that seth godin has introduced NSM to has made us rethink leadership. i just finished the book and it had some nuggets that were really worth the read.

- "heretics are the new leaders."

- "...faith is demonstrated by the actions you take."

- "being charismatic doesn't make you a leader. being a leader makes you charismatic." (my guess is this is kevin harris' favorite line in the book)

- "the only thing that makes people and organizations great is their willingness to be not great along the way."

- "change is made by people, by leaders who are proud to be called heretics because their faith is never in question."

this book transformed the way i think about leadership. on the last page, seth challenges the reader to share the book with someone else if you got anything from the book. a few of you may be getting a copy from yours truly for Christmas.