3 Business Books | October
Here are three more books I’m reading, for business leaders out there looking to read and grow.
One of my favourite things to do with the extra time I’ve currently got is sit outside with a coffee and read. It’s calming, it’s a productive use of my time and it’s completely COVID-safe. You should try it.
If you like, I can send you these books myself. I explain more below and you can sign up here.
Alchemy: The suprising power of ideas that don’t make sense
Rory Sutherland is Vice Chairman of the renowned Oglivy advertising agency. In Alchemy, he encourages us to widen how we think and act, basing our decisions less on science - when appropriate. He argues, “to be brilliant, you have to be irrational” and highlights his points using many anecdotes from his own experience of irrationality beating the science - such as how increasing the thickness of envelopes increased the donations in a direct-response fundraising campaign, but encouraging donors to fill out a Gift Aid form so the charity could claim an extra 25% from the government, decreased donations.
Did you know that bicycles were discovered by accident and physicists still don’t fully understand them? According to economists, giving people an incentive (money or gifts) for doing something you like is perfectly rational, but as Sutherland points out, you don’t want to offer your spouse money or a sticker for sex. Even down to how crimes have been solved (or not) and how churchgoing ties into poverty and marriage stability; the seemingly irrational often trumps the “correct” way of thinking.
Science has its place, as does logical analysis - Sutherland is very clear about that and I agree. But bringing some irrationality into our lives, our businesses and our processes is the first step to achieving magic.
Order from Amazon -> https://amzn.to/36F4qq0
The Dichotomy of leadership
I often speak about dichotomies - nuances that need to be understood, balances that need to be struck, between seemingly conflicting principles, based on the context.
For example, do you “Do It Once, Do It Right” - putting effort and time in to get the perfect result so you don’t have to go back and repeat things - or do you “Just Ship It” - getting something out there, because something is better than nothing, waiting for perfection is a killer and things can always be changed down the line?
When I got to the end of Extreme Ownership, the first book by former Navy SEALS instructors Jocko Willink and Leif Babin, I discovered that their second book was called The Dichotomy of Leadership and went to order it straight away, knowing that it would resonate with me. It did.
Just like the previous book, TDOL is formed of chapters structured with a battlefield anecdote, a business application and the lessons. This clear progression gives the background for the lesson, a practical business example and the pure theory you can apply in your own context.
Order Extreme Ownership from Amazon -> https://amzn.to/2GqYoPj
Order The Dichotomy of Leadership from Amazon -> https://amzn.to/2SzzuPH
The ultimate sales letter
It doesn’t matter if you’re sending letters by post or WhatsApping your prospects. It doesn’t matter if it’s 1830 or 2050. Somethings have always worked and always will.
Others change.
Dan Kennedy’s book contains both the up-to-date and the timeless.
You need good copywriting, you need good formatting and many of the lessons that Kennedy gives in the context of writing a sales letter can be applied elsewhere in sales, marketing and general persuasion techniques.
Buy now on Amazon -> https://amzn.to/3ntRWr9
What did you think?
Don’t forget to let me know if you enjoyed these books. I want to hear what you learned from them, what made you cringe, what you’re going to try and action having read them. Reach out to me :)
