Reading list

I love to read, and I love to read management/leadership books. Send me down the Business aisle at Barnes  & Noble and I’m a happy camper. If you’re feeling a little blasé about your role as a manager, consider picking up a book that sparks your interest – it’s guaranteed to get you excited again.

The following are some titles I recently sent to a reader looking for book recommendations. These are my favorites in the management realm and are worthy of your time.

* “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” by Stephen Covey. Any of Covey’s books are excellent, and if you haven’t read any of them, this is a good place to start. What I like most about “7 Habits” is the fact that they can improve all aspects of your life, not just your time spent in the office. To whatever degree you implement his theories, they will yield fruit.

* “To Do, Doing, Done!” by G. Lynne Snead and Joyce Wycoff. This is a great title on project management and organization. This book actually got me excited about organizing my files – it’s that good. If you can’t remember the color of the top of your desk, consider this book.

* “Love ‘Em or Lose ‘Em” by Beverly Kaye and Sharon Jordan-Evans. Worried your employees will bolt when the job market picks up? Check out this book, a very engaging, fun read on how to keep your superstars from leaving our orbit.

* “Turn it Off” by Gil Gordon. If you have issues with work creeping into your personal life, this would be a good read for you. Gordon offers you many suggestions on how to “unplug” from work without hamstringing your career. He also includes an excellent chapter on how managers can encourage workaholic employees to “turn it off.”

* “Managing for Dummies” by Bob Nelson and Peter Economy. This is a great overview of the myriad of responsibilities and issues associated with being a manager. One reason I like this book is it’s written in such a manner that you can just pick up and read the chapter you want, if you don’t have time to read cover to cover.

* Any of Bob Nelson’s other books, “1001 Ways to Energize Employees’ “, “1001 Ways to Reward Employees”, etc. I like Nelson’s work because they’re nearly all real-life examples of programs or ways managers, well, manage. You can get some great ideas that could be implemented in your department from his works.