You may have a pretty good idea of the type of leader you don’t want to be, but do you have an intentional strategy for how you do want to manage and lead?
If your 2022 goals include being the best leader you can for your people, check out how these books can help you get there!
I find that few books are both data-driven and people-centered but this is one of them. Seriously, both my soft heart and nerdy, researcher soul were satisfied by this book.
The first thing to note though is don’t be scared off by its size. It is a brick, but it is a chose-your-own-adventure brick. Meaning, it is not really intended to be read cover to cover. Rather it is separated into themed sections and thoughtfully titled chapters so you can easily navigate to the parts that are most relevant to you and your team.
If you only read one book on team management though, make it this one. Packed with applicable suggestions and based on decades of research (spanning hundreds of organizations, thousands of workers worldwide, and all sorts of industries), this book does a great job of sharing science-based best practices for leadership, performance management, engagement, work culture, cultivating purpose and more in a digestible format. Some of this content may seem intuitive in the world we live in now. However, where It’s The Manager adds the most value in my opinion is that it aggregates lots of different studies and meta-data to help the reader see how it is all connected, and act on what they learn. Here are a few quotes that stick with me:
“What would happen if we studied what was right with people?”
“Most of the traits of successful leaders can be distilled down to two elements. They know how to bring multiple teams together and make great decisions - and these two elements have a lot to do with whether organizations are agile.”
“If leaders were to prioritize once action, Gallup recommends that they equip their managers to become coaches.”
Bonus: If you purchase a new copy of the book you get a code to take the Gallup CliftonStrengths Assessment to identify your top strengths!
Brené uses a decades of research insights from her work and lived experience to share with readers philosophy and strategies for courageous leadership. She discusses how to have tough conversations in ways that build trust and collaboration, to stay curious and embrace empathy. Brené brings the "human" back to humans at work and this book is a powerful professional development tool for any leader.
For me, Brené’s works align well with my personal approach to the world and psychology background. I listened to this as an audiobook on a work trip and appreciated getting to hear this book in Brené’s actual voice. I have listened to enough of her talks (podcast, speeches etc.) that it felt like chatting with an old friend, which helped me take these lessons to heart more. It might not be everyone’s cup of tea (just like every other book ever written), but for me I really got some good nuggets from it that I reflect on often.
Here are a few quotes from the book that give you a sneak peak on what to expect:
“Who we are is how we lead.”
“When we have the courage to walk into our story and own it, we get to write the ending. When we don’t own our stories of failure, setbacks, and hurt – they own us.”
“Clear is kind. Unclear is unkind.”
Want to act on what you learned? After you read the book, check out the Dare to Lead Hub for resources, assessments, and leadership activities.
This read comes recommended by Travis Johnson, our Senior Product Manager, at iAlign.
Chances are, you probably know someone who has read Atomic Habits. It has sold over 5 million copies and has a lot of buzz in the work and performance spaces. Atomic Habits dives into the science of how to make new habits and break bad ones. Leveraging research from biology, psychology, and neuroscience, author James Clear reshapes how you think about progress. This book not only highlights the compound effect of little changes done consistently but also provides strategies for making changes that last and tracking your progress.
Here are a few quotes from the book to give you a taste of what to expect:
“You do not rise to the level of your goals. You fall to the level of your systems.”
“When you fall in love with the process rather than the product, you don’t have to wait to give yourself permission to be happy. You can be satisfied anytime your system is running.”
“Every action you take is a vote for the type of person you wish to become.”
This book is recommended by Jered Lish, Cofounder of iAlign.
Jered shared the following about Good to Great:
Given iAlign.Work as a company is in its second year of existence (WOOHOO startup life!) it has been incredibly insightful to revisit and reflect on important tenants of organizational theory that continues to shape our strategy as a team and company. Good to Great summarizes the research Collins and his team conducted on the topic of what brings a company from Good to Great. They attempted to answer the question of: “Can a good company become a great company and, if so, how?”.
I love this question, and I love this organizational challenge. In regards to my biggest reflections and takeaways, the points below resonated the deepest with where I am at in my journey of leadership…
1. Rather than relying on charisma or a big personality, strong leadership is fostered with “a paradoxical blend of personal humility and professional will”. It isn’t the bulldozer style of top-down leadership that yields organizational optimization, but humility and passionate discipline that pushes organizations forward towards success.
2. Leadership should have a strong understanding of what the author outlines as the Hedgehog concept, which is knowing: what are you deeply passionate about, what drives your economic engine, and what you can be the best in the world at? According to Collins, good-to-great companies generally take four years to arrive at their Hedgehog Concept and given we are in the startup phase, it gives me grace on myself and team that our answers to these big questions will come with time and experience.
3. Organizations must cultivate and maintain a culture of openness where stakeholders across the organization can voice their perspective in a free and authentic manner. Given iAlign's high value of “value every person” this practice resonated particularly deep with me.
4. And lastly, that work cultures should seek to foster an environment where self-disciplined people are free to work within a respective framework is powerful for yield great outcomes.
The book states:
"When you have disciplined people, you don’t need hierarchy. When you have disciplined thought, you don’t need bureaucracy. When you have disciplined action, you don’t need excessive controls. When you combine a culture of discipline with an ethic of entrepreneurship, you get the magical alchemy of great performance.”
Definitely check out this book if you are in a position of influence or management, as it has brilliant “a-ha’s” to be taken away that can only point your team to organizational success. Cheer!
Call it what you want: The Great Resignation, The Great Realignment, or The Great Renegotiation. Regardless, we are seeing that burnout and its impact on retention really matter.
This book dives into the causes of burnout, consequences of it unchecked, and personal and system-level (but mostly personal) wellbeing solutions. It helps redefine what “work smarter” could look like in a healthier workforce. Hint: hustle harder is not the answer. Using a combination of science and storytelling, Jacinta guides us through her resilience tool kit aka strengthening your “personal pulse.”
As someone who has found themselves highly burnt out in not one but two different careers/roles in the past decade, I have spent a lot of time wondering, “Is this a ‘me’ problem? Am I the common denominator here? Am I not gritty enough, resilient enough, or driven enough to survive the modern workplace?” This book helped me disentangle the elements of my experience that are personal factors that I can work on growing and system-level factors that I can keep an eye out for in the future in interviews and new work environments to navigate or avoid them more effectively in the future.
For those that have lots of prior knowledge of psychoeducation and behavioral health tool like mindfulness, cognitive dissonance, thought de-fusion, emotion identification etc. this book is a helpful refresher and can reframe how to use these tools in the world of work if you have been primarily using them in personal environments outside of work. If you are new to these concepts, The Burnout Fix is a great and accessible place to start! The Burnout Fix also comes with activities, reflection worksheets and more to help the reader put learning into action.
Happy reading! We hope this list inspires your learning and look forward to hearing what steps you are taking to grow your leadership perspectives!
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