If hope is the thing with feathers, possibility is the thing with pages. There’s nothing that does more to ignite my imagination than when people take bold ideas from inside their minds and make them available to all of us in ink and sound. These are the dozen new releases for May and June that fired me up.
Persuasion
1. How Minds Change by David McRaney
A riveting read on the art and science of persuasion. David McRaney's brilliant book will force you to rethink your views about how to motivate other people to rethink theirs. In a time when too many minds seem closed, it’s a masterful analysis of what it takes to open them.
2. Good Arguments by Bo Seo
This is not just the electrifying tale of how Bo Seo won two world debate championships. It’s also a user manual for our polarized world. I can’t think of a more vital resource for learning to sharpen your critical thinking and accelerate your rethinking. It’s the rare book that has the potential to make you smarter—and everyone around you wiser.
Mental Health and Well-Being
3. Future Tense by Tracy Dennis-Tiwary
This book is going to smash your existing beliefs about anxiety and replace them with more helpful ones. As a leading neuroscientist of emotion, Tracy Dennis-Tiwary has delivered the book we all need to help us learn to worry well instead of worrying less.
4. Burn Rate by Andy Dunn
Many leaders struggle with mental health, but few have the courage to open up about it. In this arrestingly candid memoir, Bonobos founder Andy Dunn pulls back the curtain on his life and smashes the stigma of mental illness at work. It isn’t just a must-read for entrepreneurs—it’s for anyone who has ever hesitated to seek help and support. This is the most powerful book I’ve read on manic depression since An Unquiet Mind.
Innovation
5. Disrupting the Game by Reggie Fils-Aime
The inside story of how the son of Haitian immigrants beat the odds, rose to the top of the gaming industry, and breathed new life into Nintendo. Reggie Fils-Aimé offers inspiration and insight for aspiring leaders, innovators, and anyone who’s ever been doubted.
6. Build by Tony Fadell
As the inventor behind the iPod, the iPhone, and the Nest thermostat, people in Silicon Valley have long dreamed of downloading Tony Fadell’s brain. In this book, he does the next best thing: he distills his epic achievements into refreshingly candid, often contrarian advice that you can put into practice right away to build a great product, a creative team, a strong culture, or a meaningful career.
Data and Tech
7. Don’t Trust Your Gut by Seth Stephens-Davidowitz
There are two ways to look at big data: as a threat to your intuition or as a resource to test your intuition. Seth Stephens-Davidowitz specializes in data-driven thinking, and this engaging book is full of surprising, useful insights for using the information at your fingertips to make better decisions.
8. The Digital Mindset by Paul Leonardi and Tsedal Neeley
If you’re worried that algorithms will replace our judgment, big data will make our little knowledge obsolete, or robots will steal our jobs, this book is for you. Paul Leonardi and Tsedal Neeley are experts on how technology is transforming work, and they offer the practical insights you need to understand the next wave of digital change—and ride it smoothly.
Leading and Managing
9. The Power of Crisis by Ian Bremmer
If you waver between perplexed and panicked about the state of the world, my go-to guru on geopolitics is here with a dose of insight and a dash of hope. Ian Bremmer always challenges me to think deeper and broader, and in this eye-opening read he illuminates the possible paths forward on public health, politics, climate, and technology.
10. A New Way to Think by Roger Martin
The strategist who led Monitor and turned the Toronto business school into a powerhouse is a trusted advisor to countless CEOs. Now he’s making his management philosophy widely available in an actionable book that will teach you how to make good choices, avoid common traps, and solve vexing problems.
Memoirs
11. Finding Me by Viola Davis
The celebrated actor and producer opens up about the struggles and successes behind her journey to winning an Oscar, an Emmy, and a Tony.
12. The Office BFFs by Jenna Fischer and Angela Kinsey
For fans of the greatest show ever made about work, two of the stars take you behind the scenes. Jell-O sold separately.
