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New business books we've been loving & forthcoming books you can't miss!

Unprecedented times call for new measures, resources, tactics, and insights―and our spring list of handpicked business titles does not disappoint. 

Here at BookPal, we filtered through the business books we've been loving so far this year, as well as the forthcoming books we're looking forward to most. These books will empower and inspire your organizations or teams in the months and years to come as we regroup, rebuild, reset, and reimagine all that is possible.

We're in this together, and we hope you enjoy!

 

1. Leadership Strategy & Tactics: Field Manual by Jocko Willink

From #1 New York Times bestselling author, Jocko Willink, comes Leadership Strategy and Tactics, which explains how to take leadership theory, translate it into applicable strategy, and put leadership into action at a tactical level. This book is the solution that leaders at every level need—not just to understand the leadership game, but also how to play the game and win it...

The Echelon Front team continues to dominate the leadership space, and we're here for it. 

 

2. #METOO in the Corporate World: Power Privilege and the Path Forward by Sylvia Ann Hewlett

Offering a three-pronged strategy, combining legal remedies with individual and corporate action steps that can be used to protect employees and businesses they work for, #MeToo in the Corporate World draws examples from companies as different as IBM and IPG.

Sylvia's personal experiences coupled with her actionable advice make this a go-to resource for any company looking to not only comply but create a safe, equitable working environment for all. Check out our Author Q&A with Sylvia here. 

 

3. Female Firebrands: Stories and Techniques to Ignite Change, Take Control, and Succeed in the Workplace by Mikaela Kiner

Mikaela Kiner spent 15 years in HR leadership at Microsoft, Starbucks, Amazon, PopCap Games, and Redfin. In 2015, she founded Reverb, an organization that helps companies create a healthy, inclusive culture that engages and inspires employees.

We love a book that empowers women and helps them achieve in the workplace.  Couple that with the fact that this comes from a female veteran from some of the top global brands, and we are paying attention and taking notes.

 

4. Edge: Turning Adversity into Advantage by Laura Huang

Huang argues that success is rarely just about the quality of our ideas, credentials, and skills or our effort. Instead, achieving success hinges on how well we shape others' perceptions—of our strengths, certainly, but also our flaws. It's about creating our own edge by confronting the factors that seem like shortcomings and turning them into assets that make others take notice.

Any book that shares more information about how to embrace your unique "edge" and helps you achieve better outcomes is a book we want to know about, share, and read again and again.

 

5. It Takes What It Takes: How to Think Neutrally and Gain Control of Your Life by  Trevor Moawad

Moawad's motivational approach is elegant but refreshingly simple. He replaces hardwired negativity, the kind of defeatist mindset that's nearly everybody's default, with what he calls "neutral thinking." His own innovation, the method is a nonjudg­mental, nonreactive way of coolly assessing problems and analyzing crises—a mode of attack that offers luminous clarity and su­preme calm before taking decisive action.

We're excited to learn from the most trusted mental coach in the world of sports, Trevor Moawad, who has worked with many of the most dominant athletes and savviest coaches (think: Nick Saban, Kirby Smart, and Russell Wilson). Be sure to check out our Author Q&A with Trevor here.

 

6. Leadership is Language: The Hidden Power of What You Say—and What You Don't by L. David. Marquet

It's time to ditch the industrial age playbook of leadership. In Leadership is Language, you'll learn how choosing your words can dramatically improve decision-making and execution on your team. Marquet outlines six plays for all leaders, anchored in how you use language.

From the acclaimed author of Turn the Ship Around!, former US Navy Captain David Marquet, comes a radical new playbook for empowering your team to make better decisions and take greater ownership. Check out our AuthorConnect Chat here.

 

7. The Advice Trap: Be Humble, Stay Curious & Change the Way You Lead Forever by Michael Bungay Stanier

If The Coaching Habit says, “here are the seven essential questions to be more coach-like,” The Advice Trap is about getting to grips with how to actually change your behavior so you stay curious a little bit longer. There are tools to make your conversations and coaching irresistible—plus resources beyond the book itself, including a one-year, free leadership program from a 52-person faculty of diverse and provocative thinkers.

From the best selling author of The Coaching Habit, which Gallup confirms is the number-one way to be an effective manager (to be a coach!), comes the follow-up book that is a go-to resource for all organizations and teams.

 

8. Upstream: The Quest to Solve Problems Before They Happen by Dan Heath

Upstream probes the psychological forces that push us downstream—including “problem blindness,” which can leave us oblivious to serious problems in our midst. Heath introduces us to the thinkers who have overcome these obstacles and scored massive victories by switching to an upstream mindset. Upstream delivers practical solutions for preventing problems rather than reacting to them

We all need this as we move forward into an unknown future. From the author of Decisive, Switch, The Power of Moments, and Made to Stick comes a book that aims to help us all better navigate problems and challenges—not to mention prevent problems rather than having to figure out the best reaction and action to overcome them.

 

9. Maximum Momentum: How to Get It, How to Keep It by Mike Berland

Many people believe that momentum is driven by emotion and is unpredictable, but as Mike Berland, internationally recognized pollster and strategic advisor, has discovered, it’s actually a science with easily analyzed metrics. In Maximum Momentum, Berland reveals the key to momentum, beginning with the simple physics formula: mass x velocity. He then develops a Momentum Matrix—five signals that decode the science into effective measures.

This is an incredible resource full of examples of how campaigns, companies, and brands get and maintain momentum. We read this in one sitting and couldn't recommend it more highly!

 

10. Powershift: Transform Any Situation, Close Any Deal, and Achieve Any Outcome by Daymond John

Whether you’re an innovator working to turn your big idea into a reality, a seasoned professional looking to land a major promotion, or a busy parent trying to find more time to focus on wellness, Daymond shows you how to shift your power and energy in the right direction.

From the author of The Power of Broke and Rise and Grind comes Daymond's third book, which tells you all you need to know about driving change and mastering your life with the three prongs of influence: reputation, negotiation, and relationships.

 

11. Fix This Next: Make the Vital Change That Will Level Up Your Business by Mike Michalowicz

The biggest problem facing entrepreneurs is that they don't know what their biggest problem is. If you find yourself trapped between stagnating sales, high staff turnover, and unhappy customers, what do you do first? Every problem seems urgent—but there's no way to address all of them at once. The usual result: a business that continues to go on in endless circles putting out urgent fires or prioritizing the wrong things.

From Mike Michalowicz, author of Profit First, Clockwork, and The Pumpkin Plan, comes the ultimate diagnostic tool for every entrepreneur.

 

12. Ultimate Price: The Value We Place on Life by Howard Steven Friedman

Ultimate Price presents in simple terms how economists, corporations, regulators, and insurance companies make and use "price tags" and illustrates how chauvinistic, white supremacist, or elitist values are reflected in them. Friedman shows a multitude of ways people’s lives are being valued, explains the methods involved, and then forcefully argues against the rampant unfairness in the system.

You will be enlightened, shocked, and angered by the details of how these critical calculations work, as well as by the issues and implications hidden inside these impersonal equations that affect us all.

 

13. Intentional Integrity: How Smart Companies Can Lead an Ethical Revolution—And Why That's Good for All of Us by Robert Chesnut

In Intentional Integrity, Chesnut offers a six-step process for leaders to foster and manage a culture of integrity at work. He explains the rationale and legal context for the ethics and practices and presents scenarios that illuminate the nuances of thinking deeply and objectively about workplace culture.

Reid Hoffman—co-founder of LinkedIn—calls Rob "an insider who's combined doing good with doing business well in two iconic Silicon Valley companies. His book contains smart, practical advice for anyone looking to do good and do well."  We're very excited for this much-needed book!

 

14. Unleashed: The Unapologetic Leader's Guide to Empowering Everyone Around You by Frances Frei and Anne Morriss

Showing how the boldest, most effective leaders use a special combination of trust, love, and inclusion to create a space in which other people can excel, Frei and Morriss provide practical, battle-tested tools—based on their work in companies such as Uber, Riot Games, Walmart, and others—along with interviews and stories from their own personal experience to make these ideas come alive.

This book is your indispensable guide for unleashing greatness in other people...and, ultimately, in yourself. High on our list this spring!

 

15. Leading with Gratitude: Eight Leadership Practices for Extraordinary Business Results by Adrian Gostick and Chester Elton

Gostick and Elton introduce eight simple ways managers can show employees they are valued. They supplement their insights and advice with stories of how many of today’s most successful leaders—such as Alan Mulally of Ford and Hubert Joly of Best Buy—successfully incorporated gratitude into their leadership styles.

The influential New York Times bestselling authors—the “apostles of appreciation” Elton and Gostick—provide managers and executives with easy ways to add more gratitude to the everyday work environment to help bolster moral, efficiency, and profitability. Sign up for their AuthorConnect Chat in October here!

 

16. Context Marketing Revolution: How to Motivate Buyers in the Age of Infinite Media by Mathew Sweezey

In a transformed world where customers shape their own experience, what is the key to breaking through and motivating them to buy? It is context—the close linkage between an individual's immediate desires and the experiences a brand creates to fulfill them.  Sweezey defines the five key elements of context, explaining that customer experiences must be: available, permissioned, personal, authentic, and purposeful.

From Salesforce marketing maven Mathew Sweezey comes a bold new book that will help us all provide more context to break through the noise.

 

17. Fanocracy: Turning Fans into Customers and Customers into Fans by David Meerman Scott and Reiko Scott

How do some brands attract word-of-mouth buzz and radical devotion around products as everyday as car insurance, surfboards, and underwear? They embody the most powerful marketing force in the world: die-hard fans. Leading business growth strategist David Meerman Scott and fandom expert Reiko Scott interview young entrepreneurs, veteran business owners, startup founders, nonprofits, and companies big and small to pinpoint which practices separate organizations that flourish from those stuck in stagnation.

From the bestselling author of New Rules of Marketing & PR comes a bold guide to converting customer passion into marketing power.  Don't we all want more die-hard fans?

 

18. The Fix: Overcome the Invisible Barriers That Are Holding Women Back at Work  by Michelle P. King

King outlines the invisible barriers that hold women back at all stages of their careers and provides readers with a clear set of takeaways to thrive (despite the sexist workplace) as they fight for change from within. Gender equality is not about women, and it is not about men—it is about making workplaces work for everyone. Together, we can fix work, not women.

Don't just take our word for it: In the vein of #Girlboss and Nice Girls Don’t Get the Corner Office, discover how to thrive at work from the head of the Global Innovation Coalition for Change at UN Women with what Arianna Huffington calls a "passionate, practical roadmap for addressing inequality and finally making our workplaces work for women.”

 

19. The Forever Transaction: How to Build a Subscription Model So Compelling, Your Customers Will Never Want to Leave by Robbie Kellman Baxter

Develop and cultivate the kind of robust, long-term customer relationships that powerful companies like Nike, Spotify, LinkedIn, and Target have. More and more businesses are concluding that the potential rewards of subscription-based products and services are worth the risk of radically changing their business models. The Membership Economy is here, and it’s here to stay―and if you want to compete for the long run, you need to join it.

We couldn't agree more—after reading books like this and Subscribed, we're believers! Don't miss this new book by Robbie Kellman Baxter.

 

20. Don't Take Yes for An Answer: Using Authority, Warmth, and Energy to Get Exceptional Results by Steve Herz

To stand out, to attract the attention of those who can raise your profile, to protect yourself during lean times, or to gain the interest of future employers, you must harness three critical communication traits that human beings respond to most: Authority, Warmth, and Energy (AWE). When all else is equal―education, work ethic, intelligence, experience, ambition―the single biggest factor in winning business, promotions, friendships, or followers hinges on our ability to communicate and connect.

One of the nation's premier talent agents and career advisors shows you how to catapult your career and your life forward with three key communication strategies―Authority, Warmth, and Energy.

 

21. Power Moves: How Women Can Pivot, Reboot, and Build a Career of Purpose by Lauren McGoodwin

McGoodwin addresses young professionals’ number-one concern—career transitions and growth—and engages them with specific goals including: what a Power Move is, and why they matter; how to cut out comparison, shame, and self-loathing; how to abandon the elusive “dream job;” how to embrace your inner questioner, your inner quester, and your inner quitter; and finally, how to make money moves and take control of your financial future, and tune out from the noise and tune into your own voice.

From the founder of the influential website Career Contessa comes an invaluable career resource for women feeling stuck or unfulfilled that combines actionable advice, learning tools to make impactful life changes, and an in-depth discussion of how to build a meaningful career on your terms. Sign. Us. Up.

 

22. Zconomy: How Gen Z Will Change the Future of Business—And What to Do About It by Jason Dorsey and Denise Villa

Gen Z changes everything. Today’s businesses are not built to sell and market the way Gen Z shops and buys or to recruit and employ Gen Z the way they find and keep jobs. Leaders need answers now as Gen Z is the fastest growing generation of employees and the most important group of consumer trendsetters. The companies that quickly and comprehensively adapt to Gen Z thinking will be the winners for the next twenty years.

The most complete and authoritative guide to Gen Z, describing how leaders must adapt their employment, sales and marketing, product, and growth strategies to attract and keep this important new generation of customers, employees, and trendsetters. 

 

23. Acting with Power: Why We Are More Powerful Than We Believe by Deborah Gruenfeld

Although we all feel powerless sometimes, we have more power than we tend to believe. That’s because power exists in every relationship, by virtue of the roles we play in others’ lives. But it isn’t a function of status or hierarchy. Rather, it’s about how much we are needed and the degree to which we fulfill our responsibilities.

Grounded in over two decades’ worth of scientific research and inspired by the popular class of the same name at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business, Acting with Power offers a new eye-opening paradigm that overturns everything we thought we knew about the nature of power.

 

24. Winning Now, Winning Later: How Companies Can Win in the Short Term While Investing for the Long Term by David M. Cote

Under Cote’s leadership, Honeywell’s market cap grew from $20 billion to $120 billion, delivering returns of about 800%, two and a half times greater than the S&P 500. Offering ten essential principles for winning both today and tomorrow, this is a go-to guide for leaders everywhere who seek to finally transcend short-termism’s daily grind and leave an enduring legacy of success.

David Cote, the much-respected former leader of Honeywell International and one of the most successful CEOs of his generation, shares a simple, paradigm-shifting method of achieving both short- and long-term goals.

 

25. The Money Tree: A Story about Finding the Fortune in Your Own Backyard by Chris Guillebeau

Like financial classics The Latte Factor and The Richest Man in Babylon, The Money Tree uses a compelling story with captivating characters to share its core insight: you are never at the mercy of fortune as long as you have an appetite for hard work and a willingness to step outside your comfort zone.

From bestselling author of The $100 Startup and Side Hustle comes Chris Guillebeau's engaging story about the power you have to create your own financial destiny.

 

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This post was written by Karlyn Hixson, Director of Strategic Partnerships & Editorial at BookPal. She is currently reading Untamed by Glennon Doyle.